hal9000

As a possible additional hint, the right hand info screen on my dash was giving me a "communication with touch screen temporarily lost" message the afternoon before.... Honestly I don't even know what touch screen they're referring to. The base SE stereo doesn't appear to have a touch screen.... Unless it's been broken since I got the car!

Well, not quite stranded, but my ffh unexpectedly shut down as I approached a stoplight yesterday morning. Dash and radio worked, but every warning for engine came on when I tried to restart and the drivetrain (ice or electric) wouldn't start . 4 way flashers didn't work (it showed them as flashing on the cluster and I could hear the relay ticking) but the mirror mounted flashers did.... Like any good shade tree mechanic, I popped the hood and trunk and started poking around. A moment after pulling lightly on the main wiring harness I noticed the flashers had started working so I jumped in and tried the key and the car started right up. (Yay, cancel the tow truck, and drive home to change vehicles) I hope to diag/fix this on sunday. It seems based on symptoms like a loose connection that's causing the drivetrain to lose power. Maybe flashers are a clue to where? Is this a known issue and/or can anyone vector me towards the problem area? Also, any warnings about sensitive or dangerous items related to the hybrid system? And is there a battery disconnect? Thanks!

Yep, for the most part keys ride solo in the left pocket. I don't bother arranging them since I wear slacks and they move around quite a bit.

Anyone know I'd any of the aftermarket performance tuners will interface with ffh's?... Especially if they'll interface with the electric drive system..... Two reasons for asking.... The "legit" reason is that I'd love to have a tool that would give me realtime or logged information that I don't have a dash display for (rpm, temp, etc). The not so legit reason is that I've always wondered what it would take to tweak the performance on a hybrid.... I know it's antithetical to what the car was meant for and I'd never do it in reality.... Just call that part a thought experiment.

I'd love to know what to expect, or if there's an on-board health check tool.

Outside of the hours/idling question, can anyone shed any light on the sooty exhaust in general? Is it typical on these cars or related to a known problem? The seller had another identical fusion (higher mileage, worse cosmetic shape) that didn't have the soot build up, but that's just one data point....

I've only noticed it on the fob I usually carry. I'll have to switch to find out if the other does it, but in my estimate it's more related to the side/shape of the button than anything. All it takes is a little outside pressure on my pocket and anything that's contacting the button (chap stick, another key, etc) will depress the button. And since it's hard plastic, there's no give for minor pressure like you'd have with a rubber button.

Thanks for the heads up on tires. I'm not sure if what's on it are low resistance or not ( haven't checked? But my first tank average was 44.5 mpg, and that included 300 miles of highway use with a gross elevation change of about 15000 ft. So it seems like I'm doing ok.

14 ffh SE with 4 button flip key. I wouldn't mind occasional mishaps, but it literally happens every day if I keep my keys in my pocket

I'll probably experiment with a piece of milk jug that bridges across the button, and a little electrical tape. Ghetto, but if it provides a bit of extra resistance and makes the button harder to push I can live with that!

I can't believe how sensitive the panic button on my 4 button flip key is. I think I set it off 3 times walking around the house this morning and once playing with our toddler this evening. I swear it goes off if I look at the fob too intently! Aside from taping a piece of plastic over the button or (gasp!) Taking the keys out of my pocket when I'm at home, is there anything else I can do?

I heard it kick into engine braking yesterday on a long descent but didn't notice any dash indicator that the engine was running..... Theoretically they could engine brake without starting the engine just by engaging the transmission (would make the most sense from a speed reduction and fuel efficiency standpoint). Dang, now that's another question I have to find an answer for!

In terms of wear I can believe that, but it's not quite the question I was asking. I'm not sure what the lifetime average speed of most cars is (obviously it's going to vary to some extent), but that's another way of thinking about it. For example, if you ONLY drove on US highways at 75mph, then at 75k miles the hour count on the car would be 1000 hours. If you only drive in neighborhoods at 25 mph, then you'd see 3000 hours at the same mileage. If the car idles for 6 hours a day and then drives at 35 mph the rest of the time, your hour meter is going to have at least 10000 hours for the same mileage.... It can be a vague but informative tool, especially if you know what to call "typical".

It's a '14 but not highly optioned. Unless I've missed something big, all I have access to on the right screen is efficiency leaves and the compass.

Thanks. The manual dash icon index didn't have that symbol, and Aside from "hill" I wasn't sure what word to search for. I routinely make a drive that drops 6k' altitude in about 100 miles so im sure I'll get some use out of that feature!