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One reason I bought steel 16's is the 17's were nearly twice the price...

Funny you should mention... The C-Max has me watching product placement on TV and movies more than before, because they're getting creative. Long shot of a shiny black Cadillac. Someone gets in so they can Skype in privacy using the car's onboard Wi-Fi. Nothing like advertising a hidden vulnerability, as if criminals needed any help... Frank, who, without park assist, never expects his steering wheel to move on its own.

Three things... Bill N is nice enough to post Ford's service notices, with full text. It's not difficult to read the application notes for items pertaining to your car and find out what Ford thinks is wrong. You won't find anything new pertaining to MFT or Sync, and old ones are repairs. Since we all asked this question two years ago, we know that Ford designed the system so left and right pods are independent. Left shows engine data, right shows entertainment/environment system data. They purposely can't communicate, so Sync can't affect the car's operation. Ford announced in 2013 they were dumping Microsoft's mobile platform for Research in Motion's. It would be reasonable to expect the switch to be implemented a couple years later, assuming RIM was not new to this, and they weren't. That means the differences start at the operating system, like running an iPhone app on your Android. Please stop thinking of yourself and a font of information making valuable contributions to this forum. Try learning first... Have fun, Frank

I was hesitant to reply due to the cargo... Platforms work quite well, but the key is the cargo is exposed. I'd never recommend carrying 30 gal. of gasoline in such a manner. Large wooden boxes work fine, and you'll see others with camping gear, beach stuff, etc. A great way to carry messy things, too. That said, the dresser was the last time I used it, a year ago. The car's big enough for most stuff (the pic shows a second dresser in the car, too) HAve fun,Frank

While generally true, especially over a wide pressure range, you may want to revisit the assumptions before extending it to automobile tires. Speed Planes land fast and slow down. Cars start at rest and speed up. The latter has the option of sensing a reduction in grip before it's lost. The former has to make an estimate in the air, with no good alternatives to landing. Expect a very conservative rule-of-thumb as a result. Tires Plane tires are designed for drag racing - 0-to-100 MPH in 0.5 seconds! As such, they are crowned, so only the center makes contact initially. That makes tire pressure a direct driver of contact patch size, and hydroplaning is very sensitive to contact patch size. Tread Drag racing tires don't have much tread. Neither do the aviation tires I see in a quick search. That's a direct result of landing stresses, which no car tire will every see in normal use. If you've ever driven the famous Italian racing tire, the "Baldini," you know how valuable tread is in the rain. And it's tread that makes your last statement pure nonsense. Tread depth and road water load/drainage are far stronger effects that tire pressure in the 40-50psi range. C-Maxers who choose to retain OEM pressures are not in additional danger of hydroplaning as a result of that choice. So, your post has good stuff in it, but I don't see how it applies. HAve fun, Frank

By whom? Ford's only showing 87.3K... http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/3733-ford-c-max-monthly-sales-chart/page-6?do=findComment&comment=58015 The combination of inaccuracy, wild speculation and overall obnoxiousness is never welcomed. Only you can fix it. I hope you decide to. Frank PS Jus, PM's not an option.

+1 If the Key Life Test comparison is valid, I don't expect 100K more miles, I expect 3-5x the life! NOTE: all the data shown is for NiMH, EXCEPT the green line. Data vs. yellow like shows test prediction vs. actual results. Yellow line vs. green line is battery technology comparison, showing how much longer Li-ion are predicted to last. HAve fun, Frank

I can't find data on WS60s in 195/60-16, but the WS80s in that size are 827 rev/mile. Stock is 803 rev/mile, and the ratio is the error, 3%. Conversely, the 215/60-16 is a bit larger, 796 rev/mile, which is 4% wrt the 195s. All well within the noise (how accurate are your OEM tires?). Frank PS I assume you know Blizzaks are just all-season tires after half tread, and they wear that first half fast.

That's how personal messaging works. Forums are public, so when you ask a question, anyone can answer. If you don't want that, try a PM. Frank

You've got half the story in the lug pattern. You also need offset and center hole diameter. - offset is the position of the mounting flange, relative to the bead seats. - center hole diameter doesn't seem important until you realize it centers the wheel (think balance). Offset of my OEM wheels is +55mm on 17x7" wheels. Ford center holes are 63.5mm/2.5" as I recall. FWIW, I went with Michelins in a 215/60R-16 size, for a wider selection of tire vendors that a 225/50R17 brings. . Have fun, Frank

All I've "suggested" is that I didn't have the same problem acdii did. That Spitinuri need not be terribly concerned, comparing our symptoms. What value have you brought to this thread? Frank PS we're discussing brakes, not breaks...

Last time. Post 7 from acdii. "When it is not acting correctly, that is I press on the brake, the car slows a little, regen circle is spinning, and the amps to the HVB are in the mid -50's, near -60, yet the car is not slowing down as it should, and I have to press harder on the brakes to slow it, engaging the pads instead before the car slows. There are times where I nearly miss my turn since the car is not slowing as expected, and at times I have to push really hard and it feels as if there is air in the brakes before the car slows down." (emphasis added) This is not what I experience. I am not laughing. Frank

At the same time, the 2015's are prone to things in the car the earlier ones were not... different view, different failure modes, sounds like a different configuration. http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/5170-vehicle-health-report-wont-complete/?p=57842

It's rare I get to say "actually, no" twice in a row! You should try reading the threads, here and FFH. This is not semantics. Have you ever lost your brakes"? ... it's not pleasant, and it's not what I'm saying, it's what acdii is saying on the FFH forum. acdii feels his car is unsafe to drive. Mine's fine. acdii says his car is not slowing down. Mine slows just fine under regen braking, with scores in the 95+% range. acdii is nearly missing turns because the car doesn't slow down. I'm already slowed down before this happens. The last post in that thread is someone reporting something similar to my observation: " I can reproduce it, but only at speeds of less then 10 mph in a turn with light pressure on the brake petal in regen mode when mechanical brakes are not active." Spitinuri was concerned about something he noticed. I reported some similar observations. Now add Sleddog (above) over at the FFH forum with the same observations. None of us are reporting brake failure. Frank

Do a search for "Ford Key Life Test" and you'll find lots of data to assuage a rational mind. The chart here is all I need to see. http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?doc_id=256425&dfpPParams=ind_184,industry_auto,bid_318,aid_256425&dfpLayout=blog I'm far more concerned with other aspects of drivetrain reliability than I am the HVB. Have fun, Frank

You may want to read your attachments... "The transmission fluid pump... circulates transmission fluid through the transmission for lubrication and through an oil-to-air cooler mounted in the front of the radiator for transmission cooling." Paul, have you looked into the Energi aux pump? Frank

Do you have Sync? This could be the RIM-based next generation. On my '13, the left side is engine, the right side is entertainment... your is engine on both. Frank

Agreed, but I haven't had a new car since 1983, my fuel budget is flush, and I'm interested in the reliability of this hybrid drivetrain. These things run under high load, with frequent stop/starts and spend a lot of time below operating temperature. No conventional drivetrain can match the stresses a hybrid puts on oil, and as a first-model-year owner, it's possible Ford didn't get things 100.000% right (tranny bearing?) Maybe I'll get advance warning of something in the engine... maybe not, but it's part of the fun. Have fun, frank

See post 22.

Actually, no. This guy reports a loss of regen braking (post 7) to the point where he's missing turns, which is very different from what I reported. Frank

Try it and see. You thinking a pH meter with a really long probe (sample down the oil filler) or would you take a sample as you change? Frank

I see you're having an oil service life discussion in the dark. Let me shed some light. PORTER-013114.pdfPORTER-080114.pdf This is what $35 gets you at Blackstone. There are other labs... http://www.blackstone-labs.com/ $25 won't include TBN, which is the really important for judging oil age. It's a measure of the pH buffer remaining. A "buffered" solution has additives that will neutralize both acid and base addition, to maintain pH in the target range. An oil with low TBN has a worn-out buffer and pH will start to drop soon. Looks like I had some life left at 25K (nearing 35K now). To Snow's point, the engine is designed to run at high load, for efficiency. To wb8's comment, it's only running half the time, but that means lots of cold starts, operating below operating temperature, and in Winter, never achieving operating temperature. I would expect both aspects to hurt oil life by virtue of increased blow-by on the power stroke. Crankcase ventilation removes most of those gasses, but some still dissolve in the oil and eat away at the buffer solution measured by TBN. I've got full synth 0W20 in now, so we'll see how the fourth change differs. Have fun,Frank

BINGO!! Paul Jones has done a lot on aftermarket block heaters, as well as the OEM, which is $$$ to install. We should all have them, but my Ohio-sold car does not. Its taken me 2 years to figure out how to get around the engine's need for heat (much less mine), and I'm ready to install one. The problem is that aftermarket heaters either external, or radiator hose inserts. The former are less effective than you'd like, the latter are very effective, but there are warranty concerns cutting into coolant hoses. No good options. Have fun, Frank

Welcome as well! Lots of neat info on the forum, but the one I like most is: http://www.etis.ford.com/ Go to the vehicle tab, enter your VIN, and you'll get a page of information on your car. - service stuff on the left - configuration and option on the right, be sure to click the link for more option details. Sadly, someone scrogged the vehicle ID header, so my 2013 Hybrid is listed as an Energi, and yours may be too. That's the only error I've found. You should see a couple things under recall. One's a rebate, the other a warranty extension. Don't recall the codes or remember my VIN on the new PC or I'd be more specific. Have fun, Frank

I disagree EV+ was created for Energi's, Steve. It's trivial to include configuration switches in software, allowing one common package to work in several different hardware configurations. I'm with the motivation described in Plus3's press release excerpts; they wanted to do something "neat" as drivers neared regular destinations. And, yes, EV+ still has an ICE threshold that falls as SOC gets low, it just stays at 2-bar much, much deeper into the available SOC. I also see a good deal of charge recovery when parked, but Ford knows that... Have fun, Frank