Ford CMax Irvine Pow-Wow

[Jus-A-CMax]

That's my Maxine there in the foreground with a row of other stunning beauties    :rockon:

 

 

 

A pow-wow (also powwow or pow wow) is a gathering of North America's Native people. The word derives from the Narragansett wordpowwaw, meaning "spiritual leader". A modern pow-wow is a specific type of event where both Native American and non-Native American people meet to dance, sing, socialize, and honor American Indian culture.
 
As such, it is in the spirit of the Pow-Wow that Ford was gracious to host a large number of CMax Hybrid owner drivers in Irvine, California. Although no dancing or singing was visually sighted, there was a lot of socializing between actual Ford Engineers of various specialities and the CMax drivers - all in the honor of Ford's new CMax hybrid.
 
Background: Back in mid January, various members were posting of an Ford CMax event to be held in Irvine if you completed a survey, you got a call from the RDA Group (working on behalf of Ford) inviting you to the meeting with the Ford Engineers with a $200 check incentive at the end of the day. I and a few other posters here accept the invitation. My meeting time was scheduled at 2PM.
 
Cool. I'll go down there early since the traffic is horrific on Saturdays, especially down the 5 Freeway (read GOOD for hybrid drivers) and I'll "chill and ill" at Taco Bell and may be eat some lunch. I arrived at 1PM after having my Maxine's tires rotated and tanked up (chalk another 550+ miles on 1 tank). Good ole MFT Nav delivered me to the meeting site which turned out to be a huge multi level car parking lot and commercial building. No Taco Bell - well, just a sign - screwed, no lunch  :cry:  I later consoled myself with some gatorade and the granola bars...healthy food, just like healtht hybrids vs gas guzzlers.
 
As I stealthy approach the venue, I turned down my blaring music. Not cool to rock up with dance music at full blast.
 
Cruising in.....CHECK OUT all the CMaxs!
 
Man, it was like going into Victoria Secrets - all the birds were cute and young, some even proudly having the dealer plates. I have never seen so many CMaxs at the one spot except in a dealer yard - you name all the colors, they were there. Couple of Energis peaked my eye...hmmh...what are they doing here?
 
I saw lots of people with clip boards standing around, so I quietly pulled into one of the bays and was greeted by one of the 80 Ford engineers that were all brought here from Detroit, Michigan - bar the marketing group, which were the only locals here. 
 
 
Parked in the ground floor (Bay 20 if anyone wants to know)...checked out my TRIP...nice 53.8MPG (52 miles with 24EV) and 0.96 gallons at 64F. Something to show to the Engineers  :) 
 
Some pictures of the venue:





 
 


So this was the way it worked:
1. You checked in, sign away your life aka waivers.
2. The check in desk will call one of the group of engineers and hand them a yellow packet which has your name, VIN and customer number on it.
3. There are 8 section (groups) listed on the yellow packet: Chasis, Electrical, Exterior /Sheet Metal / Paint, Interior & Climate, Powertrain, SYNC/MFT, Vehicle Engineering, Marketing. 
4. Each group would then come and interview you, they ask you some questions and vice versa.
5. There is a test drive and an exit interview on camera. As well, there are 3 desks which Ford is showing some new videos coming out.
6. They also took the tire pressure readings (mine was 45psi) and downloaded the computer codes (yeah, the scary black box stuff that show where you were ;) ).
 
That's the packet:

 
 
To prepare for this event, I worked on a 15 page handout last night to give to Ford that included my 2 main issues: good ole MFT GPS and crashes including photos, some nice mileage photos and reports (as posted on this site already), my 2 x 600 mile tank runs, and some thoughts of improving the CMax and a last page to highlight this website.
 
Eventhough this whole event was suppose to be 2 to 3 hrs, mine actually took 4 hours and I was yabbing away with all the groups, time just flew.
 
I showed the MFT group my concerns with the GPS including the appalling GPS screen shots which are to hard to refute. All they can say is that an update is coming in March. They also showed me some cool stuff like Sync Services and instead of inputting the Street Address via keyboard, it was a lot quicker entering via the Voice Command (eventhough my sample address was 90% correct only...hmmh). Also, finally found out where the micro phone was - for those who don't know - it's that web thing next to the sunglass holder so speak in that direction  :salute: 
 
 
Exterior Group was the most fun. They showed me all kinds of stuff. Some I knew already and some I didn't including, there is a special liftgate window cleaner has its own little heater - next time take a look at that squiggly line under it.
 
Some other cool tips with the door handle:

With the keys near by, to lock the door - just slide you fingers across the black rubber part. To open, curl your finger around to the back of the black part to unlock. This is the proximity manual lock and unlock. I asked them for a proximity auto lock, which they have noted down with a smile. 
 
Now those who are posting on the liftgate thread - to open with 1 kick or 2, the Exterior engineers have acknowledge there is a software patch coming next month. Whats happening is that the sensor is asleep and needs one kick to unlock and another to open. For those who kick left/right, apparently the right way to do it is back/front at the center point. We also discussed the rear airflow situation where the car had a lot of dust and I pointed out to them that my car was washed yesterday and there is already a layer of dust sitting on the bumper. 
 
The other groups focussed on their speciality. Thanks to the many posters here, I was able to fire off a number of numbers & concerns to them which they all noted down - from the battery issue that the engineers knew about and literally they grimaced at this and it was a serious, serious issue for them just judging by their body language. We also covered other non-serious stuff such as the ergonomics of the interior, including the gear light indicator, door drink holders, pen holders, bezel around the MFT etc.
 
Some of the suggestions they have already heard and some raised a "oooh..thats a great one" from the Engineers. Like I said, I spent 4 hrs with the engineers and we weren't talking football.
 
I think I got the most "Oooooh" was just showing them what ptjones and I have done with the 600 miles on a single tank. "You did what?" ... and pretty soon I had other people coming to look at the screen shots in my package that I handed to them. They did not believe it. I showed them my fuelly.com stats as well. In regards to the mileage,
 
I was able to gather that other than me, there was only 1 other person there was able to get 47+ MPGs. That guy had 10,000 miles on his car and I had 7,100. I was able to prove to them that as the engine "matured", you can see the mileage improve - again, something that I posted here on this website including my Mammoth trip data. They were most impressed with the screen shots to backup my case, including the map of the route and not just "yeah, I could not that..." comment. 
 
I said to them, based on my driving experience and evidence in real world driving (not test in dyno or some unknown test driver), IMO, Ford was spot on that this is a 47MPG car. I think I managed to convince them that the engine break-in is more like 5,000+ and not 3,000. They asked if I thought my MPG increase had levelled out and I think I am about there as it is now....been getting 550+ miles on each tank and Maxine is at 7,100 on the odo. Pretty much steady-eddy at around the 47MPG mark.
 
Ford knows the mileage is a BIG issue. In the little goodies bag, there is a 4 page pamphlet that talks about this issue predominantly, which I will scan later but I am too busy typing this thread for you keen Maxers ala Rachel & Adair  ;) 
 
My most interesting conversation was with the marketing group. I actually met the guy who came up that Focus ad featuring the cute girl to Vegas. I let him know the current blue sketch ad has run its days and I just thought a real ad with real drivers would serve Ford more better than to poke fun at Prius with a cartoon sketch. Same goes for the Hybrid Games ads which were Internet only - just a waste of time and makes Ford look gimmicky, IMO. He was not happy with an 8 out of 10 that I gave with regard to the technology...I sense he thought it derserved a 10....I just pointed out to him that since I saw what the Tesla S did with the iPad like technology, this should have been in the CMax. He pointed out the new Lincoln MKZ has this and with a push button gear shift. Cool, now put that in the CMax and I'll give you a 10...well, I didn't say that, I just thought about it. It was a great exchange and I am there to speak what I thought and he took that in...so who knows, may be we might get to see some real person CMax ad soon....and if you do....guess who posted it first  :rockon: 
 
One of the funniest comment was that A LOT of CMax owners didn't know there is a rifling/telescopic steering wheel. Wow, I was stunned. So were the engineers - and not too surprising, I thought I saw a post or 2 asking for this feature so it's clear, some drivers do not know.
 
I did bring up the issue of the CMax in the cold and the loss of MPG. They do recognize this and for the marketing person, I said it was poor timing to release the CMax for winter and then have the 47MPG blow up. I also mention the ptjones grill covers and they said that it made sense as it traps the heat. The active shutters - none really knew the true technical parameters of it. The best answer I had was that it was tied into the coolant temp as well as speed and also the AC - a mix of three factors that would control it. So for that video that said it was "dumb", I was hearing from the engineering group, no...its not that dumb. He did say the CMax had 2 active shutter groups in there...and those who opened their front grill and confirm or deny this, I don't know but I am curious.
 
 
I left the venue at about 5:10PM, it was 65F when I got there and it was freezing when I left. Great for the Detroit engineers bar me. I did not do the test drive, talk too much and nor did I do the exit on camera interview...enough of my mug face. I was tired, cold...and theres only so much granola bars one can eat.
 
All up, great event. Very informative for the drivers and Ford - at least for me. I suspected Ford's intention was to 1) Educate the owners about the features of the car such as EV+ 2) Show the owners some of the cool CMax features and even I did pick some up like the door lock/unlock.
 
It was a WIN, WIN, WIN event for Ford and I was very surprised at A) Ford even doing this B) that I was lucky enough to be invited C) Not waste my invitation so I worked hard to get Ford some real world documented evidence of what this car can really do.
 
In talking to the engineers there, Ford will be holding these meetings for the Fusion Hybrid. They did one last month for the Escape and they hold these meets in their biggest markets and those who are selected must be within 100 miles of the event venue). I asked them if they will hold one in the north east but she did not know. If you get a chance...GO!
 
Ok, I am going to get a beer now, I am warmed up enough - at least my fingers are, after all the typing. I am sure Ronin will his part and so will some other lucky posters who made it there.
 
Cheers,
Jus-A-CMax
 
PS Drove back, all up the MPG for the 100+ mile trip was 50.5MPG...who said this was not a 47MPG car.... ;) 
 
 
 
USEFUL LINKS
Some useful links (from brochure) that a Ford staffer asked me to pass on to our community here:
Youtube.com/Fordowners  for all sorts of helpful videos about the common features of your CMax/Ford cars.
Fordowner.com
Syncmyride.com

Here is a cut down list of the CMax specific features: Youtube.com-CMax only features
 
Here is a PDF(Depositfile.com - make sure you click on the FREE download) "Talking With Confidence About Fuel Economy", a 4 Page Brochure that discuss the MPG issue from the Ford company view point and how to improve your mileage. Basic stuff when compared to what we have here in the forum but what I like about it is that it's in a compact PDF and geared for the basic driver. After all, aren't we all hypermilers here?!?!  ;) 

 

Here is a sample tid bit from the 4 pager...

NOTE: Is Ford having a shot at CR and fuelly.com here? Also, the comment about the early adopters getting higher mileage being reported. Interesting, no?

 

 

 

Edited February 24, 2013 by Jus-A-CMax

[Adair]

That was amazing! What a great read first thing on a Sunday morning. Thanks for taking the time to post this summary after your long day. I'm glad we had such great representation from the forum, both to take member concerns to the engineers, and to post back to the rest of us. Did they realize how many folks you were representing? I have a feeling that you educated the engineers more than they educated you.......and that's a great thing. I doubt they anticipated anyone coming as prepared as you were, with hand-outs, graphs, maps, screen shots and all! They'll have something to report (besides the wah, wah, wah, can't get 47mpg yackety schmacktey).  Can't wait to read ronin's report.

 

By any chance did my question about the SYNC/DROID/EARBUD come up? That's really been my only concern so far.

 

Enjoy your Sunday.

[RachelnLa]

Watch it, you'll be working for Ford before long! Great post and thanks for mentioning this board and posting the links. Technology makes it possible for people across the works to share notes and any company would be wise to use that to their advantage.

 

I wish they would put out events like that all over. I understand reaching the biggest market but again word of mouth is great advertisement.

 

I would have loved to see their faces at your 600 mile tank.

 

I do know if you rub your thumb across the black square in thd door it will unlock all doors. Love that.

 

Tell me again about the lift gate? I know it has defrost and window spray. Where do I look for squiggly lines?

 

Thanks for the post. It was almost like being there. Sounds like a great time.

[darrelld]

Thanks for the excellent writeup of the event.

[shaners]

Great write up!  Thank You!

 

I would love to give up a Saturday afternoon to attend one of those sessions.  However, in snowy Western PA it would have to be held indoors and there would be alot of dirty cars parked there!

[dtorres]

One more thank you for taking the time to do the detailed write up of the event. It's great to hear that Ford is asking owners what's right and what needs to be improved or fixed. It was also good to hear that the engineers are aware of the battery problem and know that it's the elephant in the room that needs to be solved.

[ptjones]

Jus-A-CMax great Job it looks like you covered a lot of ground. And it sounds like you were prepared for them. Did you happen to show them my graph on how MPG's change with outside temps?

[Jus-A-CMax]

Jus-A-CMax great Job it looks like you covered a lot of ground. And it sounds like you were prepared for them. Did you happen to show them my graph on how MPG's change with outside temps?

 

I didn't have to - when I was talking to the main Engineers who knew more about the active shutters than the other 79, part of the conversation, he was talking about the MPG and temps that he had - so Ford has definitely done research here. They are well aware of the effect of the colder temps from the engineering stand point except, in my opinion, the timing of the release of this car - Marketing definitely was not expecting such a comment from my end. I mentioned your grills more than a few times stating that you saved 2-4MPGs and judging from their response, I don't think they have heard about this. I did state I did not use this as my conditions here did not warrant it  I think less than a handful of drivers from this forum made it there and frankly, if you post here, you know about the improvements in the MPG with the grill covers. I left the address of this website with them and more than a few teams also deliberately penned down this website address. If Ford was smart, they will snoop and gather data.

 

 

By any chance did my question about the SYNC/DROID/EARBUD come up? That's really been my only concern so far.

 

Enjoy your Sunday.

There were 2 things that were not followed up - this was one of them and the other was the google maps downloading to the car. I gather than within the teams there are "specialists" and these specialists are pulled from here to there. What happens is that team after team would come and talk with you and although the 4 hrs seemed long, it was short and the guy showed up twice but right in the middle of the other team interview. 

 

My throat was getting parched just yabbing away - thank goodness for the gatorade and bars. With the MFT team, I did talk about the lack of integration with the Contact Addresses at this time, which all she could say was you could use  voice command to speak out the full address. Really, ok...but next time.

 

 

 

Watch it, you'll be working for Ford before long! Great post and thanks for mentioning this board and posting the links. Technology makes it possible for people across the works to share notes and any company would be wise to use that to their advantage.

 

I wish they would put out events like that all over. I understand reaching the biggest market but again word of mouth is great advertisement.

 

I would have loved to see their faces at your 600 mile tank.

 

I do know if you rub your thumb across the black square in thd door it will unlock all doors. Love that.

 

Tell me again about the lift gate? I know it has defrost and window spray. Where do I look for squiggly lines?

 

Thanks for the post. It was almost like being there. Sounds like a great time.

The 600 mile is a big thing, it got their attention. Their faces were priceless and afaik, no one else came close. I also brought up the ptjones got 625 which is a maximum I have ever seen. Then reading the curious brochure (you can get it via the depositfle link below)...where the early adopters getting more mileage...what are they saying here...think about it...are they saying that those who bought early had their engines peak in time before the cold, or are they saying something "dark - in a good way' about the early production vehicles. Its so curious to make a statement like that. Every driver who was there got that brochure with their goody bag.

 

Defrost for the rear window wiper is per below, see that squiggly line? 

[RachelnLa]

As I was out riding around (yes, again), I looked in the rear view mirror and instantly noticed it. Funny how that works. So the squiggly is a heater and the straight lines do what?

[Jus-A-CMax]

As I was out riding around (yes, again), I looked in the rear view mirror and instantly noticed it. Funny how that works. So the squiggly is a heater and the straight lines do what?

Both are heaters, one specifically for the wind screen wipers and the other for the rear window. As a side note, the engineers said the opening rear window liftgate was one of the most requested changes.

[MikeB]

So the squiggly is a heater and the straight lines do what?

This type of heating wire puts out a constant amount of heat per length. So by making the wire squiggly, you squeeze extra wire length in the same space, and thus it's a little warmer.

[wamba2000]

Justin, thank you for the recap and all the details.  It makes me feel good that Ford is at least listening and interacting with their owners.  So many times it seems to be only a one way communication.

The C-Max is an awsome vehicle, more people need to knwo they can have the ride, handling, performance and decnet mileatge in a smaller very utility oriented package.

[Jus-A-CMax]

Justin, thank you for the recap and all the details.  It makes me feel good that Ford is at least listening and interacting with their owners.  So many times it seems to be only a one way communication.

The C-Max is an awsome vehicle, more people need to knwo they can have the ride, handling, performance and decnet mileatge in a smaller very utility oriented package.

You're welcome, I just hope I spoke enough to them to get the message out that YES we luv this car, its great but its got some issues and that we are all NOT detracted from this great vehicle. So, so many positives. I forgot to mention the Chasis team - man, straight up this was the best decision they ever made to build this car with such a great handling chasis, tight and great handling bar the turning circle.

 

Ford is definitely not leaving us owners in the lurch, they are trying behind the scenes, they are aware of the main issues that is plaguing some vehicles and all we can do is give the company back some support.

 

As I echoed to their many teams - if this is the kinda thing that Ford just does and if they listen - I just think how good the Gen 2 is going to be - a totally killer car.

 

You also echo my sentiments about this lil car. I hate the word "wagon" (as you can prolly tell in some other thread) but lets jus say - it is a very utilitarian vehicle that does everything  :rockon: 

[Tdefny]

Great job Jus. Sounds like a great trip. Who wouldn't love such an opportunity. I hope the come to NY.

[ptjones]

Did they mention anything about the possibility of charging our battery at home or work with 110VAC? I'm amazed that they haven't thought about using this forum as an resource instead of spending all that money on get together.

 

Great Job!

[Adair]

Jus, love how you parked between two spaces! A little buffer of protection on each side :>)

[SBGrad]

Jus, love how you parked between two spaces! A little buffer of protection on each side :>)

 

That was Ford's idea.  They had little sandwich boards, 'Bay 1' 'Bay 2' etc, and they told you which bay to park in-- "try to line your car up exactly with the sign," they said.  The bays were spaced so it was about 2 C-Maxi per 3 striped spaces.  They pretty much had to do this because you were constantly walking around your vehicle with the engineers talking over things.  If they used normal spacing everybody would've been running into each other.

Edited February 25, 2013 by SBGrad

[Jus-A-CMax]

Thanks SBGrad - exactly right! Yeah...I parked normally and was then told to park with the middle in line - very observant   :worship: Adair

 

SBGrad, did you do the test drive with them - and if so, how was it? I was prepared and all but I just ran out of time and it was starting to get real cold.

 

 

PS I luv that lock and unlock by swiping rubber thing front or back - that is very, very cool - much better than pressing the remote button.

Edited February 26, 2013 by Jus-A-CMax

[Adair]

 and it was starting to get real cold.

:hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:

[Jus-A-CMax]

:hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:  :hysterical:

 

Oi...you're talking to a transplanted SoCal resident here where warm & sunny is the order of the day...by the way, I have some good news for you - keep an eye out in the Fuel Mileage section  ;) 

[Jus-A-CMax]

We all a check at the end of the day and a goodies bag:

 

 

The waterbottle is really cool. The brochure is the same one that I scanned and put up. The sticky post it notepad is cool as is the CMax labelled pen - and to sweeten the deal, a nice packet of M&M candies, wife got half and me the other and she grabbed the t-shirt as well.

 

:) 

 

[Lotsa Tales]

Awesome write up!

I was there too.  Had to pull myself away after 3hrs.

Engineers were very friendly and very inquisitive.  I loved the question, "what can we do to get the score up to a ten?"  I gave the car an 8 on handling, I told them "you can't, it's not a sports car!  An 8 is a great score for this type of car!"

I love the car, I told them I want to buy another one!  My issues were turning circle, fuel fill, doors don't close all the way unless slammed, seat bolster angle too sharp, coin box, MFS...

[Jus-A-CMax]

Awesome write up!

I was there too.  Had to pull myself away after 3hrs.

Engineers were very friendly and very inquisitive.  I loved the question, "what can we do to get the score up to a ten?"  I gave the car an 8 on handling, I told them "you can't, it's not a sports car!  An 8 is a great score for this type of car!"

I love the car, I told them I want to buy another one!  My issues were turning circle, fuel fill, doors don't close all the way unless slammed, seat bolster angle too sharp, coin box, MFS...

 

Hey WELCOME Lotsa Tales! Thanks! What time was your meeting and what color was your car? I was the White Platinum in Bay 20 at about 1PM. Did you do the drive with the engineers and what was that like?

 

I think it would have been so much more awesome if we drivers got a chance to meet and greet and shared our experience in person - I think the coming Michigan meet up will do that....mind you, keep posting your experiences here as well as a lot of other drivers can learn from each and every one of us. You'll be amazed by the depth and knowledge this forum can provide as well - like the hot issues with the dead battery, up coming 3.5.1 MFT update etc.

 

Yeah...the marketing guy was p*ssed at me for not giving his section a 10 with respect to the Sync...I gave him an 8 as well...ha...he's got to learn. I think we have the same exact gripes as well - the turning circle is not the best but by golly - does this car excel in the drive-ability. 

[roninsd]

HAven't had time to really jot down all my impressions of the get-together in Irvine yet.  It was 3 hours of continuous personal interaction, from the moment I got there (7:40AM -- I was #1) until I got through all the teams.  I had to call a couple time outs for a cigarette and potty break!  It was over an hour before I was able to look up and realize that there were a bevy of other maxes and maximizers along the row.  When I have a little more time, I'll write a little more.  But I knew that Jus would take care of updating everyone in his prolific style!

 

Re the test drive: they hooked me up to their computer, and we took about a 5 mile drive south, on streets doing 35-50 mph, and then a little bit on the freeway north back to the Grand Pubah offices of Taco Bell.  (Aside:  I agree with Jus in one of his postings: you'd think they'd have a TB restaurant in their headquarters.  Granola bars just didn't cut it.  The coffee was good, however.)  One team member was the "direction giver" and the other was taking notes (on something) in the back seat.

 

FYI: Sync update, according to two of the engineers, should be coming out next month for the c-max.

[Jus-A-CMax]

Ron - put up your impressions, please. I think we can all learn something here...SBGrad did his and it would be worthy to add your experience. What I put down was not everything that happened, its still digesting in me as to what they asked and said - it was pretty pertinent and direct - their questions. I'll update as once I digest and make sense of their questions.

 

I'll throw something out - the MFT services, this is different as its "cloud" based. For example, the search by business, if you use services, it will search the cloud. If you use the Nav destination it will use the SD card data. I know the SD card data is not the latest, it does not even have my Costco Pacoima which has been there for years. Also, the weather forecast is cool as well. I really need to explore the services more, its another worthy door to look into as see what we can find.