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).
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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
10 kW is 13 hp, which is clearly not enough to get that kind of vehicle moving.
Whoever wrote this article doesn’t understand what all these figures mean.
So I bet that there is a catch on the “88 MPG” claim.
If that mileage was not obtained by draining the battery, then there would be some kind of new engine efficiency improvement that is unrelated with the battery…
and there is no word on that in the article.
@Space
I wrote this article. I didn’t make up the stats, they were provided by Ford. Check out the links in the article for more information.
“The vehicle is equipped with a 10 kilowatt advanced lithium ion energy battery supplied by Johnson-Controls/Saft that stores enough electric energy to drive up to 30 miles at speeds of up to 40 mph. When fueled by E85 ethanol, which has a lower energy content than gasoline, fuel economy can reach up to 88 mpg in urban driving and up to 50 mpg on the highway”
There are countless ways to interpret this.
My way is that following the EPA cycles, this vehicle, starting on a full charge will achieve 88/50 until the battery levels out.
88/50, purely in hybrid mode, is a little much to expect from an Escape running on Ethanol.
@jpm100
True, there could be other ways to interpret this statement, and Ford and the DOE are being pretty unclear with their numbers. However, the rest of the Ford press release makes it clear that it has two separate driving modes and talks about electricity use and fuel economy separately…
Plus, given the advances in technology recently, it’s not that difficult for me to believe that a car like this is capable of 88/50 fuel economy in hybrid mode. Also, at speeds over 40 mph the car has to use the hybrid mode so any fuel economy rating for highway driving would have to be based solely on hybrid mode.
Why have ethanol? There would be a considerably smaller impact on the environment if it went pure electric. Too bad for shoddy chemical batteries though.
Two things I’ve read in the comments:
Something about there not being a lot of E-85 stations being a problem. Well this is a Flex-Fuel Vehicle, it will run on regular 87 octane (or 89 or 93). Also it will run on any mix of gas and ethanol up to a 15/85 mix. So you don’t have to wait until E to fill up with a different fuel. (Before I get people arguing this I’m an engineer who has worked with New York State to install about 40 E-85 stations.)
I believe that 10 kW is not a measurement of output but storage capacity for the batteries. That means that charging the battery at night would require about $1.20 in electric. Charges vary by location in New York I pay about 14.5 per kW so for me it would cost a whole $1.45 to drive to work each day.
If only there was a engine that used a fuel available anywhere. this engine would be useable by trucks and trains and a elite few of VW drivers.
“If only there was a engine that used a fuel available anywhere. this engine would be useable by trucks and trains and a elite few of VW drivers.”
Such an engine cost substantial more. Partly because the engine itself needs to be more durable, but also the exhaust system requires extensive filtration to meet US emissions.
The problem I have with hybrids is that you have to replace the batteries every few years at a cost of several thousand dollars negating any gas savings.
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