Adrian_L Posted June 3, 2016 Report Share Posted June 3, 2016 Variable speed limits are a very good idea. There's no justification for flying along in the fast lane at 80 mph in the pouring rain with a 1/2 car length between you and the car in front. It's just as bad in England---if not worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nsteblay Posted June 3, 2016 Report Share Posted June 3, 2016 I think it is just a matter of time (5 years probably) that acceleration issues with cars will be a thing of the past. Electric motors have maximum torque at zero speed. Assuming the electric engines are sufficiently powerful, acceleration of an EV will beat an ICE easily. If you haven't go test drive a Tesla. As batteries get better and car manufacturers get better at electric and hybrid designs, muscle cars will be no more. Given the state of the technology, I think Ford achieved a good balance with the C-Max hybrid. With my 2013 C-Max I'm still amazed I get 43+ MPG yearly average and have no issues with adequate acceleration in a competitive big city commute environment. Toyota with the classic Prius has always favored maximum MPG over acceleration, visibility, style and comfort. The strategy has worked for sales volume. jestevens 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackalopetx Posted June 6, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 I think it is just a matter of time (5 years probably) that acceleration issues with cars will be a thing of the past. Electric motors have maximum torque at zero speed. Assuming the electric engines are sufficiently powerful, acceleration of an EV will beat an ICE easily. If you haven't go test drive a Tesla. As batteries get better and car manufacturers get better at electric and hybrid designs, muscle cars will be no more. Given the state of the technology, I think Ford achieved a good balance with the C-Max hybrid. With my 2013 C-Max I'm still amazed I get 43+ MPG yearly average and have no issues with adequate acceleration in a competitive big city commute environment. Toyota with the classic Prius has always favored maximum MPG over acceleration, visibility, style and comfort. The strategy has worked for sales volume. I think the reason Toyota sells the most is name recognition. Prius is virtually synonymous with hybrid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jestevens Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 (edited) Yeah, apologies to Ford but I think Tesla is in a whole other class of truly electric car - as far as I can tell there is no "transmission" - the power is provided by one independent electric motor for each wheel with speed synchronized by computer since computers are fast enough to do that now, the battery life is finally better, etc. This is where I expect a lot of cars to be within the next 30 years. With all that new technology right now comes a premium price tag, plus they also do customer service differently, maybe you have to when there aren't that many mechanical things that need changing. I like my C-MAX too, it's a good compromise. My friend offered to pay for gas if I pulled over so he could buy a soda and he was surprised to learn that the tank was almost still full after we had driven an hour and a half. Through an accident of marketing the SEL is a very nice car for an affordable price (used). Edited June 6, 2016 by jestevens ptjones 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdbob Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 Yeah, apologies to Ford but I think Tesla is in a whole other class of truly electric car - as far as I can tell there is no "transmission" - the power is provided by one independent electric motor for each wheel with speed synchronized by computer since computers are fast enough to do that now, the battery life is finally better, etc. This is where I expect a lot of cars to be within the next 30 years. Tesla's use one motor per axle (rear wheels on all models, also front wheels on "D" models). So there is still a gear reduction and a differential, essentially the same as our cars when driven with only the electric motor. There are a few cars with one motor per wheel, but they are pretty exotic at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian_L Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 Yeah, apologies to Ford but I think Tesla is in a whole other class of truly electric car - So what? It's not an Aston Martin either! Comparing the C-max to a Prius makes sense, but this doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamp45755 Posted February 27, 2018 Report Share Posted February 27, 2018 I have a 2018 CMax with about 1000 miles. I tried the ecomode, however it then drives like a Prius. Entering a highway can be dangerous here in Florida. I simply chose not to use it. The manual states you should also use premium fuel for the best performance. I tried both regular and premium and the car performs best with premium fuel. If money is an issue I would recommend using 89 octane rather then 87 octane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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