BREAKING: Ford Takes On LEAF With All-New Focus Electric and Half the Charging Time

The all-new 2012 Ford Focus Electric has already been buzzing with the release of pictures on one of the Ford Facebook pages earlier this week (see our report). That is just the prong of the proverbial extension cord. Ford official announced the all-new 2012 Ford Focus Electric today and some interesting specs that will probably have Nissan a little unhappy. The announcement also represents the “first fuel-free, rechargeable passenger car from Ford,” and show commitment to the promise to deliver five electrified vehicles to market by 2013 in North American and Europe.

Some might think that Nissan beat Ford to the punch on the electric vehicle front, but then it really depends on how you look at it. Nissan has done amazing things with the LEAF and truly someone had to be first to pave the way for consumer adoption and acceptance of affordable and mainstream vehicles. On the other hand others can learn from that and Ford may have the edge in this race. The all-new Ford Focus Electric boasts a recharging charging time of three to four hours at a home using the available wall-mounted 240-volt charge station. According to Ford, that is half the time of the Nissan LEAF. The Ford Focus Electric will also come equipped with a special version of MyFord Touch™ (also featured at CES this week) made for electric customers; the intention is to introduce customers to the MyFord Mobile app that will let them monitor key vehicle functions with their smartphone.

“Focus Electric is the flagship of our new family of electrified vehicles, showcasing our commitment to offer consumers choice when it comes to fuel-efficient or fuel-free vehicles,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president for Global Product Development. “Its advanced powertrain will deliver significant energy efficiency advantages and zero CO2 emissions without compromising driving enjoyment. And its suite of smart driver information technologies will transform the way customers think about energy usage and their transportation needs.”

The official eMPG won’t be released for a bit and neither has the official range, but Ford says that the Focus Electric will be competitive with current EVs on the market—and we believe them. Ford is continuing to excel at bringing up-market features to their vehicles in the true Henry Ford spirit of a car everyone can buy. This time it even comes in other colors besides black. Stay tuned for more on the all-new 2012 Ford Focus Electric right here at AllSmallCars.com.

 

 

[Source: Ford]