 |
| Ford's answer to Toyota and Honda's market dominance is a hybrid gas-electric Escape compact SUV. The new model will give Ford a distinct advantage in functionality while cashing in on the sport utility craze. GM will soon offer pickup trucks and SUVs with gas-electric powertrains too. (Photo: Ford Motor) |
But there is a solution coming from the domestic automakers. General Motors and Ford have announced that they plant to enter the hybrid market later this year with three light trucks, initially restricted to fleets. GM ideally would like to sell a small number of Sierra and Silverado pickups with a "mild" hybrid system that boosts fuel economy by 12%, said spokesman Joe Lawrence to Bloomberg News.
With fuel prices jumping across the continent and no end of increases in sight, the extra cost of hybrid gas-electric vehicles is starting to make economic sense. The positive spin-off will be a cleaner environment.