2006 Ford Escape Hybrid 4WD Road Test

At this point in time, it is now a well-known fact that when you buy a gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle, you won’t necessarily make the extra cost of purchase back in fuel savings. You probably won’t be getting mileage figures as good as what Transport Canada claims either, and you will have to bear new burdens such as replacement costs of batteries, generators and motors, components not normally present in standard cars. Being fed this kind of information, it’s no surprise that most hybrids, which are either high-end machines or quirky compacts, aren’t exactly flying off showroom floors. Now that we’ve made this point clear - everyone, would you please shut up already.

This brings us neatly to 2005’s North American Truck of the Year, and, incidentally the world’s first hybrid SUV, the Ford Escape Hybrid. The Escape Hybrid is a bridge between the two things that people really want these days. As voiced with their wallets, people are still very much into sport utility vehicles, drawn in by their spaciousness, ride height, and ultimately the look of being able to go anywhere and do anything. Then there’s that other thing that people want, or more likely, want to get rid of. It’s something subconsciously burrowed in the back of their minds; the issue of polluting and consuming. And if the granola-eating tree-hugger inside you doesn’t seem to be crying out for attention, the reality of the price of fuel ought to be.

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