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valkraider

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Everything posted by valkraider

  1. Firefox has built in spell checking: How do I use the Firefox spell checker?
  2. Even with the AC off the compressor may need to kick in briefly to pressurize lines. Maybe?
  3. But they log the calls. And the issues. Then when they do analytics they will see the trends. May not solve any problems in the short term but we can't let them get off Scott-free...
  4. I say call Ford and complain. They need to know that this garbage is affecting customer satisfaction. (800) 392-3673
  5. You need to name your c-max Christine. And make sure to feed her regularly... Heal up!
  6. I can't stand when people don't use cruise control. When I have to pass someone then they pass me then I pass them then they pass me then.... It drives me crazy. Just tap cruise and be done with it. ;)
  7. I have battery tenders on a truck, two motorcycles, and a boat. They work fantastic. I kept a teeny motorcycle battery (notorious for going bad quickly) healthy for 9 years using one!
  8. There are lots of perfectly flat and straight roads between the Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains. :) I hate driving through flyover country. Although even in the mountainous west there are some long ass flat roads, I have crossed Utah and Nevada every direction possible, Wyoming and Montana too. California has a lot as well, I5 in the valley is very very boring... Much of eastern Oregon and Washington are chock full o long flat roads. Let's not forget good old Florida... There is a road in Tennessee and South Carolina which is called "the tail of the dragon" and crosses over Deals Gap in the smokey mountains. It has 318 curves in 11 miles. Lots of TShirts and stickers and whatnot say that: "318 curves in eleven miles". Well some guy made up shirts that say "Ride Florida: 318 miles with 11 curves." Haha.
  9. The Civic is not exactly a full hybrid, it's electrical system is much less significant to the operation of the vehicle. Basically the Civic has a smaller-than-normal gasoline engine which is augmented by a small electric motor to give power when needed and allow for regenerative braking. The Civic really doesn't shut off the gas motor and run on just electricity the way the Prius and C-Max do. So battery performance is less of an issue for the Civic - but the Civic also posts lower numbers in general as a result however will have less drastic swings in its numbers. This is way over simplified, but it's just not the same type of drive system. The Prius and C-Max should yield much better city economy since they can shut off the ICE completely as needed.
  10. I think "reviewers" are just piling on now as it is the "scandal du jour". It's popular to find flaws in things...
  11. Move somewhere warmer. Seriously, I don't understand why people don't do *any* research before spending $30k on something... Cold weather decreases fuel economy on all vehicles and hurts hybrids more than regular vehicles. Cold is hard on batteries and gasoline engines which are designed to shut off when not in use have trouble staying in efficient temperature ranges. Add to that the parasitic losses from heaters and efficiency drops a lot - we took for granted these past 100 years all that waste heat that engines produce - until we turn off the engine and we get cold... Preheat the car in a garage if possible, and check out the grill cover thread - those may help you significantly in the extreme cold.
  12. MFT is crap. I have had so many problems... Today was the first time I lost the reverse camera display lines... I keep the reboot key fob in my console... :)
  13. Not a full fledged jump. More of a hop.
  14. I would be interested in grill covers for the winter time but I am not leaving them on inambient temps over 60degrees. I think they would be a waste of money at $50 and a big waste of money at $100. I am not going to relocate my license plate every time I want to take the cover on or off. But my basic belief after 20 years of automobile, motorcycle, and boat customization: if a simple sheet of plastic could give the vehicle 4 to 6 mpg gain: Ford would have done so at the factory and killed the Prius in the market. Do we honestly think that a hobbiest with some lexan and a dremel tool can out engineer the professionals at Ford? Do we honestly think that Ford wouldn't jump at the chance to add 4 to 6 mpg on their flagship hybrid? Finally, I have 1000 miles on my Energi. 690 of them are 100% electric at less than 40mph. It would take me three lifetimes to make back my money on a $100 piece of plastic. Additionally, I am worried about how it will look after one season of driving in winter weather. Is it going to trap all kinds of leaf muck and pine needles in there? Is it going to yellow or cloud up? All in all, without very controlled tests we have nothing but anecdotal evidence that it will even return the claimed mileage. I have seen lots of snake-oil come and go...
  15. On a 35 to 45 mpg vehicle, 1mpg is such a tiny change in fuel economy there is no way that a normal person in real world conditions could reliably determine if a license plate holder could cause that change. It is all just hypothetical. The license plate holder on the C-Max is largely flat and adds very little texture to the front of the vehicle - in fact the license plate is smooth and is applied over the decorative ridges on the front of the car, so just as easily the license plate holder could smooth air flow. There is no way for normal people to know this without incredibly controlled tests. Even figuring this out in a wind tunnel would be a complex process. In the real world there could be differences in temperature, barometric pressure, wind direction, cargo weight, tire pressures, road moisture, humidity, or driver behavior which could cause the 1mpg difference which is being attributed to the license plate frame.
  16. Toyota, Honda, and Nissan all make cars in America. So does BMW, Volkswagen and Mercedes. Hyundai/Kia do too. My 1999 Honda Valkyrie sported more American content than the equivalent Harley Davidsons of that time. No matter where the CEO gets his mail, "Made in USA" does not have to mean Ford & Chevy.
  17. License plate holders do not cost 1mpg.
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