wamba2000

Had a noticeable rattle in the irght side rear of the CMax while in motion. Dealer found that the right rear brake caliper had a both that was cross-threaded and was not secured; removed/reapaired it and has not been an issue since. I am reminded of the 70's-80's vehicles that would not start when you took delivery, or had to make lists of things that did not work.....and we accepted that as normal

Powersaver, think about it from the price of Exclusivity...many people pay big bucks to have vehicles that you rarely see! We are members of an exclusive club.! I regularly get stopped in parking lots when getting into my car, people asking about the Cmax and what it is like. Got stopped by a young guy about 30 last week who saw me do the liftgate-kick and thought I was going to kick the bumper. then when the hatch went up was amazed. Had a nice chat with him about hybrids and how the Cmax is equipped.

Spyburn, feel the same way when I rent, Miss the space, controls and features, the Cmax is quite a car. Ford is standing behind the product, I am sure they are still burning over the last place JD Power rating - but making improvements shows the right signs to owners. Hope all goes well

STi, once when I was having an early issue with my Cmax the dealer did a "reset" which lost my EV+ settings and also reset the Lifetime Regen miles to zero.... Might have to do with the PCM that is recalibrated? Not sure where the readings get stored.

I posted this in a previous thread. I too struggled to remove the headlamp assembly per the owners manual. Figured out that I could access and remove low beam bulbs from behind, it's a bit tight as I have large size hands, but getting the rubber boot in place correctly was the biggest time challenge. I replaced with Silverstar Ultras ( and got ripped since they are blue glass tinted - so I already know) and the Ultras have worked very well so far. Glad I did not have to remove the assembly - if I broke it, we are likely talking hundreds of $$ to replace.

Jus-A-Cmax, thanks for the post and insights. Couple questions: 1. do you use EcoCruise in conjunction with your driving tips at all? 2. Many cities have adapted their crosswalks to show remaining seconds that the traffic light has before cycling to yellow/red. This is great for judging distance and if you will make the light without stomping the gas. I will try to keep SOC up there, rather than using it once it is built up ( which has been my habit.) This is one exercise that is unique and hopefully saves some $$.

Altazi, a suggestion- build the car on Truecar after you register. It should spit out 2-3 offers from dealers in your area, which they are supposed to honor if you show up to buy that vehicle/combination from stock. You might be surprised to get a lower truecar offer coupon which you can take to your Ford dealer that negotiated with you. See if they will match it, or prepare to walk. I helped a friend use this to buy a Honda van and lower the price below their "rock-bottom pricing", figured it saved him over a thousand $. Good luck, you will enjoy the Cmax; I am 6'6" and 250 and drive very comfortably. Now you just have to work to get the best $$

Scuba, I thought it was just me being "anecdotal" in my opinion, but after the 3.5.1 and liftgate update, I thought the acceleration and engine response felt different too. My lifetime mileage has dropped as well (43.0 with 4000 miles total, it was 43.8 when into the dealer, but they must have run the ICE a bunch doing the updates as it was 43.3 when I picked it up). I expect most of the mileage change is caused by constant A/C running in the Phoenix summer. Interested to see if 3.6 update to MFT fixes any quirks and the Drivability/Fuel Economy updates in August make any changes. My guess it will be subtle, but hopefully an improvement.

As Skitime stated, Zaino Bros. makes a leather cleaner spray and a Leather Conditioner that smells ok and does not leave a residue on ther leather. I have used it for over 10 years on numerous cars and on leather furniture in our home. zainobros.com is their website, and they have distributors around the country that have stock of the products. Take a read on their site about how they developed their products.

My reaction is slightly different: I thank Ford for not just rolling this new update into only the 2014 models or after a certain point in production. Discussion had taken place about how they had to apply 3.5.1 update to MFT programmatically rather than replacing a component- likely took more work to achieve the results. Too often manufacturers issue new features with a new model and leave the early adopters with the "so what" when they want the upgrades. IMO, Ford wants a better legacy for the Hybrid products, and that is a good thing.

Latest offer received, after service ran out 6 months free on a 12 month contract. Works out to $86/yr, $7.77 per month plus some fees. Under $100, might consider..... There was not a time limit on the offer that I can see

JusCMax, since the recent Owner Update, my liftgate has worked with one kick every time. Only issue was a trip home from Costco, unfortunately, they are now are using the Sam's club model and are hoarding boxes, you have to ask specifically for them to box stuff, and I had a jar of the wonderful 505 Green Chile that decided to roll out when the liftgate opened. My reflexes weren't fast enough and it broke on teh concrete-----aarrghh, that chile smelled so good, but wne t to the trash. I will make sure these thing get boxed form now on.

I have street legal tint on all but the windshield, and the pano roof has tint that I applied, but is removable. The roll-up shade on the roof also makes a big differnce in the heat buildup. Miss the light , but with summer, there is plenty of sun.

I thought there was a subtle change in drivability since the 3.5.1 update, like the ICE was less likely to kick into EV mode unless you let off the gas in a more direct fashion. My lifetime MPG has dropped from 43.7 to 43.1, but I attribute it more to A/C working almost non-stop in the 100+ degree Phoenix heat. For those of you in warm locations: Very pleased with how quickly the a/c unit cools down the Cmax, even after it has sat out in the sun and baked a while.

I think I may be a bit older than many of you..... My first car was 16 years old when I got to drive it. a 1950 Pontiac Silver Streak 6! It was a rust bucket, the floor had pot metal covering the rust holes, so you could not step in too hard. Growing up in the upper midwest, the car always started and taught me a lot as a young driver. It was a 3 speed manual transmission, and before turn signals were mandatory ( it did not have them). I had to learn to use hand signals for turns, steer, shift, etc. all at the same time....didn't have enough hands! Here is a picture, though this one is restored, ours had not much gloss left to the paint when I drove it. Also, did not have the totally cool light up Indian Head in the center of the hood, that was only on the 8 cylinder versions I think. Nice remembering.....

3750 miles and 96%, too many times you have to jam on brakes in Phoenix due to boneheads pulling out in front of you!

In the Phoenix area, can't figure out the advertising strategy. Most dealers haver featured vehicles/pricing/lease deals that are advertised each week, usually on Saturday. Rarely is the Cmax shown in the Ford ads. Not sure if it is a function of inventory, or dealers not wanting to spend ad space on a vehicle that has a lower buying appeal, compared to an F-150 truck. When I bought mine, SELs were hard to come by, Energis were non-existent, and the dealer had 4-5 SEs on the lot. Not sure if that has changed. Maybe time for Ford national ads to drop the cartoon ads and go antoehr way

Like: Filling up once a month, getting over 40 mpg. Dislike: Sync doesn't understand my cryptic commands, which are logical to me

Scooter, I am in AZ and have noticed the same thing. My lifetime MPG was as high as 43.8, it is down to 43.2 as we speak. My lifetime dropped to 43.3 when the dealer had it in for 3.5.1 and liftgate updates, hasn't gone up since. Avg mpg per tank was running 46 or so in April, it is now around 41-42. I have to attribute it to running the A/C and the 100+ temps every day in the past weeks. BUT....we have to keep it in perspective. I am driving a fun spacious car, loaded with all the toys, comfortable in 118 dgree temps and still getting over 40 mpg! I should count my blessings! As to temp: I set at 76 and then nothc up once it cools....but when Mrs. Wamba is in the car, her side is down to 72 or 70, and I am usually freezing. Oh well, happy wife, happy life!

MikeB, you are correct! Found that the update to 3.5.1 had AutoPlay turned on by Default setting. Turned it off, no auto start on the first USB song on the drive. Thanks!

Mike, thanks for the tip on the AutoPlay, will look at settings. As to Sirius, I would need to get a smokin' deal to extend the trial. I would rather load more onto the USB and just select or go random.

I am overall pleased with the 3.5.1 update, faster media selection, added display features etc. HOWEVER.....one annoying quirk has surfaced: I have a USB installed. When the Entertainment is set to a Sirius station, or a local radio station, or to a particular USB album or song -- when I shut down the Cmax, then come back later to drive somewhere, the MFT selects the USB drive and starts up the first song indexed on it. (like #1 of 1231 or such). I have removed the USB drive, then re-installed to let the car re-index, but all it did once inserted is go back to that same song, though I was listening o Sirius at the time. I don't recall any auto-play setting for USB being a part of the MFT. Anyone else have this happen? I am using my Sirius until it goes dark in a few weeks..... BTW, anyone have luck getting "deal" from Sirius on a new account? If so please share. Thanks

Galaxy S2 will not read text messages, per a Ford rep. Will try it with 3.5.1 to see if anything changed..... Maybe time for an upgrade---- contract is up in Q4 this year!

I had 3.5.1 installed last week and seems to be workign without a hitch. Dealer must have had to restart the Cmax numerous times during the process, as it is now showing as an "EV+" frequently visited location as I go by each day. The Voice commands seem to work quicker, and changing Entertainment sources or programming is much faster. Navigation was working before on 3.1.3 ok, so have not noticed any changes for 3.5.1. Sorry to hear of installs that did not go as planned, reminds me of PC updates where drivers all of a sudden were no longer working or upgrades that give you blue screen. Not sure how much training mechanics have to diagnose and repair what are more IT like services.

Salsa, must have been a freudian slip, thinking back to prior behavior! I edited the psot, thanks. Yes it takes only one kick now!