Ford has made the decision to quit production of the Focus Electric battery-electric vehicle in Europe, after the model failed to find a sizable audience in the market. Automotive News reports that the automaker will instead turn its low-emission-vehicle focus in Europe to hybrid delivery vans – at least for the time being.
“Volumes are not strong enough. We will revisit when the market matures,” said Ford Director of Global Vehicle Evaluation and Validation Graham Hoare. Ford sold 61 examples of the Focus Electric across Europe in 2016, according to AN, after selling 70 the year prior. The automaker now imports the Focus Electric into select European markets from the US.
The Focus Electric has been updated for 2017, receiving a larger, 33.5-kWh battery pack that gives it a 140-mile range, and a new Combined Charging System port that allows for DC fast-charging. Ford plans to introduce a brand-new battery-electric vehicle by 2020: a crossover with a projected 300-mile range. The longer range and SUV body could help move more volume, as Ford has said previously that pure-electric vehicles are held back in Europe due to their perceived impracticality.
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