Last fall, Ford dealers were twitching in anticipation of the new Edge, a “crossover” to compete with the luxury car-based SUVs made by Lexus, Mercedes and BMW.
The company that introduced the horseless carriage was scrambling for a foothold, projecting a 14 percent market share and looking at 2006 losses of more than $12 billion. The sleek Edge, with its panoramic receding sunroof and carlike ride, was going to be the foxy new schoolmistress in a dustbowl town.
The Edge might have made more sense five years ago when competition in the segment was hot. A crossover is not quite a car, not quite an SUV. The Edge misses the point on both fronts.
SUVs these days — at least those worth their weight — have a third row of seats. And cars these days should get decent gas mileage.
The Edge has an EPA estimate of 18 mpg in the city, and it seats only five. In spite of its unibody construction — the body and chassis are one piece, which conserves weight — the thing weighs more than 2 tons.
When I took my head out of my hands and looked around, I found plenty to like. The interior of our saffron-colored test car was sophisticated, with charcoal leather saddle-stitched upholstery and chrome accents.
The navigation and control touch screen made us feel as if we were in a sci-fi film. (Come to think of it, you need extraterrestrial skills to figure out the darn thing.)
The reverse sensing system, which beeps faster as you back closer to something, was a welcome feature that belongs on every vehicle, no excuses.
The large bin between the seats can actually hold a purse, and the back seat is spacious with a comfy armrest that can hold a couple of big gulps. The six-speed automatic we drove had all-wheel drive and came with a stabilitycontrol system, a nice touch in sleety winter weather. Its 3.5 V-6 delivers 265 horsepower. The week after we drove the Edge, Ford dropped in at the Washington Auto Show with an all-electric version, a $2 million concept partly financed by the Energy Department.
The vehicle’s battery can be charged by plugging into a standard outlet or from a built-in fuel cell. The car can go about 25 to 30 miles on energy from the power grid, using a little more than $1 worth of energy — almost three times more cost-effective than a gasoline-powered vehicle, and substantially lower on emissions (once you account for the coal-generated electricity it uses.)
The Edge was meant to be the next big thing for Ford. If it had a third row seat and a battery, the Edge could be as popular as the Model T.
