2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid
(Credit: CNET)Ford Motor's hybrid sales are up 67 percent this year, despite an overall industry slump of 11 percent, the company reported.
The carmaker sold 31,000 hybrid cars through November this year--which was higher than its previous sales record set in 2007. The company said Wednesday that it pinned part of the increase on the release of the Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid. Both vehicles get 41 mpg in the city and 36 mpg on the highway, Ford said. The Fusion Hybrid, which was released in March, represents 45 percent of all Ford hybrid sales for 2009.
Ford's goal is to make 10 percent to 25 percent of its fleet "electrified" by 2020. That's the equivalent of 800,000 to 2 million cars. "Electrified" covers hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and battery-electric vehicles.
2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET)In the minds of many American car buyers, domestic manufacturers cannot compete with many of their foreign counterparts when it comes to being environmentally-friendly and fuel efficient. But--surprise--the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid has easily eclipsed nearly all its hybrid competitors by reaching more than 40 miles per gallon both on the highway and in city driving. That's just one of many positive attributes to the 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid sedan, and in this video, we get a closer look at this American hybrid vehicle.
This Web clip gives us a good look at the 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid in action, and gives us the technical specs that should consider when buying any car, and not just a hybrid. This new edition of the Fusion hybrid has finally eclipsed the Toyota Camry hybrid in terms of fuel economy, and its cutting edge LCD panel can help the driver in maximizing their gas mileage in real time. In short, Ford has offered up a legitimate alternative to so-called highbrow hybrid vehicles that can convincingly run with (and possibly beat) its overseas competitors.
BorgWarner will supply engine and drive-train technologies to the 2010 Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan midsize sedans.
The new mechanics will include an industry-first Cam Torque Actuated (CTA) variable cam timing (VCT) technology for the upgraded Ford Duratec 3.0-liter V-6 engine.
Unlike traditional cam phasing methods that typically use engine oil pressure to rotate the camshaft, BorgWarner's CTA technology captures the existing torsional energy in the valve train to accomplish this event, similar to a hydraulic ratchet. CTA cam phasers operate more quickly and under a wider range of engine speeds and temperatures than traditional oil-pressure-actuated cam phasers, allowing CTA variable cam timing to more efficiently improve fuel economy, increase horsepower and reduce emissions.
BorgWarner technologies includes a transmission solenoid module features proprietary closed-end variable bleed solenoids to minimize oil flow, reducing the energy needed to drive the oil pump. With high-energy friction materials and specific oil grooving, BorgWarner friction plates minimize drag losses, and the light-weight Morse TEC HY-VO transmission chain is more efficient than transfer gears, further enhancing fuel economy.
If you buy a Chevy Volt, are you a moron? The writing's on the wall for driving while texting. Future Toyotas may call you a liquor face. And we take a ride in really great American hybrid.
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Check out our full review of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid.
(Credit: Josh P. Miller/CNET)
Spoiler alert: We gave the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid our Editors' Choice award. Although to be fair, after seeing its doppelganger, the 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid, win the award previously, you had to have known the less expensive Fusion was something of a shoo-in.
However, our experience with the Fusion Hybrid wasn't an exact repeat of our time with the Milan. For starters, our tester was not equipped with the hard drive-based navigation system, which let us get a taste of the Sync flavor without the cheat sheet touch screen.
How did the screenless Sync experience stack up? Check the full review of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid to find out.
Ford Motor today released details on Sync's 911 Assist. The service will place a call directly to a local 911 operator in the event of an accident involving the activation of an air bag or an emergency fuel pump shutoff.
911 Assist, along with Vehicle Health Report, expands the features of Sync; both features are bundled together and now available as a software upgrade at dealerships for existing Sync owners and will come standard in the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid.
Unlike other crash notification services, 911 Assist does not require the customer to sign up and pay for a costly monthly service subscription; Sync uses a customer's existing mobile phone. Also, a key advantage of the system is speed, since calls are placed directly to the local 911 operators--not a third-party call center, as with other competitive systems.
(Source: Ford Motor)
It's not every day that you get to drive an all-electric car and a brand new gas-electric hybrid. But that's just what I did last week when I took both the Electric Mini Cooper and 2010 Ford Fusion for a spin.
The two cars represent two technical approaches to gaining fuel efficiency through bigger car batteries.
Like the Toyota Prius, the newly released Ford Fusion is a gas-electric hybrid that drives primarily on the gas engine, supplemented by a nickel-metal hydride battery. By contrast, the Mini Electric, which will start to be leased to drivers next month as part of a trial, runs entirely on lithium-ion batteries, the latest battery technology.
The trade-offs of both approaches are pretty apparent. The Fusion gets over 40 miles per gallon and it's more or less like any other car you've driven: you fill it up with gasoline and it goes.
The Mini Electric, on the other hand, sacrifices the entire back seat for its battery pack. That allows it to go 100 miles on a charge--sufficient for most daily driving. But two of its advantages are that you never go to a gas station and there are no emissions from the car itself.
Meanwhile, there's yet another technology in the mix--what General Motors calls a range-extended electric vehicle or what engineers call a series hybrid (as opposed to a parallel hybrid). In that case, an internal combustion engine does nothing but charge the batteries that propel the car.
On the road
There's a lot of focus on how lithium-ion batteries are paving the way for cars with a longer range (although cost is still a serious concern). But in both the Ford and the Electric Mini, there are a number of other fuel-saving tricks at work.
The big one is regenerative braking, where the battery charges when the driver presses the brake. The Ford Fusion didn't feel very different from any other automatic transmission car. But the regenerative braking in the Electric Mini was different. When I took my foot of the accelerator, the car slowed significantly. It's noticeable but something that I got used within a few minutes of riding.
Automakers say a key component to mainstream electric car adoption is an in-board feedback system that lets drivers know how to maximize their efficiency. This is probably old hat to Prius drivers looking for ways to save on gas. But it becomes particularly important in all-electric cars, as automakers don't want drivers getting stuck with an empty battery and no place to charge.
The Ford's dashboard LCD shows when you're using the gas motor and when you're running on battery. The way to optimize for efficiency is to get to cruising speed and then tap the brakes to charge the battery, I was told. The car also has an on-dash rating system that displays a plant sprout. More leaves distinguishes the hypermilers from the lead-foots.
The Electric Mini feedback system is pretty simple: how much juice you have left is on the front dash while another meter shows whether you're drawing from or charging the battery.
How did these autos drive? For somebody with admittedly pedestrian taste in cars, I thought they both were great to drive.
If I had to pick, I'd say the Mini is more fun simply because it's a small car with a lot of pep. But then again, without a back seat to speak of, you're not going to bring your Saint Bernard to the beach in an Electric Mini.
Representatives from Ford and BMW were kind enough to hold the video camera while I drove these cars around the block in California last week and to answer my questions about what's under the hood. You can see the Ford Fusion video here and the Electric Mini video here.
Team members (left to right) Steve Burke, Wayne Gerdes, and Tom Rolewicz breaking the seal on the gas tank after driving an amazing 1,445.7 miles on a single tank of gas in Alexandria, Va., ending at 5:37 a.m. Tuesday, April 28, 2009. The car had been running for 69 hours continuously.
(Credit: Ford)Setting a world record a gasoline fueled midsized sedan, the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid traveled 1,445.7 miles on a single tank of gas on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.
Traveling between 20 and 45 mph depending on traffic to take advantage of the car's capability to operate in electric-only mode up to 47 mph and foregoing cruise control to maximize fuel economy, a team of seven eco-drivers set out from Mount Vernon, Va. on Saturday at 8:15 a.m. ET with a goal of reaching 1,000 miles on their 17-gallon tank.
The team included Nascar driver Carl Edwards, high mileage trailblazer Wayne Gerdes and several Ford Motor Company engineers who took turns at the wheel, twittering their progress along the way.
The 1,000 mile target was easily reached at 9:07 a.m. EDT on April 27. Edwards reportedly took them past this milestone with an average fuel economy of 76.3 mpg, according to a post on Twitter.
With fuel still in the tank, the team continued driving into the night to see just how far the Fusion Hybrid could go.
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As popular online as in the real world, the Ford Mustang has been downloaded more than 1.5 million times in The Sims 2.
(Credit: Electronic Arts)Car manufacturers may be having a tough time moving vehicles off the showroom floor this year, but Ford is crushing it online. Granted, it's because they're giving away free vehicles to enhance characters in The Sims video game.
Players of The Sims 2 with the Nightlife expansion pack have been downloading free Ford vehicles since 2007. To date, there's been more than 5.7 million downloads of the Ford-branded autos, with 1.5 million of them being the iconic Ford Mustang (red with white racing stripes). That's seven times more Mustangs than Ford has sold in the last two years.
Marketing-wise, it was an obvious move by Ford. Branded vehicles was the most popular request from males and second most popular request from females. The Ford Mustang was the number one requested vehicle, according to Brian Bos, Senior Vice President of Mindshare Team Detroit, which oversaw the development of Ford's vehicles for The Sims.
Ford debuted the Fusion in The Sims videogame six months before it was released in the real world.
(Credit: Electronic Arts)Ford saw this demand as the perfect social media marketing opportunity. In the Sims videogame, Ford has a store in the Exchange, an online marketplace, where players can download cars for free, such as the Fusion, Edge, and Escape Hybrid. It's also a way players can "test drive" new models. Ford debuted the Focus in The Sims six months before it was released in the real world.
The video game versions of the cars are created using the same CAD drawings that engineers use to build the vehicles. However, the electronic editions are slightly stripped down to fit in the gaming market. Bos says that for the most part, the proportions are accurate and fairly representative of the cars in the real world.
Sims characters can get in and out of car, and the radios play Sims products. Ford eliminated some things like the engine and other power train components, so the cars theoretically won't break down. But they don't actually drive the cars. Characters use the cars to get from one place to another in The Sims world by typing a destination, but players can't actually steer the vehicles.
No new cars are planned for the Sims 2, says Bos. However, Ford may be doing something with Electronic Arts for The Sims 3, which will be released in late June. Maybe they'll debut their first electric vehicle there?
The interior of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid.
(Credit: Ford Motor Company)Ford does not and will not be using soy-foam in the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. Seats are comprised of 85 percent post consumer recycled material and covered in eco-responsible fabric.
The 2010 Fusion Hybrid is the latest Ford family vehicle that to be outfitted with soy-based foam seat backs and cushions, and covered in 100 percent recycled fabric, which goes to show that mileage isn't the only way to measure the environmental impact of a car.
By the end of 2009 model year, more than 1 million Ford vehicles will have been manufactured with these petroleum-alternative seats. Since its debut in 2008, Ford has used the foam in the Mustang, Expedition, F-150, Escape, Focus, Mazda Tribute, and Lincoln Navigator.
A soy-based foam seat.
(Credit: Ford Motor)Replacing the seat cushions may not sound like a huge technological leap, but the switch from polyurethane foam derived from petroleum to soybean oil-based foam in these vehicles has offset more than 5 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, said to Cynthia Flanigan, a plastics expert in Ford's Research and Advanced Engineering department. It's another step toward reducing the United States' dependence on foreign oil.
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