2013 Ford Focus Electric Earns Five-star Overall Safety Score from NHTSA

With the 2013 Ford Focus Electric contributing 81 sales to the total, January deliveries of electric vehicles in this country reached 4,376 units. Now, neither of those totals may seem very impressive at first glance, but the latter mark represented a jump in volume of more than 270 percent as compared to January of 2012, and the former number should begin climbing rapidly thanks to the latest news from the Blue Oval—and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

First off, the 2013 Ford Focus Electric has now joined its traditionally powered sibling on NHTSA’s list of five-star overall safety performers. It's not a surprise, but it is still a particularly important feat for any EV to accomplish without stumbling. Of course, it also means the Focus Electric provides superior safety performance in NHTSA’s evaluations for occupant protection in front- and side-impact scenarios, as well as for rollover resistance.

And that’s on top of the car’s EPA-certified all-electric driving range of 76 miles, the highest efficiency mark in city driving of any five-passenger vehicle in America (110 MPGe), and industry-first charging technology that lets drivers fully recharge the 2013 Ford Focus Electric in just three to four hours.

But it’s not just advantages like these that will help grow volume for Ford’s growing lineup of electrified vehicles …

More Dealers to Offer 2013 Ford Focus Electric and Friends

Ford’s commitment to electrified vehicles like the 2013 Ford Focus Electric—as well as the 2013 Ford C-Max Energi and 2013 Ford Fusion Energi plug-in hybrids—extends well beyond the vehicles themselves. To help make certain that the purchase process is as satisfying as the ownership experience, the automaker also requires all dealers who want to sell EVs to go through an exclusive certification process.

It’s a fairly rigorous requirement, but Ford felt it was necessary to the success of its electrified vehicles, and the company was expecting to have about 300 dealerships certified by the spring of this year. Instead, Ford is now projecting three times that number—representing one third of its dealerships in the United States—will be ready to sell EVs by that time, including locations in all 50 states.

“With so much excitement and activity surrounding Ford’s new electrified vehicles, we can rest assured our certified dealers are invested in being prepared to provide the best possible customer service,” said Paul Russell, Ford’s field operations manager. “Whether a customer is stopping in to look at one of these vehicles for the first time or picking up their brand-new plug-in hybrid, the certification program ensures we are ready.”