Automaker will offer gas-electric engines in half of Mercury, Lincoln and Ford models by end of decade.
By Christine Tierney / The Detroit News
Ford Motor Co. plans to offer hybrid versions of half the models in its Ford, Mercury and Lincoln brand lineups by the end of the decade as part of a bold strategy to distinguish itself as a leader in safety and environmental innovation.
CEO Bill Ford Jr. is scheduled to outline the strategy today in Dearborn at the Ford Scientific Research Laboratory, which will be renamed to reflect the company's emphasis on innovation, two industry sources told The Detroit News.
The first Detroit carmaker to produce a gas-electric vehicle, Ford plans to ramp up production of hybrids from several thousand in '05 to 250,000 by 2010, the sources said.
Ford also plans to step up development of vehicles running on alternative sources of energy, such as ethanol, and hydrogen-powered fuel-cell cars in a bid to recapture the high ground from leading Japanese automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co.
Source:
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosins...A01-322174.htm