So the Toyota Prius Hybrid is too Buck Roger-ish for you. The Honda Insight : Ditto. The Camry Hybrid is an improvement, but it still doesn’t float your boat. What’s a self-respecting tree-hugging type girl or guy to do?
The Mercury division of Ford Motor Company teamed up with its mainstream sibling to deliver a mildly more expressive version of the hot-selling Ford Fusion Hybrid brethren: The Mercury Milan Hybrid.
A rivaled sibling of the Ford Fusion Hybrid, the Mercury is the more dressed up brother that oozes class while the Ford is like the decidedly business casual relative.
Leftlane recently spent a week with the Mercury Milan Hybrid. Putting it through its paces, whether on the high-speed turnpike or around town during domestic slow-speed duties, the Milan managed to give us a jolt.
What is it?
Sized like the all gas-engined versions of one of Ford’s most popular platforms, the Milan Hybrid is like a Coke Zero: It almost tastes as good as a regular soda, but without the calories and other side effects (teeth rot, carbonation eating at your innards and so on). So in other words, it can be considered good for you. Like eating broccoli or lots of fiber each day.
What’s it up against?
We would not put this in the same class of hybrid as the Toyota’s Prius or Honda’s Insight since those are dedicated hybrid designs. But for those seeking high mpgs in a more subtle shape, consider the Milan against other mid-size sedans like the Toyota Camry Hybrid and Nissan Altima Hybrid.
Any breakthroughs?
Would being a hybrid that’s actually fun to drive be considered a breakthrough? If so, we say yes! With much more road feel than a Prius, the Milan makes us forget that we are in a gas/electric vehicle.
The new Blind Spot Information System, developed by Volvo , detects moving objects from 65 feet on either your left or right to inform you of an object moving in your direction. It is especially handy in a parking lot where you are nosed in and can’t see past the two large SUVs on either side of you.
If this is a Ford product, it must be time to Sync. The Sync system is once again on board with its voice-activated, hands free capabilities to find your way, listen to tunes or make a call. The new 911-Assist, is there for emergency calls, and a vehicle health feature informs you of maintenance schedules or auto ailments. Sirius Travel Link gives weather reports in real time, as well such features as movie reviews and show times.
How does it look?
Like a traditional Milan. The only way you’d know this was a hybrid would be by the badging on both front doors and the decklid. This should be just enough to bring attention to your “green” bona fides. From the blingy front end, the familiar Mercury waterfall grille starts things off. The rest of the body is identical to the original, non-hybrid version of the Milan. That’s to say it’s still handsome. Add a few tweaks to the windshield and front fascia, which has been dropped to cheat the airflow for better aerodynamics and you have a package that looks more performance-oriented than tree-hugger-certified.
The Milan’s undertray has also been smoothed over to prevent air pockets or areas where air might get trapped and cause wind resistance. Towards that same end, a subtle rear decklid spoiler smoothes the airflow over the rear, and gets a rolling assist by the Michelin Energy MXV4 low rolling resistance tires which thankfully don’t look like the bicycle tires that adorn the Prius or Insight. In fact, those tires are standard car models used on a wide variety of new vehicles, which will make them inexpensive and easy to replace. Mercury dealers should be hyping features like this.
And on the inside?
Start off with a rather conservative two-tone interior of dark and light grey leather, add a dose of single needle tailoring and grey carpet, and you have got it. Well, actually there is a lot more. The front seats feature revised bolstering compared to early Milans for more lateral support. A class-higher feel is also evident with the padded dashboard and door panels.
Speaking of the dashboard, let’s start with the instrument panel. Energy, mileage and fuel meters on either side flank the speedometer; they offer insight into vehicle operations according to the way you drive the car. Water temperature is monitored on the far left, followed by an EV gauge to measure usage of the car as well as the condition of the Milan’s battery. Jump to the other side of the speedo and you have a traditional fuel gauge and finally a MPG meter that approximates your mileage in relationship to how heavy your right foot is on the gas pedal. The cool piece though, is the animated tree branch: The more prudent your driving style, the leafier the tree becomes.
The Sony Audi o system combines with Ford’s Sync operations to ease, via voice command access to radio, Bluetooth, telephone, climate and navigation functions. Operating through an in-dash LCD screen, it is one of the best systems going.
Though not the most stylish interior on the market – and certainly way too similar to the Fusion – the Milan’s cabin is definitely competitive.
But does it go?
The Mercury Milan Hybrid is powered by a 2.5-liter, Atkinson cycle, inline four-cylinder engine. By itself it produces 156 horsepower and 136 lb-ft. of torque. Add the 106 horsepower, AC synchronous motor, and its total output stretches to 191 usable ponies. The engine puts power to the ground with an electronically controlled CVT transmission. The Milan Hybrid is only available with front wheel drive, although all-wheel-drive remains an option on gas engined vehicles on this platform.
Both the Milan and Fusion Hybrids have received an upgraded engine combination that allows for higher electric speeds—up to 47 mph, on battery power. Ford’s thinking is that with this peak speed rating, unlike some of its competitors, the car can be driven around town without using a single drop of gasoline. Other cars, the Prius for example, revert from battery power back to gas engine at speeds over 27 mph.
Performance is exactly as it would seem, although there’s some frustratingly long pedal travel needed to get things underway from a stop. The Milan isn’t hard to get up to about 30 mph on just its gas motor – as long as you don’t mind an occasional tailgater.
Ford claims a range of more than 700 miles on a single tank of gasoline. Regenerative braking brings energy back to the batteries to the tune of 94 percent, until friction braking slows things down. Finally an electric air conditioning compressor keeps things cool regardless of whether the gas engine is on or off.
For those watching the scale, the Mercury Milan Hybrid is a relatively plump 3,729 lbs. EPA mileage estimates peg the Milan in the 41 mpg range in the city, and 36 mpg on the highway. While we saw a majority of highway driving in the Milan while testing it, including a few hours at nearly 80 mph, we still managed to see highway mileage in the range of 34 mpg. More impressive, though, was the way that after driving 354 miles, as seen on the trip odometer, we still had more than a third of a tank of fuel left – a range remaining in the neighborhood of 190 miles.
Why you would buy it:
Like the old ad campaign pegging the 7-Up soft drink as the Un-Cola, perhaps the new 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid is the Un-Hybrid.
Why you wouldn’t:
You don’t want to be labeled as the Green Monster of the neighborhood.
Leftlane’s bottom line:
Hybrids continue to get better and better. While we were annoyed at the large degree of tip-in required when stepping on the gas, the Milan offered an overall good drive experience that is the class of the field. More engaging behind the wheel than most other hybrids, it’s the fuel economy that will draw most into showrooms.
2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid base price, $27,500. As tested, $33,735.
Rapid Spec Group A, $3,735; Navigation, $1,775; Destination, $725.
Words and photos by Mark Elias.
