Ford Escape Hybrid

Manufacturer	Ford Motor Company
Production	2004–present
Assembly	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Class	Compact crossover SUV
Body style(s)	4-door SUV
Layout	Front engine, front-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
Platform	Ford CD2 platform
Related	Mazda Tribute Mercury Mariner

The Ford Escape Hybrid is a gasoline-electric hybrid powered version of the Ford Escape SUV developed by the Ford Motor Company, first launched in the U.S. in 2004, to offset the pollution resulting from non-hybrid SUV use. Built in Kansas City, Missouri, it was the first hybrid SUV to hit the market. A similar vehicle, the Mercury Mariner Hybrid is sold by Ford's Mercury marque. A third variation, the Mazda Tribute Hybrid, arrived in the fall of 2007 as a 2008 Model Year vehicle with a limited production run for the California market. The SUV got its first update (by not counting its 2008 redesign) in 2009 by changing the engine from 2.3L to 2.5L and badges. The Ford Escape Hybrid was the first American-built hybrid and the first hybrid vehicle from an American automaker, joining the Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra Hybrids during the same model year. The Escape Hybrid is the top selling hybrid in the U.S. manufactured by an American manufacturer, and reached cumulative sales of 95,285 vehicles by December 2009.

First generation

First generation

Production	2004–2007
Engine(s)	2.3 L (140 cu in, 2261 cc) Duratec 23 I4 Atkinson cycle
Transmission(s)	Electronically controlled continuously variable
Wheelbase	103.2 in (2621 mm)
Length	174.9 in (4442 mm)
Width	70.1 in (1781 mm)
Height	69.9 in (1775 mm) (w/roof rack)

2005 Mercury Mariner Hybrid

Escape "Hybrid" badge

The first generation Ford Escape Hybrid was released in 2004 and according to the Environmental Protection Agency it is 70% more efficient than the regular Escape. The Mercury Mariner Hybrid is a rebadged version of the Escape Hybrid. It features revised front-end styling and a more luxurious interior. The Mariner sits above the Escape in the Ford-Mercury-Lincoln hierarchy.

Escape hybrid versions can be identified by the "Hybrid" badges located on the front driver's and passenger's doors as well as near the right tailgate. In addition, the driver's side window in the cargo area is smaller in size in order to accommodate a ventilation slot for the high voltage battery. There was also a "Special Appearance Package" available as an option on the 2005–2007 Hybrid models. This package replaced the traditional lower cladding of the Escape with a silver finish.

Standard equipment on the Escape Hybrid includes: an eight-way power adjustable driver's seat, dual-zone automatic air conditioning, cruise control, a six-CD stereo, 16-inch alloy wheels, power door locks with remote keyless entry, and power windows.

Ford built 17,000 Escape Hybrids in the second half of 2004, four times as many as it had originally planned, and sales figures have remained steady. Starting in 2005 New York City and other cities in the world began using the Ford Escape Hybrid as taxicabs. The Ford Escape Hybrid won the award in 2005.

Development

The Escape Hybrid uses technology similar to that used in the Toyota Prius. Ford engineers realized their technology may conflict with patents held by Toyota, which led to a 2004 patent-sharing accord between the companies, licensing Ford's use of some of Toyota's hybrid technology in exchange for Toyota's use of some of Ford's diesel and direct-injection engine technology. Ford maintains that Ford received no technical assistance from Toyota in developing the hybrid powertrain, but that some hybrid engine technologies developed by Ford independently were found to be similar to technologies previously patented by Toyota, so licenses were obtained. Aisin Seiki Co. Ltd., a Japanese automotive components supplier belonging to the Toyota Group, supplies the hybrid continuously variable transmission for the Escape Hybrid. While Toyota produces its third-generation Prius transmission in-house, Aisin is the only supplier of hybrid transmissions to other manufacturers. Friction has arisen concerning Aisin's allocation of limited production capacity and engineering resources to Ford.

Sanyo Electric Co. built the 50 kg (110 lb),330V 5.5 Ah (would make it 1.8kWh storage) , 250-cell nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery pack for the 2005 Escape Hybrid.

Powertrain

Engine compartment of a 2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid

The Escape Hybrid is a full hybrid, meaning the system can switch automatically between pure electric power, pure gasoline engine power, or a combination of electric battery and gasoline engine operating together, for maximum performance and efficiency at all speeds and loads. When braking or decelerating, the Escape's hybrid system uses regenerative braking, where the electric drive motor becomes a generator, converting the vehicle's momentum back to electricity for storage in the batteries. The Escape Hybrid's 133 horsepower (99 kW) gasoline I4 engine and electric motor combine to give 155 hp (116 kW), which gives the Hybrid Escape has nearly the same acceleration performance as the conventional 200 hp (150 kW) V6 Escape due to the electric motor's torque being available from zero rpm.

The hybrid is said to give approximately 75% greater efficiency, with about 33 to 36 mpg_-U.S. in city traffic, and has demonstrated it can travel 400–500 miles (644–805 km) on a single 16.5-U.S.-gallon (62 L; 13.7 imp gal) tank of gasoline in the city, and 29 to 31 mpg_-U.S. (7.6L-8.1 L/100 km; 35-37 mpg_-imp) on the highway. To obtain these mileage figures, the owners manual states that pure gasoline, not ethanol blends, must be used. Unlike conventional vehicles, hybrids often achieve better figures in the city because they do not waste power idling and can recover some power when stopping (by using regenerative braking) that would be wasted in a conventional vehicle.

The Escape Hybrid can accelerate up to approximately 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) on electricity, with a (very) gentle acceleration. On level ground, speeds up to 40 mph (60 km/h) can be maintained on battery power alone. Use of defrosters or air conditioning may cause the engine to remain on at low speed. A maximum distance of 1.5 miles (2.4 km) - 1.8 miles (2.9 km) can be performed on electric before the batteries will discharge and the gasoline engine will start. The Escape Hybrid gives a top speed of 102 mph (163 km/h). In 2006 Ford showed an Escape that could run on E85 fuel.

Safety

2006 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Crash Test Ratings:

• Frontal Driver:
• Frontal Passenger:
• Front Side:
• Rear Side:

Second generation

Second generation

Production	2008–present
Engine(s)	2008: 2.3 L (140 cu in, 2261 cc) 2009: 2.5 L (152 cu. in, 2488 cc) I4 DOHC 16-valve Atkinson cycle
Transmission(s)	Continuously variable transmission
Wheelbase	103.1 in (2619 mm)
Length	174.7 in (4437 mm)
Width	71.1 in (1806 mm)
Height	67.7 in (1720 mm)

The second generation Ford Escape Hybrid received some styling tweaks inside and out. The major cosmetic changes include a new bumpers, grill, headlights and taillights to match Ford's new edge style. But the drivetrain is essentially the same mechanically but has had extensive software modifications.

2008 Mercury Mariner Hybrid

The second Escape hybrid is offered in two levels of specification, an undesignated model and the more expensive "Limited" trim. The includes: a 60/40 split-fold rear bench seat, with roll stability control, and a single-disc four-speaker CD/MP3 stereo with Sirius Satellite Radio compatibility. The "Limited" adds: a chrome front grille, heated front seats, a six-way power driver's seat and full leather upholstery, rear park assist, ambient lighting, and 16-inch six-spoke alloy wheels. For the 2009 model year, Ford SYNC became standard on both Hybrid trims. 2010 models saw the addition of MyKey, trailer sway controls, and integrated spotter mirror for better blind spot viewing. New optional extras are active park assist and a rear-view camera.

Ford announced the development of a prototype E85 Hybrid Escape, the first flexible fuel hybrid electric vehicle capable of running on 85% ethanol. In 2007 Ford produced 20 demonstration Escape Hybrid E85s for real-world testing in fleets around the U.S.

Safety

2010 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Crash Test Ratings:

• Frontal Driver:
• Frontal Passenger:
• Front Side:
• Rear Side:
• Rollover:

Fuel economy and environmental performance

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has rated the fuel economy for the 2010 Escape Hybrid (FWD) at 34 miles per US gallon (6.9 L/100 km; 41 mpg_-imp) city, and 31 miles per US gallon (7.6 L/100 km; 37 mpg_-imp) highway. The following table compares fuel economy, carbon footprint, andpetroleum consumption between the hybrid version and other drivetrains of the Escape family as estimated by the EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy:

The Escape Hybrid meets both California's SULEV and PZEV standards, with tailpipe emissions better than 90% less than the average 2003 new car and zero evaporative emissions.

Ford Escape Hybrid (top) and Ford Escape E85 flex-fuel (bottom).

Plug-in hybrid

Hybrids Plus PHEV battery

Demonstration Ford Escape plug-in hybrid in New York City.

Demonstration Ford Escape E85 flex-fuel plug-in hybrid.

Three companies have converted Ford Escape Hybrids to plug-in under a contract with the NYSERDA and delivered them in 2007:

• Electrovaya of Toronto Canada
• Hymotion also of Toronto Canada
• Hybrids Plus of Boulder Colorado USA

Ford developed a research Escape Plug-in Hybrid and delivered the first of a fleet of 20 to Southern California Edison (SCE) in December 2007 to begin road testing. This project is a collaboration aimed to explore the future of plug-in hybrids and evaluate how the vehicles might interact with the home and the utility's electrical grid. Some of the vehicles will be evaluated "in typical customer settings," according to Ford. Ford also developed the first ever flexible-fuel plug-in hybrid SUV, which was delivered to the United States Department of Energy in June 2008. This plug-in version of the Escape Hybrid runs on gasoline or E85 and is also part of the demonstration fleet Ford developed in a partnership with Southern California Edison and the Electric Power Research Institute.

Both the E85 version and the conventional gasoline engine version use a 10 kwh lithium-ion battery, which allows for a 30-mile (48 km) range at 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) or less. When the battery's charge drops to 30%, the vehicle switches to its four-cylinder engine, assisted by the batteries, operating as a regular hybrid electric vehicle. The vehicle has a display system which shows the driver how efficient the vehicle is at any given time. If the vehicle uses its engine and is running in traditional hybrid mode, fuel economy is rated at 88 miles per U.S. gallon (2.7 L/100 km; 106 mpg_-imp) in the city and 50 miles per U.S. gallon (4.7 L/100 km; 60 mpg_-imp) on the highway.

This fleet of 20 Ford Escape Plug-ins has been running in field testing with utility company fleets in California, New York, Ohio, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Quebec, Canada. About 130 more will be produced for testing with financing from a $30 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. Sales are scheduled for 2012.

On August 2009 Ford delivered the first Escape Plug-in equipped with intelligent vehicle-to-grid (V2G) communications and control system technology to American Electric Power of Columbus, Ohio. This technology allows the vehicle operator to program when to recharge the vehicle, for how long and at what utility rate. The battery systems communicate directly with the electrical grid via smart meters provided by utility companies through wireless networking. During the two years since the demonstration program began, the fleet of Escape Plug-ins has logged more than 75,000 miles, and Ford plans to equip all 21 plug-in hybrid Escapes with the vehicle-to-grid communications technology.

The Ford demonstration vehicles and Hybrids Plus conversions are similar. The conversion involves the replacement of the original NiMH battery, located on the floor of the trunk, with a larger capacity Li-ion battery, in the same location and substantially the same volume as the original battery. The Electrovaya and Hymotion conversions retain the original battery, and augment its capacity with a Li-ion battery that occupies a significant portion of the trunk. In all cases, the conversion also involves the addition of a charger and of a power plug.

Sales

By the end of 2009 Ford sold 107,201 Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner hybrids in the United States. Purchasers of 2008 Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner hybrids qualified for US federal tax credits between $2,200-3,000 (now expired).

The Ford Escape Hybrid is popular with taxi operators, lifeguard and government fleets. Since 2005 Escape Hybrids are commonly used as taxi cabs in San Francisco and New York City.

See also

• List of hybrid vehicles
• Ford Escape (regular non-hybrid version)
• Mercury Mariner
• Mazda Tribute