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With BMW i3 Pricing Announced, Who Will Buy the More Expensive Ford Focus Electric in Europe?

JUL 30 2013 BY MARK KANE 10

Ford Focus Electric production in Germany

Ford Focus Electric production in Germany

At yesterday’s i3 presentation, BMW announced base prices for Germany, both with and without the range extender:

 “The base price for the BMW i3 has been set at 34,950 Euros in Germany. If customers opt to purchase the Range Extender as an extra, the price in Germany will amount to 39,450 Euros.”

€34,950 seems reasonable for premium brand and not too far away from the LEAF, which begins at €29,690 (Visia), €32,690 (Acenta) and €35,090 (Tekna). Renault ZOE costs €21,700 (Life), €23,500 (Intens and Zen), all with 3.7 kW eBox, but of course you must pay at least €79 a month in battery rental fees, depending on the plan.

All these three electric vehicles prepared for volume production are cheaper than the Focus Electric, which is priced in Germany at €39,990.

And this is the question: Who will buy the electric Ford in Germany, or other countries in Europe, if this price stays as is?

Why is Ford bringing assembly of the Focus Electric to Germany if it insists on offering it at a higher price than the competition?

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10 Comments on "With BMW i3 Pricing Announced, Who Will Buy the More Expensive Ford Focus Electric in Europe?"

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Brian

“Why is Ford bringing assembly of the Focus Electric to Germany if it insists on offering it at a higher price than the competition?”

Nissan brought production of the Leaf to the US, and then promptly lowered the price. Is Ford paying a steep premium for exporting to Europe compared to building locally?

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5 years ago
kdawg

I was going to say, I think he answered his own question.

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5 years ago
Kimmi

Question: “Who will buy the Ford Focus Electric in Europe?”

Answer: “Ford dealers. And a few months later, bargain hunters, after Ford dealers see themselves in the obligation of discounting months-old Focus Electrics still sitting in dealer parks…”

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5 years ago
Andy

And then Ford says that the general public isn’t ready for BEVs yet. They just don’t sell…

I remember Fords CEO recently stating that Ford is as innovative as Tesla… hmm… denial is the first step to destruction. Good luck Ford, I kinda liked the idea of Ford Focus Electric – two years ago…. and for a lower price… with quick charging… and bigger boot… and longer range… and… oh keep dreaming.

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5 years ago
Alan Campbell
The EV pricing in Germany seemed to be a bit off. This is because effective Jan 2013 and EV with over 20kWh battery can take a 10k EU government incentive. Looking through the Renault and Nissan websites, there is no mention of the 10k EU incentive, only the sale price. But remembering here in the states, Nissan always uses the price ‘after’ the $7,500 tax incentive as their ‘sale’ price. The same must be happening in Germany. For instance, the ZOE advertised at 21,700 EU, would only cost 11,700 EU after government incentives. That’s not gonna happen. Which means the ZOE actually costs 31,700 EU with the government rebate lowering the price to 21,700 EU. Ford on the other hand, in the states offers the actual sale price, with a note that the $7,500 can be deducted if available. Since not all buyers qualify here in the states. So for Germany, the 39k price in the brochure would be ‘before’ the 10k EU rebate, bringing it to 29k EU when it’s actually on sale in Germany after rebate. Which also means the Leaf really starts at 39,690(which is in line with the comparably equipped/low trim level Focus Electric to be… Read more »
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5 years ago
Alan Campbell

Another way to look at the BMW price comparison between Germany and the US, is that the 3-series starts at 28,900 EU and just $32,550 in the US. About at $3k difference.

Similar to the price difference in reverse for the i3 at 44k EU and 42k US. But after government incentives, it’s 34k EU and $34k US.

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5 years ago
Surya

No, the Zoe actually costs 21K. In Belgium there are NO incentives whatsoever, and the Zoe costs 21K.

In Europe the incentives are different from state to state, and while Germany and the UK still have incentives, other countries have phased them out because of the austerity measures.

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5 years ago
Paul

Nearly everything is wrong in the statements of Bloggin.

Looking at the prizes in different European countries BEFORE incentives, the Zoe costs around 21K, the Leaf starts at around 29k and the BMW i3 around 35k. And the Focus e 39k. So the Ford Focus Electric is indeed not compatitive.

As far as I know Germany offers no national incentives for BEV’s (to help their large industry of big ICE-cars). France does (€ 7k). Holland has some local incentives (mainly large agglomerations, to fight pollution) and offers ways to lower taxes, especially for smaller companies, which, added up, surpass France’s incentives. Norway helps BEVs the most in Europe, by not taxing them at all and taxing ICEs very much.

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5 years ago
Alan Campbell

Germany ends tax disadvantage for corporate electric cars

According to the new law, backdated to Jan. 1, private users can offset the list price with 500 euros per unit of battery size, expressed in kilowatt hours. The maximum offset is 10,000 euros, which would equate to a powerful 20 kWh battery.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/07/germany-electricvehicles-tax-idUSL5N0EJ1Y320130607

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5 years ago
Unplugged

I don’t know about the pricing, but I would love to get one of those “Attention: High Voltage” stickers as seen on the Focus above.

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5 years ago