rustytr
Explorer Addict
- Joined
- November 10, 1999
- Messages
- 2,109
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Leadville, Colorado
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2000 Sport
Stumbled onto this and thought, hey I know where I can put this.
FORD’S PLEDGE LAST week wasn’t driven by altruism alone. With gas prices hitting record highs and SUVs under attack, Nasser sees gain in transforming the image of Ford’s models from guzzlers into sippers. He says customers will flock to Ford’s promise to save $2,400 in fill-ups and 80 trips to the pump over the life of its SUVs. Not that Ford has any problem moving them. Its SUV sales rose 15 percent this year, and it expectsto peddle more than 1 million next year.
But while Ford’s success in SUVs is fueling record profits, it has also scuffed the company’s reputation. The Sierra Club christened the jumbo Excursion the “Ford Valdez.” And safety advocates have criticized Ford for selling vehicles capable of steamrolling smaller cars. That’s why it is gunning for the moral high ground. Chairman William Clay Ford Jr. issued a public mea culpa on the sins of SUVs in May and warned that Ford risks becoming a pariah like Big Tobacco.
By going the green mile on SUVs, Ford has left its cross-town rivals sputtering. “We believe in deeds, rather than PR campaigns,” huffed General Motors spokesman Tony Cervone, who added that GM’s SUVs are already more fuel efficient than Ford’s models. DaimlerChrysler also said its SUVs burn less gas. Neither committed to follow Ford. “We’ve put our competitors in a weaker, me-too position,” Nasser boasted to NEWSWEEK. But all three companies feel pressure to improve SUV gas mileage before Washington forces them to. Ford’s SUVs average only 18 miles per gallon, short of federal regulations on SUVs, and is miles behind the 27.5 miles per gallon its passenger cars get.
But all that is about to change, says Ford. By redesigning its behemoths to make them lighter and outfitting them with gas-stingy aluminum engines, Ford expects dramatic mileage improvements. And it will get a big boost from its new small SUV, Escape, which gets 28mpg. In 2003 some Escapes will be powered by a gasoline-and-electric engine that will get 40mpg. That still probably won’t get Nader behind the wheel of an SUV, but it is winning over some of Ford’s other foes. “This is a big, honking deal,” gushes Dan Becker of the Sierra Club. “After years of going backward, we’re finally moving forward.” An environmentalist tooting Ford’s horn? What’s next? Pigs driving?
[Edited by rustytr on 08-03-2000 at 07:31 AM]
FORD’S PLEDGE LAST week wasn’t driven by altruism alone. With gas prices hitting record highs and SUVs under attack, Nasser sees gain in transforming the image of Ford’s models from guzzlers into sippers. He says customers will flock to Ford’s promise to save $2,400 in fill-ups and 80 trips to the pump over the life of its SUVs. Not that Ford has any problem moving them. Its SUV sales rose 15 percent this year, and it expectsto peddle more than 1 million next year. But while Ford’s success in SUVs is fueling record profits, it has also scuffed the company’s reputation. The Sierra Club christened the jumbo Excursion the “Ford Valdez.” And safety advocates have criticized Ford for selling vehicles capable of steamrolling smaller cars. That’s why it is gunning for the moral high ground. Chairman William Clay Ford Jr. issued a public mea culpa on the sins of SUVs in May and warned that Ford risks becoming a pariah like Big Tobacco.
By going the green mile on SUVs, Ford has left its cross-town rivals sputtering. “We believe in deeds, rather than PR campaigns,” huffed General Motors spokesman Tony Cervone, who added that GM’s SUVs are already more fuel efficient than Ford’s models. DaimlerChrysler also said its SUVs burn less gas. Neither committed to follow Ford. “We’ve put our competitors in a weaker, me-too position,” Nasser boasted to NEWSWEEK. But all three companies feel pressure to improve SUV gas mileage before Washington forces them to. Ford’s SUVs average only 18 miles per gallon, short of federal regulations on SUVs, and is miles behind the 27.5 miles per gallon its passenger cars get.
But all that is about to change, says Ford. By redesigning its behemoths to make them lighter and outfitting them with gas-stingy aluminum engines, Ford expects dramatic mileage improvements. And it will get a big boost from its new small SUV, Escape, which gets 28mpg. In 2003 some Escapes will be powered by a gasoline-and-electric engine that will get 40mpg. That still probably won’t get Nader behind the wheel of an SUV, but it is winning over some of Ford’s other foes. “This is a big, honking deal,” gushes Dan Becker of the Sierra Club. “After years of going backward, we’re finally moving forward.” An environmentalist tooting Ford’s horn? What’s next? Pigs driving?
[Edited by rustytr on 08-03-2000 at 07:31 AM]
