Ford Plug-In Participates in ‘Presidential’ Parade
A Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid took part in an all-plug-in parade in Santa Monica, Calif., Saturday, as part of the nation’s presidential inaugural festivities. The parade, which was organized by non-profit group Plug In America (PIA), aimed to energize public interest in the fuel-efficient vehicles and encourage President-Elect Barack Obama, congressional leaders and automakers to put more plug-ins on American roads.
Ford Motor Company’s plug-in vehicle research partner Southern California Edison (SCE) drove the parade vehicle. Ford and SCE, which has the nation’s largest and most advanced electric vehicle (EV) fleet, are exploring ways to make plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) more accessible and affordable to consumers, reduce petroleum-related emissions and explore standards needed for PHEVs to connect to the nation’s electricity grid.
Electrifying Development
The Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid, a demonstration vehicle, uses high voltage, lithium-ion batteries, which could cut trips to the gas station by two thirds. The vehicle uses common household current (120 volts) for charging. Full charge of the battery takes six to eight hours.
When driven for the first 30 miles following a full charge, the Ford Escape PHEV can achieve up to 120 mpg when driven on surface streets. The vehicle is not range limited by the amount of charge available in the high-voltage lithium-ion battery, because once the charge in the battery has been depleted, the vehicle continues to operate as a fuel efficient, standard Ford Escape Hybrid – the most fuel efficient sport utility vehicle on the market. The transition is automatic and unnoticeable to the driver.
Plug-In Parade
At Plug In America’s “Inaugural Parade West: Plug In, America!”, the group’s co-founder Paul Scott congratulated Obama, who has called for one million plug-in cars by 2015, and encouraged the new president to accelerate his plug-in plan and to increase the number of vehicles to 10 million by 2016.
Joining the Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid in the clean-car parade were more than 50 other all-electric vehicles, including demonstration models by Toyota, Tesla, Mitsubishi and several other vehicle makers.
Tags: hybrid, PIA, plug-in, presidential parade
