Riddley

Nice read Hannah!

I follow you.  Near the end of your post, your point is, (in less green states) "... the Hybrid will actually produce LESS CO2eq/mile emissions over its lifetime vs. a CV or BEV."

This makes sense to me, but I didn't see it until you pointed it out. For the sake of illustration, say you could drive around in either hypothetical State A (Coalville) or hypothetical State B (Solaria). Coalville  generates all of its electricity via coal, and Solaria generates all of its electricity via Solar. In either state, if you drive a Hybrid or a conventional car your energy comes from petroleum, However, if you drive a pure electric vehicle (BEV) in Coalville, then almost all of your energy comes from coal, whereas if you drive a BEV in Solaria, most of your energy comes from solar.

In looking at CO2eq/mile over the lifetime of a vehicle in Solaria vs. Coalville, the BEV is going to be the clear winner in Solaria, but the Hybrid will probably be the winner in Coalville.

So I have to ask - are you an engineer?   :)

Nice write up Matt!!

Good point about the PSI increasing when tires warm up Jus!!  That didn't even occur to me!  But luckily for the tires, I run at about 46 and do not live in an overly hot place.

One tip I'll add is one someone else suggested on the forum: Keep your view further down the road to anticipate the flow of traffic. This will help you maintain the kind of cushion that you want for optimal braking, and to anticipate the terrain and how to take advantage of it.

I totally agree abut the importance of keeping the battery levels up. When I was first learning to drive this thing I was OCD about keeping the gauge blue (EV). After reading about the importance of keeping the battery charged, I started to pay just as much (if not more) attention to that. Three things happened as a result (of focusing on the battery level)

1. I'm far less stressed out about not being in EV mode
2. The higher battery level forces me into EV more often
3. MPG improves  

I actually found myself grumbling a little bit when trying to top off the battery and it kept wanting to switch into EV mode. When I realized that this was just another form of anxiety, I let it go.

Now my new rule is: "EV is good, or the ^ is good, it doesn't really matter which!"

Best wishes cepwin!!!

According to this report:

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130503/OEM05/130509937/ford-to-pass-its-own-hybrid-sales-record-in-five-months-on-fusion-c#axzz2SGPa4HHv

"Hybrid deliveries for Ford reached a monthly record 8,481 in April, bringing the total this year to 29,561, said Erich Merkle, Ford's U.S. sales analyst. Ford's annual record for such sales was 35,496 in 2010. Ford sold 13,891 Fusion hybrids through April in the United States and 13,285 C-Max hybrids according to the Automotive News Data Center."

Previous sales reports I've reviewed showed C-MAX lagging Fusion by a wider margin.

In other news, Ford is selling a lot of hybrid vehicles to companies restocking their fleets: http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=37983

When you turn c-max off it gives you your life time mpg as well as miles. at 6500 miles my life time mpg is 48.2

Fred, that's an insanely good number. Very few SEL drivers (non-Energi) will see 48.2 lifetime at 6500 total. Perhaps ptjones and recompense, who are certified freaks when it comes to mpgs..

Before I get bombarded by all the others out there who are great hypermilers, I didn't say you wouldn't see the lifetime average at 48.2, but at that low a mileage?

I'm convinced that it is only possible to do this in temperate climate zones, and only by someone very deft with the gas pedal and attention to the charge level in the battery.  

... after you master the Lift Gate, Daniel San...

 ...we practice "Wax on... Wax Off".

I think it must be all in the technique. You must practice Daniel San...

Welcome Spyburn!!

You've landed in the most active C-MAX forum on the planet!

Someone mentioned earlier that he thought the "discount double kick" might happen if the car is locked. That it might open directly if the car is not locked.

I don't know if this is part of the issue, but I never paid attention to that (is the car locked or unlocked?) before.  I vowed to monitor that to see if there is any correlation.

Good catch John!  I thought you had me dead to rights with that observation. 

If Fish has some ability to navigate, perhaps getting into the settings screens is available.

That's an interesting observation Joe!!

I hadn't parsed the behavior that way, but you might be onto something. I'll pay closer attention to this going forward to see if it holds up.

You will love both those features.  When I was shopping, I put the panoramic roof higher up on the priority list than car color and some other trim elements.  

Yes - I've done this and it works:

How to Perform a Sync Master Reset:http://support.ford.com/sync-technology/perform-master-reset-sync-myford-touch

Important: Before you perform the master reset, don't forget to  remove any connected thumb drives, unplug any connected devices, and remove the NAV card.  

What I found was that after the system was reset, Sync actually kept my station presets.

Way to go.

I liked your write-up!

Great suggestion about the "Ready to drive" icon in green.

FORD:  Can you please turn that indicator off when the car is moving under power?  Thanks!

Nah,

I confess it is totally ripped off. Click on this link. Also note in the close-ups that the rims are actually not 5 spoke - but clever masking to create that effect! 

I must admit that it (Loder1899) is the most impressive C-MAX mod I've seen.  I also think it might have started out as a Euro model (based on the grille and lines).

I imagine Ford would want people to come up with something that has some of the features offered with this:

Automatic App Is A Coach, Mechanic, And First-Responder All In One

Anyway, it is smart for Ford to stage a contest to get people to noodle over the problem and submit working code.

The daily commute is 32 miles one way, mostly freeway, but here in the good old Puget Sound, freeway can vary greatly. I have a few miles of surface streets before I get to the highway, so I can get it warmed up and charged up before I open it up.

One day the drive was wide open (60+) for most of the commute, and I was able to really test out the "twilight zone" (66-68mph), the next day it was stop and go the whole way, which actually resulted in 50+ mpg.  

OK - let me clarify.

Unless you are either Jus, Recompense, Adair, ptjones, or...lets see... who am I missing... then you are not likely to get 40+ at 70+. 

(apologies to anyone I missed)

You guys are :shift:  freaks :worship: . I mean that as a compliment. :)

Excellent Analysis Plus 3!!

It is great to have engineers in the forum!!

I've read posts from people complaining that they have been disappointed by the fuel economy results at highway speeds.  They cite the 47/47/47 window sticker and complain that they are not getting anything close to that - that they are actually getting mid 30s mpg.

Here's a clue: If you want to get 40+ mpg, stop driving 70+ mph.

There is ample evidence that you can drive 65-67mph for a very long time and average 40+ mpg. The 65-67 region of the speedometer is like the "twilight zone" for fuel economy in the C-MAX. Some refer to this as the "sweet spot."  For this to work, you only need three things: 1) engine warm (see coolant temp gauge in MyView), 2) sufficiently charged battery (¾), sufficiently warm day (50+ degrees). 

I've driven a commute to work at about this speed and the trip average was 48 mpg. What's more, the car was rarely in EV mode. Out of 32 miles driven, only 8 were in EV mode. The 65-67 mph "sweet spot" is real. A dozen forum members have had this same experience.  

Nay Sayers will say "driving less than 70 mph isn't safe" on some interstates.  If you believe that, then I'm not going to contradict you. I will however, ask you politely to stop complaining about your fuel results.  You are expecting the car to do something it was not designed to do. You are being unrealistic, and blaming the car. 

Be realistic. Drive realistic.  Don't blame the car.

Getting the engine temp up and keeping it there is probably the biggest part of it.

One thing I should mention is that I almost never use AC, or the seat heater. I turn the fan on to 1 or 2 clicks and set the climate temp to 70-72, but AC is off. Even when I am just running the fan, I have noticed on occasion that the fan alone will cause the ICE to run if the battery is low. I was at a stop light the other day and noticed that the ICE was running. I clicked the fan down from 3 clicks to 1 click, and the ICE shut off. So the fan was drawing just enough electricity (along with anything else - like the radio, etc.) to cause the ICE to run.  

As an aside, I heard a Ford engineer mention in a video that it is more efficient for the system if the person used the seat heater over the Climate control if you can choose one over the other.  

In the Puget Sound region we are finally starting to get more summer-like weather more frequently  Yea!!. 

The C-MAX we love (most of us anyway) will come to be known for being particularly sensitive to temperature.  I’ve noted many members comment on this and have seen it myself often enough.

I’ve started to notice a pattern on my daily commute. My MPGs vary in almost direct proportion to the ambient air temperature.  I’ve used the MAX on the same route with virtually the same traffic patterns, and recorded MPG results that varied from a low of 38 MPG, when ambient temperatures were in the low 40s, to an all-time high of 58 MPG, when the temperatures outside were in the high 60s. This morning for example, in moderate temperatures (54-58), I recorded 48 MPG.

The same pattern happens during the return commute, though the values are lower, which I attribute to the pattern of elevation.  

When I watch the evening weather forecast, I’ve caught myself on occasion doing a mental translation of the temperatures to MPGs for the coming week.

The noticeable sensitivity to ambient air temperatures obviously favors those in warmer regions. No grudge here folks  :).

But what goes unsaid is how this relationship affects a person’s ability to comfortably aspire to the “1000 MPG Challenge”, “600 Mile Club”, “Quest for 47 MPG Average” and other informal contests... until it is summer everywhere in the U.S. :)

I love it!!!

Everyone that drives my car for the first time comments on the "touchy brakes". But as all owners will attest, it just takes a little getting used to, then it becomes normal.  I do like the idea that I have brakes that will stop the car on a dime if necessary. :) 

More often then not I find myself trying to prolong regen as long as possible (to get a better brake score0 and I end up creeping up on the car in front of me too far/fast. It is something I'm working on improving. 

I must not be doing something right. I tried this going to and from our camp. I set the cruise at 70 and then started bumping it down. I had high battery but the highest mpg I could get was 40! It just would not cross over the 40 line.

 

It was in the high 70s and I had the ac on low about 68 degrees.

 

Suggestions?

On a hot day with the AC set to 68, you are probably going to see MPG suffering. 

One thing you can experiment with is to set up your MyView so that it shows which accessories are drawing how much power from the system. Then watch what happens when you change your climate control temp and fan settings. Use the full range to get a better sense of the impacts - including turning off the AC and using just the fan.