From a new, first-time hybrid owner

[Balaga]

I have been a member of this forum for a couple of weeks now, and I'm amazed by the wealth of information here! I didn't realize that there was a learning curve to driving a hybrid vehicle!

 

I only had a couple of hundred miles on my new hybrid, when we went on a 3000 mile road trip from Houston to Key West. Not your typical driving! Since we've been back home, I've tried to learn everything I can about how to get the most out of my new car. Thanks to you all, I know how to accelerate, brake, cruise, and set up my dashboard! This is my first Ford, as well as my first hybrid, and I can say that I already love this car! The safety features are amazing, and I love it when I can fill up the tank with only 10 gallons after driving farther than I did with my last car with a 20 gallon gas tank! Initially I was a bit confused by a lot of the information I found in the owner's manual. Thanks to you, it all makes much more sense. Thank you so much for all the help and information.

 

In Appreciation,

Nancy

Edited June 19, 2015 by Balaga

[mwr]

Welcome to the forum, I had told my sister about the mpg of my new FFH but she said it didn't really hit home until I said I drove 500 miles on a tank and fillled it with 11 gallons.

 

You'll find many opinions here about how to dirive the car. My own opinion (for me) is to just drive it like I want to drive it and let the mpg take car of itself, which it does a very good job of. The one thing i am doing a bit differetnly with the FFH is, knowing that moderate use of the brake won't use the friction brakes, is to be free to apply the brake down hills etc much more than I would do with prior cars; "dragging the brakes" we used to call it as a derogatory term, but now it's just fine.

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

I love it when I can fill up the tank with only 10 gallons after driving farther than I did with my last car with a 20 gallon gas tank! Initially I was a bit confused by a lot of the information I found in the owner's manual. Thanks to you, it all makes much more sense. Thank you so much for all the help and information.

 

In Appreciation,

Nancy

Edited June 20, 2015 by mwr

[lolder]

Sit in the car while parked and read completely through all the manuals ( twice if you can ) and push all the buttons and go through all the dash menus and screens. Most never do this but it will reward you greatly with this car. Enjoy !

[Balaga]

Thanks mwr and lolder for the advice. I have to admit, during the first couple of weeks, I ran down the battery a few times because I was sitting in the car playing with the buttons. The significance of most of it was lost on me until I came to this forum. I now know that I want to use the Empower screen to keep an eye on my acceleration, and what needs to go on the MyView screen!

 

Question....I am retired, so I don't have to make a long trek to work everyday. Most of my drives are to the gym or the grocery store which are, maybe, only a mile or two away. I have to cross some busy streets, and spend a lot of time waiting in traffic and at traffic lights. Needless to say, my mileage during these short trips is awful! I spend the trip either idling or accelerating. Any suggestions on how to improve?

 

Thanks,

Nancy

[mwr]

Most of my drives are to the gym or the grocery store which are, maybe, only a mile or two away. I have to cross some busy streets, and spend a lot of time waiting in traffic and at traffic lights. Needless to say, my mileage during these short trips is awful! I spend the trip either idling or accelerating. Any suggestions on how to improve?

 

Thanks,

Nancy

One thing is that on very short trips like those, the mpg can vary wildly because of differences in starting and ending state of charge in the battery. It's your overall mpg that counts, not any particular short-trip mpg.

[Sleddog]

If all you are driving is very short trips, you will be disappointed unless you have an Energi. The standard Hybrid really needs to get the ICE warm before you will see good mileage. With short trips, you will never get out of the warm up cycle for calculating mileage.

 

I drive 28 miles one way to work. It has a little bit of everything, stop lights, stop and go, 60 mph areas and so on. I usually get between 55 and 60 mpg on these trips. But I'm out of the warm cycle on each trip, even in the winter. You may want to drive a trip that allows the ICE to warm up. Once it's warm, stop and turn off the car, note your mileage. Then start the car again and drive back. Note the mileage when you get back to your starting point. You will see the difference in the mileage. The trip back, the mileage will be better because of no warm up cycle.

 

I specifically choose the FFH because after analyzing the vehicle and how it would be driven, it was the best choice. My current lifetime MPG is 53.4 with 22,500 on the clock. My fuel used is within a couple of tenths or less when I refuel. If I was driving short distances, I would have gotten an Energi. If I was driving long highway miles, it would not have been a Fusion at all.

 

I think part of the issue folks are having with Hybrids, in general, is they never really look at how the vehicle will be used vs. the type of driving to be done. For some, it never matches up and they end up not very happy about their purchase.

Edited June 19, 2015 by Sleddog

[md13ffhguy]

You may want to drive a trip that allows the ICE to warm up. Once it's warm, stop and turn off the car, note you mileage. Then start the car again and drive back. You will see the difference in the mileage. The trip back, the mileage will be better because of no warm up cycle.

No way would this play out the same for me as it does for you. Elevation changes far outweigh the warmed up engine factor. I could never get better MPGs on my return commute, even if I started at normal operating temperature.

[Sleddog]

One of the only few advantages of living in Florida, the weather in the summer, and the tourist and snowbirds certainly aren't. It's flat for the most part. But the use of A/C makes it very challenging to get good mileage on my trip home. I have to take a completely different route that has a lower speed limit and fewer stop lights, but it is the same distance.

[Hybrider]

.... But the use of A/C makes it very challenging to get good mileage on my trip home. I have to take a completely different route that has a lower speed limit and fewer stop lights, but it is the same distance.

 

The things we do to make our FFHs happy. :flirt:

[md13ffhguy]

One of the only few advantages of living in Florida, the weather in the summer, and the tourist and snowbirds certainly aren't. It's flat for the most part. But the use of A/C makes it very challenging to get good mileage on my trip home. I have to take a completely different route that has a lower speed limit and fewer stop lights, but it is the same distance.

You're one of the few on here who consistently posts better MPG numbers than me! It takes some effort and sometimes a little sacrifice to achieve real-world, better-than-original-EPA results, but it sure is satisfying! I've never regretted spending a few more relaxing minutes driving my FFH. :)

[lolder]

Thanks mwr and lolder for the advice. I have to admit, during the first couple of weeks, I ran down the battery a few times because I was sitting in the car playing with the buttons. The significance of most of it was lost on me until I came to this forum. I now know that I want to use the Empower screen to keep an eye on my acceleration, and what needs to go on the MyView screen!

 

Question....I am retired, so I don't have to make a long trek to work everyday. Most of my drives are to the gym or the grocery store which are, maybe, only a mile or two away. I have to cross some busy streets, and spend a lot of time waiting in traffic and at traffic lights. Needless to say, my mileage during these short trips is awful! I spend the trip either idling or accelerating. Any suggestions on how to improve?

 

Thanks,

Nancy

The car should be shutting off at stops. If you accelerate gently, you can keep it in EV on short trips if your SOC is high enough.

[Balaga]

Thanks for all the info. I have used these short drives to practice my accelerations skills, regenerative braking, etc. My mileage has improved, to a point. These short runs are a majority of my trips, but they aren't the majority of my total mileage. My total mileage is still above 40 mpg. I never considered an Energi because I had never heard of it before this forum. I skipped over those parts in the owners manual and thought it was a total electric car. I will never get the fabulous MPG numbers some of you can get, but my mileage is so much better than it was in my last car, I'm not disappointed.

 

Thanks again for all the tips, and the great information on this site! It's invaluable to me!

-Nancy

[stc]

My 2013 fusion hybrid no longer finds my iPod through the USB port. Any thoughts?

[hybridbear]

My 2013 fusion hybrid no longer finds my iPod through the USB port. Any thoughts?

Reboot the iPod?