I test drove a Ford Escape Hybrid Friday 25, 2005, it's one sweet little SUV. For a Hybrid it has all that you need in a small SUV plus. It's awesome to be able to pull away from a light with just the sound of air and tires on the road. Braking is has an incredible feel to it, theres just a smooth speed reduction while the generator captures the energy to the bats. If you press hard enough, you can feel the pads kick in and provide excellant stopping. I was ready to sign on it but sticker shock, no incentive programs or low interest, I walked. The lot was full of 8 to 14 MPG monsters that they wanted to give away with huge cash back offers and no or low interest. They had a few offerings or economy offerings that did 25MPG or better, but the incentives were'nt there either. I'm ready to make the change even though the car I commute in does 32mpg but I can't haul more than a few sticks of lumber.

Small pickups don't get as good mpgs as a town car
Why is the average mpgs still seem to be in the mid 20's
I asked Ford about a solar panel option for the Hybrid, no answer.
Do we still have such tight ties to oil companies that Ford won't make a Ranger that gets better mpgs than a TownCar and all it's power everything. I'm poking holes at Ford, since I buy mostly Ford and Lincoln products. Japan jumped on the hybrid move starting about 7 years ago based when I first started seeing adds about enviromental changes coming. I don't understand why with all that we have seen with the oil wars in the 00s, that the US makers waited so long to get hybrids off the assembly line and still continued to produce soo many Big Gas Guzzlers. Yes a lot of people are still buying them, but look at the slump. IMO, I think the answer lies in the fact that if too many people started driving vehicles that hit the mid and upper 30 mpgs, the oil cos. would be caught in surpluss forcing reduction or lower prices. Call in a conspiracy if you want, but more could be done, Japan is proving it.

Yeah vehicles like the Hummer and such are stupid. Let's see how much gas we can waste. I bet Hummer owners regret the purchase, especially when they get to the gas pump.

I ask the same question why some cars still haven't made it further with gas mileage numbers. Are the gas companies pushing a delay on the production of more fuel efficient vehicles?

Car companies with the blessings of the oil companies seem to be screwing the environment with Hummers and such, then proceed to break out the "sandpaper covered rubber penis" on us at the gas pump.

Troy