I read this article today. Ford brings contrasts of electric and gas cars into sharper focus - Los Angeles Times Ford will have 2 Ford Focus vehicles, one electric and one gas. This will be a direct comparison of the two. Interesting that their Battery weighs about 600 to 700 pounds and costs $12,000 to $15,000 — more than half the retail value of a similar-size internal-combustion car.
23kWh 100 mile range pack is nearly identical to the Leaf (24kWh). The Price starts at $39,200 apparently prior to the $7500 tax credit, about $4000 more than the Leaf. Have not compared features or performance.
Pricey...a little more range, but it's still not a "pile the family in the car and lets go to Disney world" car, so what's the point? I think there should be more emphasis on producing an "affordable" ($29,999 before credits) car. I'm not saying we shouldn't develop a longer range car, but realistically, one people can afford. 200-300 mile range is going to cost $80k-100k now. Very few people are ready for that. It's going to give EVs a bad name. Let that wait until battery prices come down and capacity goes up.
Still have to do that. At a glance it is a high trim equipped Focus(has nav and top end stero). I do know the Focus already has a higher rated charger to allow it to charge faster on a standard outlet. +1 I'd look at the iMiEV first if EV was possible for me, but it is a stripper (part of why I like it) compared to the others. People still expect more for a car that price though. Then it also has a shorter rated range. The biggest hurdle is battery price. Which is why I'm glad Ford's CEO stated a battery price range publicly. The public doesn't realize how much these packs now cost. Even here there has been statements that the Volt and iMiEV should be cheaper. It just isn't possible at this time. Battery prices have to come down, and production/demand up first. The Focus is pricey. It is a limited number, testing the waters, production run though. Being built on the Focus line does mean Ford can make quicker changes to production if demand and batteries improve, in theory.
Look, when flat screen TVs first came out, they were very expensive compared to the regular 25" CRT. So, "how long does it take to make up the difference?"...nobody ever asks that question about TVs, smartphones, etc. And the price of flatscreens has plummeted...and some smartphones are "free".
