Yet Another Test, The Hybrid SUV
We all know how our beloved SUV can seem to eat more of our salaries than what our family consumes at the table for an entire week. Yes, it’s the sad truth; no matter how we love the fuel guzzling family SUV for all those Sunday family trips, especially for those visits to the grandma, there are also those times when we wish if only the SUV can drain even one or two less liters of petrol.
That how I feel so virtuous when I embarked to yet another hybrid vehicle test, but this time it’s the hybrid SUV. Simply because it’ll be a major shame if we just scrap all those Sunday family plans. And boy, you guess what gem did I find.
I involved two of the most chic SUVs in the market, but one was diesel and the other was hybrid SUV. With its direct injection 2.8-liter turbo diesel and a monster power train of 160 hp, I can affirm that the Jeep Liberty Sport CRD currently rides as high as its high seat position in the diesel SUV universe. Driving the Jeep Liberty Sport CRD, you don’t feel car-like; it’s like riding a tram and a Dodge Ram in one, with more off road sensation thrown in. It bites torque hard, but it’s quiet as a mouse. In fact, its as quiet as most sedans I know. It costs $25,970.
Now for the hybrid SUV, the palette of choice is rather limited. So I have to go for the very first hybrid SUV only because it already has a fair amount of market age. And that is the Ford Escape. Now this one has a power train of 133 hp, a 2.3 liter that’s supplemented with a 94 hp electric motor and it costs $31,825.
During the road test, surprisingly the hybrid SUV handles acceleration better than the Jeep Liberty. My test stat show that the Ford Escape Hybrid SUV has a better 78.3 mph than the Jeep Liberty’s 75.7 mph. It accelerates better climbing to 60 mph where along the 40 to 70 mph the Jeep Liberty accelerates faster, but still within hairbreadth distance.
Now we go to the lovely part, the fuel economy of both SUVs. Turbo diesel injection does have its demands, and the EPA lists the Jeep Liberty at 22 mpg at city traffic and 27 mpg on open lanes and highway. My road test shows that I got 22.7 mpg on the busy lanes and 31.1 mpg on the highway. As you can see, it’s a pretty close estimation.
The Ford Escape is listed at 33 mpg at the city and 29 mpg at the highway. I did around 28.5 mpg at the city and 29.5 mpg on the open lanes. And yes, there is a definite savings on fuel economy with the Ford Escape Hybrid SUV against the real guzzler Jeep Liberty Sport CRD.
So, do you drive SUV within the confines of the city? You might want hybrid SUV.
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