Green Options » Ford Fusion Hybrid

Clearly Ford Has a Winner: 2010 Fusion Hybrid Extended Test Drive

Nick Chambers — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:00:53 +0000

There was a time not too long ago that you couldn’t have paid me to buy another new American automobile. Don’t take that statement that wrong way; it wasn’t for lack of trying. I love the lines of the true classics like the ‘57 Chevy or the ‘65 GTO. But somewhere in the last few decades, the American manufacturers seemed to just give up on making a good product—and I went through several modern American pieces of junk before I gave up trying too.

Yet in the last two years there is one major American manufacturer, who, above all others, seems to have come out the other end of a dark tunnel with a clear vision for its future and a line-up of solid, well-designed cars on which to build—Ford.

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M&J Enterprises Builds Aero Kit For Ford Fusion Hybrid

Christopher DeMorro — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:25:22 +0000

As an undergrad in college, I had the privilege of twice attending the annual Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas. SEMA is mostly known for wild, outlandish, and powerful versions of street cars; it isn’t the kind of place you go to find people discussing fuel efficiency and hybrids.

But 2009 is a year of reckoning and big changes are afoot in the auto industry. One sign of the times: M&J Enterprises has brought to this year’s SEMA a Ford Fusion Hybrid equipped with an aero body kit to reduce drag.

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Driving to Phish Festival 8 in a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

Nick Chambers — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:09:34 +0000

Touring bands are notorious for their environmental footprints, but more and more the bands and their fans are taking steps to make the activity less damaging.

When it comes to music, the Beatles—fueled by my parents’ large collection of vinyl—dominated most of my early life. The White Album is like my musical comfort food; it’s what I go back to when I need to feel rooted. But in terms of the music that has influenced and shaped much of my adult life, there is no band more important than Phish.

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Eco-Driving Technology

Scott Cooney — Mon, 04 May 2009 07:20:30 +0000

Last week, in an experiment some cast aside as a PR stunt, several drivers drove a Ford Focus Hybrid car 1,445 miles, approximately double how far Ford estimated it could go, on a single tank of gas using Eco-Driving techniques. The drivers were well versed in Eco-driving methodology, making the results of the test far less likely to occur in the general public. They averaged just above 20 miles per hour over their 4 day test, which is 3 days, 23 hours, and 58 minutes longer than the average American’s patience driving without speeding.

Eco-driving technology might help keep people from losing patience–and interest.

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Comparing the Honda Insight, Ford Fusion Hybrid, and Toyota Prius

John Addison — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:34:10 +0000

I’m driving on a race track for the first time, and I’m wondering if these are my final moments on planet earth.

Here at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca I take the Andretti Hairpin and learn to accelerate in successive turns. After accelerating uphill, I enter “The Corkscrew” where I cannot see the sharp downhill turn to the left until I am in the middle of it. As I get into this sharp turn, I need to prepare for the sequence of curves that immediately follow.

Yes, it’s a corkscrew.

I try to remember the coaching that I received. Hold the steering wheel with something less than a death grip. Breathe. Look ahead — but looking ahead at the top of the Corkscrew I only see blue sky. Looking ahead to my future, I only see darkness.

The 2009 BMW 335d that I am driving handles beautifully, offers more turbodiesel acceleration than I care to try, and I can personally guarantee you that the brakes work — well.

After three laps, I exit the track, park the BMW, remove my helmet as I leave the car, and resist kissing the ground in front of “real” drivers. I have been invited to test drive new vehicles with the Western Automotive Journalists, even though I write about green cars and clean transportation. I long for yesterday.

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