Stormy

I had three or four O2 sensor failures - about once every couple of weeks. My dealer contacted Ford support and the problem finally was tracked down to a seam leak in the catalytic converter. My dealer replaced it, and I've gone 3+ months without a recurrence. My car is a newer (August 2013) SEL, but it's something you could get checked.

Happens to me, intermittently, only on FM. I have a vague feeling it may be bluetooth related, or perhaps something to do with HD reception. It seems to happen more frequently on certain stations, rarely or never with others.

With my last car, letting up on the accelerator provided a noticeable degree of immediate engine braking. It seems to me that the CMax maintains its speed much more - coasting instead of slowing to the degree I expect.

1) Remember to enjoy the car, and don't worry about how you're driving. Keep mileage in perspective: You've just spent about $30,000 on the car. 35 MPG = 2.9 gal/100 mi = $10 (roughly, at $3.50 per gallon) 40 MPG = 2.5 gal/100 mi = $9 45 MPG = 2.2 gal/100 mi = $8 50 MPG = 2.0 gal/100 mi = $7 So each 5 MPG increment would save you what -- $100 to $200 per year -- in gas expense? "Involved" driving is a hobby, not a moral imperative. 2) The first month or so, the car is adjusting to you. Efficiency will improve on its own. 3) But if you want to take an active role, as noted above the biggest thing you can do is to note the brake score and see if you can ease it into the 90's. (If the brake score isn't showing on the left hand display every time you come to a stop, it can be turned on). Looking ahead and gentle braking saves miles into the battery. Hard braking throws away miles. My wife was worried about "riding the brakes" producing too much wear on the brake pads - in a hybrid, gentle braking doesn't use the brake pads. 3) A first approximation to the rest of the driving advice: - Select the empower display in the left hand console display. Only look at the left hand arc. - When the line is white (internal combustion is on), the ideal is to accelerate briskly at roughly the second crossbar. - When you're up to speed and the white line drops down toward the bottom, briefly let off the accelerator and let the engine will drop into EV (blue) if it chooses to. More advanced driving can follow on after these are habits. Also, braking hard when you have to won't kill your mileage for the entire tank. Accelerating into the yellow can be fun, and done occasionally you won't notice it in your MPG. We're heading into winter, and your car is far from broken in, so don't get into a competition with the 60MPG'ers just yet. Wait till spring for that. Again, enjoy the car, and only chase mileage if it's fun for you.

I'd been having this problem on my Nexis 7. I just cleared all data for Chrome, and after re-logging in the mobile site is now working fine.

Would there be something that could work from the car's garage door controls? Or would that be too insecure?

My new CMAX had to go into the shop for paint touchup and a couple of minor service items. The dealer was out of loaners, so they set me up with a rental. The rental company put me in a 2013 Prius. So based on <1000 miles with my SEL and four or five days with a 17000 mile base trim level Prius, here are my impressions. Seats - The CMAX seat padding is flatter and firmer. I found the Prius seats too soft and concave for my taste. Ride and Handling - The CMAX ride is also firmer, and somewhat harsh over bumps. The Prius suspension was much softer, but it seemed to have more body roll on curves. I could live with either. Brakes and Throttle - The feel of the two cars was hugely different, and I couldn't stand the Prius -- until after a couple of days I noticed the ECO/PWR buttons. If you've never tried a car with alternate driving modes, try a Prius test drive so you can feel the difference between the modes. It's amazing what different electronics settings do to the driving feel of a car! The Prius PWR setting seemed to me to be the closest to the feel of the CMAX. Either car would have adequate power for me. Toyota has made the Prius so it's hard to drive it inefficiently; Ford's made the CMAX so it's a pleasure to drive but you have to be trained by the car to get better mileage. Console design - At least with the base trim level, the Prius instrumentation is simple, easy to see, and undistracting. I'm still trying to learn my way around MyFord Touch. The Prius slanted console holding the radio, gearshift, and climate control (which also has storage underneath) made controls easy to reach. The backup beeping would drive me crazy, though. Noise - No comparison. The CMAX is QUIET. Rear view - The bar across the middle of the Prius rear window makes the mirror view hard to comprehend. But it's really nice at night when an SUV starts tailgating with high beams and foglights on - I could scrunch down so the bar blocked the glare (buddy, I'm going 5 MPH over the speed limit in the slow lane and the next two lanes are open -- Please pass me!). Gas Mileage - I'm new to both of these cars, but my wife has a Camry Hybrid - so I have some hybrid driving experience. I'm getting 43-44 MPG with the CMAX, but the Prius seemed to be getting 53-55. If I'd known I was going to have it so long, I'd have reset the trip display on the Prius to get a real number. Bottom line - When I got my CMAX back, I realized how much I enjoy it.