Gas prices are edging close to $5 a gallon nationally, ABC warns, already exceeding that price in downtown Los Angeles. The prices are expected to stay high while refineries undergo the expensive maintenance of switching to summer fuel blends, and passing the cost on to consumers.
Experts predict that the prices will plateau, then drop as the transition wraps up but until then, drivers will just have to tighten their belts and deal. Thursday, Feb. 21 marks the 35th consecutive day of gas price increases.
But there is some good news in the midst of a grim economic landscape: Ford's EcoBoost family of turbocharged, direct-injected vehicles are exceeding expectations in sales. These cars are not as fuel-efficient as hybrid and diesel engines and cost $1,000 more than other cars with their specs, but they are an affordable option with decent power and relatively low fuel consumption.
Since its introduction three years ago, Ford has sold more than 530,000 EcoBoost cars, according to Green Car Reports, and is selling more EcoBoost-equipped F-150s per month than the company had anticipated it would sell in a year. The F-150 truck is the most popular, weighing in at 280,000 units sold to U.S. customers — 42 percent of total F-150 sales.
Because of its popularity, Ford plans to move some jobs back to the States, expanding production at its Cleveland Engine Plant in Ohio, Detroit News reports. This will create hundreds of new jobs, which it needs in order to keep up with demand. This would be a welcome boon in northern Ohio, where Ford closed an engine plant and a casting plant in the last few years.
The plant currently produces 3.5-liter V-6 engines for the F-150. The company also has plans to triple production of European vehicles to about 480,000 units by 2015.
Next year, Ford will invest $400 million to revamp its Lima Engine Plant in Ohio, moving from producing 3.5 and 3.7-liter engines to a small V6.
