If you’ve been watching the new Jay Leno show airing at 10pm on NBC, chances are you’ve seen the all-new battery electric version of the Ford Focus ST five-door. It’s been made for celebrities to drive in the program's regular "Green Car Challenge" segment.
Ford uses an Electric Orange Ford Focus ST five-door as the basis. It uses the same prototype technology that Ford is developing for its future North American Focus BEV production model in 2011.
With Recaro racing seats, a full roll cage and a five-point racing harness, the battery electric Focus ST is ready for the challenge.
Thanks in part to the battery placement, the Focus ST BEV has a near ideal 50/50 weight distribution for improved handling on the track. The front springs and dampers have been taken from the high performance Focus RS road car. The rear dampers and springs are unique to Jay Leno’s Focus ST BEV.
The car is specifically tuned to perform on the track built alongside The Jay Leno Show studio at NBC in Los Angeles. To help optimize performance, Ford created a similar track at their proving ground in Michigan.
The Ford Focus ST BEV has a range of nearly 80 miles and peak power of 141hp.