I know this is a "hybrid" site, but I have frequently seen the argument that "not everyone can afford a $23K vehicle" as an fairly valid point against Hybrids. (GREENhybrid.com)

Just as an information bit, read this:

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060828/dem028.html?.v=44

If you want a low-polluting, fairly high mileage vehicle but cannot swing a hybrid price, keep the PZEV Focus in mind.

PZEV Facts

* Grilling one hamburger emits more hydrocarbon emissions than a Focus PZEV would on a three hour drive (about 180 miles).

But I have to get to work, 10-13 miles away. How many hamburgers would 180 miles cook if done in 10 mile sections?

* A Focus PZEV would have to be driven more than 2,100 miles, or five trips between Los Angeles and San Francisco, to equal the emissions produced by the leading 5.4 horsepower lawn mower in just one hour of use.

I can't commuted to work on a lawn mower either. Still, a lawner mower is needed to keep the weeds down in the car lots.

* The Focus PZEV is so clean, it would take 330 of them running at the same time to equal the smog-forming emissions of one typical 1971 car, the first California emission controlled vehicle.

Good thing our 1971 car died . . . 20 years ago. So how does it compare to a coal fired, steam locomotive?

* Ford Focus PZEV produces the same low level of smog-forming emissions as the top selling hybrid car for about half the price.

In city commuting, does it autostop the engine too?

* Ford Focus PZEV is the only vehicle of its kind with fuel economy of up to 37 miles per gallon and a 5 year/100,000 mile powertrain Extended Service Plan standard.

I'd have to come down from 51+ MPG to what 26 MPG or worse? So what other creature comforts do I have to give up? Perhaps the 6-disk CD player? Automatic climate control?

* The 2007 PZEV 2.0-liter manual transmission Focus increased its estimated highway fuel-economy by 3 miles per gallon over the 2006 model.

My hybrid is automatic and the automatic ratings for the Ford Focus? BTW, the Toyota fleet average MPG is also 3 MPG, over the Ford fleet average.

* Ford Motor Company is the PZEV leader in California, offering the most models with PZEV certification, including vehicles from Ford, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda.

Ahhh, a counting of models. I understand GM beats Ford in the most models with +30 MPG. No doubt the counting is a lot easier with the cars sitting on the lots.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Is this simply another answer from a domestic automaker that can't compete in the hybrid market effectively yet? While the FEH is a winner, Ford has yet to release any other hybrids and who knows if they'll meet their release dates for the Fusion or other new hybrids. This sounds like another Ethanol campaign, another way for left-behind domestic manufacturers to try for good press while not investing in real hybrid technology.

Bob,

Not sure why you felt it necessary to attack every aspect of the PZEV post.

What I wanted to show is that a big portion of the "green" in "greenhybrid" can be achieved for less than the cost of the current hybrid cars.

It was mostly to point out that PZEV is a good alternative to hybrid if hybrid is out of your price range and you nonetheless still care about how much you are polluting the air.

And Mike:

Ford has more PZEV cars than anyone else. Why they do that is probably to meet overall pollution quotas since they sell so many F150 polluters. Regardless of WHY they do it, they are doing good by the environment in at least THIS regard - the most PZEV rated cars of any carmaker.

We would all like more carmakers to invest more into hybrids. If they don't the next best thing IMHO is to at LEAST build cars that are limiting pollution.

Regardless of how you feel about Ford overall, they deserve kudos for this, even if that are striking out in other areas.

I thought it was a joke after the comparison to a "lawn mower" and a 35 year old car. So I figured, what the hey, line-by-line.

The facts and data were not an attack but a taste of reality . . . except for the coal fired locomotive comment . . . For the 70 year old "coal fired locomotive," I apologize.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Good post. It may not be a hybrid, but it pollutes a lot less than most alternatives. However I would find a hamburger to be much more tasty, especially if smothered with mushrooms and onions.

OK Bob I see where you were coming from now.....All that came from a Ford press release....

The Ford Focus is a decent little car
1)It gets much better than average FE (by average I mean better than the average private use vehicle in the USA). CR got 17/ 33 with the 4 speed AT .This is a Mazda motor; apparently the 2007 gets a bit better FE?
2)It is fun to drive( for an economy car).
3)It does well in gov crash tests-not so well in the insurance side test( so you had better get the side airbags-the Prius also does poorly in this test without the side/side curtains).
4)It is cheap.You should be able to get a base model for $11,000, and a fancier one with side/side curtains for $14500 or so.The best you can get a new Prius(with side side curtains) or HCH 2 is about $22000(call it $19000 with TC).
5)It delivers average QC results according to CR-the REC. it.
Ford and Chevy are both joining the small car FE wars.The Aveo has improved FE for 2007.It is dirt cheap-a big plus(under $10,000 frequently).Ford doesn't have a tiny Aveo sized car yet(Yaris,Fit -155" 2400 lb cars).They need one.
The Focus is a good choice if you need to spend less than $14000 OTD.You can't buy a FIT for $14000 OTD(or a Yaris since the Toyo dealers are being Toyo dealers).The cheapest Fit(MT ) costs about $16000 OTD(8.75% tax), and the Yaris about $14500.You could buy a base Focus for $12000 OTD, and an Aveo for $10,000 OTD. Thanks.Charlie
PS-I am partial to Hondas, so I would probably spend the extra $$ and get the Fit, but the Focus(a hatch) would be a decent choice if I didn't have the extra $$.

I recently drove a nearly new (2100 miles on the odometer) rental Ford Focus SE nearly 2,000 miles from Denver, CO to Bozeman, MT and back, taking a sidetrip through Yellowstone Park. It was not a bad little car; the trunk is actually huge. But it was not really suited for the 75 miles per hour speed limits of Wyoming and Montana: lots of engine noise and constant downshifting on upgrades. I averaged about 30 mpg over the entire trip, all the time wishing I was driving something with close to the comfort and performance of my HAH. I figure that the Accord Hybrid's fuel economy would have been at least a couple of miles per gallon better as well.

Does it make a difference if the burgers are veggy patties? heh heh!

But seriously...

I had the idea that Ford could make the Focus PZEV a real contender for under $1500/unit by leasing some entry-level hybrid technology from GM or Toyota. GM's BAS would easily fit into a Focus since it is compact and doesn't use very many batteries. Toyota has two possible entry-level systems Ford could potentially lease: THS-M and IISS. THS-M is similar to BAS in that it is a 48v mild-hybrid with autostop. IISS is a simple start-stop system that can power the air conditioner when stopped. IISS runs on only 4 LiIon cells. I've always had the notion that the Focus was a good candidate for hybridization.