65-MPG American Car Not For Sale in America

According to several sources including Business Week, CNN, and the Huffington Post, the Ford Motor Company, long renowned for its gas-guzzling automobiles, plans to release a sedan capable of getting 65 miles per gallon in November. The rather awkwardly named Ford ECOnetic, runs on diesel which, according to Mark Fields, President of Ford America, means that the car cannot profitably be sold in North America. Although the company intends to manufacture a gas-powered version of the car in Mexico, the relative unpopularity of diesel in the United States makes spending the estimated $350 millon needed to build a diesel engine plant in North America a rather risky business move for a company reportedly losing over $12 billion annually. So the car will be available only in Europe, where nearly fifty percent of automobiles run on diesel.

Even if you think of importing the "American" car from Europe, Ford argues, it won't be worth it. The Toyota Prius would still be a better buy and, given the restrictions the U. S. government has placed on diesel fuel, considerably easier for you to fill up. In other words, from a business perspective, Ford believes it won't be worth it to sell the diesel ECOnetic stateside (or in Canada, Mexico, Central, and South America, for that matter).

D'oh. Leave it to an American corporation to make it easier for Europeans to out-green us!