Ford's Mulally won't set fuel-saving deadlines

LOS ANGELES --

He provided few specifics or timetables, however, and an outline provided by Ford mainly dealt with what the car company already has done to boost mileage, rather than laying out a timeline for the future.

In the keynote speech, Mulally told reporters here for the annual Los Angeles Auto Show that it is "absolutely" wrong to set deadlines. "It's about managing expectations," he said. "Through the years we sometimes didn't deliver" on promises for mileage improvements and pollution reductions.

He did note that Ford's plan would include both gasoline- and diesel-electric hybrids, the latter unknown in the U.S. personal-transportation market currently. Hybrids save fuel and cut CO2 emissions because they rely on electric power part of the time. Diesel engines get 20% to 40% better fuel economy than similar-size gasoline engines.

Ford also plans to boost its use of turbochargers, a tactic widely employed in the 1980s to save fuel. Ford says smaller-displacement, turbocharged, gasoline engines are "the cornerstone of Ford's near-term plan" to save fuel and cut emissions. The automaker promises the new engines will cut fuel use 10% to 20% without cutting performance.

Turbochargers can boost power quickly when needed but don't hurt mileage when not in use, such as when the driver isn't pressing hard on the throttle pedal.