Electric Ford Focus Coming to Market
President Obama heads to Michigan today to visit the plant that will be building batteries for the Chevrolet Volt and the Ford Focus Electric. Most people have heard of the Volt, but the announcement of the battery supplier is the first confirmation that the electric Focus Electric will be hitting the market.
The Focus electric isn’t unheard of, however. “The redesigned Focus sedan and hatchback were shown at this year’s Detroit auto show, but the electric powertrain was only mocked up in the previous-generation Focus on sale today. The redesigned Focus with a gasoline engine goes on sale early in 2011 as a 2012 model,” says Kicking Tires.
The Wall Street Journal writes, “The Focus Electric will have a target driving range of up to 100 miles per full charge. It is one of five electrified vehicles Ford plans to bring to market in the U.S. in the next two years. The vehicle will be produced in Wayne, Mich., which will begin assembling gasoline versions of the 2011 Focus later this year.”
The Focus electric is expected to hit the market sometime after the first quarter of 2011. As for the Volt’s batteries, though the car hits the market this year, The Detroit News says “Production of the Volt cells is expected to begin by the middle of 2012. Production of the cells for the Focus Electric will initially come from Korea.” Until the new battery factory is up to speed, Volt batteries will come from another source.
If you’re in the market for a new car, check out the U.S. News rankings of this year’s best cars as well as this month’s best car deals.
-Jamie Page Deaton
