C-MAX Fuel Mileage. What are you getting?

[PWBarrett]

Hmm.

On a trip maybe 5 miles out to dinner and back tonight, I got 51 and 46 MPG.

Then I got home and logged the latest fill-up in Fuelly and got 31.

Maybe it has to do with when our son drives, who says he never pays any attention to those gauges and just drives how he wants.   :rant: 

[roundtrip]

Thanks 'Jmckinley' for posting the Ford letter, and I too have now experienced the low hwy mpg.  

 

Normally my drive to work is 50% city and 50% hwy and I have had high of 44 mpg avg back October but now dropped to around 40 mpg and have about 5800 miles on the odometer.   I recently had to take a 250 mile trip for work that was mostly expressway from Detroit to Ludington MI with stops in Lansing and Muskegon.  The elevation is pretty flat and air temps in low 20s and my speed was 70-75mph which resulted in a 31-32 mpg.  Two days later the return trip was not much better at 32.5 mpg avg.  I know my speeds where a little high at 72 but these are typical for freeway.  I could have taken 2 lane roads at 55 mph but this trip was for work and not for sight seeing.

 

l agree that the speed is a big factor and it seems like you would need to maintain a 48 mph avg to get a 47 mpg hwy given the ambient temperatures and break in period for the car.  I don't see why Ford engineers chose 62 mph for the EV mode, I mean this works fine for the city roads but 72 mph would be better for the expressway.  I know there must be some transmission and electric motor heating limitations requiring this 62 mph limit, but given the low air temperatures it seems like there should be some kind of mph range for EV mode.  The whole trip the car never goes into EV mode, also the ECO cruise did not make a difference.

 

I can drive slow in right lane but many times I become a hazard since the typical speeds are 70 mph+ out in the country.  It seems to me that the Ford engineers missed the EV mode by 10 mph.  I get it that "spirited" driving will hurt your mpg, but 72 mph on the freeway is pretty typical for Michigan expressways.

[C-MaxJaxon]

I've been driving 67-68 in 70 MPH zones for years. That is the speed that many semis are governed at, so I don't worry about impeding traffic or being passed by every vehicle on the road.

 

Having EV mode available at higher speeds would have little benefit without a bigger battery and motor. I cannot stay in EV mode for very long above 60, even on a flat road with light wind. Wind resistance ramps up dramatically the faster you go. There's no cheating the laws of physics.

[darrelld]

Hmm.

On a trip maybe 5 miles out to dinner and back tonight, I got 51 and 46 MPG.

Then I got home and logged the latest fill-up in Fuelly and got 31.

Maybe it has to do with when our son drives, who says he never pays any attention to those gauges and just drives how he wants.   :rant: 

 

With my fuel filler inlet problem I have stopped tracking mpg. There is no way to fill consistently until its fixed, parts are on order.

 

In the mean time I have been enjoying the C-Max more and just going with traffic.

[Laurel]

Today on a short trip of about 15 kilometers, I got 4.9 L per 100 kilometers (that is 48 mpg US).  Not so bad eh?  My window sticker advertises 4.0 city and I doubted whether that was ever going to happen, but now I am a believer.  Today when out it was about O to 1 C with freezing fog and the heater was blasting.  I am at about 1350 kilometers since buying her--so not quite a 1000 miles on her.  Go Tip go!

[PWBarrett]

Today on a short trip of about 15 kilometers, I got 4.9 L per 100 kilometers (that is 48 mpg US).  Not so bad eh?  My window sticker advertises 4.0 city and I doubted whether that was ever going to happen, but now I am a believer.  Today when out it was about O to 1 C with freezing fog and the heater was blasting.  I am at about 1350 kilometers since buying her--so not quite a 1000 miles on her.  Go Tip go!

So the Canadian C-Max window sticker doesn't tout the equivalent of 47/47 MPG?  I guess it wouldn't be the EPA of course... What do they list for highway?

[Laurel]

The Canadian window sticker is 4.0 L city and 4.1 L highway which is an eye popping 58 mpg US   and 57 mpg US and 70 mpg Imperial and 71 mpg Imperial.  But I kind of think I may get that this Spring.  Pretty optimistic numbers eh?  I'm not sure why there is a 10 mpg difference for our Canadian expectations compared to the 47 in the States.

[valkraider]

The Canadian window sticker is 4.0 L city and 4.1 L highway which is an eye popping 58 mpg US   and 57 mpg US and 70 mpg Imperial and 71 mpg Imperial.  But I kind of think I may get that this Spring.  Pretty optimistic numbers eh?  I'm not sure why there is a 10 mpg difference for our Canadian expectations compared to the 47 in the States.

 

Poutine?

[Ryan McEachern]

Its a much easier test. They are very clear that it is meant only for comparing vehicles and "your mileage will vary"

 

Good job on the nice low l/100km score Laurel!

[ptjones]

Hmm.

On a trip maybe 5 miles out to dinner and back tonight, I got 51 and 46 MPG.

Then I got home and logged the latest fill-up in Fuelly and got 31.

Maybe it has to do with when our son drives, who says he never pays any attention to those gauges and just drives how he wants.   :rant: 

I would tell your son that he can only drive it if he gets 50+MPG's, end of story. :)

[Laurel]

Its a much easier test. They are very clear that it is meant only for comparing vehicles and "your mileage will vary"

 

Good job on the nice low l/100km score Laurel!

Thanks Ryan.  Just back from a short hop to London Drugs--about 8 kilometers and I got the window sticker of 4.0 L per 100 kilometers.  That is 58 mpg US and 71 mpg Imperial!  Temperature out is 4 C.  I can hardly wait for my car to be really broken in and for Spring weather.  Maybe I will break some kind of record LOL.  I'll have to start playing with those trip gauges so I can take a picture of my results like all the guys do on the forum.  My results are on the empower screen and it disappears pretty quick after turning off the car.  I need to master those trip gauges in case I want to prove things for the Guinness Record Books.

Edited January 20, 2013 by Laurel

[roninsd]

If anyone could get the record, it's you, Laurel! :worship:

[Laurel]

Thanks Ron!  Maybe Tip will average out at 1 L per 100 kilometers LOL.

[Ryan McEachern]

Laurel, our Lower Mainland is an ideal place for hybrids. I watched as the entire taxi fleet switched to Prius' over the last little while. The mild winters and mild summers are a good fit, plus the fact that we have SO MUCH TRAFFIC on most routes that stop and go driving is a way of life. Plus, most of our highways are 80km, and even the freeways are only 100km unless you are heading up to the interior. I am expecting great things from our cars.

[Catmobile]

Not sure if I'm onto something here or not... but has anyone else noticed that if you start the car with a cold engine and reset the avg mpg, it will start averaging with zero and go up from there.  If you start it with a warm engine and reset it, I've seen 999.9 pop up and then the average works its way down, starting out in EV mode.  You can see from mpgomatic's video that it takes a while for the mpg to go up when it starts at zero.  Obviously, then, it depends on whether your engine is already warm, whether you can start off in EV mode, and how long the trip is as to what avg. mpg will be calculated.  I spent the better part of a tankful without resetting and I got 41.5 mpg (remember, it's not flat where I live, and we have E10 gasoline here).  I think we should probably be looking at averages over maybe half a tankful or more to see what these are really getting. 

[burgman400]

I would like to throw in my 2 cents into this.

 

1. Engine Break in has a large impact on mpg. I drive a Jetta TDI(Diesel, and my expectations are that the engine will not be fully broken until it reaches 20,000-30,000). So I would take the 2-3000 miles in the owners manual and double that figure before you actually get decent mileage. And if you spend a lot of time running around on the electric motor, there is less opportunity for the ICE to even break-in.
2. Weather(Wind, temperature, humidity).
3. And most importantly, the driver behind the wheel. I see lots of hybrid vehicles where I commute and the drivers definitely are not driving for mpg, they are flooring it around racing from red-light to red-light. Not coasting to a stop. Tailgating the car in front of them.

 

But as a comparision to the C-MAX, I get 38-40 mpg on my 20 mile commute, in city driving. This is with the diesel. I accomplish this by being very smooth, I accelerate with the traffic around from the light. But I coast in gear to the lights even if it means drivers behind me are impatient. The less time I spend sitting idling the diesel the better.

[darrelld]

I would like to throw in my 2 cents into this.

 

1. Engine Break in has a large impact on mpg. I drive a Jetta TDI(Diesel, and my expectations are that the engine will not be fully broken until it reaches 20,000-30,000). So I would take the 2-3000 miles in the owners manual and double that figure before you actually get decent mileage. And if you spend a lot of time running around on the electric motor, there is less opportunity for the ICE to even break-in.
2. Weather(Wind, temperature, humidity).
3. And most importantly, the driver behind the wheel. I see lots of hybrid vehicles where I commute and the drivers definitely are not driving for mpg, they are flooring it around racing from red-light to red-light. Not coasting to a stop. Tailgating the car in front of them.

 

But as a comparision to the C-MAX, I get 38-40 mpg on my 20 mile commute, in city driving. This is with the diesel. I accomplish this by being very smooth, I accelerate with the traffic around from the light. But I coast in gear to the lights even if it means drivers behind me are impatient. The less time I spend sitting idling the diesel the better.

 

Welcome to the Club fellow C-Max and TDI owner.

[Hansmb]

I purchased 2013 c-max hybrid in Oct. 2012. Started off getting 43 mpg, the it dropped to 41, and has fallen steadily to current 38.9 mpg. I love the car, but am very disappointed in this. I don't drive like an idiot, tires properly inflated, use the coach and make sure to maximize those measures, get lots of leaves, etc. is this going to keep dropping?

[RachelnLa]

Lots of people talk about the temp. Has the temp gone down since the purchase of your car?

[ptjones]

I purchased 2013 c-max hybrid in Oct. 2012. Started off getting 43 mpg, the it dropped to 41, and has fallen steadily to current 38.9 mpg. I love the car, but am very disappointed in this. I don't drive like an idiot, tires properly inflated, use the coach and make sure to maximize those measures, get lots of leaves, etc. is this going to keep dropping?

Go to the 3MPG gained threads in Mileage forum and it will answer your questions. Just put Grill Covers on your car.

[darrelld]

I purchased 2013 c-max hybrid in Oct. 2012. Started off getting 43 mpg, the it dropped to 41, and has fallen steadily to current 38.9 mpg. I love the car, but am very disappointed in this. I don't drive like an idiot, tires properly inflated, use the coach and make sure to maximize those measures, get lots of leaves, etc. is this going to keep dropping?

 

Noticed the same drop in mpg with falling temps, this week when we hit 70 degrees I got this;

 

[C-MaxJaxon]

I still get some trips in the 40 and 50+ MPG range in the cold, but it depends on the engine being warm from a recent trip, or a longer drive that allows the engine to run at operating temperature for a while to bring up the average. Plus keeping the heat off and relying on heated seats when the engine is cold.

[Generalbeluga]

I have about 2,100 miles on mine and the last fill up was 41.9 MPG (see Fulley below).  Here in So. Cal, temps have been warming up into the mid-60's.  I use the ECO cruise when on the FWY and try to drive conservatively in town.  I think the MPG will continue to go up as the car breaks in further.   I will be happy if I end up in the mid 40's MPG range once the car is fully broken in. 

[ptjones]

I have about 2,100 miles on mine and the last fill up was 41.9 MPG (see Fulley below).  Here in So. Cal, temps have been warming up into the mid-60's.  I use the ECO cruise when on the FWY and try to drive conservatively in town.  I think the MPG will continue to go up as the car breaks in further.   I will be happy if I end up in the mid 40's MPG range once the car is fully broken in. 

You can gain a few more with Grill Covers.

[Jus-A-CMax]

Hmmmmh....Gen and I are close, my part of the travel and the 600 mile tanks, I noted the temps have gone as high as mid 70s mid day when I went out and drop to mid 60s on the evening when I returned, that was last week. It's p*ssing rain these last 3 days, temps still fairly high in the mid 50s. I think your point with the grill was to remove them 70s and up but no doubt, your grills work much better in the colder north of the country.

Edited January 27, 2013 by Jus-A-CMax