backtop

Gadgets Ford Rolls Out Second Gen Escape Hybrid
Brandon Hill (Blog) - November 29, 2006 10:17 AM
Print E-mail del.icio.us 39 comment(s) - last by bike4freedom2.. on Nov 30 at 10:08 PM
Ford's 2nd gen Escape Hybrid unveiled

DailyTech reported on Monday that Ford was putting the final touches on its next generation Escape Hybrid for the 2006 L.A. Auto Show. Ford has now officially announced the compact SUV along with its conventional gasoline-engined brothers.

Overall, the Escape is mostly a "refresh" instead of a substantial revamp. The vehicle still rides on the same platform as before (featuring the same 103" wheelbase), but now has a thoroughly modern interior, reductions to noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) and new speed-sensitive Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS).

Sadly, Ford didn't make many improvements in the powertrain. The 2.3 liter inline-4 and 3.0 liter V6 carryover intact as does the hybrid system. The only changes made to the hybrid system include some software tweaks to make the transition between electric and gasoline modes more transparent.

The Escape Hybrid is a "full hybrid" meaning that it can run on full electric power or in tandem with the gasoline engine. The vehicle's 133HP gasoline engine is paired with a 70 kw electric motor which helps boost city fuel economy by 75% over the V6 powered model. Power is routed through a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

Comments     Threshold


This article is over a month old, voting and posting comments is disabled
What about diesel power?
By ThisSpaceForRent on 11/29/2006 12:19:53 PM , Rating: 2
I don't understand why they don't just put a clean burning diesel engine in it, and be done with it. You could probably drop the price of the vehicle since you would reduce the complexity of manufacturing it, and still reap the benefits of increased fuel mileage. A diesel also makes sense in a larger vehicle because of the higher torque. Thoughts, flames to this idea?




RE: What about diesel power?
By Topweasel on 11/29/2006 12:26:49 PM , Rating: 2
Great Idea now that we have tighter emission controls and Benz has shown that they can build a diesel without any of the normal drawbacks. The one advantage to Hybrid tech is its easier to stay inline with current performance standards (which is very important to me) even if some of the electronics are a bit more costly. Also Americans (that being me) seem to have very long memories and are generally turned off by Diesels with out even giving them a chance.


RE: What about diesel power?
By ninjit on 11/29/2006 1:53:58 PM , Rating: 2
Yet we seem to have very short memories when it comes to gasoline prices.

Over the last 6 months, there has been an obvious inverse correlation of SUV/truck sales to gas prices. When they were high in summer SUV/truck sales plummeted and manufacturers were frantic to figure out what to do thinking that the American Public had finally wisened up and fallen out of love with the big cars.

But then after summer when gas prices dropped again, SUV/Truck sales shot up by almost 40%!!!
Amnesia?


RE: What about diesel power?
By semo on 11/29/2006 4:08:54 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
The one advantage to Hybrid tech is its easier to stay inline with current performance standards

what do you mean by performance? power or mpg?
have a look at audi's 3.0 tdi 232 bhp, 332 lb-ft engine, whichever you choose.

higher bhp than the ford escape's 3.0 pertrol engine and higher torque. you can argue that the ford's engine is not turbocharged but with the 3.0 tdi you also get better mpg.

so again what do you mean by "performance standards"?


RE: What about diesel power?
By otispunkmeyer on 11/30/2006 3:56:18 AM , Rating: 2
i agree

diesel engines are there now, and they are quick.


i drove a focus 1.8litre diesel sport the otherday and it was well quick. ok theres not alot below 1500rpm, engine bogs down abit, but just before 2000 it goes like shit of a shovel.

only problem is its all over 2500rpm later and you gotta shift. great for motorways though accelerating through 50-70/80mph is great and will leave most petrol cars in your dust.

oh and they dont sound particularly sporty, but most manufacturers do an excellent job of vibration and sound damping. in some Audi's and BMW's you'd be forgiven for thinking you were in a petrol motor

tow guys, Ant and Pete do the gumball3000 in a diesel powered 3 series, its been tuned slightly and does 0-60 in 5.9 seconds....they kept some of the super cars honest thats for sure. BM's 3litre diesels are amazing pieces of engineering

ford should of pinched the new freelanders Engine. afterall its the first freelander thats completely ford. built on a focus platform.

they use the same 2.2TDCi engine out of one of the range topping mondeo, 160bhp is a healthy amount and its got oodles of torque


RE: What about diesel power?
By otispunkmeyer on 11/30/2006 3:46:32 AM , Rating: 2
the realy good thing about hybrids....... when in stationary traffic your engine is off. i know you can do that by turning the key also but its inconvenient.

diesels are the way though

the germans, and especially the french are extremely good at diesel engines, extremely good. petrol still holds the performance crown, but some diesels are seriously quick.

Skoda Fabia VRS is a 1.9liter diesel and it trounces the mini cooper, its shockingly fast


RE: What about diesel power?
By Martin Blank on 11/29/2006 12:31:28 PM , Rating: 2
There's still a general distrust of diesel engines in the US. They're perceived as dirty and unreliable, a relic of Mercedes diesels from the 1980s. I'd seriously consider a modern diesel if I were in the market for a new car, but I expect that will not be happening for another 3-4 years, by which time hopefully a few diesel hybrids will be available.


RE: What about diesel power?
By Spivonious on 11/29/2006 1:23:11 PM , Rating: 2
I'd be okay with a diesel engine if there was a diesel gas station anywhere close to me.


RE: What about diesel power?
By sdedward on 11/29/2006 1:27:17 PM , Rating: 1
Today's diesel engines are much more reliable than what they were 10-20 years ago. Not to mentions diesel's inherent reliability due to the compression ratio for diesel is much lower than gasoline internal combustion engines. Lower compression ratio equals less heat and generally less wear and tear on the engine components. There are of course drawbacks, but I just wanted to point out the reliability issue.


RE: What about diesel power?
By peldor on 11/29/2006 1:58:26 PM , Rating: 2
The compression ratio on a Diesel engine is about twice that of a gasoline engine.

Read up some more, you're clearly misinformed here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_engine


RE: What about diesel power?
By otispunkmeyer on 11/30/2006 4:00:43 AM , Rating: 2
was gonna say lol

diesels have much higher compression ratios because the fuel wont ignite with a spark. its basically just got to be compressed fast and to a high pressure so that the fuel air mix combusts on it own. they have glow plugs to get them started though, and its generally why diesels were much heavier than their petrol brothers.




RE: What about diesel power?
By Martin Blank on 11/29/2006 2:03:55 PM , Rating: 2
The higher compression mentioned by Peldor led to the reason that they got such a bad rap in the 1980s. Mercedes (who should have known better) basically converted a gasoline engine to diesel. The gasoline engine wasn't designed to handle the compression ratios that were required for diesel, and they broke down fairly often, and once the warranties were over, repairs became very, very expensive.


RE: What about diesel power?
By TomZ on 11/29/2006 3:05:07 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
a relic of Mercedes diesels from the 1980s

Nah, it was General Motors that single-handedly killed the diesel market with their diesel offerings in the 1970s. Aweful engines those were.


RE: What about diesel power?
By GoatMonkey on 11/29/2006 1:25:36 PM , Rating: 1
Diesels just don't sound cool. Compare the sound of a GMC 2500 diesel to a similar size gas engine.

In reality though, I would have no problem driving a diesel if it offered equal or better performance, along with the better gas mileage.

I haven't worked out the math on diesels, so what kind of MPG would you need to get assuming you have a gas car that gets 25 MPG and gas costs $2.25 a gallon for regular, whereas diesel seems to cost about 10 to 20 cents more than premium, maybe $2.65 or so.


RE: What about diesel power?
By Martin Blank on 11/29/2006 2:11:59 PM , Rating: 2
For your example, it would need to get 29-30mpg. Diesels often do much better than this: the 2006 Volkswagen Beetle and Jetta TDIs get 35/42, and the Golf gets 33/44.

Those interested in trucks like a GMC 2500 often prefer the diesels partially because of the sound. They sound like big rigs to some extent, and that's a bonus for them.


RE: What about diesel power?
By MonkeyPaw on 11/29/2006 2:45:47 PM , Rating: 2
Sorta. Diesel is the engine of choice when it comes to towing. They are more reliable and efficient when pulling large loads vs a big gas engine. Unfortunately, many diesel owners think they can "gun it" like gas engines for more power. This typically ends up producing a little extra power--and lots of black smoke. Seeing diesel pickups, city buses, and every other large diesel vehicle do this is probably the biggest reason that everyone else won't buy into diesel cars. Well, that, and thier typical higher price vs a gas power variant.


RE: What about diesel power?
By lufoxe on 11/29/2006 2:19:44 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
In reality though, I would have no problem driving a diesel if it offered equal or better performance, along with the better gas mileage.

Do yourself a favor, go to any VW dealership and try out either the golf/rabbit diesel, or the jetta diesel, you will be greatly surprised, you drive the car and with the ammount of torque that the engine has, couple with a turbo chanrger as well as the 6 SPD (auto or manual) transmission it's mated to, it can kick some serious butt in the low end, (notice low end, you are not going to get the 100+ MPH performance of a gas engine) also as far as the gas millage is concerned, the jetta makes roughly 43MPG in the city. I'd say that's good gas millage (and yes that's with the AC ON, unlike the hybrids) if you want a real testament (again VW) try to find the 1.3L Lupo that was in Germany, sang to the tune of close to 100 MPG (not KM). If it's available and in my price range, next car I get, is going to be a diesel jetta or rabbit... can't beat those specs.


And its EPA rating is?
By Topweasel on 11/29/2006 10:59:40 AM , Rating: 2
But what really is the fuel economy. Every time I here of a Hybrid they talk about how much better they are and then you find out its still only 26-28 MPG. With an Engine that week on it they might as well put in a nice 2.4L inline 4 that makes like 165HP and gets 30-32 MPG. Sure for an SUV anything over 20 is nice but But overall It either seems like your giving to much up (prius)or your not getting a whole lot back (Accord).




RE: And its EPA rating is?
By Kuroyama on 11/29/06, Rating: -1
RE: And its EPA rating is?
By Topweasel on 11/29/2006 12:14:06 PM , Rating: 3
Sorry I didn't notice that the prius got redesigned. Or it looks like it did, the versions I see on the road seem to have wheel base the size of a MR2 along with the funky rear-end, and they certainly didn't have enough acceleration.

I am not saying that Hybrids are not a good idea, but I just noticed the choices that these manufacturers seem to go is all about using last gens engine tied to a electronic motor when a new more fuel efficient engine is produced that will generally get the same (debatable) efficiency. What I would like to see is Hybrids where the engine is made in conjunction with the Electronic unit like more advanced multiple displacement (where they can use the electronic unit to cover up quick and dramatic cut offs of cylinders.


RE: And its EPA rating is?
By Hoser McMoose on 11/29/2006 3:12:54 PM , Rating: 2
Or, put more simply, you're looking for exactly what Honda and Toyota are doing with their current hybrids. Both of these companies use very advanced engines that can do dynamic cylinder shut-off (for the I4 Civic, Camry and Prius it's an all-or-nothing deal while the V6 Accord can run on 0, 3 or 6 cylinders). Fuel efficiency is increased by over 30% when compared to their more traditional engine counterparts without sacrificing power or much of anything else. The only real downside is the extra $4-5000 on the price tag and potentially increased repair costs.