Ford plans bevy of energy-savvy rides
Tulsa World; by Robert Evatt, World Staff Writer, 5/7/09.
Ford Motor Co's new hybrid vehicles, the hybrid versions of the Ford Fusion and the Mercury Milan,
are just the start of a rising wave of energy-efficent hybrid and alternative-energy vehicles, developers say.
Anand Sankaran, manager of hybrid propulsion EE systems for Ford, said during a Wednesday presentation
at Dwelling Spaces in Tulsa that the company has greatly expanded its research and development into cleaner
vehicles, due in large part to customer demand.
"We're seeing a big customer shift, and awareness is growing," he said "More customers are asking for ways they can help address climate change."
Ford hopes part of the way customers do that is by turning to the hybrid Fusion and Milan, both of which are rolling into dealerships now. The hybrid Fusion sells for $ 27,270 and boasts fuel efficiency of 41 miles per gallon in the city
and 36 mpg on the highways, compared with a starting price of $19,270 and a mileage of 23 in the city and 34 on the highways for the nonhybrid versions.
The vehicles are also equipped with Ecoguide, which uses the dual LCD screens on either side of the speedometer
to give drivers feedback on the moment-to-moment fuel efficiency. Sankaran said Ecoguide encourages better driving habits through a depiction of growing vines on the display as the car is driven more efficiently.
"We talked with companies and customers to hear how they use their hybrid and how they want to get the most out of it," he said.
Ford plans to roll out more hybrid vehicles, but that's not its only energy-saving strategy. Sankaran said the company is gradually shifting more and more of its gas-only engines to the "EcoBoost" model, which uses direct fuel injection to increase fuel efficiency by 20 percent.
The 2010 models of the Ford Flex and Lincoln MKS are equipped with the new engine.
The company also plans to introduce pure battery-powered and plug-in hybrid vahicles by 2012.
After 2012, Ford plans to modify the powertrain on its vehicles to handle all power sources, which will make international sales easier.
"The idea is to migrate the powertrain regardless of what energy source a specific regions demands," he said.
The company also plans to keep boosting the volume of its hybrid vehicles and make the method increasingly common.
"We can't just do this in the thousands," Sankaran said. "We need to be able to do things in the millions to be able to have an impact on the environment."
Ford Motor Co's new hybrid vehicles, the hybrid versions of the Ford Fusion and the Mercury Milan,
are just the start of a rising wave of energy-efficent hybrid and alternative-energy vehicles, developers say.
Anand Sankaran, manager of hybrid propulsion EE systems for Ford, said during a Wednesday presentation
at Dwelling Spaces in Tulsa that the company has greatly expanded its research and development into cleaner
vehicles, due in large part to customer demand.
"We're seeing a big customer shift, and awareness is growing," he said "More customers are asking for ways they can help address climate change."
Ford hopes part of the way customers do that is by turning to the hybrid Fusion and Milan, both of which are rolling into dealerships now. The hybrid Fusion sells for $ 27,270 and boasts fuel efficiency of 41 miles per gallon in the city
and 36 mpg on the highways, compared with a starting price of $19,270 and a mileage of 23 in the city and 34 on the highways for the nonhybrid versions.
The vehicles are also equipped with Ecoguide, which uses the dual LCD screens on either side of the speedometer
to give drivers feedback on the moment-to-moment fuel efficiency. Sankaran said Ecoguide encourages better driving habits through a depiction of growing vines on the display as the car is driven more efficiently.
"We talked with companies and customers to hear how they use their hybrid and how they want to get the most out of it," he said.
Ford plans to roll out more hybrid vehicles, but that's not its only energy-saving strategy. Sankaran said the company is gradually shifting more and more of its gas-only engines to the "EcoBoost" model, which uses direct fuel injection to increase fuel efficiency by 20 percent.
The 2010 models of the Ford Flex and Lincoln MKS are equipped with the new engine.
The company also plans to introduce pure battery-powered and plug-in hybrid vahicles by 2012.
After 2012, Ford plans to modify the powertrain on its vehicles to handle all power sources, which will make international sales easier.
"The idea is to migrate the powertrain regardless of what energy source a specific regions demands," he said.
The company also plans to keep boosting the volume of its hybrid vehicles and make the method increasingly common.
"We can't just do this in the thousands," Sankaran said. "We need to be able to do things in the millions to be able to have an impact on the environment."
Comment
Featured Action
Twitter Feed
© 2010 Created by PickensPlan
Badges | Community Guidelines | Report an Issue | Privacy | Terms of Service
You need to be a member of PickensPlan to add comments!
Join PickensPlan