hello everyone

[lewisb01]

I'm brand new to this forum and I just wanted to say hi.

 

I take delivery of my 2017 Fusion Hybrid SE this Friday and I'm pretty excited. I added the 602A luxury package, technology package, moon roof, 18in wheels and voice activated Nav.

Magnetic color with ebony leather.

 

Anyways this is my first hybrid car and I was wondering if you guys have any tips/advice for me etc... honestly this is the first Ford I've bought in years I usually buy acura's but one test drive of that 2017 SE and I was hooked.

 

I look forward to your replies.

Edited February 9, 2017 by lewisb01

[ceilidhdog]

Welcome to the forum. You'll find lots of helpful advice here, from folks who know their hybrids much better than I do my 2013 FFH SE. The best advice I can give you is to take your owner's manual, sit in the driver's seat, and go page by page through the manual, pushing all the buttons, twisting all the knobs, etc. It'll take a couple of hours, but you'll learn more about the car and its capabilities than you ever hoped to in a short time. You're going to love your FFH!

[rjrfusion]

Welcome,

 

I've had my 2017 Fusion, Hybrid, Platinum for about 6 weeks now. Few FYIs:

 

1. if you have an issue with the power windows not operating properly don't fret I did. All it needed was a quick reset which I found out here on the forum. Dealer told me to bring in for about 2 hours and they would fix. To reset just hold the window button down or up for 3 secs and bingo:)

2. City gas mileage is not what i expected. I do not have a lead foot, normally get 99% on my braking regen and try to cruise as much as possible. Getting 25 in the city. Getting 40+ on highway. Maybe car still needs to be broken in. MAYBE I CAN GET SOME COMMENTS ON THIS?

3. No problems with my first Ford and first hybrid. Had a VW Passat and Mazadas in the past. Love the Fusion so far.

[lolder]

It's winter and cold and that's the reason.

[djminfll]

I live in FL, so I don't experience cold weather driving, but I know using the heat (including heated seats) will have an effect on your mpg. But here are few suggestions to try if you haven't done so yet:

1. If you are pre-heating the car by remote starting it and letting it warm up before you get in, that will have a negative effect.

2. Of course it will be more comfortable to drive with the thermostat set to 75F, but setting it lower will increase your mpg. When I took my Fusion up north a few years ago, I had the temp set at 68 - the car was still comfortable, and my mpg improved.

3. Avoid "jackrabbit" starts - resist the temptation to speed away when the light turns green. The easier the pressure on the acceleration, the better mileage you will achieve.

4. Using cruise control will keep your speed more consistent.

5. Don't keep a lot of extra baggage in your trunk. When I traded in my old car, I emptied the trunk and I had so much extra crap in there.

 

Good luck with the new Fusion, you're going to love it!

[lewisb01]

Thanks for all the tips.

 

I live in Ohio and it gets cold here (currently 19°). When I test drove the car on Monday it was 55-60° outside and as a first time driver I was getting 38-40mpg. We didn't have heat or ac on.

 

I had no idea this would cause such an impact on the MPG's. The person who mentioned only getting 25 MPG in city is a little worrisome hopefully that's just operator issue and not the car. The whole point of getting this car was to get great city MPG, my current car is an 2004 Acura TL and it gets 19-21 MPG city.

[Hoagie]

I know the fan greatly affects the battery life on my Energi, but I wasn't sure it works affect the regular hybrid mode. Great information.

 

So far, I try to heat up the interior and then go into EV mode, using only the seat and steering wheel heat. It gets a little chilly by the time my miles are up, but it's great fun to see what it can do.

[rjrfusion]

35 degrees, engine cold - no heating up or remote startup. Heated seats and steering wheel off. Temp set at 72, fan speed set at 2. All stop and go traffic - mostly stop (in major congested NJ city - much like NYC), coast as much as possible, brake regen around 95% average, smooth gentle take off at green light. around 3 miles driven, 24.5mpg

[md13ffhguy]

^^^

That's just gonna be the way it is. At 3 miles, the car has not really heated up. With the temp set at 72, the ICE will run constantly. You're doing all the right things, but you won't gain much efficiency until it's warmer, or your trips are longer. Your only option to improve MPG for such a trip is to dress warmer, turn the temp down (or off), and use heated seats, if you have them.

Edited February 14, 2017 by md13ffhguy

[bdginmo]

 

2. City gas mileage is not what i expected. I do not have a lead foot, normally get 99% on my braking regen and try to cruise as much as possible. Getting 25 in the city. Getting 40+ on highway. Maybe car still needs to be broken in. MAYBE I CAN GET SOME COMMENTS ON THIS?

 

 

Cold weather and short trips will kill your mpg. You should be getting more than 25 in the city though. It's not uncommon for me to get in the low 30's on cold days with short trips. On the flip side, in the summer I frequently get over 50 mpg on longer trips if I keep my speed below 65 mph. One advantage of having the plugin is that I can do pure EV on the short trips and this keeps my overall mpg high.

Edited February 14, 2017 by bdginmo

[md13ffhguy]

You should be getting more than 25 in the city though.

A 2-3 mile trip is just not going to yield efficient results. In cold weather, turning the heat on will cause the ICE to run, probably nonstop until the engine warms. 25 MPG should not be considered unusual over the first few miles, and for a car that's capable of 40-50 MPG, measuring a 3 mile sample will not yield statistically significant results. What's the result over 500 miles? A tankful? 5 tankfuls? Only a larger sample size can give you a statistically significant result that can be interpreted meaningfully.

[bdginmo]

A 2-3 mile trip is just not going to yield efficient results. In cold weather, turning the heat on will cause the ICE to run, probably nonstop until the engine warms. 25 MPG should not be considered unusual over the first few miles, and for a car that's capable of 40-50 MPG, measuring a 3 mile sample will not yield statistically significant results. What's the result over 500 miles? A tankful? 5 tankfuls? Only a larger sample size can give you a statistically significant result that can be interpreted meaningfully.

Totally agree. 25 mpg would not be unusual if the trip was really short. Like you said...it's better to burn off at least tank before drawing too many conclusions.

Edited February 15, 2017 by bdginmo

[rjrfusion]

Hey thanks! I had a feeling it was the very short trips and cold weather but wanted to make sure. I'm sure the energi electric version would be great for my short trips but the trunk was too small and living in an attached row house makes it difficult to charge unless I draped an electric cord from my house to the street tree and down to the plug-in :)

 

So what does the acronym ICE stand for?

[md13ffhguy]

Internal Combustion Engine.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internal_combustion_engine

Edited February 17, 2017 by md13ffhguy

[bdginmo]

Hey thanks! I had a feeling it was the very short trips and cold weather but wanted to make sure. I'm sure the energi electric version would be great for my short trips but the trunk was too small and living in an attached row house makes it difficult to charge unless I draped an electric cord from my house to the street tree and down to the plug-in :)

 

So what does the acronym ICE stand for?

If it's not convenient to charge then you probably won't. I'm currently parking my Energi in the driveway right now because we have 3 cars and the other 2 stay in the garage. I haven't been charging consistently in weeks because it's not convenient. You probably made the right call by sticking with the non-plugin version.

[stlouisgeorge]

..the [Energi] trunk was too small..

This video makes me laugh. This poor guy is driving a 2017 Ford Fusion Energi that Ford asked him to review.

He has one video for things he likes and another video for things he hates.

What makes me laugh is the fact he has to put all his luggage in the rear seat.

The 8.5 cu-ft trunk has to be a deal killer for a lot of people (and one reason I skipped the Energi).

 

5 Things I Hate About The 2017 Ford Fusion Energi

 

10 Things I Love About the 2017 Ford Fusion Energi

 

There is another Energi review video where the guy demonstrates that you CANNOT put even one standard airline carry-on bag [solid frame] in the trunk of an Energi.

Edited February 17, 2017 by stlouisgeorge

[mwr]

I took one look in the trunk of an Energi and that was it :-)

[bdginmo]

Yep, the trunk space is laughable on the Energi. It also may not be financially wise to charge a lot. Gas prices are pretty low and for some the price/mile with gas will be cheaper than with electricity. Here in St. Louis our electric rates still make it advantageous to charge most of the time even in the summer when rates are higher.

[rjrfusion]

Thanks all!

 

Just input my first gas fill up on Fuelly.com. Reset MPG on car, drove around 8 miles on this lovely 45 degree am. Got 43mpg avg here in the city. Going down the Jersey shore tonight taking Turnpike and Parkway hoping to get minimum of 45mpg. Let's see.

[rjrfusion]

Got 46.7mpg yesterday . 84 miles Mostly highway

[lewisb01]

I wanted the Energi as well but I got 3 kids and that trunk was a deal breaker.

[Cobra348]

Heck, I felt sort of shafted when I realized the FFH trunk was about the same size as a Fiesta sedan has. A car 2/3 the size if the FFH and 900 pounds or so lighter has same trunk space. <shakes head>

[rjrfusion]

Yes, tough to put 3 kids in that trunk:)

[Timewellspent]

Yes, tough to put 3 kids in that trunk:)

 

True, I have 2 kids and I have just enough room to get them both in there. ;)