Battery Replacement Cost

Another cool internet advantage goes to Ford!! I have discovered this site -

http://owner.ford.com

There are lots of usable links to directly deal with your auto. You become a member by using your SYNC login and your car is identified by the VIN number.

So I went to parts. I want a new battery. (Not really, but what if I did?) and sure enough the BEV is listed part # 10B759 and the cost is $10,508.38. I finally know the answer to this big replacement part cost which everyone predicts is going to wear out.

You can also purchase an extended warranty. My dealer, service manager, doesn't even know how to do this. I asked him for a quote on extended warranty and he could not get me a price. On the site the premium warranty covers everything and goes to 125,000 miles or 7 years and costs $2,565.00. You can actually purchase it on the internet in cash or 10% down with a 17 month payment.

Speaking of extended warranty. What do you suggest? Would you want an extended warranty on your FFE?????

What does the extended warranty cover? I'm assuming not the battery pack - or if it did, it would be something like gauranteed to have at least 70% of original battery capacity in 5 years or something like that since we all know that batteries do degrade over time.

$10,508.38 for the Ford Focus Electric battery pack is even cheaper than the $12,000-$15,000 that Alan Mulally was quoted as saying back in April.

"When you move into an all-electric vehicle, the battery size moves up to around 23 kilowatt hours, [and] it weighs around 600 to 700 pounds," Mr. Mulally said at Fortune magazine's Brainstorm Green conference in California. "They're around $12,000 to $15,000 [a battery]" for a type of car that normally sells for about $22,000"

Click to expand...

Ford Focus Electric Battery Replacement Cost

HAHAHAHA - Go Ford! Looks like they have changed the price of this battery for replacement... this would suck - $19,525.24!
That extended warranty is becoming interesting. I wonder how these prices will change over time.

The battery is warranted for 8 years or 100k miles. They don't say what amount of degradation qualifies for warranty replacement.

I think a pro-rated replacement schedule would be perfectly reasonable. We should not expect to get 7 years of battery use for free so I'd be happy to pony up for part of the replacement cost.

Just checked the Ford online parts store - 10B759A upper and lower $17,355.76.
Funny thing: You can order the upper and lower separately and pay $17,355.76 for each. (?)

Update 2013-06-05:
Just found what appears to be the same battery at fordpartsgiant.com for the bargain price of only $10290.06.

In California the battery and motor is warrantied for 10 years or 150k miles, due to state law. This is what I was told at the dealership anyway.

gunther said:

In California the battery and motor is warrantied for 10 years or 150k miles, due to state law. This is what I was told at the dealership anyway.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately, your dealer might have been confused about the type of car they were selling you. :?

In California, the state-mandated warranty coverage for the emissions controls system of a PZEV (partial zero emission vehicle) happens to be 15/150K miles, so perhaps that's what your dealer was thinking of? But, the FFE is not a PZEV, and doesn't even have an emission control system to receive the state-mandated coverage. The FFE is of course a ZEV (zero emission vehicle).

Hopefully, your dealer wasn't trying to misinform you... more likely they just don't know their PZEVs from their ZEVs. (And that's why they are only selling cars for a living, as opposed to designing them.)

You can find California's definitions for PZEV, ZEV, etc. and an overview of the related regulations here:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/zevprog/factsheets/zev_fs.pdf

In any case, Ford's warranty for the so-called "unique electric components" in the FFE is actually 8/100K, including for California. This is what my dealer told me and this is indeed what the warranty description says.

You can find the unique electric components coverage described in and around page 11 of your FFE warranty booklet (here for the 2013 model):
http://www.motorcraftservice.com/pubs/content/~WODFEV/~MUS~LEN/41/13hybwa2e.pdf

But, here is the key quote:

(4) Your vehicle’s unique hybrid / electric components are covered during the Hybrid / Electric Unique Component Coverage, which lasts for eight years or 100,000 miles, whichever occurs first.

Click to expand...

Btw, also on page 11, you will find the following statement (if people haven't seen it before):

The Lithium-ion battery (EV battery) will experience gradual capacity loss with time and use (similar to all lithium-ion batteries), which is considered normal wear and tear. Loss of battery capacity due to or resulting from gradual capacity loss is NOT covered under the New Vehicle Limited Warranty. See your Owner’s Manual for important tips on how to maximize the life and capacity of the Lithium-ion battery.

Click to expand...

WattsUp said:

Hopefully, your dealer wasn't trying to misinform you... more likely they just don't know their PZEVs from their ZEVs. (And that's why they are only selling cars for a living, as opposed to designing them.)

Click to expand...

Huh. Yeah, after some basic research online, you are absolutely right. My dealer stated something as fact that is untrue, to the detriment of the value of the car.

Your interpretation of their motivations is more generous than mine....

Did you see Nissan has a new improved LEAF battery out and you can buy it for $5,500 so FORD should follow. All vehicles should be still under warranty but it's good to know the prices are coming down in case we need one in 5 or 10 years. The new one is Heat Tolerant and has the same warranty as new 8 years 100K miles.

jstack6 said:

Did you see Nissan has a new improved LEAF battery out and you can buy it for $5,500 so FORD should follow. All vehicles should be still under warranty but it's good to know the prices are coming down in case we need one in 5 or 10 years. The new one is Heat Tolerant and has the same warranty as new 8 years 100K miles.

Click to expand...

I may be mistaken but doesn't the LEAF battery cost assume the return of an existing LEAF battery. As in it is a swap and not an outright purchase. Even hevilly degraded LiIon battery packs will have a large intrinsic value left in them.

The Ford price seems to be an off the shelf cost.