Kurt Busch, driver of the #97 Sharpie/IRWIN Ford Taurus in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series stepped into a much different Ford Tuesday morning in New York. Busch had the opportunity to test drive the all-new Ford Escape Hybrid, on sale later this year, on the streets of Manhattan as part of a 36-hour endurance test for the vehicle. Making the epic Manhattan drive particularly impressive is the fact that the Escape Hybrid’s gas tank holds just 15 gallons of fuel. The Ford Escape Hybrid is the first “full” hybrid to be built in North America. It combines near-zero emissions and the fuel economy of a full hybrid-electric system with the go-anywhere capability, toughness and cargo capacity of the Ford Escape, America’s best-selling compact SUV. The 2005 Escape Hybrid is the world’s cleanest, most fuel-efficient SUV, able to travel 35 to 40 miles on a single gallon of gasoline in stop-and-go city driving, where the benefits of its “full” hybrid powertrain clearly outpace the fuel efficiency of even the smallest conventionally powered cars. On the highway, Escape Hybrid is expected to approach 30 mpg, thanks to its efficient Atkinson Cycle gasoline engine, when it receives EPA fuel economy certification. At the same time Ford is working to minimize the environmental impact of the vehicles it produces, the company is pursuing innovative solutions in manufacturing. The refurbished Ford Rouge Center complex in Dearborn, with its acres of “living roof,” the nation’s largest porous parking lot and special wetlands that cleanse storm water runoff, is an example of how a vast manufacturing complex can actually improve environmental quality. The 2005 Escape Hybrid will be built at Ford’s Kansas City, Mo., assembly plant, on the same mass-production assembly line used for other Escape, Mazda Tribute and European Ford Maverick models. For consumer information on the Escape Hybrid, visit www.fordvehicles.com/hybrid.(see full pr at the Roush Racing site)(4-9-2004)
