The Ford Motor Company is going to be launching its first all-electric, zero pollution car, the Ford Focus Electric.
It will go on sale in late 2011 and like the rest of the electric cars; it will only be available in limited markets. Ford announced on Monday that only 19 American cities in the first wave will have the chance to go all electric.
According to PhysOrg.com, in late 2011 motorists in the following markets will be able to buy Ford’s first electric vehicle: Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Houston; Boston; Chicago; Denver; Detroit; Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego; New York, Orlando, Fla.; Phoenix; Tucson, Ariz.; Portland, Ore.; Raleigh Durham, N.C.; Richmond, Va.; Seattle; and Washington, D.C. These cities were picked for many reasons including current hybrid purchasing habits, the acceptance of electric vehicles by local governments, and the future potential to collaborate with utility companies.
“Making electric vehicles a viable option for consumers requires teamwork across a variety of industries and government entities,” said Nancy Gioia, director of Global Electrification, Ford Motor Company to PhysOrg.com. “Working with utilities, governments and technology companies is a key part of our electric strategy to make sure the infrastructure and support for electric vehicles is in place as we begin rolling them out.”
The electric Ford Focus is to be powered by a 23 kWh lithium-ion battery with a predicted 100-mile travel range that can be repowered by a 120V and a 240 power source. The company Compact Power Inc., based out of Holland Michigan, will produce the battery. The Ford Focus Electric will be manufactured side by side with the regular gas powered focus in the Michigan assembly plant.
And after it is released in the United States the Ford Focus Electric is slated to be unleashed in the European market in 2012. The all-electric Focus is the first of five electric cars that Ford is planning on releasing in the future.
No word on what happens to drivers who crash two all-electric Focus cars together. Maybe we can pay MythBusters to crash them into each other. Will they be electrocuted? Curious minds will have to wait.
