Drew Barrymore first to race Ford Focus EV on Leno's new show
Apparently, electric cars are for girls. For his new prime-time TV show, Jay Leno is going to pit celebrities against one another in his new Green Car Challenge segment and the first one in the driver's seat will be Drew Barrymore. Barrymore will get behind the wheel of a prototype Ford Focus EV this Friday. Following Barrymore's initial time trial, Leno will rope other stars into racing the sponsored Focus on a special track built outside the show's new studio once or twice a week.
For Ford, the tremendous publicity of getting celebs into their upcoming electric vehicle – which is due on the market in 2011 – is a tremendous coup. Nancy Gioia, director of hybrid vehicle programs for Ford, told USAToday that the Leno tie will go a big way in making EVs seem normal. "If (electric cars are) only seen as quirky or off the beaten path, it's really hard to get people" excited, she said.
GM's Rob Peterson sees a benefit to all automakers who are bringing an EV to market. "If we walked into the showroom in 2011 with very little lead time, some segments of the population would have a tough time understanding what these vehicles can do," he said. Instead, we'll have two years of YouTube clips of famous people saying "oh, it's so quiet" to get everyone ready.
Gallery: ABG Quick Drive: Ford Focus EV mule
[Source: USAToday | Image: Adam Pretty/Getty Images]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Nick 7:21PM (9/15/2009)
It shall be named "Star in a slow moving car."
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adam1drift 7:21PM (9/15/2009)
I'm excited to see how this goes!
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2004m3driver 7:36PM (9/15/2009)
wow she looks like a clown in that photo.
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Brian 7:36PM (9/15/2009)
Well, the Focus looks like a clown car, so it is somewhat appropriate.
Brian 7:36PM (9/15/2009)
Too bad the Focus still sucks as a car!
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Randy 8:46PM (9/15/2009)
How so? It's a very nice car!
Brian 8:51PM (9/15/2009)
The Focus is ugly, outdated, doesn't have a hatch, and did I mention it is incredibly ugly? I wouldn't want to be caught dead in a Focus.
Brian 9:16PM (9/15/2009)
What would you rather be caught driving, in a similar price range as the Focus? Nissan Versa? Chevy Aveo? What in the world are you comparing the Focus to? A new Taurus? The Malibu? Sounds like you're just trolling this post.
Besides, this is a mule. Europe's Focus, which will be coming to the US soon, looks much better.
Brian 9:22PM (9/15/2009)
I'd rather drive a Honda Fit. It is better looking and has Honda-level reliability, interior quality, dealer experience, and you know Honda won't be in Chapter 11 in a few years.
Brian 9:23PM (9/15/2009)
AND the Fit has a HATCH!
If you want a coupe, you should buy the much better Scion Tc.
Yaroukh 9:48PM (9/15/2009)
@Randy: PLZ ignore Brain. He rides in circles on a minibicycle all the day in a bear-costume in the circus, and trolling about domestics is his way of revealing the pain from the miserable life...
Brian 9:52PM (9/15/2009)
@Everyone,
Please ignore Yaroukh, he is a "domestic" cheerleader that tries to make himself feel better about driving a rental-spec Cobalt (not to mention that Chevy Celebrity "Eurosport" he bought in the '80s, thinking it was just like a 3-Series).
BTW, Since the Focus is European, is it really a "domestic"? How about hecho en Mexico Fusion/MKZ/Lincoln Fusion? Answer that.
John 6:01AM (9/16/2009)
Brian, Please name the car that you would prefer to be caught dead in and we will rent one for you.
Brian 9:35AM (9/16/2009)
I already said Honda Fit or Scion tC. Add the Civic to that list, too. Toyota and Honda have levels of reliability and quality Ford can never hope to match. Ford is too busy trying to keep up with Hyundai and Chrysler.
Rich 10:04AM (9/16/2009)
Brian completely misses the point of the saying "wouldn't be caught dead"...
C.W. 10:50AM (9/16/2009)
Brian seems to be missing the point on a lot of things.... Ford's quality can never match Honda and Toyota? is this a serious statement? Do the quality rankings and consumer reports studies mean nothing these days?
how can someone honestly say Ford is chasing Hyundai and Chrysler when all the data shows you exactly who they chased... and caught. (honda.. toyota).
Get a life Brian. Ford is using the C-platform GLOBALLY showing you just how smart they are. the electic focus you see on the Leno show is going to be the Euro-prototype that we WILL be getting here in the U.S..... oh, and it will be a hatch. and it's smokin' hot.
So Brian, quit being stupid and trolling a post.... just look at your ratings on all your comments and you'll see you are in a VAST minority on your viewpoint.
CDN Crockett 9:00PM (9/15/2009)
Why her, how about a star that loves racing like Michael Jordan or Jason Priestley.
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BRBnismo 9:27PM (9/15/2009)
Top Gear much??.............
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06VistaBlueGT 9:12AM (9/16/2009)
BR, this topic has been discussed at length in a previous thread. Leno is a HUGE Top Gear fan and wanted to do this, WITH THEIR PERMISSION. Its great he's doing it, and its not a bad thing in any way. I for one can't wait for it.
Zerk 9:53PM (9/15/2009)
What the heck happened to her face? She had some bodywork done!
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