Bold predictions for Ford's new hybrids?
Same production limitations as the Escape hybrid?According to MotorTrend Ford will soon roll out new technology that will "meet or beat the competition in fuel economy." At least that's what Ford's president of the Americas Mark Fields is claiming.
A piece of that new technology will be some new hybrid vehicles, as Ford is prepared to launch both the Fusion and the Mercury Milan hybrids late this year.
Since Ford's hybrid system is largely leased from Toyota, does that mean Ford has figured out a way to make better hybrids than Toyota with the same technology? That seems more like marketing spin than reality. And, even if true, can Ford increase hybrid production to levels that will really mean something?
Labels: Ford fusion hybrid, Hybrid Vehicles, mercury milan hybrid
posted by Dahcredyns at
8:15 AM
4 Comments:
Knowing Ford, they will screw something up - even using Toyota technology.
Ford should stop showcasing their hybrid technology in SUVs. Put it in a Focus or in a Fusion. That'll show really impressive MPGs.
Indigo Incarnates
I can think of two ways right off the bat that Ford could screw up the next two hybrids:
-- Produce so few of them that they basically van't be purchased.
-- Pull a "Nissan" and only sell them in a handful of states.
I believe Ford developed their own, NOT borrowed from Toyota. To my knowledge, Ford cross-licensed some hybrid-drive patents and some pick-up truck patents with Toyota because they were so similar and they both wanted to hedge off any future legal concerns. In other words, the engineers from Toyota and Ford independently developed separate hybrid technology and pick-up truck technologies that were so similar in nature that they agreed to leave each other alone.
Give Ford some credit. Their interior designers may be blind and their marketing department poor, but I believe they are not outsourcing hybrid tech.
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