Back in January, I was invited to attend a breakfast to learn about Ford’s new Electric Vehicles as well as some of their sustainable development initiatives.

I won’t pretend that I wasn’t slightly curious when I was told that breakfast would be made with ingredients that are used to make parts and fabric used inside Ford vehicles.

Allow me to say that the breakfast, which was held at Hoogan et Beaufort was as delicious to eat as it was pleasing to Instagram – eyes 😉

Each course was described by the Chef and used certain ingredients that are actually used in the making of Ford vehicle interiors.

For example: Wheat is used in this scrumptious focaccia and inedible wheat straw is used to make Ford’s seat containers

Tomatoes are an ingredient in this mouthwatering fennel & grapefruit salad, but are also used to make plastic for Ford interiors.

Coconut is used in this different, yet delicious dessert and is also used in the Focus Electric & F150 interiors.

Christine Hollander, Director of Communications for Ford Canada was there to tell us about what Ford is doing in terms of sustainable development.

I learned a few different things that have given me a new-found respect for Ford.

I leaned that Ford uses:

• Soybean oil to replace much of the petroleum in the cushions & headrests its vehicles ( note- it’s also lighter, which means greater fuel efficiency!)
• 25 plastic bottles to make the carpets for each Ford Escape ( 5 million plastic bottles are put to good use each year!)
• Tomato peels/fibres which are converted into plastic pieces used in its vehicles’ interiors
• ‘Natural Latex’ made from dandelions to replace rubber
• Inedible ” Wheat Straw” from Ontario farms to make seat containers

• recycled denim for soundproofing in its vehicles
• paint fumes to power its paint shop – they call it “fumes to fuel” technology
• recycled US dollar bills to create plastic parts

I also learned that Their plant in Dearborn, Michigan has a green roof that spans 10.4 hectares…the equivalent of 8 football fields.

I was impressed.

I also learned that Ford will be investing $4.5 BILLION in electrified vehicle solutions from now until 2020, adding 13 new electrified vehicles to its portfolio by that time.

I also had the opportunity to test drive a Ford C-Max Energi  hybrid 🙂

I was also really curious to see what the ‘charging port’ looked like ( PS that’s not the real name…I really should find out what it’s called!)

Let me tell you, there was a snow storm that day (picture is not showing the wind!) and the roads were awful, but my ride was smooth…and SOOO quiet!  It actually wasn’t sure that it was actually turned on!

Note that I was test-driving a hybrid, which means that it can run on electric or gas. Ford also has fully electric vehicles.

The concern with fully electric vehicles tends to be how long the battery will last before running out and the length of time it takes to recharge the battery.

The new Ford Electric (production late 2016) will take 30 minutes to reach an 80% charge which will yield a range of approximately 160 km. That 2 hours faster than the 2015 model 🙂

It’s also worthy of note that there are charging stations popping up all over the place and there are apps to help you find the nearest one.

Speaking of apps- The new Ford electric vehicles connect with your phone via app so that you can see the status of your charge as well as where your to find a charging station:

Overall, I was actually quite excited to learn more about electric vehicle technology and it made me realize that Electric is a could be a viable option for a lot of people.  I mean, if you use your car to drive 30 minutes to work and back every day and maybe another 15 to run errands while on your way, an electric vehicle is possibly an excellent choice.

As far as price goes, Ford has lowered its prices by $3500 and there are government incentives to assist you in your purchase, making make these vehicles more accessible. ( $8000 incentive to purchase an electric vehicle & $4000 for a hybrid).

I am hoping to test drive a fully electric vehicle at some point this spring or summer, and if I do, I’ll be sure to let you know what I thought of my experience!

Until then: Drive safe 😉

Tanya