New Ford Ethanol Hybrids Ready for Testing

Ford is sending 20 new Escape Hybrid flexible-fuel SUVs to fleet customers starting today to test out the ethanol-capable vehicles. Since both ethanol-based flex-fuel engines and gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles are commonplace, an ethanol hybrid seems like a no-brainer, but Ford says the vehicles had to go through months of testing before this limited number could be sent to fleets.

One of the recipients of the new ethanol hybrids was the Department of Energy. They might be interested to see if this vehicle can help with one of the major flaws of ethanol engines: their lower mileage. Most E85-capable cars and SUVs deliver roughly 20-25% fewer miles per gallon when running on ethanol fuel than on standard gasoline. Ethanol vehicles produce less carbon monoxide and more carbon dioxide. Carbon monoxide is considered a greenhouse gas.

Ethanol is a fuel derived mainly from corn in the U.S., and its high demand has led to price hikes in everything from an ear of corn to milk and steak. Figuring out how to get better gas mileage from E85 vehicles is a good thing, but finding a better way to produce ethanol using alternatives to corn seems like a much bigger problem. Americans can cut back on their driving, but they can’t cut back on milk.   

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