Every Ford dealer I've contacted has been rather casual about ordering an Escape Hybrid. Most will put your name on a list without taking a deposit. The problem is, they're also rather casual about sticking to the agreed-upon price. I've found a couple of dealerships who were taking orders at MSRP and then trying to tack on large markups at the moment of delivery. The dealer I bought mine from actually asked for $10,000 above MSRP as I arrived to pick it up. He finally dropped the markup after several hours of polite but firm discussion, during which time I offered to call the District Attorney's Consumer Fraud Unit. The tipover point was a copy of a handwritten price in my file-- not a contract, but at least documentary proof that a price was established. Moral of the story: whenever a salesman starts talking price, get it in writing.