Looks like there are some electric versions of the new Focus on the way.
www.nytimes.com/2011/01/07/business/07green.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
Quoting: "By 2012, the Focus compact will be available to buyers in four versions: gasoline-powered, conventional hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric."
I don't understand the differences, but I doubt Ford will launch an electric car in the US with the range and performance of a milk float.
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Well
The gasoline powered is a regular petrol engine.
The conventional hybrid, is the electric motor supplemented by a small petrol engine when required.
Fully electric is the milk float.
Not sure about a plug in hybrid.
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...Not sure about a plug in hybrid...
I reckon the batteries for the electric motor in the conventional hybrid will be charged by the petrol engine, braking regeneration, solar - anything but a plug.
Which would fit with there being a plug in hybrid as well.
I see the only fossil fuel mentioned is gasoline - petrol.
The old fish tanks won't use diesel, will they?
Looks like they're going to skip the diesel phase and move straight to electricity.
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Considering how far the average sceptic drives per annum, I can't see electric being anything more than a minute niche in their market. I thought they were coming round to diesel (a bit).
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Pure electric won't work until battery energy density improves by a factor of 50 (ish) which will take about 200 years at current rate of progress.
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>> Pure electric won't work until battery energy density improves by a factor of 50 (ish)
>> which will take about 200 years at current rate of progress.
That, and the fact the electricity grid in the UK won't cope with much more than a tiny shift from IC engines to plug in rechargeable electric cars. It's questionable whether the lights will stay on over the next decade as it is.
This is one issue that proponents of electric cars in the media, and of course our wonderful government(s) always seem to completely skate over.
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>> I see the only fossil fuel mentioned is gasoline - petrol.
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>> The old fish tanks won't use diesel, will they?
>>
>> Looks like they're going to skip the diesel phase and move straight to electricity.
>>
>
All to do with the American market I suspect... They don't like the stuff over there in cars, hence we have petrol-electrics but not, more efficient, diesel electrics... If they were designing purely for the European market then I'm sure they'd have had them by now!
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>> Not sure about a plug in hybrid.
www.calcars.org/vehicles.html
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Probably not. It took them decades to figure out electric windscreen wipers.
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Interesting article on the BBC site showing the mammoth logistics challenge of driving a pure electric car from London to Edinburgh:-
www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12138420
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>> Interesting article on the BBC site showing the mammoth logistics challenge of
>> driving a pure electric car from London to Edinburgh:-
(including ceretain restyrictions on "fuelling")
>> www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12138420
The BBC also admit that it's an unfair test of what is supposed to be a short-ish range vehicle.
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Depends how many people are prepared to buy an expensive vehicle which is only suitable for short range, not sure really, maybe a few.
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Talk about going backwards... You could have probably done it in a stagecoach as quick as that... I know its not a true use of the car, but it does show just how useless these cars are for normal use... and they cost more as well!!
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>> show just how useless these cars are for normal use...
I think there are many people out there who wish to change the concept of what is "normal use" with electric vehicles. By which I mean get rid of the car as a means of long distance transport and replace it with public transport. Turn "normal use" of the car into short haul only.
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>> how useless these cars are for normal use.
For my normal use they'd be fine - up to 70 miles is quite adequate.
However, for the odd trip, ones which need to be re-charged would not be useful (battery change ones potentially useful).
>> and they cost more as well!!
They do - taking the battery out of the equation, though, I cannot see how this could be true.
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They cost more to make, currently, because they do not have the commonality of parts, ability to platform share, or volume of manufacture.
All of course would change if they were the "norm"
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Aren't electric cars very wasteful of energy if not used correctly.
For example - if I charge my electric car for 7 hours, then don't use it for several days a good percentage of that charge will be lost (with todays battery technology)
However if I'd filled my car with petrol (lpg/diesel) then it would still all be there after a much longer delay.
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For example - if I charge my electric car for 7 hours, then don't use it for several days a good percentage of that charge will be lost (with todays battery technology)
Is that true? Lithium Ion batteries seem to hold their charge for a very long time.
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Not sure about the Mini but the Prius uses NiMH rather then Lithium (presumably on cost grounds), so will lose around 1% of charge per day - unless they're the fancy new hybrid NiMHs.
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Whilkst it is true that the UK has limited electrical generating capacity, it is grossly underutilised after 11pm (ish) so overnight charging should not place too great a strain on capacity...
IIRC most electric car batteries often consist of lots of small ones connected in parallel. So LION ones could be made quite simply.
A rechargeable plug in hybrid means battery size can be smaller..(a diy mod I believe to the Prius),
But the technology is as likely to succeed as hydrogen powered cars due to economics and the lack of rare earth cappacity - China (producing 75% of world capacity) is restricting exports...
Last edited by: madf on Mon 10 Jan 11 at 13:27
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>> the lack of rare earth cappacity - China (producing 75% of world capacity) is
>> restricting exports...
China has the largest production (I thought it was over 95%, BTW), but only about 1/3 of proven reserves, globally (and that's current proven reserves). The situation will change.
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>> For example - if I charge my electric car for 7 hours, then don't use
>> it for several days a good percentage of that charge will be lost (with todays
>> battery technology)
>>
The NiMH battery in my Prius never lost any charge when I left it unused for 6 days over Christmas. Toyota claim that it will hold a charge for at least 1 month and up to 10 months (the alarm system is powered by a separate 12v battery).
Old NiCad batteries did decay quicker than modern NiMH and LiIon, if a new modern battery looses charge (without use) over 7 days then there's something wrong with it.
Last edited by: Kithmo on Mon 10 Jan 11 at 13:33
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>> ability to platform share,
Focus and MINI do, they may have the floor modified but the rest of the boy, and much of the general electric is the same as the i/c engined cars.
I'd agree with the usage comment, but it would be far better if they had a decent range, they were producing electric cars 100 years ago with a 50 mile range, we've not got very far since, have we! If they were to get the "real" range up to about 350 or 400 miles (by "real" I mean including use of lights, wipers, etc., included in use) then they would be viable...
Last edited by: hobby on Mon 10 Jan 11 at 15:13
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Only Ford has started with the clean sheet of a platform for all types of motive power. The others, of course, will follow.
Platform sharing is not converting an existing one to another function. Such a process inevitably has issues that affect production costs. With a dedicated multi power platform production costs are designed out for all types.
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It seems unlikely to me Ford will offer its home market a short-range Focus with the performance of a milk float when the company knows such a vehicle would be a laughing stock.
On the other hand, I don't suppose Ford is smugly waiting to unveil a magic battery which will be the answer to all the problems faced by electric vehicles.
I still reckon the electric Focus will be the best of its type yet, what I don't know is how Ford is going to do it.
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Will Ford get electric cars right? - Zero
