C-MAX Fuel Mileage. What are you getting?

[Fits2at]

I have driven my new C-Max for 4 days and I am loving it. Several trips I have been over the rated mpg. I've seen 52 and even saw a 70+ trip. Granted they weren't long trip but several miles each. My lifetime mpg average is at 35.5 and climbing. The car had 3.4 miles on it when I got it and I'm at 250 or so now. Haven't even used a half a tank of gas yet.

 

Totally love it!

[kechair]

Finally hit 40 mpg on the latest tank - just over 3k miles now. 60/40 freeway/city driving, average temp in SF Bay Area is ~50 F, with mornings in the low 40s and on/off rain.

 

To get 40, I had to really try  -  60-65 mph freeways, near 100% braking efficiency, pulse and glide.  Not sure if I will do this long term.  

[From Speed6ing 2 C-Maxing]

I am currently at an indicated 38MPG on this tank, less than 350 miles total in 1.5 weeks.  My normal commute is 11 miles each way, equal mix of city and highway.  But because its been so cold here lately, my car is still not in the "normal operating temperature range" as displayed on the temperature guage (between the brackets) by the time I'm at work, and same when I get home, and so, the engine is frequently running in order to warm itself up.  I know I will benefit from the EV+ when it finally learns my work and home, as I'm frequently almost completely charged up by the time I arrive.  I also park on the 7th floor of a parking structure at work, so, EV+ will hopefully allow me to go up the structure on batteries alone.  At home, within 1/2 mile of where I park, there are several elevation changes that I also hope I can do while on batteries alone. There is first a 100ft climb over 0.2 miles, followed by a 20ft drop over 0.1 miles, followed by a 60ft climb over the final 0.2 miles.

Edited December 16, 2012 by From Speed6ing 2 C-Maxing

[kechair]

Speed6ing,

 

The last 3 blocks back home are straight up a steep hill for me. Since I have 3k miles on the cmax, ev+ mode kicks in for me right off the freeway like clockwork. I can successfully stay in ev mode up the steep hill with a full load ie. with my wife and two kids in the car but only if I can/am willing to chug along at approx 20 mph. If there is a car following me, forget it. I engage ICE right away and proceed at normal speed to my house. Lastly, going up steep hills in ev mode will drain your battery very quickly. Even at full battery charge, by the time I reach my house the battery is depleted down to the lower threshold of capacity.

 

[Jus-A-CMax]

So yesterday, I decide to really fang the car, going up to 75-85 over some moderately hilly terrain. For once, passing all those Prius. For those who really want to know, it was a run from Newbury Park (Wendy) to Calabasas on the 101. Max performed brilliantly, lots and lots of power for a lil guy but I thought I was s*cking too much gas but when I finally got to Calabasas, the overall MPGs were above 40 surprisingly, I wished I had taken a photo.

 

So, who's everyone doing by fanging the CMax instead of babying it, any great loss in MPG? I did a consistent 65mph with eco cruise over 30+ miles and I got 40MPG out of it. Perhaps, fanging the car would not be that BAD of an idea instead of babying it for MPG's sake. Curious to see your thoughts....

[AgentCMAX]

I'm not sure if my assessment is correct but when the car shuts down, it displays two MPGs.  The MPG for the trip and then the Lifetime MPG.

 

On my way to work today, I noticed a discrepancy in the avg. MPG displayed on Trip 1 vs. the MPG displayed for the trip (not the lifetime MPG) when the car shuts down.

 

I will take pictures and post them later.  Essentially, Trip 1 was reporting 53mpg or so while the display during shut down was showing 55 mpg for the same trip.  I reset Trip 1 prior to leaving the house.  So shouldn't both display match?

[From Speed6ing 2 C-Maxing]

There are 4 averages.

 

1) Trip 1

 

2) Trip 2

 

3) Lifetime for which a reset will reset EV+, etc

 

4) And a 4th average which you can reset by holding down the ok while in empower/enlighten/engage etc.

Edited December 19, 2012 by From Speed6ing 2 C-Maxing

[AgentCMAX]

There are 4 averages.

 

1) Trip 1

 

2) Trip 2

 

3) Lifetime for which a reset will reset EV+, etc

 

4) And a 4th average which you can reset by holding down the ok while in empower/enlighten/engage etc.

 

Then what is the avg MPG that is shown as "Trip Summary" at the end of the trip when you shut down the car?  Because that is different from all four numbers you listed.

 

For me, Trip 1 says A, Trip 2 says B, Lifetime says C, and 4th average says D.  And then there is this "Trip Summary" that is displayed when the car shut down.  And this "Trip Summary" is different from all those.  I upload some pictures but for some reason I can link them here.  But if you look at my porfolio under my user id you will see pictures labled "Trip1 Summary" and "Trip Summary".  Before I left the house, I reset Trip 1.  By the time I get to work, the picture "Trip1 Summary" shows my mileage info for Trip 1.  Then I shut down the car, the picture "Trip Summary" shows that information.

Edited December 19, 2012 by AgentCMAX

[RedLdr1]

Then what is the avg MPG that is shown as "Trip Summary" at the end of the trip when you shut down the car?  Because that is different from all four numbers you listed.

 

The numbers first displayed when you shutdown are for the Trip Summary segment you just finished driving.  The info used in that display begins when you start up and ends when you shutdown each time automatically.  To check it if you reset Trip One on start up the segment display and Trip One display should be very close when you shut down...  The reason I say close as they display different data fields and I do not know how the system accounts for Regen Miles....

Edited December 20, 2012 by RedLdr1

[AgentCMAX]

The numbers first displayed when you shutdown are for the Trip Summary segment you just finished driving.  The info used in that display begins when you start up and ends when you shutdown each time automatically.  To check it if you reset Trip One on start up the segment display and Trip One display should be very close when you shut down...  The reason I say close as they display different data fields and I do not know how the system accounts for Regen Miles....

 

But if I reset Trip 1 as soon as the car is started and prior to driving, shouldn't Trip 1 and the "Trip Summary" be the same?  And why would Regen miles be a factor in determining avg. MPG?  And if they are factor, then how do they affect MPG calculations?

 

EDIT:

 

Looking more closely at the data provided from the pictures,

 

Trip 1 shows: 26.8 mi using 0.50 gallon.

 

Trip Summary shows: 26.5 mi using 0.4 gallon.

 

And now I remember.  You are correct, RedLdr1.  I forgot that I had dropped off my daughter at school in the morning on the way to work.  So that explains the discreprancy.  So my Trip Summary actually shows only the trip from my daughter's school to my work.  Where as Trip 1 shows the data from my house to my work.

 

Thanks for clearing that up!!!

Edited December 20, 2012 by AgentCMAX

[Ryan McEachern]

Thanks to everyone for educating the rest of us while are still waiting on factory orders. I'll know all the tricks and features way before the car arrives. :)

[roninsd]

Here's a recent video I ran across regarding road testing the C-Max mileage, by MPGomatic. Interesting.

 

Edited December 21, 2012 by roninsd

[dtorres]

How are you guys getting in the mid 40's! Consumers Report says it's bottom possible ;-)

[dtorres]

How are you guys getting in the mid 40's! Consumers Report says it's bottom possible ;-)

[Laurel]

Driving with the utmost concentration and attention to smooth consistent take offs, maintaining consistent speed, and not speeding.  It is totally possible, but perhaps Ford needs to advertise that it takes conservative driving?  I have to say my husband gets a bit irked that the C-Max has to be driven conservatively/hybridly(new word) to get advertised mileage.  I find it fun and a challenge--maybe I won't when the novelty wears off.

[AgentCMAX]

How are you guys getting in the mid 40's! Consumers Report says it's bottom possible ;-)

 

I got my best mileage on the leg to work today:  53.7 mpg for a distance of about 25.4 miles!  I have 2100+ miles on the C-Max now.  My tires are inflated to 41 psi and the temperature this morning was around 49-51 deg F.  I just inflated the tire pressure to 41 psi last Friday so I'm not sure if that plays a part in the improve mileage or not.  Previous tire pressure was in the range 30-36 psi.

 

This leg of the commute consisted of about 55% city, and 50% hwy and contains small rolling terrain (both in city and hwy).  Max speed in city/back-roads was about 50mph and max speed on hwy was 65mph.  I would estimate 50% of the speed on the hwy was around 55-62 mph with.  I don't cruise at 65mph however.  I will drop it back down to 62mph to get into the EV zone when I'm at a flat or down-sloping portion of the hwy.  When the engine kicks in, I bring the speed back up to 65mph to recharge the battery.

 

However, I think my home is at a higher elevation than my work, so that maybe one reason why the leg home is normally less fuel efficient than the leg to work.  I normally get about 44 mpg on the leg to home.

[Maximus]

Here's a recent video I ran across regarding road testing the C-Max mileage, by MPGomatic. Interesting.

 

 

Very interesting,  thanks.

[darrelld]

I hit 29 mpg this am with air temp at 19 degrees and icy roads.

Edited December 26, 2012 by darrelld

[ptjones]

I'm made it to Phoenix with 40mpg average, 37-65deg. temps some head winds. Hope to do better going home. I found I can cuise in EV at 63mph actual GPS Cool!

[NewOwner]

When I drove my C-Max home from the dealership, it got 30.1 mpg.  200 miles later, it's averaging 36.6 mpg.  This is all city driving, maximum speed 50 mph.  What are you guys all doing that I'm not?  I'm a pretty conservative driver, slow to start and gentle to break.  I leave the heat on "Lo" to keep the engine from running to heat the air.  I get pretty good scores on the "Coach" screen.  Are there any other words of wisdom and experience that you can add?  How many miles does it take to break in for maximum mileage?  Thank you!! 

[darrelld]

When I drove my C-Max home from the dealership, it got 30.1 mpg.  200 miles later, it's averaging 36.6 mpg.  This is all city driving, maximum speed 50 mph.  What are you guys all doing that I'm not?  I'm a pretty conservative driver, slow to start and gentle to break.  I leave the heat on "Lo" to keep the engine from running to heat the air.  I get pretty good scores on the "Coach" screen.  Are there any other words of wisdom and experience that you can add?  How many miles does it take to break in for maximum mileage?  Thank you!! 

 

The first thing you should do is reset your Lifetime Average. Cold weather will subtract significantly, up to 10 mpg, as the ICE will start more often to keep the engine temp up.

 

Watch this video for hints at optimum driving.

 

http://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/index.php?/topic/804-mpgomatic-video-review/

Edited December 28, 2012 by darrelld

[dtorres]

On average my C-Max has been getting 40mpg with mixed city/highway driving and highway speeds at 65mph.

 

Do I think Ford gamed the EPA tests? Sure they did that's why the electric motor turns off at 62mph when the test highway portion maxes out at 60mph.

 

Can the C-Max achieve 47mpg with the right conditions? Absolutely! I drove 150 miles from L. A. to San Diego and achieved 47.2 mpg. Traffic caused multiple sections along the route to be going less than 60mph. On open sections I cruised 65 to 70mph.

[darrelld]

On average my C-Max has been getting 40mpg with mixed city/highway driving and highway speeds at 65mph.

 

Do I think Ford gamed the EPA tests? Sure they did that's why the electric motor turns off at 62mph when the test highway portion maxes out at 60mph.

 

Can the C-Max achieve 47mpg with the right conditions? Absolutely! I drove 150 miles from L. A. to San Diego and achieved 47.2 mpg. Traffic caused multiple sections along the route to be going less than 60mph. On open sections I cruised 65 to 70mph.

 

 

I think Ford prepared for the test just like any good Graduate student does prior to finals. The Professor (EPA) gives students the info they need to pass and preparations are made accordingly.

 

The Professor (EPA) ultimately has control over whats on the test and grades how well you do. I have interviewed 3.8 grade point Computer Science grads that couldn't pass our in house evaluations and interviews. Some of our candidates didn't get hired due to spotty work records. Would I hire someone (buy a car) just based on how well they did on their finals? No way, I check references from multiple sources (Fuelly, forums, fueleconomy.gov) do the interview (test drive), then decide if the candidate (car) is a good fit for the position (my garage).

Edited December 28, 2012 by darrelld

[Michigan Max]

Are there any other words of wisdom and experience that you can add?  

Move to Florida or just wait for summer. The cold weather here in Michigan now is gonna kill any chance of decent mileage.

[Aptos Driver]

This leg of the commute consisted of about 55% city, and 50% hwy and contains small rolling terrain (both in city and hwy).  Max speed in city/back-roads was about 50mph and max speed on hwy was 65mph.  I would estimate 50% of the speed on the hwy was around 55-62 mph with.  I don't cruise at 65mph however.  I will drop it back down to 62mph to get into the EV zone when I'm at a flat or down-sloping portion of the hwy.  When the engine kicks in, I bring the speed back up to 65mph to recharge the battery.

 

However, I think my home is at a higher elevation than my work, so that maybe one reason why the leg home is normally less fuel efficient than the leg to work.  I normally get about 44 mpg on the leg to home.

What's your route to and from work? We've gotten 40-plus mpg in our 2012 Camry hybrid driving from Santa Cruz up to San Francisco via Highway 17, 85 and 280.

Edited December 29, 2012 by Aptos Driver