Recently in New York City, Ford invited a handful of journalists to take a brand new Ford Focus Electric for a spin around the west side of Manhattan. But before we got behind the wheel, Eric Kuehn, Chief Nameplate Engineer for the Focus Electric gave us the low-down on what's new in this EV.
Kuehn made it pretty clear that Ford is looking to compete more aggressively with the Nissan Leaf with this iteration, which the automaker claims can go from no juice to fully charged in half the time (around 4 hours) - using of Ford's 240-volt charging station that costs an additional US$1,500 - while also getting a better single-charge range of about 76 miles (122 km).
At the core of the electric Focus, is a pair of 600 pound (272 kg) liquid-cooled lithium-ion 23 kilowatt hour batteries. Fortunately, there's an app for managing them.
MyFord Mobile features prominently in Ford's pitch for its electric vehicle with an app to help plan trips, manage charging and locate charging stations along the way. Another cool new digital bonus is a feature Ford calls "butterflies," a fun little gimmick that pops up butterflies on the dashboard display to indicate surplus range is available.
Kuehn explained that learning to brake early and easily and taking advantage of the Focus Electric's regenerative braking is the best way to boost your butterfly count. It's a technique that takes a little getting used to, as you'll see in the video of my test drive below.
When I did get behind the wheel, it was a little shocking how much the Focus Electric drives like a regular Focus. The suspension was a little tight, probably something to do with all the extra weight in those batteries, and it's not the roomiest compact around, but it sure had more pickup than other electric vehicles.
Is it worth the US$39,200 sticker price, though? See if my video test drive helps you decide if it's worth testing out yourself.
A shame because it's exactly what we'd like, what we need for our daily drive.
We saw it first with the new Mondeo and now with this Focus, even the colour is more Aston Martin than Ford and it fools no one. Potential Ford customers won't think they're getting an Aston and the Aston buyers will see this as hurting the Aston Martin brand - just imagine parking you're DBS and then someone parks a Focus next to it with a front mimicking your Aston!
Also with the copy crap Chinese automakers are pulling all the time then I think it's stupid that Ford now does the same and, sort off, says it's okay to copy (and I do know Ford owns 12% of Aston Martin).
The high price here in the US is offset by many early-adopter incentives. You can knock $10-$12.5k off the price of that car here in California right away ($7.5-$10k in other states), and you get to use carpool lanes as a solo driver (this is also a BIG DEAL). Also, one can get a 220V home charger and installation at no cost via programs aimed at promoting EV adoption.