US GSA Orders 2500 Hybrids from GM,Ford,Chrysler by Obama

In a win-win move for both the environment and the US auto industry, President Barack Obama announced on Thursday that the US General Services Administration would order 17,600 fuel-efficient vehicles—including hybrids—from GM, Ford, and Chrysler by June 1.

The purchase goal is fuel economy that’s 10 percent higher than the vehicle being replaced.

While auto sales have fallen 36 percent in the first quarter of 2009 compared to last year, the government’s purchase is still only symbolic, representing less than two-tenths of one percent of total US annual sales. But lawmakers from auto-industry states like Michigan and Ohio reacted with fervent support.

2500 Hybrids by Tax Day

Last month, President Obama visited Southern California Edison's Electric Vehicle Technical Center. He repeated his promise to put 1 million plug-in hybrids on US roads by 2015.

The first step will be an order for 2,500 hybrid sedans by April 15. Qualifying cars include the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, the 2009 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid, and the 2009 Saturn Aura Hybrid. The Ford Fusion Hybrid received excellent reviews and generated intense public interest, but the incremental mileage improvements of the Malibu and Aura mild hybrids have neither sparked much enthusiasm nor sold particularly well.

Moving from a full-size sedan like the Chevrolet Impala to the Fusion Hybrid saves a lot of gasoline, though. Because gasoline mileage is not a linear scale, converting from the Impala’s 20 mpg to the Fusion Hybrid’s 40 mpg saves 2.5 gallons per 100 miles. Going from the Fusion Hybrid to a plug-in’s 100-mpg-equivalent displaces approximately 1.5 gallons—though it cuts costs, since driving a mile on grid power costs 3 or 4 cents versus 10 to 15 cents on gasoline.

The total cost of $285 million would come from the $787 billion economic stimulus bill passed by Congress last month. A statement from the White House said the entire purchase will “reduce gasoline consumption by 1.3 million gallons per year and prevent 26 million pounds of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere.”

+ 2009 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid Road Test
+ 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid Road Test

The President also highlighted the program’s benefits for the US auto industry. “I am 100 percent committed to a strong American auto industry,” his statement said. Obama called this program “only a first step.”

Within the total $285 million cost is $15 million that the GSA, the government’s purchasing arm, will allocate to orders for advanced technology vehicles, including “commercially available” buses that run on either compressed natural gas or hybrid-electric power. This category also includes all-electric vehicles, which might include neighborhood electric vehicles for certain government uses. That order is to be placed by September 30.
Gallery: 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid


Gallery: 20009 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid