Test drove 2018 CMAX Hybrid Titanium

[ptjones]

Drove a 2018 CMAX Hybrid Titanium to compare to my 2013 SEL, mainly interested in MPG's and handling/ride feel. I wanted to make a close comparison so I managed to talk the salesman into raising tire pressure to 50 psi, taping on my center and lower Grill Covers. Went on a 8 mile city driving trip and only managed 41.9 mpg, a little disappointed to say the least. :sad:  So I tried to figure out why, here are some potential problems. The car only had 50 miles on it, we were using Regular, trip was mainly going up and down hills for 8 miles. I'm thinking the ECM takes some miles to learn how to drive efficiently and the car wasn't aggressively trying to go into EV, accelerator was very sensitive about dropping out of EV as compared to my car. Things that should made it do better, temps were 73*F, installed Grill Covers which got WT upto 207*F in 6 miles which is very good, 50 psi tire pressure.

  By comparison I drove a 2017 CMAX Hybrid Titanium under less favorable conditions and got 46+mpg going 20 miles without Grill Covers and 50psi tire pressure.  The car did have 250 miles on it. :headscratch: 

 

Paul     

[fbov]

So... break-in matters?

 

I recall a Car and Driver testing a Mercedes V8 sedan at 800K miles. All original drive train. Mileage and top speed were slightly better than new. 

 

Have fun,

Frank

[Dave Hill]

A couple of questions:

Does it have warning sensors on the front bumper?

Does it have Bumper Skid Plates on the front bumper?

 

Other than these 2 items my 2015 SEL seems perfect.

 

Dave Hill

[ptjones]

A couple of questions:

Does it have warning sensors on the front bumper? I'm sure it does if you get the auto park.

Does it have Bumper Skid Plates on the front bumper? Don't know what this means. :headscratch: 

 

Other than these 2 items my 2015 SEL seems perfect.

 

Dave Hill

Paul

[Dave Hill]

As shown in your picture, the front bumper is really low so why Ford did not install a warning system for the front, I don't know.

Shortly after I bought my 2015 SEL it came to my attention that curbs are not uniform in height, especially in downtown locations.

That started my search for a skid guard. I saw some (don't remember where now) and it appears that attaching one would make the clearance

even less.

As I never buy new cars, I was not even aware of thew auto park option.  I'll have to check if skid plates are available from them

the next service.

[NRGTi]

PT- I know you're primarily focused on fuel economy. You're also probably aware of the difficulty of doing brief economy runs. Wind, road surface, traffic flow, hills, and all the rest will affect your results. I hope most readers will know that the US system of miles per gallon doesn't reflect actual fuel usage; ie, moving from 40 mpg to 50 saves much less gas than going from 20 to 30. 

 

My decision whether to trade up to a 2018 would hinge on other factors. Primarily, if you like the C-Max as much as you seem to, and as I do, a 2018 will be the freshest one you'll ever own! I don't have to remind you that '13 was an unlucky number for these cars, with reliability issues that don't show up in later models. I would make the trade for that reason alone, plus one more big one. Like my '17, it would have the "DISP" button on the infotainment system. This blessed button turn off the screen, and that's how I like it when I'm not accessing some setting. Who needs a distracting TV screen on your dash? I'd postponed buying a contemporary car over this alone, and when I first pressed DISP to see what it did, I shouted out loud!

 

Yes, curb clearance is a problem. Probably one main reason high-pants vehicles like SUVs and CUVs are so popular is their tolerance for sloppy driving. I started shopping seriously for my C-Max while waiting for a two truck, as my GTI was run aground on a parking lot curb, leaking oil. Modern designers and architects are finding novel places to stick curbs; how about right in front of a convenience store door, marking handicapped spots? My new Titanium model has the front distance sensors, which would probably have helped me avoid that mishap. 

[Shearwater]

We bought a new 2017 Titanium about three weeks ago. A hybrid wasn’t even on our radar but our timing was perfect, what with Ford’s announcement about car production and the cancelation of the C Max. There are big discounts and nice rebates to be had. We have had no problems with the ride height but we traded in a couple of low slung cars on the C Max so we’re probably used to watching for curbs and such. We’re really enjoying the car with our mostly urban driving. We really glad we found a Titanium at an SE price.

[ptjones]

I was looking at Fuelly.com for 2018 CMAX's which there was 7 with 71 fillups and a average of 44.9 mpg, most people don't show City/HWY driving %, but the best mpg's average was 51.9 and they appear to be using Premium. :) they're in Chicago and maybe on this forum. :)  

 

Paul

[jmcgliss]

The 51.9mpg average is my wife's 2018 SE. We've been using 89 octane in hot weather, but the first fill was 93. I suppose we could try a tank of 87 to see what happens. 

Edited August 31, 2018 by jmcgliss

[markd]

While you get higher mpg's with higher octane the cost difference isn't worth it. In my case I realized a 40 to 60 miles to a tank but spent about ten dollars extra.

Edited August 31, 2018 by markd