Ford C-Max vs Prius after 1 year

[ChrisMax]

We've owned our C-Max for approximately 1.5 years and have 34,000 miles on it. Most of the miles are for commuting about 80 miles a day to work. It is a mixture of speeds 50% at and 50% under 65 mph. The terrain is very hilly though not mountainous and the weather is hot in summer and very cold and snowy in the winter. In November we put snow tires on which are removed in April. I have figured the cost of gas for the C-Max to be about $290 more than the Prius using the average miles per gallon figures for the 2013 model year of both cars from the Fuelly website,(49 mpg for the Prius and 43.9 for the C-Max).

 

Having driven both cars the Ford C-Max wins hands down and is totally worth the extra $290 in gas. It is a much more comfortable car in fact it feels almost like a luxury vehicle. Driving is a much better experience. The view out the rear view is obstructed in the Prius and the display in the C-Max is much less complicated.

[C-MaxSea]

Very good note ChrisMax !

 

and for those getting higher MPGs, an even greater superiority of the C-Max to the Prius; entry, driving experience, visibility, features, ..................... all across the board. 

Edited October 16, 2014 by C-MaxSea

[ptjones]

Good Job! :)  Just curious if you added Grill Covers, they are worth another +2MPG's. :)

 

Paul

[Wnuk]

Thanks for the comparison. I sure do enjoy my CMax.

[Jus-A-CMax]

Awesome. I've always wanted a Prii :puppy_kiss: ....now I am happyto be on this side of the fence. Did I just type that?!?!? :doh:

Edited October 16, 2014 by Jus-A-CMax

[kostby]

 

Having driven both cars the ________ wins hands down and is totally worth the extra $______ in gas. 

 

This is exactly the internal dialogue we use to justify purchasing ANY car that is waaaaay more fun, but less fuel efficient than the other.

 

Thanks for the insight!

[Kelleytoons]

Yeah, I've no doubt I would have gotten more mpg out of any Prius, but after driving one for a week there is also no doubt in my mind I'd never want one.

 

For about 47 mpg average so far I'm as happy as can be (and can blow the doors off any Prius on the road :>).

[ChrisMax]

In reply to Kostby

 

No it isn't!  I'm comparing two hybrid cars capable of achieving over 40 mpg.  Sure by taking things out of context one can make anything mean something else.  Within context my meaning is clear I prefer the C-Max over the Prius as far as hybrids in this mileage class go.  

[dmk2000]

I once raced with Prius from a red light. He had no chance. it was fun, safe fun since maximum speed was no more then 55 miles per hour on 55 miles per hour speed limit highway.

[Husker4theSpurs]

We have had our C Max for just over 2 years ... We have just under 50,000 miles on it. We traded in a 2010 Toyota Prius and had 2 Priuses prior. We chose the C Max primarily because the fuel economy looked to be close to the Prius and we wanted a bit more engaging drive.

 

I have to say I've been quite disappointed mostly due to the fuel economy. Prior to resetting the lifetime average we were at 36.9 mpg - obviously with quite a bit of highway and interstate travel. I would say in general we achieve 8-10mpg less than in the Prius. The drive is definitely more engaging in the C Max and front seat comfort is better. The back seat in the Prius is more comfortable but the C Max gets kudos for headroom. There are a few more tech options available in the Prius with LKA and radar cruise. Not to mention a sunroof that actually opens - no power rear door or panoramic option however. Cargo room overall is better on the C Max but surface area wise the rear may be larger in the Prius. Also I was able to fit duffel bags behind the front seats much more easily on the Prius with the rear seats folded.

 

Add in the C Max recalls and I kind of wish we'd kept our Prius. Again ... The C Max is definitely more engaging to drive and slightly more comfortable on long trips (debateable) but for fuel economy and recalls and dead batteries all in consideration ... Kinda wishing we'd held onto the Prius. Sorry, not trying to be a hater ...

[drdiesel1]

I have an Energi and purchased it specifically over the hybrid for 1 reason. Better MPG's... The EV capability

has been a 100% match for my use/needs.. It's been the perfect vehicle for me and the MPG's range from 999.9 to 88.0

 

I have 2000 miles on it and still have a 1/4 tank of the dealers gas. It's 50 x better than any Prii :love_shower:

Edited October 31, 2014 by drdiesel1

[ptjones]

We have had our C Max for just over 2 years ... We have just under 50,000 miles on it. We traded in a 2010 Toyota Prius and had 2 Priuses prior. We chose the C Max primarily because the fuel economy looked to be close to the Prius and we wanted a bit more engaging drive.

 

I have to say I've been quite disappointed mostly due to the fuel economy. Prior to resetting the lifetime average we were at 36.9 mpg - obviously with quite a bit of highway and interstate travel. I would say in general we achieve 8-10mpg less than in the Prius. The drive is definitely more engaging in the C Max and front seat comfort is better. The back seat in the Prius is more comfortable but the C Max gets kudos for headroom. There are a few more tech options available in the Prius with LKA and radar cruise. Not to mention a sunroof that actually opens - no power rear door or panoramic option however. Cargo room overall is better on the C Max but surface area wise the rear may be larger in the Prius. Also I was able to fit duffel bags behind the front seats much more easily on the Prius with the rear seats folded.

 

Add in the C Max recalls and I kind of wish we'd kept our Prius. Again ... The C Max is definitely more engaging to drive and slightly more comfortable on long trips (debateable) but for fuel economy and recalls and dead batteries all in consideration ... Kinda wishing we'd held onto the Prius. Sorry, not trying to be a hater ...

Interesting, what Life Time score are you getting now? You should be getting at most 4mpg less than Prius if you are driving it like you were driving  Your Prius. BTW I have been on a long trip in the backseat of a Prius and it was terrible, very uncomfortable after the first hour. My Life Time score is 47mpg with 80%HWY and 77Kmi. on the odometer.  The bottom line is you drive to get the MPG's you want to get. My Daughter's best MPG's in her Prius is 62 vs My CMAX at 65.4 a couple of times. :)

 

Paul

[Jus-A-CMax]

Its a balance between power & MPG and how you drive the CMax.

 

My CMax, I consistently get 61-66MPG City driving. With this tank, I hit the camping, loaded it up to the ceiling and got 48MPG return on a 207 mile round trip, WITH AC on and all freeway/highway driving. It used 4.31 gallons. Right now, I am at 11.99 gallons used and poised to break 700 miles bar. I hope to finish the tank at 770+ miles, all city driving. No too shabby when 4.31 gallons was used for camping  :victory:

 

I wonder what I would do in a Prius but I do know, that s*cker won't climb the Pass like the CMax or carry the load unless it was a V. 

 

Enjoy your cars and make as much hay as you can with it  :)

[scottwood2]

Interesting that I just read an article stating that Kia was developing a hybrid that is more car like and less like a Prius.  They say that there is a market for a hybrid vehicle that is designed a little more around style and less about being a hybrid. 

 

Can you say "C-Max"?  That is what the appeal was for me.  Ford is changing marketing strategy to something like this too.  I hope it works for them.  I still don't know why they don't advertise the 8 year warranty on the hybrid components too.  I know many people that say they are worried about battery life and this is covered with this warranty.  I did not even know about this warranty until I purchased the car. 

[Husker4theSpurs]

Interesting, what Life Time score are you getting now? You should be getting at most 4mpg less than Prius if you are driving it like you were driving  Your Prius. BTW I have been on a long trip in the backseat of a Prius and it was terrible, very uncomfortable after the first hour. My Life Time score is 47mpg with 80%HWY and 77Kmi. on the odometer.  The bottom line is you drive to get the MPG's you want to get. My Daughter's best MPG's in her Prius is 62 vs My CMAX at 65.4 a couple of times. :)

 

Paul

I am at 42.9 mpg since a recent reset. It will drop soon as the weather gets colder. I am by no means an extreme hyper miler but having had many hybrids I am very mindful in how to drive efficiently and do so as often as possible. Like I stated in my experience the C Max is consistently 8-10mpg lower and the new EPA numbers seem to support this ... Of course many are able to beat the EPA, myself included.

 

My interstate trips around here generally net me 36 mpg In the C max (@ 80mph ... Speed limit is 75mph on interstate here) and Prius would've been 44 mpg minimum.

 

Regarding the rear seat comparison ... I found the Prius rear seats more comfy because they were at least contoured versus a flat bench ... Headroom obviously goes to the C Max.

 

If I'd known the fuel economy difference would be this great I would've kept my Prius. That being said, the C Max is a much better drive overall. I regret giving up the reliability of the Prius as well ... I find myself worried with the C Max at 50,000 miles and random dead batteries and recalls that seem to happen more often than make me comfortable.

 

We are in the process of looking for a new vehicle and may go upscale small SUV or diesel wagon ... Otherwise we will hold out and check out the new Prius next year.

[ScubaDadMiami]

If you are traveling at 80 MPH, then getting 36 makes sense. I get about 38 at 80 MPH while running air conditioning. Anything beyond 70 MPH starts to pay a big drop in fuel efficiency in the C-MAX.

 

Luckily, I don't have to be in much of a hurry, most of the time anymore, so I rarely travel at those kinds of speeds. Even on my 5,400+ mile trip to New England and back, I pretty much set Eco Cruise at 68 MPH, and then I relaxed and enjoyed the ride. My average for my entire six weeks of travel was 45.6 MPG, and that included lots of extreme driving on 15 degree mountain ranges, and long periods of leaving the car turned on with the dog inside with air conditioning.

 

Frankly, I am happy to have both Prius and C-MAX drivers around. Anybody that is driving a fuel efficient, low pollution car is an ally. So, I have nothing personal against the Prius. I have really only driven the earliest models, which were great cars for their time, so I am not fully qualified to comment on the latest versions. I didn't like the interior of the V, so I never even bothered to test drive one. I really liked the C-MAX from the start, and I was convinced by the end of the test drive.

 

Regarding the battery issues and such, these are the days of vehicle recalls, across the board. Things happen to C-MAXes, and things happen to other cars. You saw my post about the Prius that burned to the ground in my parking garage? I am not saying that I am satisfied about these happenings, but I don't think that there is much chance of avoiding these events, no matter which car you may buy.

[ptjones]

I am at 42.9 mpg since a recent reset. It will drop soon as the weather gets colder. I am by no means an extreme hyper miler but having had many hybrids I am very mindful in how to drive efficiently and do so as often as possible. Like I stated in my experience the C Max is consistently 8-10mpg lower and the new EPA numbers seem to support this ... Of course many are able to beat the EPA, myself included.

 

My interstate trips around here generally net me 36 mpg In the C max (@ 80mph ... Speed limit is 75mph on interstate here) and Prius would've been 44 mpg minimum.

 

Regarding the rear seat comparison ... I found the Prius rear seats more comfy because they were at least contoured versus a flat bench ... Headroom obviously goes to the C Max.

 

If I'd known the fuel economy difference would be this great I would've kept my Prius. That being said, the C Max is a much better drive overall. I regret giving up the reliability of the Prius as well ... I find myself worried with the C Max at 50,000 miles and random dead batteries and recalls that seem to happen more often than make me comfortable.

 

We are in the process of looking for a new vehicle and may go upscale small SUV or diesel wagon ... Otherwise we will hold out and check out the new Prius next year.

Hybrids aren't designed for high speed driving and you would be better off with a WV Jetta TDI, on the down side CMAX gets 10-15mpg better in the city. BTW you can increase 2-4mpg by adding Grill Covers and Oil Pan Heater to CMAX. BTW if you have 50K miles and haven't had a battery problem you probably aren't going too. I have 77.6K miles and no battery problems. Keep in mind very few people have battery problems percentage wise. IMO :)

 

Paul

Edited November 3, 2014 by ptjones

[obob]

Hybrids aren't designed for high speed driving and you would be better off with a WV Jetta TDI, on the down side CMAX gets 10-15mpg better in the city. BTW you can increase 2-4mpg by adding Grill Covers and Oil Pan Heater to CMAX.  IMO :)

 

Paul

Consumer Reports rates Jetta TDI at 45 highway and EPA highway is 42.

And with diesel fuel more expensive I would like to know more on why you say the Jetta is a better highway car.

 

Thanks.

[ptjones]

Consumer Reports rates Jetta TDI at 45 highway and EPA highway is 42.

And with diesel fuel more expensive I would like to know more on why you say the Jetta is a better highway car.

 

Thanks.

I edited my Post.

 

Hybrids aren't designed for high speed driving and you would be better off with a WV Jetta TDI, on the down side CMAX gets 10-15mpg better in the city. BTW you can increase 2-4mpg by adding Grill Covers and Oil Pan Heater to CMAX. BTW if you have 50K miles and haven't had a battery problem you probably aren't going too. I have 77.6K miles and no battery problems. Keep in mind very few people have battery problems percentage wise. IMO :)

 

Paul

TDI owners are claiming 47mpg and Husker4theSpurs was thinking Diesels. I'm getting around 47mpg at 70mph with my aeromodded CMAX and probably get 43-42mpg at 80mph. I only go 80mph if the speed limit is 80mph and I have a drafting partner. For the gas money CMAX does as good as TDI HWY. :shift: :)

 

Paul

[Jus-A-CMax]

I edited my Post.

 

TDI owners are claiming 47mpg and Husker4theSpurs was thinking Diesels. I'm getting around 47mpg at 70mph with my aeromodded CMAX and probably get 43-42mpg at 80mph. I only go 80mph if the speed limit is 80mph and I have a drafting partner. For the gas money CMAX does as good as TDI HWY. :shift: :)

 

Paul

 

 

Fully loaded?!? No way in hell can I get that high going up the hill to Mammoth with that long elevation change over the trip. Coming back I can score > 50 MPG at load since I seem to average 46MPG overall for the round trip (and I score 38-40 MPG average going up).

 

Thats the thing, these MPG numbers needs to be put in context as there are big influences to the final MPG numbers - both internal ala load/AC and external such as elevation, traffic.

[ptjones]

Fully loaded?!? No way in hell can I get that high going up the hill to Mammoth with that long elevation change over the trip. Coming back I can score > 50 MPG at load since I seem to average 46MPG overall for the round trip (and I score 38-40 MPG average going up).

 

Thats the thing, these MPG numbers needs to be put in context as there are big influences to the final MPG numbers - both internal ala load/AC and external such as elevation, traffic.

I'm talking about tank MPG#s and I don't use A/C or Heater unless I have too (better half in the car).LOL I'm amassed you get the mpg's you do, good job!  BTW I have gotten 49.9mpg for 100+miles going 80mph(west Texas) drafting some and 20-30mph tailwind, don't think it means much, but it was fun while it lasted. :yahoo: :) 

 

Paul

[stevedebi]

My wife has a 2014 Passat TDI. We get around 43 MPG at 78 MPH. You are not going to get that in a C-Max. Like most hybrids, it is designed to maximize in town driving. I suspect one would get better MPG with the Jetta, which is smaller and lighter.

 

The C-Max also doesn't have anywhere near the pure power of a diesel. That is not a drag on the C-Max, it just isn't designed for the same thing.

 

I love my C-Max Energi, but I recognize where it shines, and where it is less than optimum.

[ptjones]

My wife has a 2014 Passat TDI. We get around 43 MPG at 78 MPH. You are not going to get that in a C-Max. Like most hybrids, it is designed to maximize in town driving. I suspect one would get better MPG with the Jetta, which is smaller and lighter.

 

The C-Max also doesn't have anywhere near the pure power of a diesel. That is not a drag on the C-Max, it just isn't designed for the same thing.

 

I love my C-Max Energi, but I recognize where it shines, and where it is less than optimum.

I looked up the 0-60 time for CMAX and Passat TDI and the  CMAX was 7.8 vs Passat 8.2 sec. and given the HWY MPG#'s the CMAX is still cheaper to operate.  Gas is about 15% cheaper than Diesel. IMO :)

 

Paul

[stevedebi]

I looked up the 0-60 time for CMAX and Passat TDI and the  CMAX was 7.8 vs Passat 8.2 sec. and given the HWY MPG#'s the CMAX is still cheaper to operate.  Gas is about 15% cheaper than Diesel. IMO :)

 

Paul

I have driven both, and there is no comparison. The TDI is a real kick-in-the-pants at all speeds. And if you drive the C-Max that way, you won't get good mileage; you will get good mileage if you drive the TDI that way. There is no comparison for road travel, in my opinion. I like my C-Max on the highway, but for our long trips we will take the TDI. But that is also because of the huge trunk and rear space in the Passat; once again, simply no comparison (not that a comparison is needed for such different platforms).

 

There is also no comparison for in-town; the TDI gets a bit over 30, while the C-Max gets way more. The C-Max is custom designed for what it does - in town, with the ability to go on the road.

 

Gas is cheaper now, but it wasn't earlier this year, and probably will be again, especially here in CA, where they have special gas forumulas.

Edited November 3, 2014 by stevedebi

[ptjones]

I have driven both, and there is no comparison. The TDI is a real kick-in-the-pants at all speeds. And if you drive the C-Max that way, you won't get good mileage; you will get good mileage if you drive the TDI that way. There is no comparison for road travel, in my opinion. I like my C-Max on the highway, but for our long trips we will take the TDI. But that is also because of the huge trunk and rear space in the Passat; once again, simply no comparison (not that a comparison is needed for such different platforms).

 

There is also no comparison for in-town; the TDI gets a bit over 30, while the C-Max gets way more. The C-Max is custom designed for what it does - in town, with the ability to go on the road.

 

Gas is cheaper now, but it wasn't earlier this year, and probably will be again, especially here in CA, where they have special gas forumulas.

Maybe it is because you are caring around extra 300lbs you think? Looking at the reviews it looks like NRG is a .5sec. slower than Hybrid.  All I know my CMAX gets up to speed very quickly when you stomp on the gas and the tires start to break loose at the start. :shift: :)

 

Paul

Edited November 3, 2014 by ptjones