Ford Focus Electric
Recently we wrote about the new Nissan Leaf. However Nissan aren’t the only ones with a new zero emissions vehicle. Ford have a history of creating great cars and have been around since the conception of the combustion engine vehicle. Join us as we take a look at this new generation of Focus.
Where as the Leaf is the ideal family car the Focus Electric is more likely to be driven by the businessmen of the world. As with the Leaf Ford haven’t really tried to make this car stand out from the crowd. If I saw this car in my street I wouldn’t even be able to tell it was electric, even the front grille is purely for aesthetics. Car manufacturers have learnt from the mistakes of previous electric cars, and have aimed to make them fit in with current vehicles.
Specification
The Ford is capable of 100 miles before you need to recharge, this isn’t ideal for those long trips at the weekend, but for getting to the office and back this is perfect. The Focus is powered by a liquid cooled battery pack, which can be fully charged in just a few hours. In fact the 4 hours charge time is half that of the Nissan Leaf. You can also download the Focus Electric mobile phone App, which allows you to monitor all the vital statistics. With a top speed of 84mph the Focus is far from slow, and steering, breaking and handling are all on par with that of a petrol Focus.
Design
The design of the Focus Electric is understated yet modern. Unlike the Leaf the Ford isn’t going to win any design awards, but it will fit well with the mass public. Ford have taken a leaf out of Nissan’s book with the interior. The dashboard is full of lights and a range of illuminated buttons. What lets the dashboard down however is that it seems very overcomplicated, although it will be interesting to see how it functions in the flesh. A nice feature is a display which, depending on your driving habits, tells you how much range you have with increasing amounts of butterflies, cute. Unfortunately this dashboard would not make it to my top 10 list.
Overall Ford have done a great job at creating an electric car for the masses. I am sure these, and similar Fords will be lining our streets in no time. The Focus Electric is due in the EU in 2013, although a range of these cars are currently being driven in Hillingdon, London to see how they could be marketed in the UK.
