The Ford Escape Hybrid and Mercury Mariner Hybrid are the gasoline-electric hybr

id powered versions that launched in the U.S. in 2004 for the 2005 model year. B
uilt in Kansas City, Missouri, it was the first hybrid SUV to hit the market. Th
e Ford Escape Hybrid was the first American-built hybrid and the first hybrid ve
hicle from an American automaker, joined by the Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra H
ybrids during the same model year. According to the Environmental Protection Age
ncy, the first generation Ford Escape Hybrid is 70% more efficient than the regu
lar Escape. The Mercury Mariner Hybrid is a rebadged version of the Escape Hybri
d. It features revised front-end styling and a more luxurious interior.
Ford is the second-largest U.S.-based automaker (preceded by General Motors) and
the fifth-largest in the world based on 2010 vehicle sales.[7] At the end of 20
10, Ford was the fifth largest automaker in Europe.[8] Ford is the eighth-ranked
overall American-based company in the 2010 Fortune 500 list, based on global re
venues in 2009 of $118.3 billion.[9] In 2008, Ford produced 5.532 million automo
biles[10] and employed about 213,000 employees at around 90 plants and facilitie
s worldwide.