Prototype Ford Escape Plug-in Hybrid: 88 MPG on 85% Ethanol
First Flex-Fuel Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
As part of a push by the US Department of Energy (DOE) to make plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) cost competitive with other cars by 2014, Ford has delivered a plug-in hybrid electric flex-fuel Escape to the DOE to join its test fleet of other PHEVs currently undergoing research and testing.
The vehicle is equipped with a 10 kilowatt lithium ion battery that can take it up to 30 miles at speeds under 40 mph before needing to fire up its fuel-fed hybrid-electric engine. After that, the hybrid-electric engine kicks in and can deliver a fuel economy of 88 mpg in the city and 50 mpg on the highway when using E85 (85% ethanol/15% gasoline blend).
This means that for most people in the US, they would only have to use fuel in this vehicle once or twice a week with the rest of their driving needs covered by the battery.
According to Ford, this is the first ever flex-fuel PHEV capable of running on E85.
Ford claims that, based on current estimates, the Escape Flex-Fuel PHEV would emit 60% less carbon dioxide than a conventional gasoline powered vehicle. Ford also states that if cellulosic E85 fuel was used, that carbon dioxide reduction could be as high as 90%.
I’m assuming the “as high as 90%” reduction claim is based on the fact that cellulosic ethanol is typically derived from plant material and the growth of these feedstocks can represent an additional carbon sink — not that Ford thinks cellulosic ethanol provides lower carbon dioxide emissions compared to corn ethanol when combusted.
In addition to taking delivery of the Escape Flex-Fuel PHEV, DOE announced that $30 million will be made available over the next three years to fund PHEV demonstration and development projects with industry cooperation. The goal is to develop PHEVs that can be mass produced, compete effectively in the marketplace, and substantially reduce petroleum consumption.
Posts related to PHEVs and Cellulosic Ethanol:
- CleanTech Biofuels to Turn Dirty Diapers Into Ethanol
- How Green Are Biofuels? Comparison Chart [PIC]
- Snapshot of Battery Technology for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Cars
- Chevy Volt’s Lithium-Ion Batteries Road- Tested By Month’s End
- Google To Spend $10 Million on Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Project
- Plug-In Hybrids Could Require 160 New Power Plants By 2030 (Or None At All)
Image Credit: Ford Motor Company
Can we please stop quoting MPG ratings for plug-in hybrids? It’s ridiculous given the fact that there is another source of motive energy that’s purpose is to displace the use of gasoline in this vehicle. We might as well start citing highway performance when driving downhill only or MPG with two people pushing the car for half the trip.
Yeah, but it’s important to give people a point of comparison. It could be more accurate for everyone to start using Miles per Gallon of Gasoline Equivalent (MPGe), which (wikipedia) is a unit of measurement that relates efficiencies of different systems to the traditional unit of measurement for fuel efficiency (miles per gallon of gasoline).
Move over to the metric system.
Imperial shit sucks.
Now THAT is one good looking SUV. First “Smart” car I have seen that I would actually drive. Very nice!
JT
http://www.FireMe.To/udi
Nice. Finally, a Green car I would actually consider driving. Looks very good, with good MPG to boot, I am all over it!
John Tomas
http://www.FireMe.To/udi
What’s more, a plug-in car with a good Li-ion battery may not even need gasoline for day to day travel (i.e. From home to work and back)
Ford won’t build too many of these vehicles. I’ve seen an article mentioning that Ford has placed a cap on their production of Escape hybrid vehicles simply because the vehicles do not generate as much profit as their gas counterpart. Another problem is that there are only a few stations offering E85. Why would the large gas companies sell a product that they don’t control ?
I don’t see a problem with the way the fuel efficiency was described in the article. It states that it can go 30 miles at speeds under 40 on a charged 10 kilowatt battery, and after that the electric-hybrid kicks in giving 80mpg in the city and 50mpg on the highway. What’s hard to understand about that? I do agree that with the mixed power sources it would be nice to have some type of fuel measurement that covers the spectrum of electric and liquid fuels.
@TDave
Thank you. You just made my night. You wouldn’t believe the amount of misunderstanding there is regarding PHEVs and how to rate efficiency with a two mode vehicle. Straight electric - easy; Full hybrid electric - easy; Plug-in Hybrid Electric with two means of powering the wheels - Difficult. I tried to make it as clear as possible, but it seems that it is still an elusive idea for many people to wrap their heads around.
Why not include MPG in a vehicle that uses gas? It still uses gas, and as you can see it is necessary to demonstrate how much better fuel economy one gets with this hybrid over other hybrids and regular engines. When there is a vehicle that is driven solely by something other than gasoline, then you have a valid point and MPGs will not be used. Until then, I suggest you get used to the fact that the consumer needs the MPG rating on all vehicles that use gasoline to help make decisions that affect their budget for fueling their vehicle.
I’d prefer to be able to estimate how often it will cost me to fill up at the prices we are paying than not know by your suggestion of not including them. And, you are incorrect in saying there is another source of motive energy. It is not another source, it is an additional source that has a symbiotic relationship with gasoline. “The vehicle is equipped with a 10 kilowatt lithium ion battery that can take it up to 30 miles at speeds under 40 mph before needing to fire up its fuel-fed hybrid-electric engine.” See? The batteries need the gasoline to kick in or else the batteries will not charge up, thus the necessity for an MPG rating since one will be using fuel to drive the vehicle over a given distance. And, as you can clearly see, the MPG rating goes down on the highway since it uses the gasoline to sustain highway speeds. Gotta have the rating, so deal with it.