Ford has hardly forgotten about our expectation for advanced technological perks either. All of this hybrid wizardry can be monitored using a liquid crystal display that shares time with the vehicle's audio and navigation systems. Along with playing music and showing maps, it gives real time indication of the vehicle's "power path" just like Toyota's Prius, displaying whether the gas engine and/or electric motor is operating. It also illustrates when energy is being recovered during braking.
Unfortunately, the Escape Hybrid will only be available in limited numbers for fleet sales late this year and ready for retail production in the second half of 2004.
General Motors looks likely to be the next major player anteing in to the alternative drivetrain game, having announced an aggressive hybrid development program at January's North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The No. 1 auto maker says it will have the potential to build up to 1 million vehicles with some form of hybrid technology by 2007.
The Sierra Club has recently criticized Ford for going back on its promise to improve fuel efficiency by 25 percent in its sport utility vehicles by mid-decade and dropping its Electric Vehicle initiatives as other OEMs have also done. This problem was partially exacerbated by reports the Escape would not be coming to mass market when initially expected this fall.