Ford’s European EV lineup just received the kind of mid-cycle glow-up enthusiasts usually have to beg for—and it happened at the bottom of the price ladder. The rear-wheel-drive, Standard Range versions of the electric Explorer and Capri have quietly become much more compelling, thanks to a new battery chemistry, a stronger motor, and a big leap in real-world usability.
The headline change is under the floor. Out goes the 52-kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) pack, replaced by a 58-kWh (net) lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery. LFP chemistry is cheaper, more thermally stable, and—crucially for everyday drivers—far happier being charged to 100 percent on a regular basis. That means owners can actually use the whole battery without guilt, a big deal in the real world.
Ford didn’t just bolt in a bigger battery and call it a day. The rear electric motor has also been upgraded, jumping from 125 kW (168 hp) to 140 kW (190 hp), while torque climbs from 310 to 350 Nm. The result is a modest but welcome performance bump: 0–100 km/h now takes 8.0 seconds instead of 8.7. No, it won’t pin you to the seat like a Mustang Mach-E GT, but in the compact-SUV EV class, every tenth of a second counts.
Where this update really pays off is in range. The Explorer Standard Range now stretches to a WLTP-rated 444 km on a charge, up from as little as 352 km before. The sleeker Capri does even better, topping out at 464 km versus its previous 370–393 km rating. That’s not a tweak—that’s a fundamental upgrade in how far these cars can go between plugs.
Ford also claims energy consumption has dropped by about 1 kWh per 100 km, a small number that adds up over thousands of kilometers. Combined with the LFP pack’s ability to live comfortably at full charge, these EVs suddenly look far more road-trip-friendly than their spec sheets used to suggest.
There is one trade-off. Maximum DC fast-charging power falls from 145 kW to 110 kW. On paper, that looks like a step backward, but in practice it barely matters. Ford says a 10-to-80 percent charge still takes about 28 minutes, and the Explorer can now add roughly 11 km of range per minute at peak charging speed. In other words, you’ll still have time for a coffee and a bathroom break—just not two.
The best part? In Austria, at least, prices stay exactly where they were. Orders are already open, and first deliveries start in April.
For buyers eyeing Ford’s most affordable electric SUVs, this update changes the math in a big way. More power, dramatically more range, better everyday charging behavior, and no price hike? That’s the kind of upgrade cycle the rest of the EV industry should be paying attention to. And for a brand that’s still figuring out how to win over mainstream electric buyers, Ford just made its entry-level offerings a whole lot harder to ignore.
Source: Ford
