Seymour_Bears

Interesting - I hadn't heard this before. I'll have to do some research. The Mobil 1 website does claim that several manufacturers (Porsche, Corvette, Aston Martin, Bentley, McLaren, AMG, etc.) use Mobil 1 as a factory fill in their engines.

Sorry robodog, don't really know. I couldn't get a standard 15 mm socket and ratchet wrench into the space, but I know if that would preclude the Fumoto drain valve from fitting there.

Did my first oil change yesterday; pretty routine. I used standard "rhino ramps" and a mechanic's creeper. The extra step is the removal of the panel under the engine. There's enough clearance for me, using the ramps and the creeper, to get under the car on my back, and undo the 8 or so fasteners which hold panel in place. Replacing the panel was easy: lay on my back on the creeper, put the panel on my chest, slide under the car, and re-attach the fasteners (I started with the front fasteners). The panel itself is light, so it's easy to move around. I'm thin; there was enough clearance for me under the car, but if you're on the big side, removal and replacement of the panel will be harder. The underside of the engine was spotless, due to the panel. Before you start, make sure you have the proper tool for removal of the fasteners. I used Mobil 1 5W20 and the recommended Ford filter. It took more than the 4.5 quarts indicated in the owner's manual. Clearance for the drain plug (15 mm) is limited, so I used a ratcheting flat wrench. Placement of the oil filter allows for easy removal without much mess - after you loosen it a turn or so, some oil will spill out around the top, but it falls straight down into the drain pan.

During the lifetime of the car, the hybrid engine will not run as many hours as the engine in a conventional system, but it may receive more wear, because it will cycle on many more times. I have no hard data to back this up, but I think that wearing surfaces in the engine experience the greatest stress when they first start moving against each other, until a somewhat steady state of motion is achieved.

Concur. Makes no sense to get 1000 miles from home, and then get a message to change to oil soon. This is a step backwards; I indicated in an earlier post that my 08 Escape allows me to monitor remaining oil life whenever I want.

Jay - Your info and pictures are very helpful. I assume the cover is relatively light, and easy to get back into place? Robodog - I haven't found anything that says you need to drain the original oil early on, but there are some who believe this is a wise thing to do. From what I recall reading about the oil change intervals (I'm working overseas now, and can't reference the owner's manual), there is an oil life monitor which will tell you when the time to change is approaching. The oil life monitors in my Corvette and Escape actually are monitors - they can be accessed any time to tell how much oil life is remaining. I don't think that is the case with the C-Max. And from what I can see of the filter, with the cover in place, is that it should be easy to get at once the cover is removed.

I haven't seen any, except the other two on the dealer's lot. I've taken the car up to Tennessee twice, via I-26, so I've had it up to your neck of the woods. I also took it to Orlando to see my son; again, no other C-Max sightings.

Valkraider, thanks for the info on the EPA highway testing. Your email sheds light on three areas where the real life highway MPG on the C-Max is going to tend to fall short of the EPA test results. 1. Done on the dynometer, so no air resistance to deal with. 2. Using 100% gasoline, vice the 10% blend I think most of us are using. 3. Average speed of 48 MPH, which is well within the battery threshold, and well below what most of us consider highway driving speeds.

Thanks for all the nice comments.

Stranger267, what I've heard about the EPA highway tests is that they are a series of different tests at different speeds, and only one of these tests is at normal interstate speeds. At 75 MPH all the battery is doing is assisting in small ways, such as for accelleration, and for hills. But the gas engine must be carrying nearly all the load. Again, with my limited understanding, at interstate speeds we're at 75 on cruise control, in a low drag vehicle with an efficient engine and low rolling resistance tires (and other features... and a heavy battery), so something shy of 40 MPH does not surprise me. Something well above 40 for 75 MPH on the Interstate would surprise me, but again, I'm no expert.

Laurel, I'll give Mario another shot next week. Saying goodbye to the C-Max and heading to Japan Saturday morning, to do three weeks of training.

Too funny. We try to avoid that...

Stranger267, I can understand the 36 MPG on long highway trips, if you're on the interstate doing 70+ MPH. But the 28 MPG (assume that is local driving) on the short morning trips is odd. These figures - 36 highway and 28 city -are about what I'd expect from a Focus with a six speed auto. It's almost like the gas engine is doing all the work, which I'm sure is not the case. How many EV miles is the Lifetime Summary showing? I'm getting about 25% of my total miles as EV.

62. No rotten tomatoes, but a bit of a smile. My job is teaching young Navy officers to drive ships. Granted, a ship is not a hybrid car, but it has its own challenges. Haven't had any of the students - with their youthful senses - out do me with handling the ships.

The Navy took me to New Orleans for a year. Great time. Lived in Slidell and worked in Bridge City.

Bought the car six weeks ago, but just got on the forum a few days ago. 3100+ miles on the car now, and very satisfied with it. Actually, it's my wife's car, and I inherited her 08 Escape. She doesn't get very excited about cars, so she's treating this like any other car; but I'm glad to see she's getting 14 MPG better overall economy than she had with the 4 cylinder Escape. The car will be used as her daily driver, but also for trips, about once a month, to a small cabin we have in east TN (about 350 miles each way). The car is an SEL with just one option: the premium white paint. We'd actually gone shopping for a new Escape, saw this on the lot, and figured it better fit our needs. I'm already picking up some good info on this forum.

3100+ miles on the C-Max now; six weeks old. Mileage computed at the gas pump: Highway: 2304 miles, 36.8 MPG (all of this is Interstate, mostly between 70 and 75) City: 812 miles, 39.4 MPG Overall: 37.5 MPG "Lifetime Summary" gives me 38.9 MPG (a little higher than actual, as expected), 810 EV miles, and 125 regen miles. The primary driver of the car is in the mode of driving it like any other car - training is in progress...

A couple of days ago I put the C-Max on my ramps, to check the underside of the engine compartment. Can't see much because of the aerodynamic shield, but through one of the openings I saw a drop of engine oil suspended from a bolt. I took it into Ford today (23 November). Problem is a leaking gasket for the PCV valve cover. The tech cleaned up the area, and tightened up around the old gasket. The new gasket arrives next week, but since I'm heading to Japan for three weeks work tomorrow, I'll get the repairs done in mid December. Hopefully this is a unique problem which will not effect other C-Max.

Thanks for the info. I can live with an extra 10 minutes.

I've always done my own oil changes. I put the C-Max up on my ramps last night to look under the engine. There's a shield under the full length of the engine compartment (I assume for airflow purposes). Several torx head screws hold it in place. DIY oil changes just got more difficult.

Just checked mine - all the lugs nuts are 19MM.

I read in a C-Max review that a light touch on the brake pedal engages regenerative braking, and that additional brake pedal travel engages the traditional braking. So, it would make that a light touch on the pedal early, and very gradual slowing down, will make better use of the regenerative braking.

I have a 2003 Corvette that has those same four oval openings. That's were the tie down fittings were put when the car was shipped from the factory. On the Vette, they are strengthened, so GM indicates they are alternate jacking points. Perhaps we can assume the same for the C-Max. A vendor created special jacking pucks, but the set I have for the Vette are a hair too large for the C-Max. However, folks have built these using hockey pucks. An internet search for "Corvette jacking pucks" will give you an idea what these look like, and how you might fashion one from a hockey puck and a wingnut. They provide a nice buffer between the floor jack and the car frame.