Hybrid vehicles at crossroads

Some new models don’t use technology for fuel economy

Imagine the public outrage if it were discovered that Philip Morris developed a cure for cancer but used it to merely make cigarettes taste better. While that is fictional, something very similar, and very real, may be happening to hybrid vehicles.

Right now there are more than 100,000 fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles on the road in America, most notably the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid and the Ford Escape Hybrid. Hybrid sales shot up a remarkable 81 percent in 2004, and, based on early projections for 2005, there appears no end in sight to hybrids’ popularity.

Unfortunately, some automakers are offering models that fall far short of their potential.

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