New Blue Candy SEL owner

[CandyBlue302]

So, we joined the C-Max family this weekend with a 2014 custom order C-Max in Blue Candy with the 302 option package and Medium Light Stone interior. I couldn't find non-Energi Blue Candy cars within 1000 miles of Denver, so it made sense to order and it was 10 weeks from order to delivery. We have driven 22 miles so far, entirely in urban driving and the car is reporting 45mpg, with 15 miles in EV mode. My commute to work includes 12 miles of freeway in a total 17 mile drive so we'll see how the car does with that tomorrow and I'll report back and include some pictures. But so far, I'm very happy.

[drdiesel1]

So, we joined the C-Max family this weekend with a 2014 custom order C-Max in Blue Candy with the 302 option package and Medium Light Stone interior. I couldn't find non-Energi Blue Candy cars within 1000 miles of Denver, so it made sense to order and it was 10 weeks from order to delivery. We have driven 22 miles so far, entirely in urban driving and the car is reporting 45mpg, with 15 miles in EV mode. My commute to work includes 12 miles of freeway in a total 17 mile drive so we'll see how the car does with that tomorrow and I'll report back and include some pictures. But so far, I'm very happy.

Sweet. Now get some air in your tires. They're rated to 51 psi ( I run 55) so you should add some IMO.  The door

label has a set pressure of 35 psi. It's like driving a bowling ball at 35 psi. You'll get better mpg's, handling and tire life running

a higher psi. Remember, the tire is rated for 51 psi, so find something you're happy with and check them regularly.

[RockwallRick]

Congrats!! Blue Candy is my favorite color on the C-Max! :rockon:

[kostby]

Welcome to the forums! 

As an old-timer who fondly remembers the grabber blue 69 Mustang Boss 302, I saw your username and started daydreaming about a nice 400 hp 5.0 liter (302 cubic inch) V8 stuffed into a C-MAX hybrid.

http://www.hsaservicecenterinc.com/projects/1970-ford-mustang-boss-302-grabber-blue/

[FordService]

So, we joined the C-Max family this weekend with a 2014 custom order C-Max in Blue Candy with the 302 option package and Medium Light Stone interior. I couldn't find non-Energi Blue Candy cars within 1000 miles of Denver, so it made sense to order and it was 10 weeks from order to delivery. We have driven 22 miles so far, entirely in urban driving and the car is reporting 45mpg, with 15 miles in EV mode. My commute to work includes 12 miles of freeway in a total 17 mile drive so we'll see how the car does with that tomorrow and I'll report back and include some pictures. But so far, I'm very happy.

 

Congrats and welcome to the forum, CandyBlue302! I look forward to seeing your pictures. :)

 

Crystal

[DavidMBailey]

Welcome!

When I got my Candy Blue last December, there were only two in the Denver area. Let 's see if we can find the other one! Incidentally, your C-Max will do real well in the mountains...especially on the downside.

[C-MaxSea]

Welcome &   :congrats: CandyBlue302 ! 

 

That is a very nice way to start off - 15 EV out of 22 miles.  Keeping the EV over 50% is definitely the MPG way to go;  of course the next step is discovering how to do that - a challenge for some, but very easy for many.

 

Have fun & enjoy the new ride!  Pics, yes !

 

Nick

Edited August 29, 2014 by C-MaxSea

[MomsHugs]

Hello CandyBlue ~ Ford must like using "Candy" because my first Ford was a Candy-Apple Red Mustang (I like my Ruby Red better). Will be looking for your posts on how you fare in mountain country. ~ MomsHugs aka Eve

[mlsstl]

Comment deleted.

Edited August 31, 2014 by mlsstl

[CandyBlue302]

Pictures still to come but after 2 months the car has been great - I've been following advice learned on the forum and after 4 tanks, the average fuel economy has been 44.3mpg. It has been mild in Denver which obviously helps. I'm up to 2350 miles so far and really glad that we bought this car.

[ptjones]

Congratulations on your new CMAX! Here are some useful bits of info concerning your CMAX. A lot of us CMAXers use Fuelly.com to keep track of our gas mileage.  Also if you check your odometer with GPS you will find it's off by about 2% so if you go 500mi. on the odometer, you actually have gone 510mi. On the other side have you noticed that when you fill up you use .5-1gal. more than the Smart Gauge says, Fuelly.com is a good way to keep track of actual MPG's.. With temps going down so does MPG's and you might look into making Grill Covers and adding Oil Pan Heater to minimize the problem, they are worth about 4-5mpg. IMHO :) 

 

Paul 

[vmmvmmm]

Sweet. Now get some air in your tires. They're rated to 51 psi ( I run 55) so you should add some IMO.  The door

label has a set pressure of 35 psi. It's like driving a bowling ball at 35 psi. You'll get better mpg's, handling and tire life running

a higher psi. Remember, the tire is rated for 51 psi, so find something you're happy with and check them regularly.

Careful with this.  The tires are rated independently of the car, so your best handling (and safety) will be at the recommended PSI on the car door.  Your best efficiency might be at a higher PSI, but you will suffer from degraded handling and likely shorter tire life and uneven tire wear if you exceed that.  For those of you who remember the Ford Explorer tire issues from a few years back, this was due to people not following the manufacturers guidelines for the tires as listed on the car, not on the tire.

 

Hypermilers typically overinflate their tires in order to reduce rolling resistance, which does increase MPG, but by definition, very low rolling resistance equals less sticky handling, so as long as you are going in a straight line in good weather, you don't notice much difference.  If you need to turn, or if the road is wet, you might have some problems.

 

As long as you are well informed of the risks and benefits, make your decision and enjoy.

[kostby]

For those of you who remember the Ford Explorer tire issues from a few years back, this was due to people not following the manufacturers guidelines for the tires as listed on the car, not on the tire.

 

You misremember: The "Ford Explorer" tire issues were primarily caused by UNDERINFLATED tires and often OVERLOADED vehicles that caused the tires to overheat, leading to tread separation and blowouts. It was not an issue of blowouts due to overinflation. The issue also led to the mandatory adoption of Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) by manufacturers: http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/rulings/tpmsfinalrule.6/tpmsfinalrule.6.html

 

Part of the problem WAS that Ford's recommendation on the doorjamb sticker (26 psi) was TOO LOW, NOT TOO HIGH. If you didn't check your tire pressure religiously, after a few months of neglect and lowered pressure due to decreasing outdoor temperatures, 26 psi could easily become 20 psi...

 

A recall notice was issued on September 1, 2000 (and updated several times in 2001) for 14 million P235/75 R15 Firestone ATX and ATX II tires (from 1991 to 2001) and all P235/75R15 Wilderness AT tires (from 1996 to 2001) manufactured at Firestone's Decatur, IL plant. 

 

Excerpt from the NHTSA notice (boldface italic emphasis added):

 

NOTE: If you have a Ford Explorer, Mercury Mountaineer, or Mazda Navajo equipped with tires in the P235 tire size (see question 2 above to determine what size you have on your vehicle), Firestone recommends that you increase the air pressure in the tires to 30 psi cold and maintain it at that level. Ford, as noted on the identification sticker mentioned above, recommends 26 psi for the Explorer, Mercury Mountaineer, and the Mazda Navajo with the P235 tire size. Ford now approves that a range of 26-30 psi as appropriate for these vehicles. Consumers who own Explorers with other tire sizes, such as the P255 or P225, should follow the recommendations of the manufacturer on the identification sticker in the vehicle.

 

Full text of the NHTSA recall notice here:

 

 

 

SUMMARY:

• OVERINFLATION of COLD tires beyond the tire manufacturer's sidewall-indicated maximum pressure is NEVER recommended for average drivers with normally-loaded vehicles in normal driving conditions. Taking it to track day? You're on your own.

 

• Inflating COLD tires ABOVE the Vehicle Manufacturer's recommendation, AND UP TO, BUT NOT EXCEEDING, the maximum indicated pressure on the sidewall IS NOT HARMFUL for average drivers with normally-loaded vehicles in normal driving conditions. Racing in Baja? Driving at sustained speeds above 120mph? Carrying 3 tons of cement? You're on your own.

 

• I DO NOT IMPLY that ride comfort, handling, miles-per-gallon, and tread wear won't be affected by increasing tire inflation pressure up to the tire-manufacturer recommended maximum on the sidewall. In our case, increasing cold inflation pressures from 35psi to 45psi cold did not affect ride comfort negatively, improved handling moderately, improved the mpgs a little, and it's still too early to tell about tread wear because the car only has 3400 miles on it.

Edited October 23, 2014 by kostby

[ptjones]

Careful with this.  The tires are rated independently of the car, so your best handling (and safety) will be at the recommended PSI on the car door.  Your best efficiency might be at a higher PSI, but you will suffer from degraded handling and likely shorter tire life and uneven tire wear if you exceed that.  For those of you who remember the Ford Explorer tire issues from a few years back, this was due to people not following the manufacturers guidelines for the tires as listed on the car, not on the tire.

 

Hypermilers typically overinflate their tires in order to reduce rolling resistance, which does increase MPG, but by definition, very low rolling resistance equals less sticky handling, so as long as you are going in a straight line in good weather, you don't notice much difference.  If you need to turn, or if the road is wet, you might have some problems.

 

As long as you are well informed of the risks and benefits, make your decision and enjoy. 

I replaced my Michelin's at 65Kmi. running at 50psi with a difference of 1/64" from outside to inside edges. I haven't noticed any significant difference in handling and braking. In the rain a smaller contact patch with the road is better to keep from hydroplaning. Even tire wear is an indication of proper tire inflation. So with 76Kmi. on my CMAX  I can't see any good reason not to run 50psi.  IMO :)

 

Paul

[vmmvmmm]

Seems like I remembered the situation just fine, I didn't mean to state the issues with the Explorer were due to overinflation, they were just due to improper inflation.  Like I said, if you're not worried about possible degradation in tire wear or handling, or if your driving circumstances don't produce those issues, then you'll probably be fine.  I was just stating that, in general, it's usually the safest bet to go with the manufacturers guidance for the car, not necessarily the tires themselves and be aware of what over or underinflating tires may cause.

 

As far as traction in the rain goes, it's not about a smaller contact patch, it's about proper ability for your tires to quickly drain the standing water.  A larger contact patch will always provide better traction, but a poorly draining tire will encourage hydroplaning - and in that case, a larger "contact patch" provides a greater chance of trapping water under the tire.  The smaller the actual contact patch is - defined as how much of your tire actually makes contact with the ground - the worse your traction will be in the dry or wet.

 

For most of my life, I've driven performance cars that are meant to hold the road in all situations, especially tight turns.  This type of tire does not encourage great mileage, however, so this crowd is much different for me in how they drive and how they think about contact with the road.  In other circles, the stickier the better.  Here, most probably are looking for the opposite, but most are probably not looking to carve a canyon at the edge of adhesion either.

 

What I like about the C-Max (getting back on topic, perhaps) is the fact that even though it uses low rolling resistance tires and is somewhat engineered for efficiency, it still has pretty good driving dynamics.  It's based on a capable chassis, and still has a relatively low center of gravity.  It rotates in an above average fashion for the class of car it is, so when it comes to turning, if I want to (and if I haven't overinflated my tires), I can fling it around a bit without upsetting the balance.

 

Regardless - congratulations on the new car, and sorry for hijacking this thread a bit.  I'm sure you'll enjoy it.