One of the two Ford HySeries Edges which will ever be built was put through its paces by USA Today in late January en route to the DC Auto Show ( AutoblogGreen has driven it as well) . A cutting edge, alternative fuel vehicle, the fuel-cell plug-in hybrid Edge is described as "smooth, tight, quiet and well-finished." Steering was reviewed as being good but the customisable regenerative braking was a little harder to deal with when set too high, resulting in sudden nose-dives.
The big issue though was that it had "sluggish" performance which was considered to be due to unnecessarily heavy extras such as a second electric motor for all-wheel drive. The vehicle was also utilising less than two-thirds of the battery pack due to requirements of the current testing phase.
Analysis: Weight is the killer for plug-in electric vehicles because the more a vehicle weighs, the more batteries you need which just weigh it down further. DaimlerChrysler is testing fuel-cell vehicles too, but they're working on a modified Mercedes A Series which seems far more appropriate. Still, Ford has the experience and the tradition in trucks and SUVs so maybe sticking with their strengths for the time being isn't a bad thing.
Related:
- AutoblogGreen Drives the HySeries Ford Edge and fuel cell Explorer
- DaimlerChrysler builds first F-Cell fire response vehicle
- Ford loves ethanol