Less Subsidation = More Innovation

It is interesting to note that many countries in Europe have very fuel efficient cars without the use of expensive and environmentally intensive hybrid technologies or other strange and expensive implementations. One example is the new Ford ECOnetic models deployed in much of Europe since 2008. I find this to be a great example of the energy efficient innovation that can come out of increased energy prices and demand for efficiency. The newest Ford Fiesta ECOnetic model on sale now in Europe gets an estimated 76.4 MPG on the highway. This car has no hybrid electric motors, electric batteries, or extreme aerodynamic design to achieve this MPG. It’s also very interesting that the car will not be available for sale in the United States, especially since it is a very fuel efficient vehicle and is made by an American company. You would think that with the new higher vehicle efficiency standards, government bailouts of auto companies, and the overall movement of the Obama Administration towards fuel efficiency and mass transportation that this type of car would fit the demand of the day. However, Ford disagrees. The company issued a statement saying they would not be able to sell the car in the US for “business reasons”. I was really wondering if “business reasons” may include serious lobbying against the sale by the American Petroleum Institute or another oil lobbying agency. The car is a turbo diesel, which isn’t common in the US, but sounds like a regular gasoline engine. The engines are also a little bit more expensive to produce and Ford says it would have $354 million to update its Mexico plant (Mexico??) to make the ECOnetic modifications. However, 76.4 MPG seems too efficient to matter. The newest model went on sale in Europe for 11,645 pounds sterling ($17,700 US) with Bluetooth cell phone-to-speaker connection and MP3 and USB connections standard. Why can’t Ford justify selling this car in the U.S.?