Ford Focus News
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The Ford Motor Company has created a lot of great history in its 107 years in business and they have come a long way from the Model T. The innovation however hasn't changed over the company’s long history, a fact proved by the most recent press release to hit the automotive wire this morning. According to Ford, the company will be delivering their fourth nameplate or model in 2011 that will get 40-mpg. And that is really just the tip of the iceberg…or is that tailpipe? Ford engineers have been hard at work to increase the technology in their products from in-car entertainment to...
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Ford Announces 19 Launch Markets For 2012 Focus Electric
Ford's first all-electric passenger vehicle, the 2012 Focus Electric, has just received its list of initial launch markets. Totaling 19 cities in all, the vehicle will roll out across the country with Nissan LEAF-like targets for range and performance. Ford says the Focus Electric will be shooting...
Nelson Ireson -
Ask And You Receive: 2012 Ford Focus Gets Handling Upgrades
When you think of small and affordable cars, responsive handling might not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, it turns out that just because a car is small or reasonably priced doesn’t mean that those looking to purchase them are less spirited in their driving. This is where the...
Jonathan McGrew -
2012 Ford Focus Electric Will Surpass Volt On Volume, But Not Leaf
October is the month of electric-car media this year, with major press rollouts and lots of coverage of both the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the 2011 Nissan Leaf. Next year, several more electric cars arrive on the U.S. market. One is the 2012 Ford Focus Electric, and yesterday, Ford discussed volume...
John Voelcker -
Looking For a Deal On a Car? Ford Helps With Scribd Tech Rebate
If you are in the market for a small car, but still want some of the comforts and whiz-bang features of a more expensive luxury car, then Ford may have just what you are looking for. Ford has published through Twitter via Scribd.com a Focus Technology Rebate program. All you have to do is print it...
Jonathan McGrew -
New York Power Authority Embraces Ford's Electric Future
New York City has one of the best mass transit systems of any major metropolis. But the City itself is still noisy, polluted and congested. The first two may soon be eased, thanks to continuing work from New York’s Power Authority (NYPA), which showcased a range of all-electric and hybrid...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Electric cars need to be recharged, obviously. How car companies choose to provide the all-new equipment to do that varies significantly among makers. For its upcoming 2012 Ford Focus Electric, Ford just jumped out ahead of the car to announce that it will provide what it calls a "convenience cord" that will allow the electric Focus to be recharged at any standard (120-Volt) wall plug. That charging won't be very fast, of course. Using the faster wall-mounted 240-Volt charging station--which Ford calls "optional," meaning they'll charge for it, just as Nissan and Chevrolet do--the Focus...
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2012 Ford Focus To Start In Interactive Road Rally Series
If you are fans of The Amazing Race, then you are going to have to mark your calendars for the debut of a new kind of reality television series from the same creators. Ford announced this week that they are teaming up with the creators of The Amazing Race — Bertram van Munster and Elise...
Jonathan McGrew -
2012 Ford Focus Debuts In Paris With High-Tech Features
This year has been full of excitement for Ford, especially with the much-anticipated launch of the 2011 Ford Fiesta. Quite a car it is too, but now we are setting our sights on the Fiesta’s next of kin, the 2012 Ford Focus. According to the press release from Ford, the all-new for 2012 Ford...
Jonathan McGrew -
VentureBeat GreenBeat Tests 2012 Ford Focus Electric Prototype
Ford announced today that it will partner with Texas utility giant Oncor to prepare the northern region of the state for electric vehicles (EVs). The collaboration will range from consumer education to working behind-the-scenes to gather data and prepare the grid for EVs. The automaker announced a...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Ford Prepares To Launch Most Significant Car Range in Paris
Ford has been preparing to move to a global product strategy and all of the hard work and planning seems to be paying off. At the end of the month Ford will be launching its first “truly global product development under the company’s ONE Ford strategy.” Which car earns the credit...
Jonathan McGrew -
2012 Focus EV Will Rely On Liquid-Cooled Lithium-Ion Battery System
As electric cars start to increase in power and range, so do the stresses and requirements placed on their oh so vital batteries. Most automakers have chosen to stick with lithium-ion batteries to power their new generation of electric vehicles and one of the crucial factors determining the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Safety Is a Key Part Of the 2011 Ford Focus Electric Design
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Are Small Electric Cars Good For Commuters?
The Answer Depends On How You Define a Commuter
Jonathan McGrew -
Charging Your Electric Car At Home: What You Need To Know
One of the most important aspects of electric-car ownership might not be how they drive, or how far you'll go on a charge, but how you'll actually charge it in the first place. That's why we asked "What comes first, the car or the charger?", with many potential EV owners waiting for a public...
Antony Ingram -
Solar Array, Lithium Cells To Power Part of Ford Focus Plant
Many houses, stores, and factories across the U.S. now have arrays of photovoltaic solar cells mounted on their roofs. These days, that's hardly news. But Ford's announcement that it will install half a megawatt of power-generating solar panels at its Wayne, Michigan, assembly plant has a new...
John Voelcker -
Driven: Ford Focus Electric From Jay Leno’s Green Car Challenge
We Go For a Spin In the Boulder Foothills With Zero Emissions
Jonathan McGrew -
Report: All-Wheel Drive Hybrid Hard Hitter To Join Ford Focus Lineup
Hot hatches. The Europeans love them, we--as a whole--apparently hate them, and consequently miss out on some amazing cars that our cousins across the Atlantic have been enjoying for years. But that’s all about to change thanks to stylish newcomers like the 2011 Ford Fiesta and upcoming 2012...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The small, seaside town of Brighton UK, some 50 miles south of London, has often been the destination for many a weary Londoner keen to take in its pebbled beaches, kitsch souvenir shops and traditional fish and chip suppers. But today it wasn't sticks of sweet sugary ‘seaside rock' candy cane or brisk sea air which drew a host of electric, hydrogen and hybrid vehicles and their drivers to Brighton. It was the 2010 Bridgestone Eco-Tour rally, a modern reverse-route reenactment of the vintage vehicle run open to pre-1906 cars that has taken place between London and Brighton for more than 100...
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2011 Elantra, 2012 Focus: 40 MPG Without Hybrid Fuss
Hybrid technology's responsible for those airy fuel economy numbers from the likes of the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius, but the 40-mpg barrier's about to be broken by a pair of compact cars--without any batteries or hybrid add-ons whatsoever. Earlier this year, we showed you the 2012...
Martin Padgett -
Coulomb launches ambitious plan to electrify cars: 4,600 new charging stations
Coulomb Technologies unveiled ambitious plans today to install 4,600 new charging stations for plug-in vehicles in homes and commercial spaces across the U.S. — a project nearly half-funded by federal stimulus money.The news comes at a tenuous time for electric car makers and electric grid...
John Voelcker -
Lincoln Puts New Small Car In Plan For the Future
New C-Segment Car Goes To Lincoln With Mercury Demise
Jonathan McGrew -
Dead Before Arrival: Mercury Killed, Compact Tracer Vanishes
To the long list of dead U.S. car brands, you can now add one more: Mercury. The Ford Motor Company announced today that Mercury production would cease by the end of this year. That means that the widely anticipated compact Mercury version of the 2012 Ford Focus--named "Tracer" after the...
John Voelcker -
The Next Big Range Extender for Electric Cars? New Tires
Automakers are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to squeeze the last erg of electric energy from a whole range of forthcoming electric cars. Expensive software controllers and astronomically costly bits of composite body pieces are part of the game plan for vehicles like the 2011 Nissan Leaf...
Martin Padgett