Off to a great start!

[mlaurence]

My C-Max SEL is now 11 days old, and I've broken it in on one of my few annual road trips, along with the city driving that will make up much more of this car's mileage. My trip to work couldn't be more stop-and-go, with over 30 traffic lights on my 7 mile commute.  I've made 6 of these trips so far.  This weekend's trip was totally different, about 900 miles of interstate driving through the rolling hills of New England and Pennsylvania.  Pretty much none of this driving was done after the 1000 mile break-in period, but if it only gets better from here, I'm feeling very good about the new C-Max, my first hybrid car.

 

Driving was fun and easy.  I'm so impressed by the way it handles, the acceleration when I need it, and the comfort of the AC, heated seats (yes, I used them both), bluetooth audio, rain-sensitive wipers, and most of all the gas mileage.  I used the ECO cruise control about 75% of the time, and tried hard to keep the speed between 60 and 65.  I managed to cruise on EV about 20% of the time.  Going up hills or pulling out to pass the (few) people driving slower than me, I noticed EV assisting the ICE quite often.  

 

It's a challenge to grow efficiency leaves.  Boosting the MPGs definitely overtook the impulse to drive 80 in the fast lane, which I admit I'm pretty used to doing.  It was a little painful to live in the slow lane, but I do have to say it was less stressful when I had a clear road in front of me for most of the trip.  Near the end i upped the cruise control to around 69 and it did cost me about 0.2 mpg before long, but I was actually pretty impressed by how well the mileage held up at higher speeds.  I'm looking forward to the hybrid re-programming to see if I can get better MPGs at higher speeds when the EV can still kick in while you're driving 75.

 

It was interesting to look at the fuel efficiency coach, which gave me yellow bars on cruising whenever I used cruise control.  On my own, I got much better graph results, although it didn't actually produce dramatically higher mileage.   There is a lot more to learn.  But I'm totally scratching my head over the "experts" who find it so completely impossible to get more than 37 MPG out of this car.  I don't think I could have gotten mileage that low if I tried.

 

Let's see if I got all this attachment stuff to work right!

 

Edited August 20, 2013 by mlaurence

[fbov]

Welcome!

 

I'm new here myself; 11 days of driving under my belt as well, albeit from a 10/2/12 "birthday" - I inherited the car from my Father-in-law. You've found the hybrid feedback displays, and you're letting them change your driving style a bit, just as I am. I got to drive it a few times before there was any chance we'd own it, and it was a nice car. Now that I'm approaching it like more of a car enthusiast, I'm enthusiastic! Power, handling, room, comfort and 50 MPG to boot!

 

I can see why these will become popular in certain commercial applicaitons. Taxi may be a bit much, but Jus-A-C-max is a real estate appraiser in the San Fernando valley and this car's ideal for his job. Another guy's a handiman, and does paperwork sitting in the car, not idling.

 

Neat vehicle, regardless, and one that stirs folks' souls it would appear. Enjoy it!

 

HAve fun,

Frank

[C-MaxSea]

Welcome ML.   "I'm totally scratching my head over (those) who find it so completely impossible to get more than 37 MPG out of this car.  I don't think I could have gotten mileage that low if I tried."  Very much agree (at least in Summer).  Nick

Edited August 20, 2013 by C-MaxSeattle

[bgs4859]

Welcome ML.   "I'm totally scratching my head over (those) who find it so completely impossible to get more than 37 MPG out of this car.  I don't think I could have gotten mileage that low if I tried."  Very much agree (at least in Summer).  Nick

Seconded.  If they insist on driving in a way which yields 37MPG (flooring it, etc. ?) at least they could also take a pass at driving it economically and state that  "if you drive this car a little less aggressively and mindfully, it can get 50MPG in mixed city/highway driving".   Seems like most readers could process this information and make a more informed decision about the car.   With regards to the "expert reviewers"  I question their objectivity (CR) and their thoroughness & common sense.  I watched one youtube video from one of the major auto magazines who stated probably 10 times that the car was "built on the Fiesta platform", rather than the Focus, and proceeded to make comments about how small the car was and "it's no wonder, being built on a Fiesta platform, one of the smallest cars built in the USA".  I wanted to ask, well we know you at least walked up to this car (looked at it?)  and got in and no bells went off saying it wasn't the size of a Fiesta?  Haha.

[mlaurence]

Thanks, Frank!  

 

I can see why these will become popular in certain commercial applicaitons. Taxi may be a bit much

 

Here in Boston we have a requirement for new taxis to be hybrids, and I'd say the Camry hybrid is the most popular model, but some of the owners have chosen C-Maxes.  If I were taking a cab I might want a bit more room in the back seat, but it seems comfortable enough with decent room for suitcases too.  Riding around up front it was one of the most comfortable cars I've ever driven on a long trip, and with the high roof it feels like it's huge.  Hybrids make so much sense for taxis, I'm surprised that the owners have stuck with the gas guzzling former police cars for so long.

[mlaurence]

Seconded.  If they insist on driving in a way which yields 37MPG (flooring it, etc. ?) at least they could also take a pass at driving it economically and state that  "if you drive this car a little less aggressively and mindfully, it can get 50MPG in mixed city/highway driving".   Seems like most readers could process this information and make a more informed decision about the car.   With regards to the "expert reviewers"  I question their objectivity (CR) and their thoroughness & common sense. 

 

I don't want to think of Consumer Reports as biased but I think they've been praising foreign cars for so long that they can't help themselves.  I've owned 5 foreign cars and 5 domestic cars in my life and I'd say they gave me equal amounts of joy and frustration.  I do have to say the reviewers played a role in convincing me that I'd like the C-Max.  Motor Trend and CR both gave generally rave reviews, and even though the gas mileage suffered, it was important to see the MT driver got decent acceleration and handling.  I didn't want to buy a slug that sacrificed everything to provide good MPGs.  

[BobJustBob]

I don't understand the reasoning behind attacking Consumer Reports.  They honestly reported the mileage they achieved during their review of the vehicle.  I believe their goal was to describe the mileage they achieved without using any special hypermileing techniques.

 

For instance, many of the posters in this thread have only recently purchased their C-Max's.  Thus, they have been driving them only during the warm weather.  What they are going to find out is that the C-Max--like most hybrids--is extremely sensitive to the ambient air temperature.  For instance, I am now routinely getting 60+ mpg during my 9 mi commute to work in the morning.  However, during the coldest part of last winter, there was about a 10-day period in late January when I was getting in the very low 30 mpg range for the same commute, and this was even with intentionally not running the heater and nearly freezing to death during the morning ride.  Hopefully the recent 13B07 upgrade will help with this.

 

The bottom line:  I believe the Fuelly reporting on the C-Max's gas mileage is probably pretty accurate.  It currently lists the C-Max's gas mileage as around 40 mpg, with a pretty large distribution.  My own Fuelly mpg has only recently got into the 38 mpg range, and I consider myself to be fairly skilled at driving the C-Max.  However, I live in a very hilly area, and one that has a fairly long, fairly cold winter.  Not everyone is going to achieve 47 mpg--that's just reality.  And it's not because we have some sort of vendetta against the C-Max.

[salsaguy]

congrats Laurence. keep reporting the good stuff about your Cmax and share your comments and your learning curve/experiences in getting the highest mpgs.

[bgs4859]

I don't understand the reasoning behind attacking Consumer Reports.  They honestly reported the mileage they achieved during their review of the vehicle.  I believe their goal was to describe the mileage they achieved without using any special hypermileing techniques.

 

For instance, many of the posters in this thread have only recently purchased their C-Max's.  Thus, they have been driving them only during the warm weather.  What they are going to find out is that the C-Max--like most hybrids--is extremely sensitive to the ambient air temperature.  For instance, I am now routinely getting 60+ mpg during my 9 mi commute to work in the morning.  However, during the coldest part of last winter, there was about a 10-day period in late January when I was getting in the very low 30 mpg range for the same commute, and this was even with intentionally not running the heater and nearly freezing to death during the morning ride.  Hopefully the recent 13B07 upgrade will help with this.

 

The bottom line:  I believe the Fuelly reporting on the C-Max's gas mileage is probably pretty accurate.  It currently lists the C-Max's gas mileage as around 40 mpg, with a pretty large distribution.  My own Fuelly mpg has only recently got into the 38 mpg range, and I consider myself to be fairly skilled at driving the C-Max.  However, I live in a very hilly area, and one that has a fairly long, fairly cold winter.  Not everyone is going to achieve 47 mpg--that's just reality.  And it's not because we have some sort of vendetta against the C-Max.

You make a good point about winter driving, I should wait a few months before summing up my experience, probably.  But I stick by the statement that the reviews should be more nuanced.  For example, does it serve someone who lives in a warm winter location like southern California and does a lot of city driving to assume an average 37mpg?  These reviews could explain how varied the results can be with regards to factors like climate, driving style, etc. Simply sputtering out "This car does not get 47 MPG" is not very helpful to anyone.

[Jus-A-CMax]

IMO, the dislike for Consumer Report and the CMax is the blatant bias they have shown excoriating the CMax MPG results they got while turning a blind eye to a similar Prii abysmal MPG report - this has been posted so many times here and in some many threads.

 

Their credibility is shot.

 

My family will never subscribe to them and if I want to read about a blender, I go google or Amazon - let alone trust their review of the upcoming MY14 CMax with any neutrality or bias. Want something real - go follow mpgomatic.com.

 

CR wrote the bed they wanted to lie on, and its our right to criticize them - just as they feel they have the right to criticize Ford. What goes around, comes around.

 

My 2c.

 

Heres a thought for CR lurkers: Since they CLAIM they buy these cars, did they all all the updates to 13b07 and lets see some followup testing in the summer (as they did their testing in winter). Will we see that --- oh when hell freezes over I guess... :lol2:

Edited August 21, 2013 by Jus-A-CMax

[MI C-max]

I can not say enough good stuff about my C-max!  I love this car, and have often told people "it's like driving an iPhone" - which trust me, is very HIGH praise from me!

 

Today, I hit two milestone trips - 

 

1) 9 miles - 56.7 MPG  (the highest I'd seen since buying my C-max 8/13/13, then ... )

2) 16 miles - 65.7 MPG - my jaw dropped when I saw the trip summary on that one!

 

Tomorrow is going to be a long haul test - from Monroe MI to Cleveland OH and back along the OH Turnpike (about 300 miles roundtrip).  I'm really curious how that will affect my avg MPG.

[Adair]

Well, that's pretty awesome Mi C-MAX!!

 

 

 

Today, I hit two milestone trips - 

 

1) 9 miles - 56.7 MPG  (the highest I'd seen since buying my C-max 8/13/13, then ... )

2) 16 miles - 65.7 MPG - my jaw dropped when I saw the trip summary on that one!

 

Tomorrow is going to be a long haul test - from Monroe MI to Cleveland OH and back along the OH Turnpike (about 300 miles roundtrip).  I'm really curious how that will affect my avg MPG.

[bgs4859]

IMO, the dislike for Consumer Report and the CMax is the blatant bias they have shown excoriating the CMax MPG results they got while turning a blind eye to a similar Prii abysmal MPG report - this has been posted so many times here and in some many threads.

 

Their credibility is shot.

 

My family will never subscribe to them and if I want to read about a blender, I go google or Amazon - let alone trust their review of the upcoming MY14 CMax with any neutrality or bias. Want something real - go follow mpgomatic.com.

 

CR wrote the bed they wanted to lie on, and its our right to criticize them - just as they feel they have the right to criticize Ford. What goes around, comes around.

 

My 2c.

 

Heres a thought for CR lurkers: Since they CLAIM they buy these cars, did they all all the updates to 13b07 and lets see some followup testing in the summer (as they did their testing in winter). Will we see that --- oh when hell freezes over I guess... :lol2:

CR rates Ford second to last, "much worse than average" in reliability.  This mainly because of MyFordTouch. So distaste for software design and fixable bugs become what drags down the ratings.  Also heard they were factoring in their dislike for Ecoboost and claiming the MPG was not as good as advertised.  Maybe so, but their Cmax MPG testing makes me suspect.  Ok fine.   I don't deny that there are problems or that Ford deserves to be first but again not sure if "much worse than average" presents the clearest picture to consumers.   I do sense an unintentional (hopefully) institutional bias towards Japanese brands such as Toyota.  They LOVE them some Toyota. Always have, always will.   That's fine, but I don't really like their cars at all, ugly, boring, unsubstantial in my opinion.  I have had 6 new cars, a Honda, a Volvo, a VW, and 3 Fords including the Cmax.  The Honda was by far the most problematic although I do like Honda's cars WAY more than Toyota.

[homestead]

I don't have any problem with CR mpg rating, they were testing pre-update and in the winter.

Plus the MPG display on the C-max is always off reading higher than it really is, shame on Ford.

[bgs4859]

I don't have any problem with CR mpg rating, they were testing pre-update and in the winter.

Plus the MPG display on the C-max is always off reading higher than it really is, shame on Ford.

Intentionally rigged MPG display? 

[homestead]

Intentionally rigged MPG display? 

If wasn't rigged then I would expect to see about half of c-max's getting lower mpg than at the pump mpg values but everyone

that has commented on the difference states that their display is higher so I expect Ford fudged it towards higher mpg.

[mlaurence]

Today I did a 110 mile round trip ending up at the same spot so elevation isn't a factor. About 60% interstate, 10% city, 20% highway (about 40 mph), and the rest being caught in 20 mph traffic. Total mileage over 51mpg. I'm excited! For the first time I noticed EV+ kicking in as I got close to home. Suddenly my ability to use EV seemed to double, which of course improved mileage. I made an appointment to get the 13B07 update in a couple of weeks, which means I have a limited time on the current firmware and another interesting learning curve ahead. The way things are going, I may not even be able to get a fill-up between now and then. Darn. :)

Edited August 23, 2013 by mlaurence

[MI C-max]

Yesterday's trip to Cleveland and back was interesting -

 

Started off leaving the house with 43.6 avg MPG.  Pulled into my destination with a 44.2 avg MPG.  I did notice a lot of long downhill declines near the destination, and watched the avg MPG climb accordingly.

 

Of course that meant coming home were a bunch of long uphill inclines, and I watched the avg MPG drop just as quickly.  I pulled into the driveway with a 42.8 avg MPG - so the whole trip cost me 0.8 avg MPG - which means I'm probably NOT joining the 600+ club with this tank of gas!

 

I did also notice the "sweet spot" while cruising to Cleveland - somewhere around 68 MPH the MPG gauge was showing somewhere between 40 - 50 MPG on the ICE, while charging the battery.  On the way back, I just couldn't find that "sweet spot" again - I think the ride back from Cleveland to Toledo has a general slight incline so I could never get into the "sweet spot".

 

The best part of the trip yesterday - a co-worker of mine that has a Prius went to lunch with me to check out the car.  He said several times - "this is a lot nicer than my Prius!"  He also mentioned it being quieter in the cabin, and asked me what I thought he could get for his Prius if he sold it.  That made the trip well worth it!