ScubaDadMiami

I'm in. I should have done this last time around. Glad I have the chance to do it now.

All I know is that I had to pay an extra $50 or so for my dealer to use 0W20 at my 10,000 mile oil change. If it even costs a few cents to Ford more per vehicle during the manufacturing process to fill each vehicle, they will use what is cheaper, because it will save them money and/or reduce to cost to buy the vehicle. If the cost is identical, then I don't know.

I have a feeling that cost has a lot to do with it. If one works basically as well to the other but it less expensive, and you do similar equivalents across the board with the manufacture and service costs of the vehicle, it adds up, you can sell the car for less, and those checking on the costs of ownership see a reduction, all making the vehicle more appealing.

I am also in the camp of having Ford do the oil change with 0W20, though I don't know which brand they used. I really can't say that I've noticed any difference in my fuel economy. No complaints; I have a lifetime of 49.2 MPG. I am just saying that I didn't notice any significant improvement in the 8,000 miles I have driven since the switch.

I am planning on upgrading to the Note 4 (from the 2). I don't know why, but the charging cradle is apparently a different model, per the ProClip web site, part of the reason why I keep waiting to make the upgrade, though I will probably get around to it by the start of summer. (Right now, I am in the middle of getting all new backpacking and camping gear for this coming summer's travels.) I sure hope that my old cover and Samsung "universal" charging stand will still fit. :spend: :rant2: On the good side, the base that connects the cradle to the C-MAX console will not require changing; it works with all ProClip cradles, even if you change phones or models. You can find out exactly which models work at their web site. You plug in the make a model of your phone, and it gives you several choices, ranging from just a basic cradle without charger up to tilting cradles with power. I took my car to a radio installation place to have them install the charger, and there has been zero problems with running the charger into the electrical system. (I can't remember exactly when I did the installation, but it has been several months or more since having it done.) You can route the cable through the center console, through the fire wall, into the engine compartment, and then connect it to the fuse panel located inside there, somewhere just in front of where the driver sits. (I think it was a fuse panel. If not, it was some kind of hub. I don't know enough about these kinds of things, but I watched them do the installation.)

I checked, and I only have photos of the cradle installed, but not with my phone in it. This being said, none of the screen is blocked, and none of the buttons are blocked on my Samsung Galaxy Note 2. About the only things that are even partially blocked are the camera and the light, which are on the back side.

Living in South Florida, I don't want to do anything that could impede cabin cooling, so I don't use this type of holder. Keeping the cabin cool through using the air conditioner also keeps my phone cool enough to operate. Second, I bought my holder with the charging cable, and I had it installed so that the cable runs between the seat and the console; this allows me to charge my phone without having a visible cable hanging down. Were I to use the vent style holder with charging cable, I would have a visible cable hanging down from it. This being said, ProClip, the company's holder that I use, does make a vent holder. http://www.proclipusa.com/dashboard-mounts/vehicle/ford/c-max/2013-2016/proclip-center-mount-854795-14497.cmsv?p_leftorright=0. Just in case you want to reconsider your decision about placing the holder on the vent, they also make a model that fits on the side of the center console: http://www.proclipusa.com/dashboard-mounts/vehicle/ford/c-max/2013-2016/proclip-angled-mount-854796-14497.cmsv?p_leftorright=0. I can't say anything about the vent holder style of cradle, because I have never used that one. However, this is probably the third vehicle I have owned in which I have used the ProClip cradle. It has been rock solid. Another great thing about their product is that you can remove it when you sell your car, and it leaves no holes behind. (See below.) BTW, the way that the ProClip system works is that you first pick the base that attaches to the vehicle, which are the links that I provide above. After that, you then select the cradle, with or without charging cable (they make a few options for that, too) that attaches to your make and model of phone. If you keep the same phone when you get a new car, you can re-use the same cradle, and you only have to buy a new base that attaches to that new vehicle. If you get a new C-MAX, it is possible that even the base would be the same, so long as they don't make major changes.

Well, I am no mechanic, so it is a little difficult for me to translate, component by component, where Ford draws the line on what is and is not included. I don't know whether something like this is considered normal wear and tear, or if it is something that should normally last for the life of the vehicle. I have the Ford plan, the top of the line one that includes all but the vehicle service, and it is to 125,000. I am assuming that this is not a normal wear and tear type of thing, but there could me a high mileage driver out there that has tried to make a claim for this, and I was hoping to hear the report for what happened, if such a claim had been made.

Once you know what you are doing, turning EV+ off allows the driver to have more control. I've had mine off for about three months. I can't say that it has made a big difference, but I no longer have to manipulate the gas pedal to come out of EV+ as I do a last charge up on my way home. Probably since I was overriding EV+ with my foot already, that explains why there hasn't been a big change since turning it off. However, I certainly don't have to put any effort into that last mile anymore, and I have found that to be worth it. I am keeping it turned off.

If I have the extended warranty to 125,000 miles, is this the kind of thing that is included?

+1. Oxford White is not a premium charge color.

That was a great trip. Right now, I am planning trips for this coming summer. In the early part of the season, I plan to head up to the mountains of North Carolina. I will definitely drive for that trip, which I expect to be about 2,000+ miles, including stopping off in Charlotte to see my daughter and son-in-law for part of the time. It is not yet certain, but, for later in the season, I am planning on making a trip to Seattle, and doing some hiking and camping around Washington. I was originally going to make the Washington trip in my C-MAX, but, considering that it would be roughly a week there and back of driving from Miami, it doesn't seem to be worth it. (My New England trip was for a month and a half, which made driving well worth it.) I think that I will probably just fly, and then I will rent a car for the part of the time that I go on hikes, and then I will just hang around the city for food and fun, using the great public transportation of Seattle. C-MaxSea/Nick has been so helpful in making these plans. I can't thank him enough! After years of always having to plan my diving career and vacations during the warm weather season, retirement is finally allowing me to have the time to head back out into the wilderness. I hope that I can start making it count!

If you only drive highway all the time, then there would be choices that are just a good as the C-MAX, some maybe better, if all that you are doing is considering fuel economy and the initial cost of the vehicle. However, there can be other trade-offs that could also factor into the final evaluation, such as space in the vehicle and comfort. There is a vehicle out there for everybody, and, depending on the circumstances, that doesn't always come down to the same factors. I know that I really appreciated having all of that extra space for gear, during my cross country trips in my C-MAX, especially when I was getting great fuel economy for those trips. I also liked riding up higher off of the road than I would in a lot of other cars that also get great fuel economy. I liked the ease of getting into and out of my C-MAX. Things like that are something that I consider just as much as I consider the importance of the fuel economy. It's all a question of the type of driving that you end out doing. I like having a vehicle that gets 50-60+ city and 45-50+ highway while holding a great deal of cargo or five passengers. If that is not your top priority, then you should get what works best for what you do.

+1 Other than for use if adding multiple cameras, or for those that want to add screens to headrests, :headscratch: ?

I purposely went with Oxford White, and I ordered my C-MAX from the factory, so I could have had any color in the same amount of time. Oxford White is much easier and cheaper to touch up.

Do you mean the horizontal line? I think that you are talking about the average. Not sure. It's been a while since I last looked at that.

I remember seeing something about Pandora, and maybe even Spotify, on a press release or something else, some while back. It has been so long that I can't remember exactly where I saw it.

Under my definitions, pulse is running ICE up to or above your intended speed, and typically something in the neighborhood of a two bar burn; gliding is running with EV (including while slowly losing speed); and coasting is keeping the car in D while not applying any pressure to the pedal. (BTW, do not shift into Neutral when you are not using the gas pedal. In that instance, you will not provide any charge to the HVB while the wheels are turning.) I'll add another category to running ICE: recharge. That is when I do a slower burn to charge up the HVB, after which I can then glide for a bit, and, with a still decently full HVB, I can then pulse back up to speed. So, I distinguish categories of: pulse, glide, and recharge burns. For stopping, your choices are to roll to a stop without touching the brake pedal, to stop by applying just enough pressure to capture regen, or to brake hard enough to use the actual brakes. I think that it is better to roll to a stop than it is to approach with a fast enough speed to require applying the brakes, even if that is lightly enough to get the benefit of regen. Of course, such a perfect execution is almost impossible to achieve, given the unpredictable nature of the traffic flow. Typically, I stop by coasting (see above definition) until moving slowly enough to finish up the last stage of coming to a complete stop by applying just enough force to the brake pedal to trigger regen until a stop. If I have timed it perfectly, I stop just at the end of the regen period, without either requiring letting up on the pedal (because I have applied the pedal too soon), or without having to apply extra pressure to the pedal (because I failed to get the maximum regen distance). Coincidentally, this is how you get your 100 percent braking score.

Now, there is something that I didn't know. Thanks!

I believe that this is for updates that will include things like Pandora.

I got my card from Levittown Ford, which is a sponsor here. You can also check on Amazon and eBay. I have A5. I don't think that A6 is out yet, but I am not sure. You can't download the software. You have to get the card.

Still loving mine. I hear you about the spare tire thing. Oh, and the MPG thing is great, even when there is cheap gas.

+1.

Mine took about three hours, including waiting time.

Let's hope that you finally get all of the little annoyances resolved.