The trial of the all-electric European Ford Focus BEV will participate in the government’s Ultra-Low Carbon Vehicles demonstration initiative during 2010. 

A fleet of prototype Focus BEVs (Battery Electric Vehicles) will be used by drivers in and around Hillingdon. Up to 20 households from the borough will run the Focus BEVs for a three-month period.

Development of domestic electric car industry

This new Focus BEV demonstration fleet is being developed partly with public funding from the government's Technology Strategy Board which is running a programme to promote electric car technology and the development of a domestic electric car industry.

Magna electric car powertrain

The Focus BEV prototype uses an all-electric powertrain from Magna, the company that nearly bought GM’s European operations. It includes a lithium-ion battery pack with the capacity of 23kWh and a chassis-mounted 100kW permanent magnet electric traction motor. It has a range of 75 miles, and a top speed of 85 mph with charge times taking between six and eight hours using a household electricity supply.

An infrastructure of charging stations is being developed to support the programme and participants’ homes will be provided with domestic charging points.

Ford electric car engineers at Dunton, Essex

This BEV programme is being led by Ford’s UK research and development centre at Dunton in Essex. Home to an engineering team of almost 3,000 vehicle specialists, Dunton Technical Centre is responsible for developing powertrains for all Ford vehicles in Europe, as well as every part of the company's commercial vehicle range.