Ford Focus Electric priced at $39,200, plays nice with your smartphone

Ford Focus Electric priced at $39,200, plays nice with your smartphone:

Ford's Focus hatchback ditches the tailpipe and the emissions that come with it to become the 2012 Ford Focus Electric.
(Credit: Antuan Goodwin/CNET)
The Ford Focus Electric has been a long time coming since it was first announced back at CES 2011. However the wait will soon be over because the tailpipe emissions-free version of Ford's five-seater Focus is already here and I've touched it.
Specifically, I've driven it, but Ford has asked me not to talk about the driver's seat experience until next Tuesday (April 17th), so stay tuned and check back to hear more on that.
Zero tailpipe emissions
Until then, let's talk about what we do know about Ford's shot across the bow of the Nissan Leaf. For starters, the Focus electric is powered by a 23 kWh capacity lithium ion battery. The battery's temperature is managed by a liquid cooling system that keeps the pack within a specific thermal range for optimal performance. Like many manufacturers or hybrids and EV's, Ford claims that the move to lithium ion technology allows the Focus Electric to use a battery pack that is 25 to 30 percent smaller and 50 percent lighter than a nickel-metal hydride battery of similar capacity. Thanks to quick charging technology that I'll get back to in a bit, Ford also claims that the EV can be fully charged in about four hours on 240-volt power.
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