Ford started shipping the Focus Electric in May 2012, a full year-and-a-half after the Nissan LEAF went on sale. For those looking for a pure electric car, the availability of the Focus Electric finally provided a point of comparison. (Other models, such as the BMW ActiveE and Honda Fit EV are only available in limited numbers for lease. The Mitsubishi i, a subcompact, is not a fair comparison.)
The key questions in play: Did Ford’s cautious decision to lag behind the LEAF allow the company to offer a better EV? Or is its tardiness a sign of its lack of commitment to fielding a competitive electric car?
The most immediate distinction between the Focus Electric and the LEAF is in the looks department. As I pointed out in my
New York Times review of the Focus EV, the LEAF’s “wide rear end, bulging headlights and odd proportions evoke a Japanese gizmo aesthetic that doesn’t necessarily appeal to mainstream American car buyers.” On the other hand, the electric Focus has the same handsome appearance as the gas-powered version. Focus Electric drivers are not likely to attract quizzical stares from passers-by.
The electric Focus is nearly identical to the gas version in appearance. One minor—but damn cool—tweak in the Focus’s body is the blue light that circles the fueling door on the left side, where you plug in the car. It shows charging progress at a glance from a distance by illuminating successive sections of what serves as glowing state-of-charge pie chart.
Critical Distinctions
In terms of core electric drive technology, the efficiency of the Focus Electric and the Nissan LEAF, and the resulting driving range, are essentially the same. According to official EPA ratings, The Focus Electric’s 23-kWh battery pack issues 76 miles of driving range on a single charge—while the LEAF’s 24-kWh pack dishes out 73 miles. That makes the Focus more efficient, but the difference is negligible—that is, until harsh summer or winter temperatures take their toll. In summer 2012, LEAF drivers in Arizona complained of a loss of battery capacity on extremely hot days.
But Ford opted to utilize an actively liquid cooled and heated battery pack allowing for stable battery operation over a wide range of temperatures. (The LEAF is passively air-cooled.) It might be a full year before we know if the liquid cooling makes a difference—but it should.
The Focus’s slightly better efficiency numbers do not come at the expense of performance. The Focus, in fact, employs a 107-kilowatt (143 horsepower) motor, compared to the LEAF’s 80-kilowatt (110 horsepower) motor. I especially felt the difference in power on the highway, as Ford tuned the Focus more for high-speed advantage, rather than for jumping quickly off the line. The Focus is also quieter than the LEAF. Ford engineers told me that they went to great lengths to reduce motor and road noise by adding sound damping.
