MOUNT VERNON — The fuel mileage on window stickers of most new cars read lower mileage in the city. With hybrid cars, it is now possible to get better fuel economy driving in the city than on the highway.
Hybrids started coming into dealers’ showrooms a few years back, with that fuel mileage surprise on the window stickers. Hybrids are cars with a conventional gasoline engine backed up with an electric motor that can run the car alone or assist the gas engine. A battery pack drives the electric motor. When the car is coasting, the motor turns into a generator to recharge the battery pack.
A number of manufacturers are marketing hybrid cars, including the Ford Motor Co., with its compact SUV called the Escape. Donley Ford-Mercury in Mount Vernon loaned an Escape hybrid for a test drive.
In a hybrid, there is a conventional gasoline engine with an electric motor mounted behind it. Mounted in the rear is a high-voltage battery pack to supply power to the motor. Ford provides only an automatic transmission for the Escape Hybrid, called a continuously variable transmission, or CVT. There are no shift points as in a four- or five-speed automatic, just a smooth rise in speed and power.
Ford doesn’t publish a horsepower figure for the gasoline engine, but does say the electric motor has a 70-kilowatt unit. It is backed up by a nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) battery pack of 330 volts. According to company literature, working together, they generate 155 horsepower with acceleration compared with a V-6 powered Escape. Ford makes the point that by using a small engine, in this case a small 2.3 liter four-cylinder engine for good fuel economy, with the electric motor for around town drive, it gives the Escape good performance. Driving impressions confirm that the combination accelerates vigorously, pulling the 3,759-pound weight of the four-wheel drive vehicle.
Fuel savings enters the equation when driving the Escape around town. While sitting in traffic or at a stoplight, the gas engine is stopped. The electric motor drives the car at speeds up to 25 mph. When driving the test car around Public Square at 15 mph to 20 mph, the electric motor did all the work.
Press the accelerator to increase speed, though, and the gas engine will automatically start to help. This is where the higher fuel mileage in the city comes in. The figures given by the Ford Co. are 36 miles per gallon in the city and 31 mpg on the highway. This, say Ford officials, is a 70 percent increase in fuel mileage over the standard four-cylinder Escape that averages 23 mpg in the city and 26 mpg on the highway.
Recharging the battery pack begins when the foot is taken off the accelerator and the car is coasting. The electronics in the system automatically switch the electric motor to a generator which charges the battery. A gauge on the left side of the instrument panel indicates when the electric motor is assisting and when it is generating current to the battery. If need be, the battery can be charged while driving on the road.
According to Ford’s literature, the engine will start and run the first time the key is turned on. The engine may shut off shortly after starting, depending on temperature and state of charge in the battery.
The temperature of the battery is important to its operation. It is equipped with an air conditioning system to keep the battery at the proper temperature. The fan in the system may be heard as a slight tap as the vent door opens or closes. Ford guarantees the battery for eight years or 100,000 miles.
Ford makes a couple of other points for the Escape Hybrid. There is no need to “plug in” to an electric outlet to recharge the battery, and a tank of gasoline can take the car 400 to 500 miles before refueling. The hybrid package adds, depending on model and equipment, $3,000 to $4,000 to the price of the Escape. A Ford spokesman said new car buyers have not shown a lot of interest in the technology.
The Escape is, altogether, a pleasant vehicle to drive. Four-wheel independant suspension give the compact SUV a good ride and excellent handling on the road. It also has the safety of four-wheel disc brakes. It is available with front wheel or four-wheel drive, and the cabin is comfortable for five passengers.
