Ford: No One Wants Hybrids

AutoWeek reports: Ford shifts focus from hybrids to clean diesel and ethanol. Ah, the real news:

Here's what is really behind Ford Motor Co.'s decision to back off its promise that it would be able to manufacture 250,000 hybrids by 2010: Ford got sucked into the early hype for hybrids and misread the demand.

There's no demand? Gas is over $3/gallon. Does Ford think it's going back down?

It would also be refreshing if Ford CEO Bill Ford just said, "Ah, I screwed this one up. We're committed to raising our overall fuel-efficiency by XX% by 2010, and while hybrids will play a part, it won't be as many as I said earlier. The reasons are: advancing technologies in cleaner diesels, far better batteries are in the testing phases, and, frankly, we'd lose too much on each hybrid right now. Our corporate fuel-efficiency average will be 35 mpg in the city and 45 mpg on the highway by 2010 for our car fleet and 25 mpg city and 30 mpg highway for our light truck fleet. And we won't be using any loopholes to get there."

We're not saying that's the case, but wouldn't some honesty help here?

Comments

[Joe Thompson]

Meanwhile, Toyota will double the number of hybrid models it makes around 2010; is on track on its work with its plug-in hybrids; and working on its hydrogen-powered fuel-cell vehicles.

[Joel A]

Ford's most likely switching due to the lower cost of developing flex-fuel vehicles while simultaneously help push building more E85 filling stations and remaining popular with the Midwest (corn and all that), one of its core constituency.