DEARBORN, MI --- This weekend, the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid is being put to the ultimate fuel-efficiency test. A team of drivers, including NASCAR star Carl Edwards and world-record breaking hypermiler Wayne Gerdes, will attempt to drive more than 1,000 miles on a single tank of gas, raising money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in the process. 

The 1,000-Mile Challenge starts at around 8 a.m. on Saturday, April 25, from Mount Vernon, Va., and ends the morning of Monday, April 27, in Washington, D.C. The team will drive for more than 43 hours continuously to reach the 1,000-mile goal. 

The drivers will do stints of between two and three hours each and will have regular breaks to ensure safe driving is maintained. The Fusion Hybrid will need to average at least 57 mpg to achieve its goal. During preliminary testing in preparation for this challenge, Ford engineers have reached as much as 70 mpg in the Fusion Hybrid by using eco-driving techniques. 

The team will run clinics for media and customers over the weekend in the Fusion Hybrid, conducting interviews and vehicle demonstrations on how simple techniques can make a significant difference to real-world fuel economy numbers. 

The Fusion Hybrid being used in the challenge will be a factory-produced model with no modifications or alterations and will run on regular 87 octane gas.