CultureMap Auto Awards

Smart Energy Car of the Year: Ford Fusion Hybrid is fun to drive andbest-looking hybrid on the road

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid - CultureMap 2012 Green Car of the Year
2012 Infiniti M-Hybrid - Runner-up CultureMap 2012 Green Car of the Year
Photo by Kevin McCauley

Editor's Note: In the first annual CultureMap Auto Awards, automotive writers Nic Philllps and Kevin McCauley bestow honors in 10 categories for the top 2012 cars and trucks and explain why they're deserving of a good hard look. Our third award:

Smart Energy Car of the Year: 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

Aston Martin-ainspired styling, driving dynamics to match, interior design and materials with a European look and feel, claimed 47/47/47-mpg and a gas pedal in a hybrid that when floored emotes driving passion without sounding like it may explode at any second — the 2013 Ford Fusion is a game changer.

It almost doesn't matter that some are challenging Ford and the EPA's 47-mpg figure, the Fusion Hybrid is the most fun to drive and best looking hybrid under $30,000 on the road today. In fact, it starts just under $28,000 and adding technology like lane departure warning with active lane keeping steering, self parallel parking, automatic highbeams, adaptive radar cruise control and voice activated MyFord Touch with Microsoft Sync one can keep the price in the mid-$30's.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid has raised the bar high and is the sort of sedan you'd be proud to own.

Smart Energy Car of the Year Runner-up: 2013 Infiniti M Hybrid

At the other end of the spectrum we have the world's fastest accelerating full hybrid — the Infiniti M Hybrid. Rather than go for all out efficiency, Infiniti kept all the parts that make a sports sedan just that, a true sports sedan.

Instead of some mushy CVT it gets a properly sorted 7-speed automatic transmission, it has rear-wheel-drive, near 50/50 weight distribution, steering is direct with a hybrid electric/hydraulic setup and it keeps a 3.5L V6 but adds a 50kW electric motor for a combined system output of 360 horsepower.

While 360hp may not sound like much, it's the 457 lb-ft of torque (40 more than the V8 powered M) that puts even most diesels to shame and 199 lb-ft of it come on instantly from the electric motor with a 0-60 time near five seconds.

All this performance comes at a cost, nearly $56,000 base and $67,000 optioned out, but with 27/32-mpg ratings this high performer keeps it's green car cred real.

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a major award

$2.6 million grant funds UH research towards a fentanyl vaccine

Photo by Jellybee on Unsplash

UH has received a new financial gift towards the Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program, which is developing a fentanyl vaccine.

The estate of Dr. William A. Gibson has granted the University of Houston a $2.6 million gift to support and expand its opioid addiction research, including the development of a fentanyl vaccine that could block the drug's ability to enter the brain.

The gift builds upon a previous donation from the Gibson estate that honored the scientist’s late son Michael, who died from drug addiction in 2019. The original donation established the Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program in UH's department of psychology. The latest donation will establish the Michael Conner Gibson Endowed Professorship in Psychology and the Michael Conner Gibson Research Endowment in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.

“This incredibly generous gift will accelerate UH’s addiction research program and advance new approaches to treatment,” Daniel O’Connor, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, said in a news release.

The Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program is led by UH professor of psychology Therese Kosten and Colin Haile, a founding member of the UH Drug Discovery Institute. Currently, the program produces high-profile drug research, including the fentanyl vaccine.

According to UH, the vaccine can eliminate the drug’s “high” and could have major implications for the nation’s opioid epidemic, as research reveals Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is treatable.

The endowed professorship is combined with a one-to-one match from the Aspire Fund Challenge, a $50 million grant program established in 2019 by an anonymous donor. UH says the program has helped the university increase its number of endowed chairs and professorships, including this new position in the department of psychology.

“Our future discoveries will forever honor the memory of Michael Conner Gibson and the Gibson family,” O’Connor added in the release. “And I expect that the work supported by these endowments will eventually save many thousands of lives.”

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This story originally was published on our sister site, InnovationMap.

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