obob
-
Posts
717 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
32
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Gallery
Posts posted by obob
-
-
From the standpoint of the ICE, the CMAX is way over cooled, I use Grill Covers all year around. It would put more stress on the trans, probably not a temp problem. As far as the inverter goes, not sure you can change the amount of use of charging and discharging than normal. :) I think trans stress would be the main problem.
Paul
I would think the car would be set up to handle all but the rarest hot conditions. No manufacturer wants a reputation of their car fails in death valley and then you die of heat stroke.
"The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 134 °F (56.7 °C) on July 10, 1913, at Furnace Creek,[16] which is the hottest atmospheric temperature ever recorded on earth.[5] During the heat wave that peaked with that record, five consecutive days reached 129 °F (54 °C) or above. Some meteorologists dispute the accuracy of the 1913 temperature measurement.[17]" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Valley
-
Welcome. Coming here before buying is something I would recommend to myself.
The Quick:
The transmissions on 2013s have a high likelihood to fail starting around 60,000 miles.
The likelihood is less for 2014s.
The likelihood is unlikely for late build 2015s and later
The hybrid warranty has covered the cost but that may be changing for there is now a way to fix the problem without replacing transmission, but the cost will be less.
Getting a 2016 gets the bonus of a better sound and control system. The system before that is disturbing to some people.
I would not recommend a 2013 unless you get a REALLY REALLY good price. ( a transmission out of warranty is expensive.) I realize that 20K miles is tempting. Have you looked at cars.com and sites like that?
There is a problem with cupping from the rear wheel camber of the 2013s and perhaps on other years. which is kind of minor but can be mitigated with frequent tire rotation. Cost-wise this is minor.
As I see it, many people on this forum really like their car.
It handles nicely. It gets great mileage once you understand some fundamentals (and good mileage in the meantime ). It is roomy for tall people and big things in big boxes yet easy to drive like a small car. And there is a great forum: fordcmaxhybridforum.com with helpful and intelligent people.
FYI production of the car stops this year.
-
The other problem to expect is cupping of rear tires which some people think can be mitigated with frequent rotations. This is pretty minor compared to the trans.
-
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/forum/68-ecvt-transmission/
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/5288-mileage-and-build-date-for-ecvt-that-have-failed/
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/6115-transmission-failure-very-unhappy-with-customer-service/
Here my quick two cents that has not been vetted for accuracy but should be close. Ford made changes to the transmission for the 2014s and then made further change in the 2015s so getting a late build 2015 or later would be best. And an 2014 or 2015 also lower risk. Getting a 2016 or later gets you better music and other electronics. A transmission problem if it is not covered is expensive (like 6000 but I heard there is now a kit rather than a transmission replacement and with the kit it may or may not be covered under the hybrid warranty.) and it can fail after 100,000. Have you checked cars.com and other sites like them ?
That lifetime warranty sounds nice if you can trust that.
-
UPS ships tires - no box needed.
scroll down until tires section
-
My experience with liquids getting into electrical stuff has been good. Often unplugging them or taking the battery out and drying them out with a hair dryer or fan has worked for me.
That includes someone spilling their coffee into a crt monitor.
It's good to know the key fob has a good chance of survival.
-
"I hates those meeces to pieces!" (if under 55yo might not find this funny)
I wonder if it was there when you bought it. Perhaps it entered through the air intake which should have a screen over it but mice are very resourceful and can squeeze through very small openings.
The air filter may mitigate a health risk though maybe the mice ate through that.
-
Where I buy gas, regular is 2.65 and premium is 3.15, like 19% higher. So it makes the choice of regular easy. Maybe in some other areas the difference is less.
-
... Sounds like I hear the tires a lot. ...
JOE
Sometimes the tires are noisy because of the camber setting of the rear tires causes uneven tire wear.
-
Whoa ! Interesting. Performance sells cars. Also a boost to the people who have been using premium. For me, my c-max has plenty of performance. But I may be more inclined to try a tankful out in the summer. So when the engine is cold and inefficient, you might as well burn the cheap stuff.
"Your vehicle is designed to operate on regular unleaded gasoline with a minimum pump (R+M)/2 octane rating of 87. 136 ,... Some fuel stations, particularly those in high altitude areas, offer fuels posted as regular unleaded gasoline with an octane rating below 87. We do not recommend these fuels. For best overall vehicle and engine performance, premium fuel with an octane rating of 91 or higher is recommended. The performance gained by using premium fuel is most noticeable in hot weather."
from the 2018 manual http://www.fordservicecontent.com/Ford_Content/Catalog/owner_information/2018-Ford-C-MAX-Hybrid-Owners-Manual-version-1_om_EN-US_08_2017.pdf
-
-
Recently I bought a tire inflater that I returned but it came with a digital cool looking gauge and I notice it read 5 psi more than the gauge I was using. I was using a 4 year old Victor I got from Autozone that I have kept inside the car. I kind of assumed the new cool looking digital one was correct.
So I bought an arguably highly rated Accutire guage
And I also bought an inexpensive pretty ebay guage from China
The Accutire gauge allows for zeroing it out. So I did that and there was a 1 psi change in readings which after that were consistent, though as I think about it more, I may have just lost 1 psi of air in the zeroing out process.
Comparison
Accutire 55 psi
Victor 56.2 psi
Ebay inexpensive 50 psi
They each make consistent readings so it seems I can use each of them with an adjustment.
I am going to assume the Accutire is the most precise and keep that inside rather than exposing it to heat and cold.
Ideally it would be good to know somebody that has a calibrated gauge to test the gauge I use for my baseline.
I don't think I can assume that the pressure precision would be the same at a different pressure, like a more standard 38 psi.
By the way, the inexpensive gauge comes apart and it is like a short pencil gauge and the part that pops out pushes against the dial readout so perhaps I could shim it up to get a better reading or grind off some plastic do it goes in further.
PS I would like the change the title to use the word precision rather than accuracy. All three gauges are accurately consistent. Not sure how to change that.
-
Добрый вечер! увидел замечательный
сайт с читами -
This is spam. Google translate from Russian = Good evening! saw a wonderful site with cheats. I would recommend NOT clicking on the link.
-
Welcome Aztoothman.
I don't know if this is your noise but it seems synergistic with your description. I have what I would call a drone sound when the internal combustion engine is running (ICE) and it is regeneration mode. When I first bought the car it did not have it, but after one of the early software updates it started. It may be they changed things to be more aggressive with recharging the battery. I am used to it but if it did that when I tested the car I would think the car was noisy. I am not sure if the later models have it but it is my understanding is that it is common on the 2013s. My drone/moan has slowly changed louder. Regeneration of the HVB(high voltage battery) mode can be identified with an up arrow thingy on the empower screen. This condition probably is mentioned in one or more message threads on this forum but it not a situation that is worrisome to me.
What is of concern is the 2013 transmission problems which there are also message threads discussing that.
- kyledamron1 and Aztoothman
-
2
-
Power Outlet in rear is Fuse 27 (Luggage compartment power outlet socket) in rear junction box.
C-Max Cigar Luggage DCACInerter Wiring.JPGRear Junction Box.JPGThank-you.
-
I was looking for the fuse for the 12 volt outlet that is in the back. I did not see it in the manual. Any ideas ?
My reason is that I have what I thought was a great fast air pump but it blew the fuse in the front. I later read a review that it can draw 30 amps on start up and then draw .7 amps if the pressure in the tire is 40+ lbs to start out. I was curious if the outlet in the back is the same 20 Amps. Now I am curious if there even is a fuse. I may not be able to return it because I already threw out the box and cut the power cord to use inside my house.
I am thinking it might be in the manual but it is not called "power point." like the one in the front.
Thanks.
Here is a link to the review and the product for anyone that may be interested (I do NOT recommend )
-
After seeing what Chinese competition has done in the solar field, I am not too optimistic for the US car manufacturers, but I think they know what they are up against.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/09/17/why-china-is-crushing-the-us-in-solar-energy.aspx
"This wouldn't be possible without state-run banks in China handing out loans. These loans aren't earned with profits from operations, which are almost nonexistent, but are rather used as a way to increase China's manufacturing expansion and jobs. The U.S. government could give the industry similar support, but it doesn't."
I see China's combination of free enterprise and dictatorship along with a LOT of people overwhelms our system .
It's not really a level playing field.
Tesla is kind of a blessing because it puts the US industry on alert earlier than if they waited for Chinese competition.
For Star Trek fans, it reminds me of Q introducing Picard to the Borg.
-
Original tires are P225 (P-metric) tire that has a service description of 93V and maximum pressure of 51 psi. They also make a 225 "Metric" (no P) Energy Saver A/S with a 94V service description but it is only rated for 44 psi. You can find the 93V on the sidewall under the "ENERGY SAVER A/S" logo - or just make sure the tire is a P225/50R17 tire. Of course the maximum pressure is on the sidewall as well. I haven't heard that anyone has mixed them up yet but I could see it happening.
The difference between P-metric and metric: https://www.discounttiredirect.com/learn/euro-vs-pmetric-tires?gclid=CjwKCAiA1uHSBRBUEiwAkBCtzUV9MO4sVKQsv8Q2GnodSu-8b2zav0hgQiQefIc3nfHOiZUiXZVUrRoC_5MQAvD_BwE&s_kwcid=AL!3693!3!67540629687!b!!g!!&ef_id=WLbn6wAABIf9-ShN:20180112232518:s
-
About 4k miles ago (8 weeks ago), I put on my 3rd set of tires. My previous sets of tires (Original Michelin Energy Saver and Ecopia 422 Plus) both began getting "noisy" at 25 - 30 k miles. The Michelins were so noisy at 40+ k miles that I changed them after coming home from a long road trip at around 48 k miles even though they would have likely gone 60k+ miles. The Ecopia weren't quite as noisy as the Michelins at 40 k miles but I decided to change them at 42 k miles as I was planning several longer road trips including moving back to AZ. The Ecopias would have easily reached 50 - 60 k miles based on treadwear.
So, my thought process was do I spend around $180 per tire for Michelins, $160 for Ecopias, or try something less expensive knowing that I'd like take a hit in FE but perhaps improve performance. BTW, my estimation is that my FE took a hit of about 2-3 % with the Ecopias over the Michelins (say 1 mpg at 40 mpg). IMO, the issue with the noisy tires is due to the "unadjustable" camber causing excessive rear inner tire wear and some feathering and cupping.
After much research, I bought the General AltiMAX RT43. IMO after nearly 4 k miles of driving, the General's are hands down better than the Michelins and Ecopias with respect to performance, noise and ride comfort (especially if you like a stiffer feeling tire). The drawback with the General's is FE. I'd say that the Generals are 2-3 % worse than the Ecopias and 4-6% worse than the Michelins (2 mpg at 40 mpg). I know that those that value FE more than performance won't be able to live with the FE hit over the Michelins. But the performance of the Generals, IMO, runs circles around the Michelins. BTW, I'm running 45-46 psi in the Generals as they are a lot firmer feeling tire than the Michelins. I ran about 48 psi in the Michelins and Ecopias.
IMO, the worst case scenario for me would be that I would use about 100 gallons more gas with the Generals than the Michelins or spend an extra say $225 in fuel. But the Generals are only about $110 a tire. Even after the $70 rebates for the Michelins, the Generals and Michelins should cost about the same over the life of the tire.
I'll let the reader go to TireRack and read their test report on the General. I've attached several snips showing a comparison of the three tires from TireRack. Time will tell how the noise issue progresses with the Generals.
I see from your attachments that you got the 98V load version rather than the 94T version. I figure that has something to do with the stiffer feeling. The 98V has max pressure of 51. The 94V has max pressure of 44. I am leaning toward the 98V tires like you have. (They are only like 5 more dollars each.) Any thoughts ? Thanks.
Perhaps the fact that you run 50+ psi lessens the inside tread wear and feathering.
I strongly agree. My first 12K miles (first rotation) did far more damage than the next 28K miles. I did a reverse mount at 12K. I started to use 48-50 lbs in the tires around 8K. (I have stopped rotating the tires for evening the tires out for is too noisy for me. I am also concerned the vibration may exasperate the transmission bearing problem - though only a suspicion.) I still have plenty of tread on the back but the noise is bothersome.
I may move the OEM Michelins to the back and get the RT43s for the front. Perhaps that way my mileage hit will be half yours.
By the way. I have been following the vulnerability of computer processors, with Intel processors being especially vulnerable. I don't recall ever seeing the word "mitigate" so frequently. (rather than fix)
Mitigate seems to apply so well to this camber cupping thing.
-
Welcome TashaWW !
Here is a thread with people discussing spare tires: http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/1116-spare-tire-solution-for-c-max-hybrid/
There are more: https://www.google.com/search?safe=off&source=hp&ei=HldWWv-NJqzAjwTqrLDQCw&q=fordcmaxhybridforum.com+spare+tire&oq=fordcmaxhybridforum.com&gs_l=psy-ab.1.0.35i39k1l2.1529.6299.0.12006.25.19.0.0.0.0.1142.4703.0j2j4j2j0j1j1j1.11.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..14.11.4695.0..0j0i131k1j0i131i20i264k1j0i10k1.0.MO0EdogRzzM (This is a google search. I find google a good way to search this forum.)
Here is someone with 5 OEMs to sell and is accepting best offer.
This listing includes: This is an aluminum wheel with a diameter of 17" and a width of 7". This Ford C-Max Focus wheel has 5 lug holes and a bolt pattern of 107.95mm. The offset of this Ford C-Max Focus rim is 55mm.
There may be cheaper ones on sites like tire rack.
I personally have a smaller donut spare which I bought from ebay in 2013.
-
Are you confirming the fact that it is OK to connect a typical 12 v 6a auto battery charger to the terminals
under the hood that are used for jumping?
If so, it hardly seems worth investing in the jumping gizzmo.
js
As I understand it, once the computers power on and the car is ready to go, the High Voltage Battery is charging the 12V battery. The gas engine doesn't have to be running but it will run when the HVB gets low. So there is not a lot of experience of people charging the 12V battery with a battery charger. I find it hard to believe that the car will be hurt by doing it under the hood with a decent charger. The purpose of the jumping gizmo is to power things up enough to get the computers running. I feel good about keeping it in the car. I have even used mine on another car. Having accessed the battery out of curiousity, it is really not designed to be accessible for a charge or jump.
There are cheaper jumpers that will work on the C-Max.
I agree with your accessment of not a lot of 12V battery amps needed to get the car started.
-
Welcome Jack.
Talk about a loaded question.
You may need a new battery. ( people with 2013s have started to replace them)
You may need a software update. ( Go to www.etis.ford.com , click on vehicle, enter VIN and see if you need an upate This is unlikely because most cars were done a year or two ago to fix a battery discharge problem. )
The gas engine only runs when it needs to. If you want to run the engine one way to do it is turn the heater on with a high temperature setting and fan on high with windows open and foot and middle flow set. The engine will need to run to keep it hot to work the heater.
This car uses the 12V battery to power the electronics. The car is started with the High Voltage Battery (HVB) and an electric motor in the transmission.
I keep something like this in the car to avoid having to get a jump from the jumper guy. https://www.amazon.com/Beatit-18000mAh-Portable-Starter-Charging/dp/B01MY9FZM4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1515257584&sr=8-6&keywords=battery+jumper
It does not need to be attached to the battery directly - can use the terminals under the hood. It is small.
I am not sure about what happens if a car sets for a week but if I wanted to find out I would buy one of these and check the voltage each day or so: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-LED-Auto-Car-Cigarette-Lighter-Volt-Voltage-Gauge-Meter-Monitor-12V-24V/182161792450?hash=item2a69b05dc2:g:8KIAAOSwvg9XVg24&vxp=mtr
I find it hard to believe it is normal for a ggod battery to be down after a week.
I am interested in what you find out.
-
On the 91 octane, there are people that use that and get better gas mileage. I have used it once or twice and it does seem to get better mileage. I am not sure about "performance" other than mileage but I assume it would have more power. My car has plenty varroooooM for me.
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/2345-dont-waste-your-money-with-premium-gas/
( found with search on google with fordcmaxhybridforum.com octane )
-
Welcome blakespot
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/4236-ev-mode/
I found this with this search - my experience is google is a better way to search this site compared to the search on this site
New Owner in Ohio
in Welcome
Posted · Edited by obob
http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/5353-value-of-buying-fords-extended-warranty/?do=findComment&comment=59205
https://www.google.com/search?q=fordcmaxhybridforum.com+extended+warranty&oq=fordcmaxhybridforum.com++extended+warranty&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i65l2.12119j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
I got mine from Anderson-Koch - big discount - prices are quoted online
https://andersonandkoch-ford-warranty.com/
though I would also check Flood Ford per hybridbear's suggestion
https://www.floodfordesp.com/
There may be others.