Generalbeluga

+1 for me too! I love the updates! It took Galpin Ford the whole day to do all three but, everything works fine. Take your car back and have them reinstall the updates again if you notice any problems post install. You might want to consider taking it to a large Ford dealership rather than your local "Podunk" dealership near your home. The small one's might have just sold their first C Max last week and are clueless with it's mechanics and electronics. A large dealership like Galpin Ford here in SoCal sells hundreds of C Maxs and has the experience and know-how to do the upgrades correctly.

I got my iPhone 4s to receive and read messages fine but, I can't get it to send messages. Is it supposed to be able to send messages on the iPhone 4s as well as receive?

Try it at a higher speed. I had all three updates (FE, Headliner, and MFT) and so far all is gong well!! I noticed milage in the 50's on my way home from Galpin to Simi. I am still playing around but, I seem to recall it going into HIgh ICE when traveling over 70 MPH or there a bouts. Give it a try and let me know. You are correct that it does seem more of a challenge to get the car into HIgh ICE after the update. I have to ask again, how in the Hell do you get such outrageously high MPG figures! You are the MAN!!! A few pointers for your Ol' Valley area Pal, please.

What is the bluetooth setting that you made on the iPhone to receive messages on your SYNC?

Bill, You must be the first on this website to have the headliner fix done. Did they do a good job lowering and reattaching the headliner. Any fingerprints on it or other issues with the electrical components located in the headliner? How long did it take them? Have you noticed any significant changes in the operation of the car after the FE update? More information on your thoughts on both updates would be appreciated. I have an appointment to do all three updates on August 19th.

This should be a snap for a high volume dealer (like Galpin) to perform. They work on electrical/wiring issues all the time that require access into the headliner so I do not anticipate any issues that cannot be resolved. I am confident that my dealership will do the job right because this is too big a deal for Ford to handle in a slipshod way or let their dealers botch up! Whatever happens, Ford will make it right, they have to!

It always amazes me that car dealerships are always the last to hear about any updates, releases or improvements on current model year cars! Why is that? I asked my dealership why they didn't monitor blogs like this one to keep tuned into what their customers are talking/complaining about and I never really got a good answer. It just makes common sense to me that if a dealership truly valued providing superior customer service, they would do that but, they don't seem to see the ROI benefit or want to take the time to do it! With today's technology there are no longer any excuses why all of their people are not aware of every update/release that is made seconds after it is made! If they were really serious about providing excellent customer service, they would do it, it is just that simple! JMHO

Jus A-CMax and I have brother cars and cruise about the same SF Valley, Ventura County area. They've yet to spot each other on the road but, perhaps some day our cars will meet! ;) I was getting on the east bound 118 at First Street on Monday and pulled in front of a light grey C Max. I gave a light "Hi friend" honk as I passed him on the left heading toward Erringer. Was this anyone of you guys out there?

I'm looking forward to having the update installed! Just waiting for my "Baby Gen" to get to 7,500 miles so I can take her in for her first oil change and have the 3.5.1 upgrade done at the same time. I am assuming that Galpin is probably over whelmed with people wanting the update, so I'm waiting for the dust to settle a little. Besides I like giving a new engine a little more break-in time before converting to Mobil 1 Full Synthetic, 5-20.

I have used a local "dent repair" service and it is amazing how good they are at totally removing a dent! I had two on the hood of my old Honda Fit caused by a falling pine cones in the Sequoia forest. The guy came out and removed both of them for $80.00. They usually charge by the panel, (hood is one panel and each side door is another) so if you can wait until the next dent happens, it will cost you the same to get them both removed so long as they are located in the same panel. If you can't wait, I would have it fixed now and learn from my mistake and park in the boonies at least until the "new car smell" is gone!

No, there is a trade off in the mapping detail. SYNC Destinations software on your smart phone (available on-line free for both iPhone and Android phones) gives you voice directions, (i.e., take exit #27, merge into left lane, turn right onto Sunset Blvd, take I 405 north for 63 miles then exit at exit #27, etc) The mapping provided is an arrow showing the direction to take at the next action point and the miles left to get there. It is displayed in the upper right quadrant of the LCD screen. It doesn't show a mapping of the surrounding area as in the factory Navi version but, I find it more than adequate and a steal at the $0 price, especially if you planned on renewing your SYNC annual subscription anyway, which most of us will for the many other benefits it provides.

OOPs! Just-A-C Max, you have just screwed yourself! ;) The "Murphy's Law" Gods don't like to hear talk like this especially on a new model car! Seriously, I am glad to hear that all is running good. I still have a few annoying bugs like the clock, etc but, I expect the 3.5.1 upgrade to fix them!

Adair, Is there any way to do this if you do not have the factory Navi upgrade installed? As stated in my previous post, I choose not to purchase it and instead went with the free SYNC Destinations software available for my iPhone. If not, will the 3.5.1 upgrade fix this?

Thanks Adair for the information! My C Max has the fancy large LCD screen but, I did not choose to pay the $1,200 for the factory Navigation option. Instead, I downloaded "SYNC Destinations" software for free on my iPhone and it provides me with great turn by turn directions on my SYNC screen so long as I keep my SYNC membership up. Doing the math, I figured that I could pay the annual SYNC membership fee of $60 (at current rates) for about 23 years (first 3 years are free) before I would break even with the $1200 cost of the factory Navi system upgrade. I'm pretty sure that I will have a new car by then. ;) Can I assume that I do not need the SD card if I don't have the factory Navi software upgrade or will I still need it to support the free SYNC Destinations software that I have?

I just received a letter dated June 2013 from Ford Motor Company asking me to make an appointment at my dealership to have the "Updated V3.5" for MyFord Touch system installed free of charge. In this letter they refer to the "SYNC with MyFord Touch Customer Satisfaction Program 13A01." Is this the version you guys are referring to above? If so, what is the reference to V3.5.1? Have they already come out with an update to the update? What known issues has this update solved, clock time, etc.? Has anyone identified any new issues create by this update yet? What is the reference to an SD A4 card all about? It sounds like the V3.5 Update comes with an SD card that must be kept in the SD slot at all times?? If so, that sounds unusual to me as it makes this SD slot unusable for any other device doesn't it? By-the-way Jus-A-CMax , I just returned from a round trip to South Lake Tahoe (over 900 miles). Used ECO cruise whenever I could and kept her just a little under 70 MPG the whole trip and averaged 39.6 :happy feet:! In fact, on the return trip we went over Monitor Pass to avoid the construction delays at Topaz Lake. Although this is the most direct route, it has some hellish grads that eat up your MPG so I was not maximizing my route selection to max MPG either! I think that is pretty good for a fully loaded car and two adults driving a normal highway speeds! :)

I hear you Noah, but I did say "unless you are lucky enough to drive in ideal traffic, terrain and weather conditions. Unfortunately, most of us do not." It is possible to achieve the stated EPA 47 MPG rating but, not for most of us driving in "real world" conditions. Members of this forum are learning that the EPA test results have a serious "creditability gap" when reporting hybrid MPG vs ICE MPG. Since there is no incentive for Ford or the dealership to bring up this unflattering discrepancy, the buyer is left feeling deceived, whether intentional or not! Let's face it, most sales are made or lost on owner word of mouth and product reputation. If I were Ford, I would be very concerned about both even though it is a great car in every other respect. Ford got a lot of positive press from their recent product line redesign and when they didn't take the bail out. I would just hate to see this avoidable fly in their ointment undo their hard work.

Yeah, I'm still lurking about the forum. Hey, don't get me wrong, I still LOVE my C Max but, if you drive it "normally" you will not get much above 41 MPG, and that's just the truth. So you new owners, just suck it up and understand that Ford was stretching the truth a little when they claimed 47 MPG, at least unless you are lucky enough to drive in ideal traffic, terrain and weather conditions. Unfortunately, most of us do not. Being retired, most of my trips are on local Simi Valley FWYs to COSTCO, the gym and back. The car doesn't have time to warm up so my milage really suffers. Having said that, my mileage is still better than any non-hybrid and I love the looks, fit & finish, build quality and power of the C Max. I have no regrets in my purchase!

I'm noticing the same thing. Lately, my mileage has been falling. I think it is a function of fatigue; we are all getting tired of babying the car to get over 43 MPG! I like to drive with the traffic and not have everyone around me cussing and flipping me off as they speed by. Over time, you just get tired of watching the gauges all the time and you start falling into your old driving habits which don't include hyper-mileageling or the like. If you want to keep it above 40-43 MPG, you have to play the game consistently and drive it very carefully and stay in the blue or "sweet spot" most of the time. Trust me, even if you think you are doing everything right, you probably are slipping back into bad habits for the sake of expediency and what I call "Hybrid fatigue." The car can get great MPG numbers but, you have to work at it!

Alright, I have had to reset my clock five or six times but, come on guys, let's not let this clock issue destroy the many positives that this car gives us in our driving/ownership experience. As computers become more and more in control of our cars, glitches will be a reoccurring theme. I think in the C Max case, the programing/trouble shooting expertise has not quite yet caught up to technological potential of the car. This car is way ahead of the competition in technological advancements and it will take some time for the Ford folks to catch up in how to properly resolve and smooth out some of these relatively minor glitches. Perhaps I have been lucky, but the clock issue is the only real issue that I had from the day that I drove it off the lot. Initially I thought that I may have some "reverse" issues and then discovered that it was just "driver error." As I read some of the posts on this blog, I have noticed that many of the concerns have been perviously discussed and many are driver error which are compounded by a poorly written owner's manual. In any case, I still love my car and have been very happy with it's performance and overall build and quality control. Hey, compared to the crappy German cars that take months to get all the problems fixed and the outrageous maintenance costs (VW is the worst!), I will stay with the Ford C Max any day. Only time will tell if my enthusiasm will wane and the car's dependability starts to slip, but for now, I am very impressed.

I feel vindicated and appreciated! Thanks Just-A-CMax and the gang for verifying my findings! I will continue to enjoy my C MAX and report any MPG saving tips that I find.

Thanks, Jbtbga! I was hoping someone would try it out and verify my findings!

FYI, the rear back up camera is not standard on the SEL model. I bought one and it has the rear back up warning alarm with sensor buttons on the rear bumper but, no camera. The camera was an option package that required the auto tail gate lift, as I recall. Different dealers ordered their inventory with varying options that they felt would maximize their sales profits. I was very lucky that I found an SEL with the exact color and options that I wanted sitting right there waiting for me on the sales lot without having to make a special order. I didn't have to pay for any options that I didn't want. That is unusual these days! The "keyless entry/start/tailgate" refers to 1. keyless entry (touch door handle to electronically unlock door), 2. push button start (no key required to start car) and 3. an additional button on the key fob to unlock tail gate but, this is not necessarily the auto open feature. "Intelligent access" refers to #1 above and pushbutton start refers to #2 above.

Here is the link of the interview with the Ford C Max and Fusion Engineer. The sound gets better toward the middle of the podcast: http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/index.php?/topic/1190-online-chat-with-c-max-engineer/

Jus-A-CMax, Yes, it works best if you start with your batteries charged as high as they can go. The beauty is that once charged up and you are in the "Sweet Spot", the batteries will continue to be topped off while remaining in ICE (white on the empower gauge) mode. Haven't made the Box Canyon to Valley Circle run yet as I am retired and have little need to hit the SF Valley (which is a good thing!) ;) Joe, Yes, as you approach a hill, you will notice a battery assist (overlapping raise in blue graph on white KW meter) but, if your speed is correct and the hill is not too large or long, you will remain in the "white" ICE mode for a pretty long time. As with most things in life, you will eventually drop back into the EV mode but, it will be for a shorter duration and you will quickly return to the ICE mode and your max MPG. Hatchman, The front grill louvers are triggered only by speed and close at 60 MPH. There was a recent post on this blog with an interview of the Ford Engineer who designed the C Max car and he referred to them as "stupid" louvers. The next generation C Max may have "smart" louvers that activate on a combination of speed and engine temperature. They just had so many things going with the new car release that this was not on their priority list at the time, but it makes sense and will be considered in future model years. One last thing, this only works on a relatively flat FWY like the 118 in Simi Valey, Ca. If you are in a hilly area, I would not think this method would work as well.

I have heard others speak of a "mileage sweet spot" that exists somewhere around 65 MPH that let's the hybrid cruise in ICE mode while charging the battery and still getting over 44+ MPG, with minimal transfer to EV mode. Well, I am here to report that I have found it and it is alive and well! Here's the trick: Set your dash display to Empower mode and accelerate up to about 66 MPH on the speedo. Lock in the ECO Cruise and watch the mileage gauge for a mile or two. If the mileage is not above the 43+ MPG mark, drop your speed one click and monitor it again. Depending on your car, the terrain, and outside temperature, you will quickly learn exactly where you car's sweet spot is. Mine is at about 66 MPH based on speedometer readings. I have learned that driving at 66 MPH is more fuel efficient than driving at 55 MPH because the front grill vents close at 60 MPH, increasing aerodynamics and fuel efficiency while, at the same time, the higher speed increase the car's inertial momentum allowing it to more easily navigate the minor freeway inclines without quickly shifting to EV mode. Try it, you'll like it!