C-max on Consumer Reports Best American Cars list

[djc]

Best-rated American vehicle in Wagon category:

 

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2012/12/highest-scoring-american-vehicles/index.htm

 

Ford has highest-rated American vehicles in 7 of the 15 categories (including Fusion, Focus, Escape, Edge and Connect); GM has 4, Chrysler-Fiat 3, and Tesla 1.

[cmax-nynj]

.........and yet it does not help the resale value one bit.  And no one cares about a new CMax in the showroom given the low gas price and lack of marketing/design updates.  2016 CMax still requires a hefty option package in order to get a backup camera; unbelievable.

[djc]

True both.  Whatever the price of gasoline, I like the technology of hybrid and enjoy watching it work.  Ford has done a good job with it.  It is fun to try to maximize efficiency while driving, and Ford's design gives lots of opportunities.  But high mpg saves less money when gas prices are low.  This affects all high mpg cars, not just the Cmax;  for example 2016 Prius sales are expected to be tepid despite a major (and no doubt expensive) re-design.  Also major investments and new models by Hyundai, Ford, GM and others create more competition, putting pressure on prices of older designs.  And on top of that a strong dollar pushes down the price of imported cars.

 

The result is that hybrid and EV buyers have more options than ever, and a used C-max is a very good deal.  It's more useful, more fun to drive,  and easier to get in and out of,  than much of the competition.

 

BACKUP: Those of us who have looked at the cost of backup cameras on Amazon know the intrinsic cost of adding a backup cam is very cheap, well under $100.  So perhaps it is true that most car buyers are dumb and ignorant, and Ford counts on this in structuring and pricing options packages. But some of us are not dumb, and we resent the way we are treated badly by those policies dictated by marketing departments and not engineering.  For Ford it is a trade-off, but in the long run I am guessing that car makers that price options separately (rather than in expensive packages) and at a reasonable mark-up will be remembered more fondly, and those who don't will eventually lose customers.

As I remember (vaguely) one of the factors that contributed to Toyota's early success, besides superior reliability, was including lots of features for which American manufacturers nickel-and-dimed their customers  (AC - extra.  Tinted windshield - extra. Power Steering - extra.  etc etc).  People notice these things.   Result: Toyota climbed from a niche to major player.  I hope someone at Ford worries that irrational option packaging and prices might hurt customer loyalty.

[cmax-nynj]

I added a backup camera and backup sensors myself for little money; but it involved lots of labor.  What I meant to say is the lack or expensive to get backup camera deters more potential buyers

[raadsel]

I added a backup camera and backup sensors myself for little money; but it involved lots of labor.  What I meant to say is the lack or expensive to get backup camera deters more potential buyers

 

I'll agree that it seems odd Ford didn't offer it as an option on more cars, particularly for how cheap it is to install for cars that have a decent color video screen. To me it seems it should be standard on any car with MFT. 

 

On the flip side, I believe it is now the 2017 models that the backup camera is required to be standard equipment -- though it could be automakers have gotten it pushed back yet again.

Edited December 29, 2015 by raadsel

[ChrisMax]

I added a backup camera and backup sensors myself for little money; but it involved lots of labor.  What I meant to say is the lack or expensive to get backup camera deters more potential buyers

I tried to add a backup camera but it wasn't all that cheap.  The camera itself was cheap but it couldn't just be plugged into existing system (I have the Nvagation package).  It required the purchase of another unit costing over $300.  

[djc]

Yes, in the Cmax adding a cam seems to require a module to interface with the system that drives the center screen, and that after-market module is expensive.

But the actual technology is cheap and costs car-makers very little once they have a color screen installed in the dash.   There are cams on everything now - phones, cheap tablets, Chromebooks, etc.  The maker's cost to add cams to anything is low. 

[cmax-nynj]

I didn't have MFT and my camera setup cost me less than $50 in parts.  I mounted a screen on top of the cargo cover plastic and I can see the reflected image on my rearview mirror (or turn my head backward).