nsteblay

There are four fundamental propulsion modes for the C-Max. These modes differentiate how the Electric Traction Motor, Generator Motor, Internal Combustion Engine, and Planetary Gear System work together to power the car. Series Mode Used only when vehicle is not moving and the engine is runningEngine may be running for battery charging, cabin or battery temperature control, or catalyst warm-up.Positive Split Mode (ICE Mode) Engine is ON and driving the generator motor to produce electricityPower from the engine is split between the direct path to the road and the path through the generator motorGenerator power can flow to the battery or to the traction motorThe traction motor can operate as a motor or a generator to make up the difference between the engine power and the desired powerThis is the preferred mode whenever the battery needs to be charged or when at moderate loads and low vehicle speedsNegative Split Mode The engine is on and the generator motor consumes electrical energy to reduce engine speedThe traction motor can operate as a motor or a generator to make up the difference between the engine power and the desired powerTypical highway modeOccurs when the engine needs to be on, the system can not be operated in parallel mode and the battery is charged near its upper limitElectric Mode (EV Mode) The vehicle is propelled by stored electrical energy onlyThe engine is turned offThe tractive torque supplied from the traction motorPreferred mode whenever the desired power is low enough such that it can be produced more efficiently by electrical system than enginePreferred mode in reverse because the engine can not deliver reverse torqueSeparate electric pump maintains power assisted steeringThe two modes that provide best MPG are Negative Split Mode and Electric Mode (EV on the dash). What I've discovered is if you want to get really good mileage you need to spend as much time in EV mode as possible. Personally I don't like being the one holding up traffic so I pretty much keep up with the general flow. I've learned to optimize time in EV mode by employing what's called a Punch and Glide technique. Using this technique I accelerate using the ICE, pull off the gas pedal a bit to get in EV mode, push again on the gas pedal and coast in EV mode as long as possible before repeating. I pay attention to the Empower gauge when driving in EV to maintain speed as much as possible without going over the ICE threshold - this requires pulling off the gas pedal slightly and steadily until ICE needs to kick in again to maintain speed. I don't like oscillating my speed more the a couple of MPH as its very irritating to anyone behind me. In my most recent morning commute the traffic was 70 MPH for much of the trip. I oscillated my speed between 68 and 72 MPH switching back and forth between ICE and EV modes. I've averaged over 50 MPG these past 800 miles. In my 21 mile commute yesterday I got 50 MPG. I think the two biggest reasons the CMax hasn't achieved its original MPG ratings is driving technique and environment temperature. In cold weather the ICE needs to run to keep the car warm. When the ICE runs, gas is burned and MPG goes down. If a P&G technique is not employed it is difficult to get really good MPG - you can get low 40's in good weather - but you'll never get upper 40's to lower 50's like the Prius. P&G driving technique has become second nature to me now - I don't really think about it much - it just happens. If you try and run exclusively in Negative Split mode I've found the best you'll get for overall average is around 40 MPG. The Prius is the master of Negative Split mode. Toyota has engineered their cars to get very high mileage in an automated fashion. It doesn't require much technique but there are tradeoffs. The tradeoffs are power on demand, styling, ride comfort and noise - big issues for me and my family. For long freeway trips I use Eco Cruise and leverage Negative Split Mode. I've take two long trips this summer - 3400 miles and 1300 miles. For both I averaged just over 41 MPG.

I would imagine that the map cards can be copied. I find it odd that the price differential would be so great with eBay sellers. I would assume that you're buying a copy if getting it for ~40.

Got my check, 40 MPG lifetime, 50.3 MPG average last 800 miles, 60.3 MPG on my 21 mile commute today. OK

It would be interesting to get location too. Could plot them on a map and see how average temperature impacts mileage.

Mileage for my last 520 miles - 51.1 MPG. This is 2 weeks of me driving to work. A little tough to see - one of my commutes to work during the last 510 miles - 60.2 MPG. These miles are mixed freeway (70%) and local roads (30%) - my work commute during rush hours. Speeds are as high as 70 mph but with congestion at points in the drive - typical rush hour driving in the Twin Cities. I believe there is a 500 ft change in elevation between home and work. I would say that I am completely keeping up with traffic - not the slowest on the road by any stretch. I apply Punch & Glide and what I call oscillation. I oscillate my speed by 2 - 4 MPH switching often between EV and gas engine mode. I can maintain close to 50 MPG traveling at 65 MPH using this technique. This type of mileage can only be had in warm weather. My lifetime average is 40 MPG. I recently took 2 long trips - one 3100 miles from MN to FL to SC and back. Averaged 41.1 MPG using cruise at marked freeway speeds. I took another 1300 mile trip from MN to NE to KS and back and averaged 41.0 MPG using cruise at marked freeway speeds.

Some mileage you can expect ... 50+MPG over my last 250 miles, 60+MPG on my commute home from work today (21 miles). Enjoy!

The shop called. Apparently there are some drain holes that got plugged when I had the rust treatment - a must for Minnesota. They unplugged them and all is well.

My 2013 C-Max is currently at the dealer getting the last 3 recalls, a fix for warping side trim and an oil change. There is one other interesting phenomenon I'm having them look at. I live in Minnesota which has gotten an unusual amount of rain this past June. After driving in some of the incredible downpores I experienced a disturbing defect in the C-Max. When raising the rear hatch I would hear a gurgling sound and then water pored out the vent on the left side fo the rear compartment - inside the car! It appears that the hatch back door has some type of leak that allows water to pool inside it. When raising the door it somehow pores into the frame of the car (through the tube that carry the electric wires I believe) and then through the vent. Wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar.

I see very little impact from air conditioning. I took another long highway trip - 1300 miles - averaged 41.5 MPG driving freeway speeds on ECO Cruise - air conditioning on the whole time - hills or flat doesn't seem to make a difference. Since I've gotten back I've put about 85 miles commuting to work (rush hour freeway with congestion) and have averaged 51 MPG - air conditioning on. If you're in warm weather I can't see how you're getting in the mid to upper 30's - with winter weather I believe it. I do think part of my success is driving style yet I am keeping up with the flow of traffic if not passing slower traffic. Knowing when to accelerate and when to let up to coast does provide a gain in MPG - second nature now. I don't know - I would have to try hard to get in the 30's in warmer weather.

There was a story on one of the major news channels that determine what percent of components are American for cars sold in America. Guess what car had the highest - Toyota Corolla. Toyota has built factories in the US and buys many of the parts needed on soil. Crazy. And we have companies like Apple and Medtronic moving money or even their place of incorporation offshore to avoid US taxes. I still like the idea of a US owned company that has manufacturing on soil.

I bought a 7 year 100,000 mile with no deductible for about 1100 if I am remembering correctly. I bought the Ford one but could have gotten a cheaper third party extended warranty. I figured with the CMax being a new model and all that I would need repairs at some point. Haven't used it yet.

I do have the block heater and use it. Helps at first but when it's 20 below ... :gaah: :gaah: :gaah: :gaah: I should look at the Grill Covers. Nick

Though RLHP and wind resistance are obvious factors I believe the biggest reason for discrepancies in the EPA estimates is temperature. Toyota has architected their cars to have the engine run constantly over 40 MPH. They get good highway mileage by running in Negative Split Mode and having a good balance of engine size, car weight and wind resistance. The Electric Generator (MG1) is providing mechanical power in this mode that allows the smaller and highly efficient ICE to run at optimal MPG. Because the engine is constantly running it stays warm and can heat the car in the winter. Ford chose to have larger engines to improve power and acceleration. As stated because of physics the Negative Split Mode in the C-Max can't possibly be as efficient. Instead Ford architected in such a way that the car can run in EV at higher MPH. The original ceiling for EV was 63 MPH. All EPA tests were run under this at a temperature in the 70's. This allowed the Powersplit architecture to take optimal advantage of EV mode and hence the high numbers. What happens with the C-Max is in cold weather the engine needs to run more often if not constantly depending on how cold. The C-Max cannot and will not get nearly as good of mileage if the ratio of EV to ICE is less. Another factor is driving style. Those that drive to optimize EV time are getting significantly better mileage. When Ford pushed the EV ceiling up to 85 MPH I started to get significantly better mileage because much of my driving is above 63 MPH. Even so, unless I want to turn off the heat in the winter I can't achieve good numbers. Living in Minnesota where we have cold winters I am averaging yearly overall ~40 MPG. If I were in a warmer climate I would easily be in the mid 40s.

Same here ... it is new. Must mean a check is coming.

My lifetime average is at 39.5 at the moment. Average MPG varies depending on the time of year - average temperature. At one year of ownership I was just over 40 MPG and will probably be there again after 2 years - this October. In the spring / summer I easily get mid 40's. In the winter it drops to mid 30's. Most of my driving is work commute on crowded freeway. I did just finished a 3800 mile road trip from Minnesota to Florida to the Carolinas and back. I averaged 41.1 MPG driving at posted freeway speeds heavily using cruise control. I was very happy with this result and the family (4) was very comfortable throughout the trip. I think these new numbers are realistic and hopefully are taking temperature into consideration. My goal when I first purchased the car was to find something that got me 40+. I couldn't find a non hybrid in this range so I started looking at hybrids. I seriously looked at the standard Prius but didn't like the style, comfort and visibility. The Prius V was several thousand dollars more than the CMax and wasn't as comfortable. The CMax had all the attributes I was looking for. I will say that I was disappointed that the original 47 47 47 wasn't even close to real world driving. I've also been frustrated with some of the quality issues I've experienced. Even so I've been impressed with Ford as they've addressed every issue I've experienced and are now even restating MPG correctly. At this point I consider the CMax to be a good investment.

Took my first long trip. 3800 miles Minnesota to Florida to South Carolina back to Minnesota. Averaged 41.1 MPG. Car loaded with luggage and family of 4. Drove at posted freeway speeds 65 - 70 MPH. Used cruise control extensively. Ignored any driving technique. Very happy with the results.

Just drove from Minnesota to Florida to South Carolina and back to Minnesota - 3800 mile trip. Overall average was 41.1 MPG. Mostly freeway driving at posted speeds - 65 - 70 MPH. Air conditioning on the whole time and used cruise control extensively. Car was fully loaded with luggage and a family of 4. Very happy with the results.

Half way through a trip from MN to FL. Averaging 40.3 MPG for the trip so far. Mostly highway at 70 mph on cruise and air conditioning on. Since spring I've been getting about 44 MPG in my commutes to work. EPA numbers seem about right. What no one factors in is cold weather. Keeping the car warm requires the ICE to run much more severely impacting mileage. Best I can do in mid winter is mid to upper 30's.

I have 3 outstanding recalls on ETIS ... 13C07 - RECONFIGURE INSTRUMENT PANEL CLUSTER (IPC) MODULE 14C03 - FRONT SEAT BACK FRAME REPLACEMENT 14S04 - REPROGRAM RESTRAINTS CONTROL MODULE

From the Freescale site ... QNX Software Systems: “Freescale extends its leadership in the automotive and industrial markets by delivering the highly integrated and powerful i.MX51 applications processor,” said Romain Saha, business development manager at QNX Software Systems. "The i.MX51 incorporates dedicated OpenVG and OpenGL ES hardware acceleration that is vital for popular customer requirements like Adobe Flash. In combination with the QNX Aviage Middleware, customers can easily develop rich multimedia products with highly advanced Human Machine Interfaces imperative to the automotive infotainment space." But your right that its more complicated than simple conjecture based on some marketing materials. I do think it is safe to say that they could get QNX to work on the i.MX51 platform. Whether they will depends on where they are going with the hardware and specific software releases they'll be using. I hope they don't leave the current Microsoft based systems in the dust but it wouldn't surprise me if they do.