WHAT SOME FAMOUS MAINERS DRIVE:

STEPHEN KING: The prolific novelist who splits his time between Bangor and Florida owns a fleet of cars. But the vehicle he drives when he embarks on a major road trip is his new Ford Escape Hybrid, according to his assistant. The 2006 Escape Hybrid runs on a

2.3-liter, four-cylinder engine when driven at highway speeds, and a battery-powered

electric engine kicks in at city speeds. The net result is a rating of 36 miles per gallon city driving and 31 miles per gallon on the highway.

SEN. OLYMPIA SNOWE: Maine’s senior senator runs to the store and does other errands around her D.C. digs in a non-descript 1997 Pontiac Bonneville, according to a spokeswoman. When in Maine she drives a ’94 Cadillac sedan. Snowe was a little more free-wheeling in her youth. Her first car was an early 1970s MGB convertible. And she owned a Honda motorcycle.

TIM SAMPLE: The noted humorist takes his vehicles seriously. “Over the past three decades I’ve probably owned 40 or so automobiles and 18 motorcycles. I just love to drive,” Sample writes in by e-mail. “I currently very happily drive a 2005 Madza 3s Touring [model]. It’s the same platform as the European version of the Ford Focus, which I drove when I was in England last spring. In the summer months my wife and I enjoy road trips in our vintage 1986 Mercedes 560 SL roadster. We also own a 2005 Ford Freestyle. The Freestyle is one of the most underrated vehicles on the road today. It’s like a big tall station wagon with tons of room, great ergonomics, all-wheel drive, traction control and abs brakes. It’s very car like to drive but an absolute tank in nasty winter driving. With a V6 and CVT transmission we get 20 miles per gallon of regular. I also put about 6,000 miles a year on my 2002 Kawasaki Concours motorcycle which is currently in for some custom paint work.”

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS: The Senator tools around Washington D.C. in a 1998 Honda Accord and climbs into a ’97 Subaru Outback when home in Maine. “Both are reliable and get good gas mileage. My Outback is great in the snow and for carrying cargo back and forth to camp,” Collins said. As for what it’s like to drive in the nation’s capital… “I do not think that it would surprise anyone to hear that Maine drivers are far more courteous than the drivers in Washington, D.C. In Maine… when they honk their horns, it is to say hello,” Collins said.

BILL GREEN: “Just sold my 2000 Durango (12 mpg) for a 4-cylinder 2006 Ford Escape,” writes Maine’s ubiquitous TV outdoorsman. “With my oldest starting college next year, I went for better gas mileage and dependability. Like my father before me, I really like Fords. I really wanted a hybrid, but found them very overpriced. When I ran the numbers I had to drive it about 200,000 miles to break even and that’s without the battery change at 105K. I really think Ford has cranked the price up on the hybrids because of the yuppie factor. Disappointing. I really like the little Escape. It’s fantastic in snow, but it has absolutely no pop. When I get on I-95 I am absolutely at the mercy of whoever is driving by. That’s good. It keeps my ego in check. By the way. I learned my financial lesson. I buy cars for one third down and finance the rest over three years. I drive cars six years. I also have a good mechanic and never go to the dealership for service.”

RICKY CRAVEN: The former NASCAR and Nextel Cup race car driver from Newburgh climbs behind the wheel of a late model Cadillac SRX when he needs to get from here to there. “My priority these days is a comfortable driving environment,” said Craven, who admits he’s owned more cars “than a small auto dealership” over the years. Craven said his wife, K.K., drives a Volkswagen Beetle. “She always wanted one and she loves it,” he said.