TEST DRIVE: How Does the Ford Focus Electric Handle High Speeds and Long Distances?

We recently test drove the new <a title="Ford Focus Electric" href="http://www.ford.com/electric/focuselectric/2013/" target="_blank">Ford Focus Electric</a> in San Francisco and <a title="Inhabitat Test Drive: Ford Focus Electric San Francisco" href="http://inhabitat.com/test-drive-we-drive-the-2013-focus-electric-in-san-francisco/" target="_blank">we were mostly impressed</a>. But while we stepped away from the car satisfied, we got to thinking - we were not only driving on relatively slow California highways, but we were able to easily find a <a title="Quick Charging Station Payment System" href="http://inhabitat.com/ge-energy-teams-up-with-paypal-to-launch-easy-payment-system-for-electric-vehicle-charging/" target="_blank">quick charging station</a> at our destination before heading back home. So what would happen if we test drove the <a title="Ford " href="http://www.ford.com" target="_blank">Ford Focus Electric</a> far away from quick charging stations, on high-speed roads? Could the Ford Focus Electric stand up to that challenge without inducing range anxiety? We set out to see if it could.

The Ford Focus Electric doesn't attract much attention on the street. This disappointed us, since we wanted to tell everyone how viable electric cars are becoming.

We liked the slightly streamlined shape of the vehicle, but appreciated that we didn't have to sacrifice any interior space or comfort in the name of aerodynamics.

Side mirrors are one place you can tell if a vehicle has been designed by a carmaker that just happens to have made an electric car (translation: possibly less efficient but a whole lot more driveable), or one that built a body around a battery. Standard issue Ford mirrors here are promising us an enjoyable drive.

Same thing with the doors; you never know how much the feel and sound of your car's door matters to you until you drive a tin can electric car and miss the quality of these kind of doors.

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We loved the bolstering on the Focus Electric's seats, which was just right for quick acceleration and corners. You read that right: The Focus can accelerate!

Inside the cabin, this two-tone theme carries through the cockpit and into the trunk.

One more detail you will appreciate in the Ford Focus Electric is the steering wheel. The steering is weighted nicely, but it also just fits well in your hands.

Now we come to the fun part. The instrument cluster is a digital display, with an energy meter on the left and audio and entertainment functions on the right. We're not entirely sure the right display is very helpful, since the audio functions are also laid out on the center stack, but they balance out the energy screen nicely in a red and blue theme.

The energy meter tells you the range you can expect, and how you are using energy from one minute to the next. But our favorite function is the braking coach, which not only tells you when the regenerative braking system is active but how efficient you were in recovering maximum power when you come to a full stop.

The Focus Electric is push-button start, but no worries about someone making off with your car while it's charging. We stood next to the vehicle with the keys in our pocket while another person depressed the brake and pushed the start button, and the Focus Electric was having none of it.

All your favorite functions are on the center stack, including navigation, audio, HVAC and so on. The arrangement of buttons is a bit confusing, but nothing that you won't get used to within a few days.

We love the touchscreen, which makes navigation so much easier to use.

Again, we're not sure why the audio functions are mixed in here with HVAC and other menus (there are also audio functions on the instrument cluster and center stack manual buttons), but nothing gets in the way.

The center button here toggles back and forth, but it is also a volume dial. Not entirely intuitive, but it works.

The HVAC is tucked behind the gear shift, which takes some getting used to. You need to know where things are.

Just as in other electric cars, if you engage the HVAC system, you instantly lose range. We averaged a loss of about 4 miles (sometimes as much as 10!) when we turned on low heat to clear up a foggy windshield. But, unlike other electric cars, the Focus will give you back your range if you change your mind and turn the HVAC off quickly.

The center console has a 12V electric outlet right next to the cupholders, which we like a lot.

Two-tone theme continues into the back seat here on the doors.

Electric controls continue into the back seat with these door controls.

There isn't a lot of foot room in the back, but it's pretty good for a small car and especially for an electric.

The Focus Electric we drove was a hatchback. Keep an eye out for sedan and coupe versions in the future, as Ford is always offering more and more configurations of vehicles (at least the ones that sell).

See how the roof doesn't taper like other electric and hybrid cars? We wonder about the possibility of better efficiency with increased aerodynamic efficiency, but honestly we appreciate decent interior space.

Not a lot of space back there, and you'll see in a minute how Ford has made it worse than it has to be.

The back half of the cargo area is taken up by a covered battery, which cuts space in half. We suspect Ford created this angled cover in the front half of the cargo area to make a flatter space for storing things above the battery, but all it does it take up room.

The cargo organizer has small spaces on the sides that are unusable, leaving only the smallest space in the middle for small cargo items. And where is the car charger?

The charging cord is located UNDER the bottom of the tiny cargo area. This keeps the cord out of the way, but it means the cargo area has to be totally empty in order to get the cord out for charging.

Now here is a feature we absolutely love. The Focus Electric has a charging port on the front left side of the vehicle that is surrounded by a light. The light glows automatically when you stop the car, so that you can see the rough percentage of battery you have left. Here see how we have 3 out of 4 lights glowing for a 3/4 charge.

We really enjoyed our week with the Ford Focus Electric, but check out the rest of our test drive to hear about the challenges we experienced driving this car long distances and at high speeds.