"The hybrid electric powertrain we are developing is designed to work in a variety of vehicle configurations and will be available in vehicles that most meet consumers' needs for space and versatility."
Prabhakar Patil, Ford Motor Company, HEV chief program engineer

Hybrid electric vehicles use a combination of electric storage batteries and an internal combustion engine to provide increased efficiency. The batteries supply electricity to drive an electric traction motor, and the engine runs as necessary to recharge the batteries or to provide additional power for acceleration. The Ford Escape SUV, sold in Europe as the Ford Maverick, will be among the first mass-production vehicles to use this technology. The Escape HEV, to be introduced in 2003, will feature an electric drivetrain and a fuel-efficient four-cylinder gasoline engine.

With regenerative braking and nearly instantaneous start-stop capability for the gasoline engine, thanks to a powerful combined starter-generator, the Escape HEV will be especially fuel-efficient in the city, and is expected to deliver about 40 mpg (less than 6 liters per 100 kilometers) in urban driving. Yet Escape HEV will deliver performance similar to an Escape equipped with a V-6 engine. Regenerative braking works to recapture energy in the form of electricity as the brakes are applied. This electric energy, which is normally lost in the form of heat generated by the brake pads in conventional systems, is directed toward the battery for future use.

The starter-generator system shuts down the internal combustion engine when the vehicle is coasting or stopped, saving the fuel normally spent in idling. When additional power is called for, such as when the driver steps on the accelerator pedal from a stop, the powerful starter-generator, packaged between the engine and transmission, instantaneously restarts the engine - in less than 0.2 seconds - to assist acceleration or to recharge the batteries.

The hybrid Escape is anticipated to be capable of being driven more than 500 miles - 800 kilometers - on a single tank of gasoline. It will be certified as SULEV under the California emissions standards and meet Stage IV requirements in Europe before they become mandatory in 2005. These technologies have already been proven in the P2000 research program and Ford Prodigy concept car.