Ford Escape Hybrid Buyers to Pay a Premium to Save Fuel

Expect to Fork Out About $5,000 Extra for the Hybrid Escape

Fords long-anticipated Ford Escape Hybrid is finally lining-off from its Kansas City, Missouri assembly plant and on its way to blue oval showrooms across the nation. It will be the first gasoline-electric hybrid (HEV) sport utility vehicle, which considering the popularity of the vehicle type should make it a winner out of the chute.

Of course, the recent rise in fuel costs wont hurt sales of the new HEV either, aided by the fact that rivals Toyota and Honda are not able to keep up with customer demand for their respective Prius and Civic Hybrid (Toyota is backlogged by approximately 22,000 orders), causing six month waiting periods. Reportedly, some opportunistic Toyota dealers have increased the price of a $20,295 Prius to $26,000, the price some are willing to pay to cut fuel costs. Whats more, those waiting in line are also said to be auctioning their place in line for more than $500.

Clearly, timing is everything for Fords Escape Hybrid. Seemingly, the only thing that could jeopardize its success would be an extraordinarily high retail price.

That last concern was just recently addressed, with Ford announcing the 2-wheel drive 2005 Ford Escape Hybrid will have a base manufacturers suggested retail price (MSRP) of $26,380 when made available later this year. While more expensive than both the Toyota and Honda cars, the Ford is once again an SUV which gives it a higher value in the minds of most consumers.

For those with the need for greater traction Ford will offer the Escape Hybrid with “Intelligent Four-Wheel Drive”, for a starting MSRP of $28,005.

To put this price in perspective, youll be paying about $3,300 to $3,425 more for the Escape Hybrid than the MSRPs of comparably equipped 2005 V6 powered Ford Escape XLT models. Such a premium is about average in the HEV segment of the market, but its also important to factor in potential buyers will most likely not be able to get anywhere near the discount from retail or incentive package on the hybrid model that they can on the conventional gasoline powered Escape, and therefore the HEVs actual price may be quite a bit higher to take advantage of any fuel “savings.”

Unlike Honda, which uses a mild-hybrid powertrain for its Civic Hybrid, Insight and upcoming Accord Hybrid, the Escape makes use of a full hybrid system. For comparison, a mild-hybrid system incorporates a battery powered electric motor to assist the primary power source, in Hondas case gasoline internal combustion engine (ICE), to drive the wheels. A full hybrid system is capable of driving the wheels via the ICE or the electric motor, or as most often is the case, both simultaneously. Currently the only automaker to incorporate a full hybrid system in its HEV is Toyota, incidentally one of Fords strategic partners in developing the Escape Hybrid.

Toyota is bullish on the new partnership with Ford, stating that it is considering supplying other automakers with the technology as part of its goal to produce 300,000 HEVs per year by mid-decade.

While philanthropic on the surface, Toyota not only will produce more HEV hardware, the economies of scale which will increase profits for its own hybrid program, but also has the potential of becoming the Microsoft of HEVs, cornering the production market for components that could inevitably become instrumental in fuel cell applications.

On this subject Toyota previously inked a deal with number one competitor Nissan Motor Co. in 2002, a much more comprehensive licensing agreement.

Under this current agreement, Toyotas patents on its gasoline-electric hybrid engine system have been licensed to Ford for its hybrid system. While the domestic company is using some Toyota technology, Ford said its hybrid system would feature more than 100 unique patents.

The Toyota components are mated up with Fords Duratec 2.3-liter 4-cylinder gasoline, and are said to deliver similar performance to the Escape fitted with the Duratec 3.0-liter V6 engine, but with even better fuel economy and lower emissions than the base 4-cylinder on its own.

Fords Escape Hybrid will be up against another SUV in the not-too-distant future, but the Toyota Highlander hybrid will be larger and reportedly more expensive. Lexus will also come to market with a version of the sport utility dubbed the RX 400h. Honda has not announced a CR-V Hybrid, despite the compact SUV being an ideal platform for such an application. Other automakers bringing HEVs to market are GM, with its full-size pickup hybrids, and as mentioned previously, Nissan, which will come to market shortly with an Altima Hybrid sedan, sourcing hybrid components from Toyota just like Ford. Toyota has announced it will increase its hybrid production to include a variety of new models in upcoming years, including an HEV Camry, plus a direct competitor to Fords Escape Hybrid is a logical step to be expected soon after the next-generation RAV4 debuts.

In the end the option of a hybrid powertrain makes one of the best-selling SUVs even better. Its already an enjoyable vehicle to drive while practical for small families, the addition of hybrid power only makes it that much more alluring in todays green conscious market.