First look: Escape goes Hybrid

REINFORCING the message that it would bring smaller and cleaner vehicles to market, Ford last week unveiled at the Washington auto show a new hybrid research vehicle that can run on fuel containing as much as 85 per cent ethanol.

Based on the hybrid version of the Escape 4WD now in production in the United States, the Escape Hybrid E85 is claimed to be the world’s first hybrid capable of operating on ethanol blends this high.

The company also said it produces about 25 per cent less carbon dioxide than the petrol-fuelled Escape hybrid.

According to Ford, if five per cent of the US vehicle fleet adopted such technology, oil imports could be reduced by 140 million barrels a year.