blazerdude20 Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 Gotta say l prefer the Escape to the Kuga any day. Have Ford fixed the problems easy fuel theft from the capless filling on the Escape just interested? Last year, Ford introduced a new capless direct filling system on the Explorer and has since started spreading it to other models including the new Lincoln MKS, the Ford Flex and the Escape. The system has a number of advantages including the convenience of not having to mess around with the cap. The most important function of the capless system is a reduction in evaporative emissions during fueling. Unfortunately with gas prices on the rise, so are thefts of fuel. More and more drivers are coming out to their vehicles in the morning to that some thieving punk has siphoned the gas out of the tank. As a result sales of locking caps are on the rise at parts stores around the country. Too bad these items won't work for the Ford capless system. http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/07/06/fo...as-fuel-thefts/ ford offers a locking gas PLUG for the system. it is available online or at any dealer for 19.99. part #: 8U5Z-9C268-B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Crossovers are unibody and usually FWD, like the Escape. HA! Not in 2001 when the Escape hit the showrooms. But now, magically it is a "crossover". Call it what it is...a SUV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Hmmm.............. but I thought, according to ml, that all cars needed to be diesel. Is he flip-flopping??? Or, is he more like a politician................. and will argue for any point that seems to be popular at a given moment. He still has not explained how the grid will handle millions of electric cars. I also do not expect him to. Why bother with messy, realistic details when it is more fun to play with fantasy. I sometimes imagine what it would be like to win the lottery............. yet, I do not sit down and work out my budget based on this fantasy. I'm going to go out on a limb here. The first manufacturer that comes out with a car that runs on air, will corner the market. FMC is run by idiots, because they are not using all of their resources to beat everyone to market............. with their air powered car. Thus, they deserve to go out of business. :rolleyes: What makes my fantasy any different than his??? I thought I explained this earlier. There is lots of cheap electricity, as long as you charge your car at night using non-peak power. What do you think they are going to do with all the Nuclear, Water, and Wind power produced while we are sleeping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Extreme4x4 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Yea................ because everyone knows that EVERYONE works during the day, and sleeps at night. We might want to ask CA about all of that cheap electricity that they have............... during rolling blackouts. :rolleyes: I am thinking that you are being simplistic and sarcastic in your post??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I thought I explained this earlier. There is lots of cheap electricity, as long as you charge your car at night using non-peak power. What do you think they are going to do with all the Nuclear, Water, and Wind power produced while we are sleeping. Yea................ because everyone knows that EVERYONE works during the day, and sleeps at night. We might want to ask CA about all of that cheap electricity that they have............... during rolling blackouts. :rolleyes: I am thinking that you are being simplistic and sarcastic in your post??? If people charge there cars during rush hour there will be big electric shortages. If they charge there car while everyone is sleeping there is lots of power. Since it takes 4 to 6 hours to charge a car, I don't think they will be charging there vehicle when they run low during rush hour. They will just use gas. When time of day metering come in, people will come home, plug their car into a timer that will charge their car when power is the cheapest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 California is not the normal state. Stupid laws have caused energy shortages when the state should be electrical energy self sufficient. Since most of the new power in California is from expensive wind and solar. The rest is imported from state that produce nuclear, hydro and coal power. The other states have lots non-peak nuclear, hydro, and coal. If the US adds enough wind and some new nuclear, then coal should only be needed during peak hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Extreme4x4 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 CA may not be the norm.............. but it is one of the most populous, and would probably be the largest purchaser of electric vehicles. This is due to the fact that they like to "look" like they are doing something about energy independence and "global warming." To ignore their situation, and their market, is being stupid. They purchase quite a bit of electricity from us, here in AZ. The majority being from the Palo Verde nuclear generating station. Appx 1/3 to 1/2 of the population does not work during the day.............. thus, they would have to charge their EV during peak daytime hours. They just don't have a choice. Or, do we say to all of these consumers, "you don't count." You are being like ml, and looking at the country as a generalization. It is far from that. Simplistic solves nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Not only is my concern related to the drain it'll put on power facilities in general (whether it's night time, or day time, it's using MORE than current)...next question is, what happens to the people living in Condos/Apt, or even parking garages where you do not have any plugs near your vehicle. Or just regular stores/shopping centers/malls, then what? Is this a "oh damn, I have 10 miles left of power, I gotta go home and recharge for 6 hours, then go back to shopping" concern ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 CA may not be the norm.............. but it is one of the most populous, and would probably be the largest purchaser of electric vehicles. This is due to the fact that they like to "look" like they are doing something about energy independence and "global warming." To ignore their situation, and their market, is being stupid. They purchase quite a bit of electricity from us, here in AZ. The majority being from the Palo Verde nuclear generating station. Appx 1/3 to 1/2 of the population does not work during the day.............. thus, they would have to charge their EV during peak daytime hours. They just don't have a choice. Or, do we say to all of these consumers, "you don't count." You are being like ml, and looking at the country as a generalization. It is far from that. Simplistic solves nothing. So are we looking at just CA as an energy island, just AZ with an clean energy surplus, or the whole country? Who is generalizing? Electric power is not produced locally, it comes from the national grid. They system needs to take advantage of the grid. It's a great idea. I don't think 1/2 the population is working between 8 PM and 6 AM. If they are, then they should not be buying PHEVs without building more power plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Not only is my concern related to the drain it'll put on power facilities in general (whether it's night time, or day time, it's using MORE than current)...next question is, what happens to the people living in Condos/Apt, or even parking garages where you do not have any plugs near your vehicle. Or just regular stores/shopping centers/malls, then what? Is this a "oh damn, I have 10 miles left of power, I gotta go home and recharge for 6 hours, then go back to shopping" concern ? That's why PHEV have gas engines in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 So are we looking at just CA as an energy island, just AZ with an clean energy surplus, or the whole country? Who is generalizing? Electric power is not produced locally, it comes from the national grid. They system needs to take advantage of the grid. It's a great idea. The power grid is great in theory, but sorely in need of heavy infrusture upgrades in reality. I don't think 1/2 the population is working between 8 PM and 6 AM. If they are, then they should not be buying PHEVs without building more power plants. You are making the assumption that 100% of the population works. I'd say it's about right to say only 50% of people work between 6 AM and 8 PM. Perhaps a little bit more....60% or so. That still leaves a good chunk out driving during the middle of the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papilgee4evaeva Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 HA! Not in 2001 when the Escape hit the showrooms. But now, magically it is a "crossover". Call it what it is...a SUV. I noticed that too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I noticed that too... Even Ford is confused on what to call it. The sales charts say crossover. Most of the press material says SUV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Even Ford is confused on what to call it. The sales charts say crossover. Most of the press material says SUV. They are confused on how to classify a lot of their vehicles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 They are confused on how to classify a lot of their vehicles. Like What? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Like What? Flex Edge Escape Taurus X Mariner MKEdge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomServo92 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Crossover is just marketing-speak for "car based SUV". IMO, the whole lot (SUV, crossover, minivan) are just different names for the same thing: station wagon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 They are confused on how to classify a lot of their vehicles. Yeah, but so is the entire industry. It's definitely not a Ford thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Yeah, but so is the entire industry. It's definitely not a Ford thing. True, I think it is stupid from any brand. I mean, you can call an elephant a zebra...but it is still an elephant. You can call a station wagon a crossover...but it is still a station wagon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 True, I think it is stupid from any brand. I mean, you can call an elephant a zebra...but it is still an elephant. You can call a station wagon a crossover...but it is still a station wagon. Yessiree. Station wagon is just such an ugly term though. What the heck are the roots of that name anyway? Estate is a bit nicer sounding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wescoent Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Yessiree. Station wagon is just such an ugly term though. What the heck are the roots of that name anyway? Estate is a bit nicer sounding. In a more civilized era, local taxi companies would put a capped bed on the back of their cars for suitcases, and acted as the means for people to get from their house to the train station. Hence, station wagon. Similarly, the estate was the car that wealthy Europeans took their luggage to their country estates with. When at their country homes, the car the wealthy took into the local village for social events or supplies was known as a town car, or in france, le sedan de ville. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 In a more civilized era, local taxi companies would put a capped bed on the back of their cars for suitcases, and acted as the means for people to get from their house to the train station. Hence, station wagon. Similarly, the estate was the car that wealthy Europeans took their luggage to their country estates with. When at their country homes, the car the wealthy took into the local village for social events or supplies was known as a town car, or in france, le sedan de ville. Interesting. I always figured the term "estate" had some sort of uppity snob roots to it. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Yessiree. Station wagon is just such an ugly term though. What the heck are the roots of that name anyway? Estate is a bit nicer sounding. Back in the day (teens and twenties), it was custom coach builders that modified, say, a Model T so that it had a "station wagon" back. Some of these companies were wagon builders...so I am assuming that is where the "wagon" came from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sranger Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Goes to show how ridiculous the term "crossover" really is. It's either a station wagon or an SUV. I really haven't come across any "crossover" that doesn't naturally fall into one of those categories in my opinion. The Escape is an SUV. The Flex is a station wagon. The CRV is an SUV. The Taurus X is a station wagon. The Edge is an SUV. The Subaru Outback is a station wagon. To avoid future confusion in marketing, I'd be happy to re-classify the rest of these "crossovers" for the world's automakers if they'd like. In my opinion, all of the vehicles above are simply Mini-Vans that men will drive. A SUV should have some real off-road capability and none of these really qualify. Again it is just and opinion.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevenCaylor Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 In my opinion, all of the vehicles above are simply Mini-Vans that men will drive. A SUV should have some real off-road capability and none of these really qualify. Again it is just and opinion.... I agree. That's where the "Sport" comes in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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