Ford Escape News
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We get some of our most interesting topics from reader questions. Past questions include how emergency responders should react to hybrid and electric cars, and whether towing a Prius behind a motorhome is a good idea. Today, we have a query about green cars (not trucks) that offer all-wheel drive. Our reader Stephen Fryer writes: Will there be any non-SUV hybrids or diesels with all-wheel drive (e.g. Audi TDI with Quattro, BMW D with Xdrive) available in the U.S. in the next two years? That's a great question, Stephen (we're big fans of all-wheel drive too). So, here's what we know. AWD green...
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Why Ford Would Be Crazy To Kill The Escape Hybrid: Real AWDFord has made lots of changes to its model lineup of late, some of them remarkably quickly. Now comes word that the new Ford Escape compact crossover for 2013 may not include the Escape Hybrid model it has sold since 2004. We think that would be a terrible shame, because it takes off the market a...
John Voelcker -
Ford's Gas Mileage Goals Spawn 3-Cylinder Engine, New HybridsSmaller, more efficient engines that equal the power of larger, lazier ones are how automakers all over the world plan to raise fuel economy. Today Ford [NYSE:F] doubled down on engineering as the best way to boost gas mileage, with announcements about three separate technologies it plans to use in...
John Voelcker -
Move Over Ford: Nissan Plans All-Electric Future For NY TaxisFrom the iconic Ford Crown Victoria through to the Ford Escape Hybrids replacing many of them as part of air quality legislature coming into force in 2012, Ford’s relationship with the New York taxi is a long one. But Ford’s chance to electrify the humble New York City taxi with its...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Attention, Shoppers: Infiniti QX56s, Diesels Are NOT HybridsIt will come as a horrible shock to the driver of the pale green Infiniti QX56, but the 2-ton-plus full-size sport utility vehicle is not actually a hybrid. Nor, for that matter, is a Volkswagen Passat TDI--though it at least has a diesel engine, which gives higher gas mileage than the QX56's...
John Voelcker -
Today's Shag Carpeting, Tomorrow's Mustang?While you're ripping up old celery shag to lay down fresh berber, you may wonder where the carpet ends up. Probably, regrettably, a landfill somewhere--which is not the case with some automotive carpeting that a Ford supplier is turning into new parts. For years, automakers have used plastics to...
Kurt Ernst -
If you're in the States, you may be just starting your day. But in Switzerland, the flurry of activity during the first media day at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show is at its peak. With record numbers of concept and production-car launches, our team is shooting photos and posting details as fast as they can. Here are some of the earliest, most significant green concept vehicles unveiled so far. We'll cover production cars in a subsequent post. Volkswagen Bulli (Microbus) Concept You can't help but love the idea of a new Volkswagen Bus, and VW has tried for a decade to create a modern...
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Now We Know: This Will Be The New 2012 Ford Escape HybridFord was clearly one of the stars of last week's Detroit Auto Show, launching green vehicles and concepts across a wide range of fuel-saving technologies. The company unveiled just a single concept, the Vertrek crossover, but it's an important one. The production version of the Vertrek will be the...
John Voelcker -
Most Popular Posts of 2010: Mazda2, Prius Crashes, Leaf, Volt, and Other EVsWe love looking back to see what's been popular over the course of a full year. And 2010 was definitely chock-full of green car news. Our 10 most popular posts this year are a little less random than last year's most popular, which featured Muslims and ethanol, urine, hybrid Ferraris, and our...
John Voelcker -
U.S. Army Goes Electric With Smart-Grid Enabled EVsThe U.S. military is hardly the first place you'd look to find an electric vehicle, but Canadian firm Rapid Electric Vehicles has just received a four-vehicle order from the U.S. Army for a test fleet of all-electric vehicles. The vehicles will be tested by the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2012 Ford Kuga Hybrid, or Will It Be 2012 Ford Escape Hybrid?The 2011 Ford Escape Hybrid will likely be the last year for Ford's original hybrid vehicle, launched way back in October 2004. At the end of July, Ford had sold 98,500 Escape Hybrids, more than half its total sales of 139,700 hybrids of all types. But all good things must come to an end. For 2012...
John Voelcker -
Cities Want High-Mileage Hybrid Taxis; Judge Says It's IllegalIf you've been to New York City lately, you may have noticed an increasing number of hybrid taxis on the roads: mostly Ford Escape Hybrid SUVs, but also Toyota Camry Hybrid and Nissan Altima Hybrid sedans, and a scattering of others too. It's part of a long-term plan to green the fleet of 14,000...
John Voelcker -
Like many site editors, we read our traffic stats religiously. Perhaps unlike other site editors, ours frequently make us laugh. We try to provide practical information on navigating your way through the confusing claims made about 'green' cars, whether they're hybrids, clean diesels, or just very fuel efficient gasoline vehicles. Yet the answer to the headline question above is: Stories on those topics--along with the new 2012 Ford Escape and a scientific look at why miles-per-gallon is a bad way to measure fuel efficiency--made up our five most popular posts during the first half of 2010...
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Roundup: Hybrid SUVs and Crossovers from Ford, Toyota, ChevyOur reader Celeste wrote to ask us about available hybrid SUVs and crossovers, and we thought our answer might be useful for the site. At the moment, there are three main hybrid SUVs sold in the U.S. Each of them also has variations sold under other brands. All are likely to be durable, as their...
John Voelcker -
Hybrids Are For Soldiers Too, Not Just Elite Effete Eco-WimpsYeah, yeah, we know. The only people who buy hybrids are the ones who want to show off their green credentials. They're effete, elite coastal residents who probably drove Subarus before they got their hybrids. Uh huh. Tell it to the Marines. Or, more accurately, tell it to the Israel Defense...
John Voelcker -
Ford Doubles Down on Flex-Fuel Vehicles; Do Carbuyers Care?It must be something in the water. Yesterday, we learned that every 2011 Buick Regal will offer flex-fuel capability as standard. Now it's Ford's turn; the company announced today that it will have doubled the number of flex-fuel models it builds by the end of the year, fulfilling a 2006 pledge...
John Voelcker -
Ford Hybrids: Tough Enough To Be Police Cars in New York CityAs New York City works aggressively to reduce its carbon footprint and cut exhaust emissions, it has encouraged large fleets to switch to hybrids. From utility ConEd to the fleets of yellow cabs, more and more hybrids are showing up on city streets. The latest large fleet to go greener is the New...
John Voelcker -
Biodiesel Bamboo Cabs: Philippines Town Turns Taxis GreenIt's not a particularly new story, these days, but hey, it's also Friday. So we thought we'd revisit one of the more unusual attempts at green cars we've seen. This morning, a friend sent us an e-mail with photos of two taxis commissioned by the Philippine town of Tabontabon, in the province of...
John Voelcker -
While the auto industry in general offers an average incentive of more than $1,000 off the sticker price of any new vehicle, many buyers somehow assume this doesn't apply to hybrids. Oh, but it does. You can get money off pretty much any hybrid out there at the moment, since gasoline prices are far from the heights they reached in 2008. Back then, you'd pay list price and more--if you were lucky enough to find a dealer who wasn't outright gouging. Top 10 hybrid discounts Using actual pricing data provided by our partner TrueCar on thousands of January and February sales, our colleague Bengt...
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Ford Transit Connect EV Specs RevealedThe Ford Transit Connect EV will be one of the company's first electric drive vehicles. It is expected to come to market near the end of the year. Up until a few days ago, little was known about specific data of the Transit EV. Now that has all changed. With the Transit Connect EV scheduled...
Eric Loveday -
NAIAS Attendees Give Their Take On Electric and Hybrid Vehicles, Informing Buyers is ParamountHere at AllCarsElectric we cover stories about electric and hybrid vehicles. Our writing is geared towards our readership which is well versed in advanced technology vehicles. As such, certain aspects about the general public are not often discussed. Our writers and our readers alike may know...
Eric Loveday -
New Hybrid Scorecard Slams Carmakers For Loading On LuxuryIt's long been known that hybrid buyers often choose them over luxury cars, and aren't buying them solely for the payback in gasoline savings. But a new Hybrid Scorecard, launched by the Union of Concerned Scientists, slams carmakers for inflating their prices by loading luxury into fuel-efficient...
John Voelcker -
Five Questions: Nancy Gioia, Ford global electrification directorFord was the first U.S. automaker to offer a hybrid, introducing the Ford Escape Hybrid crossover in 2004. It recently expanded its portfolio with the well-received 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. More recently, the company has announced plans for limited numbers of plug-in hybrids, as well as electric...
John Voelcker -
Ford CEO: Fuel-Efficient Engines Pose Tough Fight for HybridsFord has built hundreds of thousands of hybrids since 2004, but unlike Toyota, it hasn't staked its future on the pricey technology that mates an electric motor to a combustion engine. Ford's CEO Alan Mulally says that's because hybrids will face continuing competition from increasingly more...
John Voelcker