2014 ford focus electric battery replacement cost

A Florida family who just a few months ago purchased a battery-powered vehicle learned an unforgettable lesson after their car suddenly stopped working.

The parents of Avery Siwinski, a 17-year-old of St. Petersburg, spent $11,000 on a used 2014 Ford Focus Electric that had 60,000 miles at the time it was bought, WTSP-TV reported.

“In March, it started giving an alert,” Siwinski told the network. “And then we took it to the shop and it stopped running.”

After taking the car to a local Ford dealership, the family learned that the mechanical issues were linked to the vehicle’s battery, which apparently needed to be replaced.

The repair bill for the battery was a whopping $14,000, said Siwinski’s grandfather, who stepped in to help her with the car problems because her father passed away in June due to cancer.

He also noted that the figure presented by mechanics wasn’t even the total, as it didn’t include labor costs.

However, the family found out that all the hustle they went through was in vain, as there weren’t any batteries of that type available anymore because the Ford model is discontinued.

“Then we found out the batteries aren’t even available,” Siwinski said. “So it didn’t matter. They could cost twice as much and we still couldn’t get it.”

The family shared the story to issue a warning to people who were thinking about buying an electric vehicle.

“If you’re buying a new one, you have to realize there is no second-hand market right now because the manufacturers are not supporting the cars,” Siwinski’s grandfather told WTSP-TV.

According to a recent Consumer Reports survey, the vast majority of the driving public in the United States prefers to use traditional gas-powered vehicles, citing charging logistics, driving distance, and maintenance costs as the biggest reasons why they wouldn’t want to own an electric car.

Meanwhile, a recent report from data analysis and advisory firm J.D. Power found that electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids may have more problems than internal combustion engines.

While internal combustion engine vehicles averaged 175 problems per 100 vehicles, this jumped to 239 among plug-in hybrids and 240 among electric vehicles, a June 28 press release of the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Initial Quality Study stated. Lower scores represent higher-quality vehicles.

Tesla models, which were included in the industry calculation for the first time, averaged 226 problems per 100 vehicles, according to the report.

“Automakers continue to launch vehicles that are more and more technologically complex in an era in which there have been many shortages of critical components to support them,” said David Amodeo, director of global automotive at J.D. Power, according to the press release.

Amid elevated gas prices, White House officials have continued to suggest that Americans buy an electric car as Republicans have criticized the Biden administration’s policies for the spike in gas prices.

Used electric cars are a good way to get around cheaply and greenly – and they offset much more interesting petrol cars. But the thing with them is that batteries can cost an absolute fortune…

An American family bought their 17-year-old daughter, Avery Siwinski, a used 2014 Ford Focus Electric so she could drive herself to and from school. The family paid $11,000 (around £9,000) for the EV which only had around 60,000 miles on the clock. Six months down the line, the car needed a new set of batteries which would cost even more than the family paid for the car.

In an interview with local station KVUE News, Siwinski stated that “it was fine at first. I loved it so much. It was small and quiet and cute. And all of a sudden it stopped working.” The electric Ford Focus’ dashboard lit up with a warning message. As with any car-related issue, the family decided the best idea was to take Avery’s pride and joy to a Ford garage. Then it stopped working altogether – they don’t make ‘em like they used to, it seems.

The car needed a new set of batteries, which was going to cost $14,000 (Around £11,500) – a whole $3,000 more than the family paid for the car, and that was just for parts! We can’t even fathom how much that would be once labour costs are factored in.

It gets even worse, though – even if they wanted to go ahead with the fix, it turned out there were no batteries available anyway. Ford Auto Union in Pinellas County did offer to buy the car from the family instead… for a measly $500 (Around £400).

Replacing the battery pack in an electric car tends to be the most expensive and complex jobs to do, but it’s frustrating to see that a car with just around 60,000 miles that’s otherwise in good condition would go to waste because the fix is so expensive…. Perhaps the family could have saved money by getting a V8 swap for their EV like this Tesla did…

The family says those considering a used EV need to make sure they do their research before buying – while the outright cost of the car might be attractive, their story shows that the cost and availability of replacement parts could mean it’s too good to be true.

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