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Ford Escape Hybrid A Hit In Utah March 2005Fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles have been on the market for several years, but many of Utah's large families have passed on buying them because they carry too few people or too little cargo.That is why Ford dealers such as Jeremy Day of Henry Day Ford in West Valley City see a bright future for the next generation of hybrid vehicles such as the Escape Hybrid, the first commercially available gas/electric-powered sport utility vehicle. The SUV, which dealerships in Utah are now selling for the first time, costs several thousand dollars more than the gas-powered Escape SUV, but gets nearly double the mileage for city driving. "There is a lot of interest in it because of how high gas prices are right now," said Day, who sold his first Escape Hybrid last month. He said he can't get enough of the vehicles from Ford to satisfy customers who want an SUV that gets an estimated 36 miles per gallon in the city and 31 on the highway. While other carmakers are planning hybrid-power/fuel- efficient SUVs such as the Escape and other larger vehicles, development of larger fuel-efficient vehicles is not occurring fast enough, according to the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, which held a press conference Wednesday in Salt Lake City to urge Congress to reduce U.S. consumption of oil and dependency on foreign oil producers. "The U.S. should develop the most fuel-efficient cars and trucks in the world," said Jennifer McBride of the U.S. PIRG office in Salt Lake City. Fuel efficiency has become a major economic issue given the fact that rising oil prices have significantly increased what people pay at the pump, reducing their spending on other items. The average cost of a gallon of unleaded gasoline in Utah was $2 on Wednesday, according to AAA Utah. That per-gallon cost is only four cents below the record set on Oct. 30, 2004. So far, higher gas prices have not dramatically changed spending habits for most middle-income families, said Mark Knold, economist for the Utah Department of Workforce Services. Car buying and driving habits have probably also changed little. A hybrid car is a fuel-efficient alternative that relies on gasoline and electricity. According to Ford, the Escape Hybrid can be powered by its gasoline engine or electric motor working alone or by the two working at the same time. McBride of the U.S. PIRG said the government in particular needs to foster the development of fuel-efficient SUVs and heavy trucks, gas-guzzling vehicles that some people want or need because of large families or outdoor interests such as hunting and horseback riding. Many Utah families, for example, would find the first generation of hybrid economy cars or even the five-passenger Escape too small a vehicle to haul their families around. By comparison, Ford's other SUVS, which have been maligned for their gas-guzzling tendencies, seat seven and eight people. But such vehicles serve a need, say Utahns such as Josh Brown of Salt Lake City, who drives a Chevy half-ton Silverado pickup. "If there were a hybrid that could tow a boat or a horse trailer, I would definitely look at it," he said. SOURCE: Salt Lake Tribune | ||
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