Got my $775 check today for the 2013 FFH I traded in on the 2014 MKZh last October. Got the Lincoln check on 7/29. More timely than I expected on the Fusion. Thanks, Ford.

Got the 1050 check today via Fed-Ex on my 2014 MKZh purchased in October '13. Wondering whether there will be something in the future for my 2013 FFH that I traded in for the MKZh.

The Ultra-Gauge works fine on my 2014 MKZh. I am sure the Android Torque app and a bluetooth sensor would show more data and could record it as well. Just not as convenient.

Really, with the "sort of Atkinson" cycle in our hybrids, there is unburnt fuel / air mixture in the intake due to the intake valve being open during first part of the compression stroke. That pushes part of the incoming charge back into the intake manifold to prep for the next intake stroke. Supposedly improves efficiency. Should not be cumulative though to cause the black smoke. Does cause an extra growl in the engine as the push / pull causes turbulence in the intake.

I notice my engine is much quieter during the initial warm up phase while the ignition timing is retarded then changes to louder abruptly when it switches to the next phase of warm up. You might get some different exhaust if you hit heavy acceleration while the engine was still in phase one of warm up. Not likely as it doesn't stay there long. You would notice a lack of power if you floored it with a cold engine as the timing would be retarded. Don't know about the smoke possibility.

The referenced photos are nice ones of the Aisin built 2010-12 hybrid. Would really like something like this for the 2013-14 showing Ford's HF35 version. It does appear that Aisin used beveled gears and I never heard any rattle in my 2010 FFH. No, the noise I refer to is not a whine but a rattle by my definition. Sure sounds like slack somewhere in the drive train and does come from the transmission housing. No longer a bother since I have decided it is not a defect but a feature. One that needs to go away in the future.

Really impressed by the detail you and LarryH have uncovered in the ways the hybrids operate. I noticed that my 2014 MKZh had a 2.91 final drive ratio versus 2.57 for the FFH. Also see that the FFHe has the 2.91 ratio as well. I haven't noticed any difference in rpms displayed at speed between my MKZh and my previous 13 FFH. Wonder whether there is a different program in the ECU for the 2.91s versus the 2.57s. Would think it likely so as to not just spin everything faster to produce the same highway speeds. Another variable in your calculations. Any idea what the logic is to use the 2.91 ratio in the Energi? The Lincoln I assumed because it is a bit heavier so maybe it is in the Energi for the same reason. Will you be able to produce a set of data that could be used to predict the expected mpg at a given speed assuming zero wind at 70 degrees on level ground with 50% SOC? That would be nice. Would save us all a lot of record keeping.

Has anyone found a diagram or photo of the Fusion Hybrid HF35 "trans"? Lots of pics of the Prius but Ford added a shaft or two which require more gears. Just curious whether any of the gear pairs have straight cut versus bevel cut gears. Straight cut gears have always been noted for noise when not under power or deceleration. I am just guessing based on the sounds I have heard from my FFH and MKZh that there is at least one set of straight cut gears. There should be a factory service manual that shows the internals by now. Haven't heard that anyone has had a service department take one apart so maybe not a manual as yet.

Really doubt the need for an early oil change in this transmission as it is so unlike what we have understood as a transmission in the past. This is just a couple of electric motors and input shaft from the gasoline motor all interfacing with a planetary gear set under computer control over the use of the electric motors to control torque to the output. No chains. No pulleys. No belts. No clutches. Just gears, shafts, and bearings. Bet this fluid will be clean at 100K miles.

I would rate my 2014 Lincoln MKZh quieter than average on road noise. I had a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid then a 2013 FFH. There was a big improvement from the 2010 to the 2013 and another big improvement to the 14 MKZh. My only complaint on noise is the drone the hybrid gas engine makes on heavy acceleration. Even the Lincoln can't keep this motor quiet. Think it is intake noise due to the "Atkinson" cycle blow back of the intake charge into the light weight (maybe it's not really plastic) intake manifold tubes. Wish these motors did not remind me of lawnmower engines with all the plastic they use. I know - they are saving weight but good old cast alloy intakes look better and would probably be quieter.

Copy of previous post by MSC928

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Good Morning,

The spec of the oil is:

Motorcraft® MERCON® LV Automatic Transmission Fluid XT-10-QLVC

Capacity 5,4Liter (5.71 qt.), but why do you want to check the oil level? Normally, the transmission does not consume any oil, except it is leaking. Ford recommend to change the transmission fluid every 240.000 Km (150.000 Miles) only (see owner manual page 435). Transmission oil level check is only recommended, if the transmission is not working properly (see owner manual page 257).

But be aware: Transmission fluid should be checked by an authorized dealer. If required, fluid

should be added by an authorized dealer.

-----------------------------------------------------

I believe it is pretty much regular automatic transmission fluid even though there are no clutches in the "transmission". That stuff will leak if anything will leak. Shouldn't happen of course.

My noise in the 13 FFH was only heard when the ICE was running at low speed as power was applied then released. Was also noticeable when the ICE cycled on or off below 25 mph. Like I have noted, it was probably amplified when I homed in on the sound and couldn't tune it out. I think it is reproducible in other FFHs but not a problem for most owners. Getting it warrantied was not going to happen as "within normal limits" was the answer. Never heard anything similar in my 2010 FFH.

One thing I considered is the clutch plate. You wouldn't think the FFH has a clutch plate but it is there and looks pretty much like the clutch plate on a 1950 ford. Friction pads circular on both sides with 4 coiled torque springs near the hub. It is apparently there as a passive slip clutch to absorb shock between the ICE and the electric motor box as the ICE starts and stops. I thought maybe mine had a broken spring but it would certainly be hard to inspect. I found the diagram on Ford's parts catalog on their web site. They do not show a blowup of the rest of the HF35 transmission so you can't really see all the places where gear teeth mesh. There are a bunch of gears in the box and I think at least one set has the ability to make a racket when the ICE is running in sync with the rest of the gears (no load). It would be nice if someone would do a video showing the Ford box like they have done for the Prius. This is only the second year for the HF35 so we will have to wait until some start to wear out before anyone will show how they are put together. The parts list only shows the transmission as a unit and they evidently just replace the whole box if one has a problem. So far haven't heard of anyone having a problem requiring repair.

Thanks for the info and pictures of the "transmission" fluid level check bolt. I had looked around there but it is not a very obvious screw or bolt. I was just wanting to verify that the noise I was looking for wasn't caused by low fluid level. There were no leaks so I finally decided the rattle was gear slack that only showed up when the ICE was going from pulling to coasting (no load) condition. Since there are no wet clutches in the Power Split Device like in a regular transmission it seems that a heavier fluid would reduce the noise versus thin ATF. Would not go against the factory recommendations of course.

I am guessing you may be hearing the noise that I obsessed about in my 2013 FFH. I had no luck getting 2 dealers service guys to listen and agree that it was abnormal. I traded for a 2014 MKZh partly due to the noise. It was something my ears tuned in and amplified but in looking back and including my experience with the MKZh, I have decided it was mostly or even entirely my problem.

The way I could best reproduce the noise was to force it into ICE mode while the engine was cold by putting it in LOW range and slowly accelerating to about 5mph then slacking off, accelerate, slack off. I would get a "bucket of bolts" noise for about 1 to 2 seconds each time. In real life mode, I would hear it up to about 25 mph when the ICE was in a "slack" mode or as it kicked in from EV.

I put microphones under the hood and recorded them on my laptop computer and thought they were abnormal. Now, I am not so sure. I think there is a bit of gear slack as the ICE spins up or slacks off (sort of a no load state). Not noticeable in the Lincoln but I think it is just because of the better insulation as I have heard it in the MKZh on a few occasions when the ICE is still cold.

Just sayin, this may be something "normal" that we just get tuned in and can't tune out. I spent many hours trying to pin it down. The best test I found to narrow down the source of the noise was to jack up both front wheels, start up the ICE (Low range), and listen to the engine with a really large screwdriver with my ear on the handle. Normal engine noise until I put the screwdriver on the HF35 "transmission" where the 2 electric motors and the planetary gears are located on the drivers side end of the motor trans unit. Really loud gear slack noise there. As the wheels would spin up the sound would go away but would sound off loud every time the ICE would "catch up" and spin the wheels again. At that point I felt the only way to fix it would be to replace the "transmission". Now I have decided it is probably not really a "fault" but a "feature" as some software developers would say. BTW, almost any car will make some gear noise when you jack them up and let them rotate the wheels with no load. I just think the FFH lets this noise come through to the driver in "no load" situations in a rather "noticeable" manner when the ICE and trans gears are cold and you slack off or apply power at low speeds. I did not get anyone on the forum to confirm they heard this noise so thought it was just my vehicle. May have just been my hyper sensitive attitude.

Please let us know what your service people say about your noise. Maybe yours is different from what I had and maybe there is a fix short of replacing a $6000 transmission or trading for a Lincoln for even more dollars.

I really sympathize with this whole door ding obsession. I misjudged the far away parking at the movies and got parked by on both sides and as expected got a ding on my 13 White Fusion Hybrid about a month after taking delivery. Paid a local body shop Paintless Dent Removal guy $150 to take it out. It was near the front edge of the rear door and he had the right tools to reach it without drilling any holes. Just removed the rear door panel and made it disappear. So far, none on the MKZh but takes lots of calculation as to how far out I need to park.

Don't have to be concerned about the rear panel being too shiny at least. Sure glad you guys are OK. Would not have wanted to be in rear seat of the folded white car (either seat for that matter).

Thanks, Murphy and Jeff. Things I know at one time aren't always known later. I knew they turned the day and month around but somehow had the July start date burned in and read mine wrong. I can believe 9/07/13 with it getting delivered to the dealer about 10/10/13. So the window sticker got printed or at least dated 8/30/13 and it took until 9/7/13 to actually finish the car. Still no way to know how long they actually take to build the vehicle.

I had always assumed that Build Date was pretty much the date the vehicle started through the final assembly line and was pretty close to the date it rolled out the door on 4 wheels. I thought from start to finish was maybe from 1 to 3 days. Guess that is not so. My 2014 Lincoln MKZh shows a build date of 07/09/13. I drove it at the dealer on 10/12/13 and they said it had been unloaded from the transport on the 10th and it still had white plastic wrap on the rear bumper and was not prepped. The bottom left side of the window sticker shows 08/30/13.

Just today I was looking under the hood and saw there were dated tags on some of the wiring harnesses. One near the firewall had 08/23/13 8:26am on it and one near the driver side fender well says 09/02/13 11:11pm. How does the build date of 07/09/13 relate to all these much later dates? I thought I read that the 2014 Fusions and MKZs were going to start building in early July but surely it doesn't take 3 months to build one of these.

Anyone looked at the paper tags under the hood (only dated ones I see are on wiring harnesses) to see how much time elapsed from the build date shown in ETIS?

I can confirm that my 2014 MKZh is a much quieter car overall than was my 2013 FFH SE. Road noise is less. The sound system is much better. Still, you can never get enough quiet. The difference between ICE mode and EV mode is a big incentive to keep the electricity flowing in the forward direction. I think I am going to drag some carpet remnants out of the attic and play with covering some of the intake areas and tubes to see if that drone can be further subdued.

My 2014 MKZh has the appendage. Built 07-09-2013. Quieter than my 2013 FFH SE but the ICE could still use more insulation. Has anyone compared the engine sound of the hybrid versus the 2.0 Ecoboost? Seems the hybrid should be as quiet as the turbocharged version but I suspect it is not.

I think the Atkinson cycle features used by our hybrids cause extra intake noise. The intake valves stay open longer such that part of the gas-air charge in the cylinder blows back into the intake to help the fuel mix on the next intake cycle. Intake noise is probably much of the ICE noise and this chamber acts to moderate intake sound. Still plenty of drone left. Wonder if some type of insulating wrap around the intake tube and maybe the actual (plastic?) manifold would help quieten the ICE?

$6 worth of matte black should be OK. Course it might get scratched pretty easy as it is "rubber" paint. The metalizer silver has quite a sparkle. Clear would knock the brightness. Check out dipyourcar on the net and on YouTube.

The colors are not translucent. The do have a CLEAR which does have a matte finish so it might cut the glare. I sprayed the bottom of the bathtub with clear and it made a nice no slip surface and is almost invisible.

For a bit of contrast to the usual gray and black Plasti-Dip, here is my 2014 MKZh in white with light coat of gold metalizer on top. The gold metalizer uses the Glossifier as a base and did add some shine. Anyway, this is all in the eye of the beholder and I like the white over my original Gray and alloy spokes. I know it won't take much to chip or peel it so will try and be careful with washing it. Nice thing about the white is that it is available at local home repair stores for $6 per can. I used 3 cans of white and about a half can of gold which had to be ordered.

Thanks, hybridbear and acdii for the help with the picture posting process. I can just resize and ftp pictures I might want to embed up to my storage and use those here. The gallery has it's advantages too.