Charge It!

The North American auto show circuit continues to electrify as hybrid powertrains grab the spotlight at the 2003 New York International Auto Show.

Once benign in performance and market impact, gasoline-electric technology has advanced, and now the players are talking trash. Following Toyota Motor Corp.'s introduction of Hybrid Synergy Drive, which will power the next-generation Prius, Toyota's luxury brand — Lexus — reprised its RX 330 hybrid, which bowed at the Detroit show in January.

Says Denny Clements, Lexus group vice president and general manager: “Some other companies have technology that is like a high school science project compared to the rocket science of the RX powered by Hybrid Synergy Drive.”

The '04 Prius has a 50-kw drive motor powered by the hot new Hybrid Synergy Drive, packing 50% more electric power than the last-generation Prius and improved low-end torque — V-8 performance with 4-cyl. compact car fuel efficiency, Toyota says.

The thrust is part of an overall goal to sell 300,000 hybrids annually around the world in two years' time. Expected annual volume for the '04 Prius, which is larger and more aerodynamic than the current model, is 36,000 units in the U.S.

Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co. debuts the production version of its Escape Hybrid and announces its second gasoline-electric vehicle program: the Ford Futura sedan, the Taurus replacement inspired by the 427 concept.

The hybrid Futura will debut at an undisclosed date following the car's 2005 introduction with a base I-4 and optional V-6, Ford says. No word on where the car will be assembled, but it is based on Mazda Motor Corp.'s acclaimed Mazda6 front-drive architecture.

Escape Hybrid becomes available to fleet buyers late this year and to retail customers early in 2004. Expected volume: 18,000-20,000 units. Ford, however, now backs away from the goal it set in 2000 to improve the fuel-economy of its SUVs by 25%.

General Motors Corp. took the wraps off its '04 Malibu Maxx sedan, which beings production later this year, as well as a high-performance Malibu Maxx SS concept.

DaimlerChrysler AG displayed the Hemi-powered 300C concept sedan. Its grille, inspired by the 1998 Chronos concept, is said to be the template for all Chrysler vehicles to come.

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. unveiled the Pathfinder Armada fullsize SUV, a drop-top 350Z and a crew-cab version of its Titan fullsize pickup — a Detroit show crowd pleaser.

Even the ailing Isuzu Motors Ltd. — absent from both the Detroit and Chicago show press conference schedules — made news, with a 5-passenger version of the Ascender SUV, plans for another 7-passenger SUV for '06 and the surprise announcement of a direct-injection gasoline V-6 engine for its '04 lineup.

Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc., in the face of a recent sales dive in North America, shows the next-generation Galant, which comes on line in October, the new Lancer Sportback station wagon and a reskinned Diamante sedan.