Economist Magazine calls Ford Escape Hybrid SUV Groundbreaking

The Big 3 American automakers receive a lot of criticism from this site, and for good reason. Overall, the Big 3 have failed America on fuel efficiency, the war on terrorism, and protecting our environment, and that's just for starters.

Still, I have been looking forward to the release of the Ford Escape Hybrid SUV. The SUV is an important vehicle for many Americans, and offering a hybrid SUV is a noteworthy move. Additionally, an American-made SUV would be nice, and since my father only buys Fords, well, you get the point.

Unfortunately, the Escape is not groundbreaking.

First, only 20,000 of the hybrid SUVS are going to be made per year. Toyota, on the other hand, will be making 100,000 Prius hybrid cars, in addition to several other models, including two hybrid SUVs.

Second, as the article by Kathleen Kerwin states, "Indeed, any auto maker that doesn't have hybrid vehicles in the pipeline is seen as not just environment-unfriendly but also as a technological laggard." Yet, Ford doesn't have hybrid car technology, instead, it is leasing its hybrid technology from Toyota's Prius. Ironically, the Economist article doesn't even mention that point.

How can that be groundbreaking?

Furthermore, Ford won't be adding additional vehicles into the hybrid car space for at least another 3 years. In that same time, Toyota will have multiple trucks, SUVs, and sedans in the hybrid space. Sales of Toyota hybrids alone could reach over a 1/2 million before another Ford hybrid even hits the market.

Then there is Honda, which is set to release the Accord Hybrid in December, it's third hybrid model.

The fact is Ford is years behind in the hybrid market. Instead of hybrid cars, Ford and the other Big 3 automakers, focused on bigger SUVs and trucks.

While I congratulate Ford on getting the Escape to market, I would have been much more impressed had they developed their own hybrid technology.

Still, if you are in the market for a hybrid, and an SUV is a must-have, check this car out.

Just remember the Toyota Highlander hybrid and the Lexus RX hybrid SUVs are just around the corner, and those cars are groundbreaking.

And, if you don't like foreign cars, is the Ford Escape Hybrid SUV American-made, even if it's most important feature is leased from Japan?