Hybrid Car Owners Discussion

Thought I'd throw this out there and see if there are other hybrid vehicle owners. I just picked up a 2013 Ford C-Max SEL ( It was a lease return with 20K miles on it). It's the Prius V competitor replacing the Ford Escape Hybrid for 2012. The C-Max has the standard Hybrid (non plug-in) and the Energi version, plug in.

The standard one I have has a 1.5Kwatt battery bank, and the plug in version is 7.5Kwatt battery (you loose some trunk space tho!), so you can go farther on battery. Both use engine and re-gen braking for charging. The batteries are Lithium-Ion.

it's averaging over 40mpg, one trip I got close to 48mpg. I really like it, had lot of room (larger than a Focus I was looking at), very quiet on the hiway and you can hardly tell when it's switching between gas, hybrid and full battery modes unless you're looking at the gauges. Small trips around town 30mph or under, if you keep your foot out of the throttle, it will stay on battery. probably about 2-3 mile range. the Energi version can go up to 12-15 miles on battery.

SEL?

Yep, SEL, forgot to mention that.
Glass Moon roof, Heated Leather seats, Full Nav system.

Nice. A friend bought a perfect TP with 100k on it for 8k. He gets 39 mpg @ 85 mph.

I added a Scangauge II to the OBDII port to keep an eye on other things in the car, Water Temp (WT), Tranny Temp (TFT), SoC (state of charge) of the battery bank, etc.. It works pretty good. I've been learning other tips for better mileage on the Hybrid Forums. Yes, i;m a slight geek for gadgets.

Now that the weather is getting colder. I put a grille cover on it to keep the ICE (internal Combustion Engine) warmer when it's not running and all the cooler air pushing into the radiator. Seems to work quite well and doesn't run hot at all. They over designed the cooling system. the bottom grille openings are still clear. It would drop 20-30 degrees on a long down hill running on the batteries. now maybe only 10-20 degree drop.

WNY wrote:I added a Scangauge II to the OBDII port to keep an eye on other things in the car, Water Temp (WT), Tranny Temp (TFT), SoC (state of charge) of the battery bank, etc.. It works pretty good. I've been learning other tips for better mileage on the Hybrid Forums.

Now that the weather is getting colder. I put a grille cover on it to keep the ICE (internal Combustion Engine) warmer when it's not running and all the cooler air pushing into the radiator. Seems to work quite well and doesn't run hot at all. They over designed the cooling system. the bottom grille openings are still clear. It would drop 20-30 degrees on a long down hill running on the batteries. now maybe only 10-20 degree drop.

Lordy, that is a 'green car', looky at the plants growing to the right of the speedometer

Nice Ride...looks like it has more room than most of the cars in the hybrid / electric class.

WNY wrote:It would drop 20-30 degrees on a long down hill running on the batteries. now maybe only 10-20 degree drop.

a 20* drop is supposed to be what you shoot for right....oh wait a minute that is on boiler return water....never mind!!

every little bit helps!

HA! yes the efficiency leaves, it's kinda funny. that was a good day. It grows leaves when it's running on battery or hybrid mode and looses them on the gas engine.

when it's cold and warming up running on the engine in the morning, All I see is a STICK or a branch with no leaves.

Very interesting post! Thanks!

I have the only hybrid model sedan that can tow ... which one is it?

titleist1 wrote:a 20* drop is supposed to be what you shoot for right....oh wait a minute that is on boiler return water....never mind!!

Glad its not a Prius. For some reason whenever I get stuck behind a Prius my blood pressure goes up. Its unexplainable. Especially if it has a Sanders2016 sticker.

I am always "behind" a Prius because the morons are hyper-miling to save a couple of cents and the environment. I make sure I gun it when I pass them. Wish I had a stinky tuned out diesel truck.

Kevin

Flyer5 wrote:Glad its not a Prius. For some reason whenever I get stuck behind a Prius my blood pressure goes up. Its unexplainable. Especially if it has a Sanders2016 sticker.

I used to think the same thing. The reality is they a very reliable well made cars. Especially good used ones. Like I posted earlier a friend who has one runs from Hatfield to Bradley field every day and gets mid to high thirties at over 75 - 80 mph...the flow of traffic during rush hour.

My wife's friend HAD a prius I think a 2005 with 200K miles on it, still was getting 40+ mpg, then totaled it, she just picked up a 2012 with 50K and avg. 45-50mpg depending.

The Cmax I have the gas engine is rated 140hp and the electric motor 40hp, so if you really get on it, it accelerates pretty quick when they both kick in.!!

It's a fun car to drive, I don't hyper-mill it, I try and drive it like a normal car, if no one is around, i'll try and not accelerate too quickly to keep it on the batteries as far as possible. I can get about 5 of the 15 miles to and from work on electric. it averages about 38-43mpg to and from work almost all the time.