"Eyes on the Road" columnist Joseph B. White says the Fusion hybrid that Ford will be rolling out next year is exactly what the politicians in Washington ordered, but it -- and cars like it
-- may have a bit more difficultly currying favor with the American consumer. There are some technical details -- like exactly what constitutes a "mid-size" car and what "made in
America" really means -- to deal with, but that's not the main event.
"Ford's real challenge will be educating consumers about how to get the most value from their
high-tech cars, and how the real-world benefits will stack up against the hyperbole of EPA mileage stickers and corporate marketing campaigns," he writes.
Ford has put out
a video showing drivers how to properly drive the Fusion to get more efficiency out of the hybrid system. It involves "changing your driving
habits." (Good luck with that, Ford and other hybrid manufacturers.)
And the fact is that sales of hybrids have tanked since the cost of filling up has skidded after the days of
$4-a-gallon (oh, those many months ago). "For most potential buyers, the premium they'll pay for the hardware and engineering hours packaged into a hybrid car will take years to recover at
the fuel pump barring a sharp increase in prices," White writes.
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