VIDEO: Ford engineers show off the new Focus BEV for the Jay Leno Show
Jay Leno's Green Car Challenge Ford Focus EV - Click above for high-res image gallery
We already showed you the first images of the new battery electric Focus that Ford has built for the guests of the new Jay Leno show to use in his Green Car Challenge. Now Ford has also posted a video with some of the engineers showing off their handiwork. Once the team's Lisa Drake, chief engineer at Ford's sustainable mobility technology lab, got the Euro-spec focus electrified, it was time for the Ford Racing crew to charge it up. Andy Slankard, engineering supervisor at Ford Racing, describes the work done to prepare the car for its TV life. While the two show cars started life as Focus ST models, the new powertrain and the added mass of the 23 kWh battery pack meant the suspension needed some help. With the pack sitting in the cargo hold at the back, the weight balance was undoubtedly shifted rearward. Still, the car looks pretty good going through the autocross. Check out the video after the jump. Thanks to Clifford for the tip!
[Source: Ford]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
GoodCheer 3:52PM (9/18/2009)
Oh my gosh... what do you know, it actually is really easy to build an electric car.
You heard Ford say it here.
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jake 6:29PM (9/18/2009)
Easy to make a one-off car (even amateurs can do their own conversions with the right tools and instructions) but not very easy to make one that meets all the safety requirements, is refined in everyday driving, etc. This is why we are seeing so many start-ups and even major automakers doing these electric prototypes. It's not too hard to put together a decent prototype, but putting one for sale is a whole other matter.
monica 4:12PM (9/18/2009)
mass production
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jpm 4:13PM (9/18/2009)
Awesome, now SELL the damn thing to the public! What's the big hold up??
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Bip-D-Bo 9:01PM (9/18/2009)
C'mon people. Cut out the comments about "Why didn't you guys build an electric car in the first place?" The answer is that until just a few years ago, the battery technology did not exist! The GM EV1 had nearly a ton of battees that only held the energy of maybe 2 liters of gas. I know these figures aren't exact, but they're in the right ballpark. You might as well get angry at AT&T for going with wired telephones before cellular. Also, there is a huge difference between making a prototype and mass producing an affordable car while making a profit. Tesla sells at $100,000 and still looses money. No oil company conspiracies. Electric cars are coming to the masses, but it will take some time. Be patient.
jpm 10:51PM (9/18/2009)
Nah I don't really buy that argument. After having talked to 2 ev rav 4 owners, i'm convinced otherwise.
http://www.elearnenglishlanguage.com/difficulties/looselose.html
skierpage 4:03AM (9/19/2009)
C'mon Bip-D-Bo,
GM EV1 NiMH pack weighed 481 kg. Tesla achieved profitability in July.
Bip-D-Bo 3:22PM (9/19/2009)
@ JPM; Don't talk to the owners. Talk to the manufacturers and the carcompany shareholders. They need to be happy.
@skierpage; Yay. One month of profitability with no competition. yay. and Ok, half a ton of batteries to go what 40-60 miles with a light foot in a car that makes a Lambo seem economical? It was a good experiment. Nothing more. For that matter, the Telsa roadster isn't much more than an experiment funded by the enthusiatic rich. I'm glad for it, because someone needs to pave the way for the technology to come down to the rest of us.
nrb 5:49PM (9/19/2009)
skierpage: Tesla had one month where their sales outweighed that months' expenses. Hardly the definition of a company that makes a profit.
Also, their car sells for $120K, which is where the real problem lies. EVs are still not practical. It's never been about know-how.
jpm, you're talking to zeolots. Put an average 10 year old rav4 ev (or ranger ev) in the hands of a soccer mom and you'll get a greatly different story. Especially when they have to spend $26,000 (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_RAV4_EV) to replace the battery pack.
jeff 4:55PM (9/18/2009)
price/profitability
mass production
quality/reliability/warranty
safety
These are not exactly concerns for one-off projects like this. I'm as excited about EVs as anybody, but you have to recognize that a lot goes into building a market ready vehicle. You can make all the movies you want about anti-EV conspiracies, but the technological and economical hurdles have been more than enough to hold up the mass produced EV up to this point. It's still gonna be a few years before companies start making money on EVs that people are willing to pay a fair price for, but looks like we're starting to see some momentum in this direction. This spot with Leno is actually pretty huge if you ask me. Just like the Tesla, this will put EVs in a really good light and will bust some of the preconceptions that a lot of people still hold on to.
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Mark Kiernan 6:13PM (9/18/2009)
Well done guys, not get you butts in gear and mass produce them ;)
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Derk McRockgroin 7:35PM (9/18/2009)
I drove a diesel version in a camping trip last summer. Very solid and quiet ride, it changed my view on Ford cars, and I got 40 MPG (5.8 L/100 km) on it. An electric version would be even better!
However, the seats were horribly uncomfortable, it felt like they were made of solid granite. 'Had to put some pillows on the seats in order to be comfortable.
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arch37 1:16PM (9/19/2009)
Anyone remember the film about free hydrogen energy where the film points out
the obvious. What happens to industry right off the bat when free energy is released to the world? Big business suffers and the economy collapses from the loss of revenue.
Our world is not established by giving anyone something for nothin'
We share our lives in a materialistc society believing in a Works religion where everyone has to do their part and be a slave to things! -- Except if you believe in your Bible and see Heaven coming soon where yes people will share and there will be a fair apportionment of goods so everyone has enough but not too much right there in the near future in the
Land of not too much!
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