Businessweek: Ford Shows Why (Ford) Hybrids Aren't Nearly as Efficient as We Think

Interesting thread. All Ford really showed is that they gamed the tests, really made math errors, or just plain lied.
Ford didn't show anyone that hybrids are inefficient or anything of the kind.

The media, for the most part, used Ford's bad behavior to treat everyone else the same. Instead of showing that most Toyotas and some other brands do produce cars that are fairly easy to achieve the epa ratings, they penalize all brands for something Ford did. Ford's spa numbers were astoundingly inaccurate, and IMO, were done to produce sales.

It's a sad day when companies that do pretty well, are penalized as much as those that don;t.

 

Too bad people are incapable of researching to find the true information themselves so they can make an informed decision.

 

Most of what people will find is this.
1. Since Ford's epa changes were said to be faulty tests, it was the EPA's fault, not theirs.
2. No cars get epa-rated mileage.
3. It's not Ford's fault
4. People don't drive them properly
5. If you read Consumer Reports, you're especially doomed

What "true information" will people find in their independent research? This thread topic alone shows how hybrid articles skew the true information. In fact, I've hardly read anything that makes Ford the exception, and not the rule.

 

If I wanted to know (for sure) what to expect from a hybrid, a real world experience can't be beat.

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Where there's a will, there's a way.

I'm willing to bet I can walk into any number of dealers, and convince them to let me drive around in one of their hybrids on the contingency that I'll buy it if it lives up to its advertised capabilities. BTW, I've had salesmen shove car keys for very nice cars into my hands to "take it home and drive it around."

Any information needs to be scrutinized and investigated.

I believe Mark Twain said "Don't believe everything you read."

 

That was in regard to his own writing. He would not have wasted his time reading businessWeek.

 

I'm trying to think of a single good car company. They all have a history of bad design, outright deception, or poor customer service (voiding warranties on near-new engines).