Ford Escape News
-
The dirty little secrets of Top 10 lists are in the methodology, as Forbes found out with its weirdly inaccurate "10 Dirtiest Cars" list. (It's the end of the year, so it's time for a lot of Top 10s.) But we see no such problems in the EPA Green Vehicle Guide, which rates vehicles not only on tailpipe emissions but also their carbon-dioxide emissions. CO2 ~ fuel usage Fuel consumption is almost directly proportional to CO2 emissions, so it's not surprising that the best cars for the climate--ranked by their carbon dioxide output--turn out to be the highest-mileage models sold in the U.S. The...
-
Here It Is: New 2012 Ford Escape, But Will There Be a Hybrid?The Ford Escape compact sport utility, including its hybrid model, is now long in the tooth or beyond. It was first introduced as a 2001 model, and has been restyled twice. It still sells well, though, and Ford continues to update the hybrid model. Nonetheless, it's overdue for replacement. Now...
John Voelcker -
Hybrids, Yes, But No Dedicated Hybrid Models for Nissan
Nissan has made a bigger bet on electric cars than any other automaker, with plans to launch its 2012 Leaf electric car globally. But if electric cars are the future of green vehicles, hybrids are today's state of the art. And there, Nissan has lagged. It is developing its own hybrid system, but...
John Voelcker -
2010 Fusion Hybrid Takes Credit For 73-Percent Ford Hybrid Sales Rise
With record unemployment numbers and an active global recession, it's not news that vehicle sales have been lousy, falling by more than one-third from the record levels of a few years ago. But at least one maker's green cars are doing better than ever: Ford's U.S. sales of its hybrid-electric...
John Voelcker -
Electric Supercharger Boosts Gasoline Engines To Diesel Efficiency
In the accelerating quest for greater fuel efficiency, boosting engines--with turbos or superchargers--is one way to pull more power out of a given displacement. Traditionally, superchargers have been driven by chain or belt powered from an engine's crankshaft. Now, a British engineering firm has...
John Voelcker -
Are Carmaker Sites Using Hybrids (Ineptly) As Spam Bait?
We get a lot of spam. Everyone gets a lot of spam. In fact, Symantec says nine of every 10 e-mail messages are spam. But we're scratching our head over a recent spam that uses the topic of hybrid cars, particularly clumsily, to link (via Dubai, no less) to real carmakers' hybrid, diesel, and...
John Voelcker -
A few weeks ago, we got a note from reader Laila Folk asking about air conditioning in hybrid cars, specifically the 2010 Ford Escape Hybrid. She wrote: Can you get an answer from Ford Corporation regarding the inclusion of an electric motor driven air compressor for the A/C unit in the 2010 Ford Escape Hybrid? The use of an engine-driven compressor in the 2009 and older models negates any benefit of the electric motor in the hot areas in the southern half of the United States, because the gas engine will always be running with maximum A/C. Here in Florida, you can't live without max...
-
Hydro-Quebec Selected To Join Ford Escape PHEV Trials
Hydro-Quebec, the leading electricity provider of the Canadian Province, signed on to field test a Ford Escape plug-in hybrid. Ford's program provides several different companies with a PHEV Escape for a three year test program. The goal of the program is to provide real world feedback to Ford...
Eric Loveday -
Our Latest Feature: Live Tweets About Green Cars
Here at GreenCarReports.com, we spend a lot of time reading and writing about green cars of all stripes: fuel-efficient hatchbacks, hybrids, diesels, small cars, you name it. But we also spend time immersed in the fast-changing world of digital media. And lately, we've spent a lot of time looking...
John Voelcker -
Minneapolis Airport Adds First Electric Vehicle to Fleet
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, the country's 12th largest airport, purchased its first electric vehicle to be used by the parking management staff. The electric powered utility truck is a $22,000 Cushman vehicle. It has the ability to run up to 55 miles on a single charge and could...
Eric Loveday -
Ford Escape Hybrid Selected as One of 10 Best Engines by Wards Auto
The powertrain in the Ford Escape Hybrid was selected by Wards Auto as one of the ten best for 2009. The 10 Best Engine Award winners are selected for their breakthrough design, outstanding output, and fuel efficiency among other categories. The powertrain in the Ford Escape Hybrid was selected...
Eric Loveday -
More Proof That Batteries Last: Ford Escape Hybrid Taxis Retire With 300,000-Plus Miles
Like many cities across the world, San Francisco is learning that hybrid taxis not only save gas, but last as long as needed
John Voelcker -
The new stimulus package that was recently signed in to law allows car buyers to take advantage of tax breaks and credits on hybrid vehicles. The current stimulus package allows would be cars buyers to deduct state and local sales tax paid on any vehicle that was purchased new after February 17th. There are a few restrictions to qualify for this deducation. Any family must make less than $250,000 in annual income and any individual must makes less than $125,000 annually. Further, the vehicle purchased must be less than $49,500. This incentive may entice buyers, but buyers of hybrids...
-
To Claim a Tax Credit, Buy Your Ford Hybrid Before the End of March
Despite all the green love Toyota gets, Ford builds and sells hybrids too. In fact, they've now built enough of them that tax breaks for buying a Ford hybrid will start to wind down at the end of March. The full tax credit only applies to sales of the first 60,000 hybrids from each carmaker...
John Voelcker -
Ford Celebrates Production of 100,000th Hybrid
Ford Motor Company celebrated the production of their 100,000th hybrid at their Kansas City Assembly Plant today. The company, which plans to increase hybrid car production this year with the incoming Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan models, used the day as an opportunity to plug their gas-electric...
Robert Scardino -
Concerned About Plug-In Hybrid Battery Life? How's 180,000 Miles?
Plug-in hybrid batteries may last longer than you own your car. Southern California Edison (SCE) said Tuesday that they've continuously tested a Johnson Control-Saft lithium-ion battery subpack for the equivalent of 180,000 miles with minimal degradation; and the test is still ongoing. You could...
Robert Scardino
