Ford outlines aggressive EV strategy - battery electric small car in 2011

Ford has thrown it’s hat into the Electric Vehicle ring at the Detroit international motor show by announcing plans to bring a new family of electrified vehicles to market over the next four years. The strategy calls for the introduction of new hybrids, a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) and Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) based on two new global product platforms. The plan calls for the introduction in 2011 of a pure Battery Electric Vehicle as a passenger car in North America.

Ford’s new electrification strategy will deliver a suite of electrified vehicles to market by 2012, including:

The electrification strategy builds on Ford’s vision for bringing affordable technology to millions. It takes advantage of rapid advancements in electrified vehicle technology – particularly Lithium-ion batteries – while leveraging the scale of global vehicle platforms to bring the cost of new technology down. As Ford and partner Magna International have had BEV test vehicles, 2009 Ford Focus mules, on the road for more than six months, racking up thousands of miles of testing and evaluation. Under the skin of the Ford Focus test vehicles is a new all-electric powertrain. Electrification of two key global Ford product platforms – one for Focus-size small cars and the other for Fusion-size CD cars – means the electric vehicle powertrain uses the existing structure of the vehicle platform. That means Ford can truly make the most of global economies of scale to produce new electrified vehicle technology affordable.

The Battery Electric test vehicles are powered by a 100 kW three-phase alternating current (AC) permanent-magnet, chassis-mounted electric traction motor which drives through a single speed gearbox with a 5.4:1 final drive ratio with standard planetary differential centre. There is a boot mounted 23 kilowatt hours lithium-ion battery pack that is good for a range of 80 miles (130kms) on a single charge. The Ford Focus EV can be charged from either a standard 220-volt in 6 hours or 110-volt in 12 hours. Ford and Magna are targeting a range of up to 100 miles when the vehicle is introduced to the retail market.

Hybrid component development.

One of the main reasons it has taken Ford and other automotive manufacturers quite some time to introduce electric vehicles is that most auxiliary systems that are normally powered off a gasoline engine, for example the air conditioning compressor and hydraulic power steering pump, are not compatible with an electric vehicle powertrain. The Focus BEV test vehicles incorporates key components developed for Ford’s 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. For the electric climate control system Ford developed a high-voltage air-conditioning compressor that draws electrical energy directly from the main battery and has it’s own inverter in the compressor.

There is an electric water pump to circulate coolant for the traction motor, inverter, battery and heater. Electric column mounted power steering, again developed for the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid has also been made with a move the battery electric vehicles manufacture in mind.

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