Fusion Active

[Cobra348]

On 5/29/2021 at 5:29 PM, MeeLee said:

1- The electric motor works well in braking slowly, when using the empty car and just the driver.
Once you have to brake normally (like most cars do), the regen isn't enough on the Hybrid. 
Not sure if the Energi can brake better, since it has a bigger battery, and thus can absorb the braking energy better.

Once you have 1 or 2 passengers, forget about ever hitting 90% braking efficiency. The brake pads always NEED to aid the motor, because the motor just isn't enough; defeating the purpose of regen!

 

Not to mention 4 to 5 people and luggage, the motor is completely useless, with braking efficiency of below 50%!

It's far from acceptable!

Red light, stop signs, speed bumps. We see them all in abundance here, and hitting 80+ on regen while not raging out the driver behind me, is impossible!
While it's perfectly possible to just drive slower, I think the 40HP motor would have worked in 1980's to 1990's cars. Not today, where time is of the essence, and people are used to accelerate and brake more briskly.

An 80HP motor for regen, is the way to go for a Prius, thus should be the minimum for the FFH.
Heck, Honda uses 2 motors, the main motor, and a generator; and each can be used in parallel with one another to aid braking or acceleration.
Their generator is tiny. About 1/3rd the size of the FFH motor. Probably a true 20HP motor/generator; but it also rotates a lot faster.

 

2- The electric motor actually can do 60-62MPH at 20HP. That is, if you are already cruising at ~60MPH. But it's totally useless to propel the car beyond 50-55 without running out of battery.
The battery is also too small to maintain 60MPH for long.
Driving at anything above 55MPH makes no sense, as you'd be using up a charge in seconds (like literally less than a minute).

This only causes much faster wear to the battery, which is what I'm trying to prevent.

I was actually amazed at how little power the motor needed for speeds between 15-25MPH. Like literally 2-4HP. And cruising at that speed, one could spend minutes on electric alone!
For that, I'm really thankful to Ford. The Energi would have been the better car for sure, but also is more expensive.

At speeds between 55 and 65-70MPH, the engine and motor switching out between themselves, is really irritating.
I would consider it battery wear for nothing!
I'd have to keep my foot perfectly still, and not move it a millimeter, for the engine to maintain running at 70MPH.
With the CVT gear ratio, anything above 60MPH is best done on the engine, preferably 70-80MPH where it gets nearly identical MPG.

And the electric motor really should be turned off above anything above 60MPH, save for on a downhill.

 

Another thing I dislike, is that at speeds below 30MPH, when the battery is empty, the engine kicks in.
It's nearly impossible to keep the car at below 30MPH on the ICE engine!
It wants to slowly accelerate to about 40-45MPH, with the throttle open to the minimum.
Once the car accelerates beyond 30-35MPH, I'm forced to release the throttle a bit, causing the electric motor to activate.
But without having enough charge in the battery, that motor shuts down quickly, and the engine starts again, doing the whole thing over again!

I bought slightly fatter (taller sidewall) tires. Instead of 225 50 R17, I went with 235 50 R17.
An increase of about 1.5% larger diameter.
Hopefully this will somewhat tax the engine (by 1.5% more; ~1/3rd of an inch larger diameter), by lowering torque,  and also lowers road noise.
If I'm not happy, my next tire will be a 225 55 R17 (0.8 inch/3%) difference.

 

38MPG is basically what the 2.0 atkinson engine gets by itself. Look at the Hyundai Elantra using the same engine design. Gets ~36MPG average (up to 45MPG on the highway).

The battery in this case is totally toast, and only good enough to kickstart the engine.

 

3- The trunk compartment really only carries a large suitcase, and a small one.
As a driver, I have a 1ft cube container in my trunk, that hosts all the gear I'm lugging for myself, including tire airpump, cleaning gear, masks, etc... 
Because of the shape of the trunk, I can at best, add 2 more backpacks to a large suitcase + handluggage.

The back part of the trunk does host 2x medium suitcases.
But most passengers I pick up from the airport carry a large and small suitcase per person.
That means, one large suitcase has to go in the front seat. Not ideal.

Also, if the small suitcase is packed too full, it won't fit on top of the battery. Something with the metal bar protecting the trunk hood? Not sure...

4- The battery really needs to be mounted lower, and away from the interior of the car and gas tank.
In case of a fire, there needs to be a firewall (insulator sheet) protecting the cabin, so that fire will blow out from underneath the car, rather than in the trunk.

When removing the trunk wheel well, will offer plenty of space for the battery pack.
At the very least, the battery can be placed lower, and only halfway in the trunk, still allowing for a crumple zone.
At the same time, if the battery lowers by just a mere 3 to 5 inches, hand luggage can be stacked vertically, and the trunk would be able to fit 1 large, and 3x small suitcases (plus my 1^3 ft toolbox).

 

5- Being an Uber/Lyft driver, the left footrest is a bit too angled for me. It hurts my foot, keeping it tilted up so high for so long.
I did add a rubber carpet under it, so my foot will be slightly less back tilted.
But even then, my knee starts hurting after 10-12 hours of the same position.
Believe it or not, but I found that I can stretch my leg, by placing the left foot BEHIND the brake pedal.
Seems unsafe, but it isn't!
I can still fully depress the brake pedal, but also have my left foot rest behind it!

Thank you FORD!

 

A new issue has come up, and now I understand why not so many people like FORD.
They're complaining about low profit margins, but I just had to change my cabin and engine air filter, and what the heck was that all about?

6 screws for the engine filter?
Why would they go with that ridiculous design of a filter? Why not use the 6 cylinder engine air filter? It's not only cheaper, but the design comes with clips.
Most cars, engine air filter swap is minutes. This was 5 minutes.
And then the interior cabin air filter was a disaster, peeling off half the front dashboard to get to it?
Like W T F?

They should have used the Fiesta's design, which is the design of almost all cars.
Which is, just open the glove compartment, and at the back there should be access to the filter.
Not peel off 2 panels, lose or break those damn plastic clips, and unscrew 4 screws where of 2 of them are in a very difficult to reach spot... ???
Damn you FORD!

I can't hold back any longer ...

 

You bought this car used as I recall.  You KNEW what you were going to use it for I'm betting.  Now, here's my real question(s) ... as a used car buyer, did you take a drive in it of any distance or duration?  Did you look in the trunk area to ensure it could hold what you wanted/needed?  Did you look at the color of the vehicle - as I recall you stating you dislike the red.

 

See, I shopped ahead of purchase.  I asked questions, looked at reviews, tried things on for size as well as I could.  This was 2015 when I purchased my first FFH.  I KNEW what I was getting and the shortfalls.  But coming from a Fiesta to a Fusion, the added comfort, relatively same mileage and IMO better controls for defrost, etc sold me on it.

 

I improved the handling a bit with the addition of some Steeda parts.  I added a compact spare - as has Waldo - and did some other personalizations.  End thought:  if I spent as much time bashing and putting down technology I knowingly bought into, I wouldn't be able to enjoy the nice car that I have.

[MeeLee]

On 5/30/2021 at 5:34 AM, Sky14FFH said:

Hmm something is amiss.  I get it almost all the time and am almost always with a passenger, except iike when I said, sudden red lights. (how could a 120lb passenger make such a big difference on a 3500lb car?)  This is according to the brake coach.  I'm also real accustomed to when the lights turn red. Like the flashing orange crosswalk sign is a giveaway for me to let off the gas a 1/4 mile away knowing the yellow will come soon.

 

Hmm again something is amiss. Well it isn't easy but it isn't hard either.  I've spent 5 minutes in electric mode cruising back streets at 25mph.   I'll reverify this just so it doesn't seem like I am exaggerating.  Have you had any hypermiler self-training in the past 14 or so years?  Visit Ecomodder's website.  Are you using the Empower screen on the left?

 

Oh yeah that's what I usually do.  Start from a stop in electric to about 20-25 and then put the pedal down for a brisk acceleration to desired speed and then let off to let the electric take over again.  Just today on the way back from carry out computer said I got 60mpg.

 

I'd have to experience what your car is doing to see what you mean.

The only thing I do not like is when BOTH the electric motor (battery draining) and regular motor are moving the car at the same time. I'd rather the ICE be charging the battery if it is on as well as using the shared energy to propel the car

I just use cruise control in eco mode and let the car figure it out.  I'm sure I could do better hypermiling but it takes too much mental energy and I'd rather just keep my eye on the road

 

According to the computer and scangauge yeah, but I wonder how much of that is real life or just maybe a weird glitch.   I'm amazed when I am running at 66 miles per hour and getting over 50mpg while the battery is regenerating according to the computer.  It seems like an awesome sweet spot but is that really what it is getting?  I somehow doubt it.  I always get worse fuel economy on the freeway.

 

 

Word to the wise.  Stick with the OEM Energy Savers and you can't go wrong.  Herein could be the source of your problems.

Yeah that's totally why it needs to come in hatchback form like the Mondeo. Oh well that ship sailed.

 

100% with you there.

 

I've actually gotten 2 bikes in the back with some struggle and after taking the front wheels off.  Scratched the left side passenger door trim with a pedal once though.

Sure would be nice to get 2 bikes in easily without removing any wheels.  But that damn battery shelf and rear window/trunk bar.

 

Oh I believe you.  I almost always drive with my left leg up though.

I dunno I thought that was kinda easy.  The cabin filter easy enough to do too, but a bit of an unnecessary added struggle.  Remember I do my own brakes and on my other car have done tie rods, struts, valve cover gasket etc.

Not my old car.  It's a fiddle too, getting the clips off the cold air intake and struggling with the K&N - cleaning it, drying it and reoiling it.  At least it does its job according to the scangauge and the air intake temperature sensor matches the outside air temperature when moving.

 

Yeah that would make sense, but I'm careful and as far as hardness level from 1-10 I give it a 3 or 4 where changing the spark plugs and oil is a 2 and refilling the coolant and window washer fluid a .5.

 

Yeah, damn you Ford.  Why do the British and Europeans get all the fun?  Bring those cars here and you'll do well.

 

 

 

 

Umm, if your passenger is only 120lbs, is that a child? The average passenger here is closer to double that, at 160 for women and 180 for men, and it's not unusual to have 3x 200+ lbs passengers in the car.

 

I also was talking talking about 55 mph driving, not 25mph driving, to explain the battery drain.

Also I drive a good 3 to 5 minutes at 25 mph, depending on the charge; but that's not the point.

 

The ffh gets better mpg at 65mph, but it'll also wear out the battery much quicker. This was the point I tried to address. At 65MPH or above, it only takes a few seconds of driving on the battery before it's depleted, recharged, and depleted again. I want to avoid that cycle. Remember that most cells in the pack only have a limited amount of recharge cycles. By staying at 75mph, you'll lose about 10mpg, but hopefully can save the battery for more miles.

 

I also still am running the stock 225 tires. The 235 tires will be my upgrade replacements, to also correct the speedo's overreading.

The 235s are also eco tires, and I believe that older model ffhs had larger outer diameter tires, compared to the modern ffhs.

 

I've managed to swap out the cabin air filter by myself, but usually this wouldn't happen without breaking or losing something.

Nearly happened twice here...

 

Oh, and the door handle mechanism is a total disaster too! They really should have stuck with the fiesta's door handle mechanism!

Too many things can go wrong!

The fusion is unnecessarily difficult to maintain.

This week, I'll see if I can pump the oil out of the dipstick hole, like on the fiesta.  

The oil filter is also a pain to remove!

Nowadays, all cars should have the filter topmounted!

[MeeLee]

14 hours ago, Cobra348 said:

I can't hold back any longer ...

 

You bought this car used as I recall.  You KNEW what you were going to use it for I'm betting.  Now, here's my real question(s) ... as a used car buyer, did you take a drive in it of any distance or duration?  Did you look in the trunk area to ensure it could hold what you wanted/needed?  Did you look at the color of the vehicle - as I recall you stating you dislike the red.

 

See, I shopped ahead of purchase.  I asked questions, looked at reviews, tried things on for size as well as I could.  This was 2015 when I purchased my first FFH.  I KNEW what I was getting and the shortfalls.  But coming from a Fiesta to a Fusion, the added comfort, relatively same mileage and IMO better controls for defrost, etc sold me on it.

 

I improved the handling a bit with the addition of some Steeda parts.  I added a compact spare - as has Waldo - and did some other personalizations.  End thought:  if I spent as much time bashing and putting down technology I knowingly bought into, I wouldn't be able to enjoy the nice car that I have.

While I think the FFH is the BEST car I personally have ever owned, amd there is much good to be said about it, I do believe in fair and balanced reviews.

You hear all the time how comfy the car is, how quiet, and with the pedal to the metal, it does have some nice pickup. Not a sports car by any means, but not a prius C either.

You can read up on all the good in nearly every other review.

I think it's only fair that the bad gets some daylight as well!

 

That being said, many things you mention were out of my hand. I bought it, because it cost me quite literally only $3k after trade in.

It was a 2 years newer model (also I traded in a fiesta for a fusion), with 10k less miles on it, that was larger than my fiesta, and $7k cheaper, an 2 years newer than the car I initially wanted to buy (A 2017 C-max).

And my fiesta was giving me trouble.

 

The red, I don't like. Don't like the color, but not that I had a choice. It actually works well for ride sharing, as it's easier seen.

I get compliments on the color, but I would have liked a silver or beige metallic color better. Anyway,

I could have gotten the 2015 black model,  but black in FL is a definite NO.

I was more disappointed with the paint finish on the trunk. I think the car may have had some cosmetic damage and was repainted with a non metallic paint, that still closely resembles the stock paint. Either that, or ford's paint is really easy to scratch.

One can only notice when standing at a distance of washing the car, or closer.

 

The trunk space I did not know.

It never occurred to me, a car where 2 large suitcases didn't fit. Even my Fiesta can handle 2 large suitcases, albeit I'd have to remove the trunk bed liner.

I think you'd have to agree that 2 large suitcases should have been the standard for any trunk?

Still, it has enough space for 1.5 shopping carts, so it's only a nuisance when I'm taking 2 or more passengers from the airport, which happens about once every other week.

Edited May 31, 2021 by MeeLee

[Cobra348]

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

While I think the FFH is the BEST car I personally have ever owned, amd there is much good to be said about it, I do believe in fair and balanced reviews.

You hear all the time how comfy the car is, how quiet, and with the pedal to the metal, it does have some nice pickup. Not a sports car by any means, but not a prius C either.

You can read up on all the good in nearly every other review.

I think it's only fair that the bad gets some daylight as well!

 

That being said, many things you mention were out of my hand. I bought it, because it cost me quite literally only $3k after trade in.

It was a 2 years newer model (also I traded in a fiesta for a fusion), with 10k less miles on it, that was larger than my fiesta, and $7k cheaper, an 2 years newer than the car I initially wanted to buy (A 2017 C-max).

And my fiesta was giving me trouble.

 

The red, I don't like. Don't like the color, but not that I had a choice. It actually works well for ride sharing, as it's easier seen.

I get compliments on the color, but I would have liked a silver or beige metallic color better. Anyway,

I could have gotten the 2015 black model,  but black in FL is a definite NO.

I was more disappointed with the paint finish on the trunk. I think the car may have had some cosmetic damage and was repainted with a non metallic paint, that still closely resembles the stock paint. Either that, or ford's paint is really easy to scratch.

One can only notice when standing at a distance of washing the car, or closer.

 

The trunk space I did not know.

It never occurred to me, a car where 2 large suitcases didn't fit. Even my Fiesta can handle 2 large suitcases, albeit I'd have to remove the trunk bed liner.

I think you'd have to agree that 2 large suitcases should have been the standard for any trunk?

Still, it has enough space for 1.5 shopping carts, so it's only a nuisance when I'm taking 2 or more passengers from the airport, which happens about once every other week.

NOW I see where you're coming from on the remarks.  Thank you for clarifying.

 

Paint ... you have a '19 - I have a '20.  The red is Rapid Red (I believe).  Definitely not the Ruby Red of prior years.  That was a nicer red IMO.  I wanted the copper color that '19 had and found out it was a 1-year one, so I settled on red.

 

Trunk ... you had to muck around on the Fiesta to get 2 large suitcases into the trunk.  Well, altho it's somewhat different shape, the cubic footage of the FFH trunk is very close to that of a Fiesta.  I believe that's around 13 - 13.5 cubic feet.  Disagree that trunks should be scaled for "x" format/size cartage. 

 

I doubt trunks are foremost on an engineers mind when designing a car.  Since you carry a lot of stuff, an SUV might have served you better.  More space and all that.  I dunno.  All I know is that I can fit 3 17" tires (no rims AND you need to get it "just so") into the trunk area and the 4th will be on top of a folded down seat ... and that's how I haul them to the shop when I swap tread for weather changes. <shrug>

 

Again, thanks for the clarification as to the why of your remarks.  Unfortunately many of the items will probably not be addressed since Ford ditched all passenger cars in the US. <sigh>

 

[Sky14FFH]

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

The ffh gets better mpg at 65mph, but it'll also wear out the battery much quicker. This was the point I tried to address. At 65MPH or above, it only takes a few seconds of driving on the battery before it's depleted, recharged, and depleted again.

Silly question. Ok just asked, 126lbs but still a fine ass woman that makes no difference on the fuel economy.  She can be a bit distracting sometimes though so maybe could get better fuel economy by myself.

 

Then it's too late for me.  I once ran my battery all the way down on EV+. Everything was dead.   Maybe it's not a good idea to use that.  I'll have to defer to PTJones here since he's the only one I know of with a 200k+ hybrid Ford. My neighbor has a 300k+ hybrid Camry. The biggest impact I found on my fuel economy was not getting the Michelin Energy savers.  I THINK it is your tires.  Get the Energy Savers. See what happens.   I've managed about a mile and a quarter at 70mph before which was more than a minute.  I'll try again and report back. 

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

The ffh gets better mpg at 65mph, but it'll also wear out the battery much quicker.

It seems that way but I somehow doubt it.  I hope it doesn't affect the battery. The engineers seemed to have set it up so it remains at half charge almost all the time.  I rarely have a full battery accept after decelerating from freeway speeds at a steady pace.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

I also still am running the stock 225 tires. The 235 tires will be my upgrade replacements, to also correct the speedo's overreading.

Bad idea.  Get the Energy Savers.  Is there an overreading on this car too?  I know there is on my old car, the scangauge is more accurate according to highway mile markers and gps.  So it shows more miles than it has. I don't know why they do that.

 

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

I've managed to swap out the cabin air filter by myself, but usually this wouldn't happen without breaking or losing something.

Never broke anything. (Knock on wood).  There is at least one tutorial on youtube. Check it out. Eazy sneazy. 

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

Oh, and the door handle mechanism is a total disaster too! They really should have stuck with the fiesta's door handle mechanism!

Why what's the difference?  Been a while since I test drove a festiva.  Felt slow as poke though. Always asked for a stick.  The ST was a bit better but maybe because it wasn't broken in and maybe because it was hot summer it came nothing compared to cars with as much power as it supposedly had with about the same amount of weight as the early 90s cars like the Eagle Talon TSI which would just slam you in your seat and give you strong neck muscles.  Sure miss those.  They had balls.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

I get compliments on the color, but I would have liked a silver or beige metallic color better.

I like my sunset metallic red a lot.  However, it is a PAIN IN THE ASS to match even with a photo-spectrometer.   Why doesn't Ford give out the paint codes????
 

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

The fusion is unnecessarily difficult to maintain.

What?!!!  It's the easiest car I've ever had.  Once a year oil changes are the bomb.  Can't complain about the once a month fillups either.  Brakes after a ridiculous 70k miles.  Tires after 65k miles. MeeLee what are you talking about?  My old car would burn through tires till I put Michelins on it.  I drove it pretty hard though, as in tire screeching turns with some mild controlled drifting.

 

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

This week, I'll see if I can pump the oil out of the dipstick hole, like on the fiesta. 

Why?  Just let the dealer do it for $45 "Works" and get your tires rotated and the window washer topped off. Inspection of other bits. I feel it's worth it once a year. What am I saving doing it myself $15?  What's the point?

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

Nowadays, all cars should have the filter topmounted!

I can do my other car in the dark, it's side mounted.  Bit of a wrist twister to get past the support beam but no sweat.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

And my fiesta was giving me trouble.

What was wrong with it?

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

, but not a prius C either.

Haha the prius C I had as a rental once was EXCRUTIATINGLY slow.  Slowest rental car I ever had.  A comparably sized Renault Clio Dci (turbodiesel) I had once in Germany would kill it and got better fuel economy at a hard driving, mountain road climbing 49mpg. It was rated at 63mpg highway too.  They just get better cars there.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

but black in FL is a definite NO.

Totally agree.  White is a must in the tropics.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

I think the car may have had some cosmetic damage

That would be the sun.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

a car where 2 large suitcases didn't fit. Even my Fiesta can handle 2 large suitcases,

Hmm I found the Fiesta's trunk TINY.  No idea how you got any suitcases in it.  Maybe my memory is off but it was about 1.5 feet deep if I recall correctly.

12 hours ago, MeeLee said:

Still, it has enough space for 1.5 shopping carts, so it's only a nuisance when I'm taking 2 or more passengers from the airport,

I was considering doing that with friends but a Prius V might be better suited for that.

 

On 5/30/2021 at 8:21 PM, Cobra348 said:

if I spent as much time bashing and putting down technology I knowingly bought into, I wouldn't be able to enjoy the nice car that I have.

Gotta admit the Trunk hump, the sitting position and the lack of visibility are serious flaws though.   But why the hostility?  I also got the spare tire and jack kit.

[Cobra348]

19 hours ago, Sky14FFH said:

... <snip> ...

Hmm I found the Fiesta's trunk TINY.  No idea how you got any suitcases in it.  Maybe my memory is off but it was about 1.5 feet deep if I recall correctly.

I was considering doing that with friends but a Prius V might be better suited for that.

 

Gotta admit the Trunk hump, the sitting position and the lack of visibility are serious flaws though.   But why the hostility?  I also got the spare tire and jack kit.

Fiesta trunk has no HVB bump in it, so more inherent floorspace is available.  Also I do think the trunk depth is more than the FFH.  I might have to measure things against the sons '14 Fiesta.

 

As for the spare, I can't use it in the '20 due to a couple factors.  First, there is a sheet-metal self-tapping screw for the HVB cover that projects into the well.  I am not sure it removing it would be safe or not (cover loosening?) and this stops the tread from properly seating in the well.

 

BUT ... second is that the damn well itself is just a bit shallower than the '17 I had (or the '15).  That makes for a lifted well cover and not good. 

 

[Sky14FFH]

3 hours ago, Cobra348 said:

Fiesta trunk has no HVB bump in it, so more inherent floorspace is available.

Are you talking about when the backseats are pushed forward?  Oh or are you talking about the sedan?  Because there is almost no room in the hatch.

3 hours ago, Cobra348 said:

there is a sheet-metal self-tapping screw for the HVB cover that projects into the well

Damn didn't know that.  I'd take it out just to see if it matters.  Maybe rig an alternative.

3 hours ago, Cobra348 said:

second is that the damn well itself is just a bit shallower than the '17

Why'd you get rid of the 15 and the 17 then if you liked them?  Love my 14.  Think the 13-15s got the best fuel economy too.

[Cobra348]

19 hours ago, Sky14FFH said:

Are you talking about when the backseats are pushed forward?  Oh or are you talking about the sedan?  Because there is almost no room in the hatch.

Damn didn't know that.  I'd take it out just to see if it matters.  Maybe rig an alternative.

Why'd you get rid of the 15 and the 17 then if you liked them?  Love my 14.  Think the 13-15s got the best fuel economy too.

Model of car:  Sorry, should have stated ... sedans.  Never have had a hatch.

 

Screw:  I've debated the removal and might try it.  But the shallower well depth might roach things for me anyway.  <shrug>  I get past some medical issues, I'll try it.

 

Why trade ups?:  I put 38K+ on the '15 in just 16 months.  B2B warranty gone and 1) didn't wanna spring for ESP and 2) didn't wanna start paying for a lot of repairs.  At the time I had no feel for the ability of the FFH to actually NOT have many issues.  With the '17, I figured I'd get one more FFH since Ford had announced the end of Fusion in 2020.  So in Sep 2019 I got it delivered.

 

Mileage:  Am in total agreement with you on the MPG.  The '15 was my best one and sometimes got over 50 MPG with normal driving.  My brother had a '13 FFH and traded for an '18.  To say he's disappointed in the mileage is pretty accurate.

 

TBH, I now have major buyers remorse in trading the '15.  It handled well, got really good mileage, looked sharp (Tux Black, Terracotta interior, black rims and blacked out grille).  But my own refusal to pay for ESP "just in case" was its end. I filed that under the REGRET category of memories.

[MeeLee]

While the FFH has more trunk space than the fiesta, the fiesta's dimensions allow for 2 large suitcases to be stacked side by side upright, or 1 big one, and 2 smaller ones upright.
The FFH has too much unusable trunk space after 1 big suitcase (can't fit the 2nd big one, no matter what I try).
I am able to fit 1 big one, and 2 or 3 smaller suitcases, which would not have been possible in the Fiesta.

The Fusion Hybrid is more an issue of dimensions. Had they instead of ran the battery horizontally like is now, to stacked like a cube, they could have had just as many battery cells, but also have space for 2 large suitcases to be stacked.

 

My 235 are eco (energy savers) tires.
There's really NO difference between the stock and alternative tires, aside from about 0.5" (about 0.5-1.5" less than I wanted) outside diameter.

It'd be the same difference between a new stock tire, and one that's gone through the thread (only in the other direction).

For some reason I need to change all 4, since they all have about the same threadwear. 
I'm at 50k miles now. Tires wear faster on hotter asphalt.

 

With driving at 65MPH battery wear, I mean that each cell has only a limited amount of recharge cycles.
From my research on the forum, it appears most batteries last about 170k miles, before they noticeably start degrading.
Unlike the Prius, which has a large follower base, the Fusion doesn't have replacement battery packs.
It would have been nice that some grey market company would be able to replace the battery pack with an upgraded lithium battery pack.
It should cost about $5-7k as well (for the hybrid battery), modern prices, and should have a lighter weight, and a range of approximately 2 to 3x further, as well as allow for much higher currents to flow (meaning much better acceleration on electric).

 

Most car doors can be easily fixed by regular people.
FFH has a strange system that requires one to take the internal door panels off, because of their weird system that one can lose a screw inside the door.

It's made so only engineers and mechanics can fix a door handle, unless you are ok with taking the inside door panel off.

It's a real pain.

 

I actually could pump out the oil on my fiesta, and run the filter twice as long.
It saves me a filter. And an oil change doing it myself this way costs me just a 5Qt $25 oil jar.
Meanwhile the dealer over here charges $40 for inferior oil, and $50 for fully synthetic, which is just as good as my $25 oil.
I use Mobil 1, and/or Amazon Basic. Believe it or not, they're the best oils on the market from all the tests I've done, and often last 1 to 2k miles longer than most other oils, and 3-4k miles longer than dino oil.

 

As far as the mileage, I haven't tested it out on my '19 FFH, but the speedo is off more the faster I go.
From 0 to 40 it's only 1MPH off. At 80 it's over indicating 3MPH (showing 83MPH ). Tested with GPS.

The 235 tires will correct this, and also will hopefully allow me to cruise at ~30-45 on ICE only, when hybrid battery is empty, rather than continue to slowly accelerate.
It's kind of annoying to start at 30MPH, try my best to feather the throttle as light as I possibly can, without having the engine shut off, and see my car slowly accelerate to 45MPH.

I do currently run my 225 tires at 40PSI, which could be the reason why (as opposed to 35PSI from the dealership).

My 2019 also gets 50MPG in the city, and if it wasn't for highway, I'd see 48MPG regularly.
Since I do a lot of highway, avg MPG dropped to 45.5MPG. Still not bad. (that's with AC at 72F, fan at 1, and tires deflated a bit to 36-38PSI).

 

Edited June 6, 2021 by MeeLee

[Waldo]

I'm really curious where you're getting this data that shows that battery performance trails off at 170K.  There are plenty of reports of the 2010-12 FFH having degraded performance, but that's due to the "clock" in the software, and when the TSB is applied, the battery performance returns back to just-like-new.  I really think you're worrying about nothing, you're not going to kill your battery by letting the car cycle between engine on and engine off while cruising around at 30mph.  This isn't like a battery on your phone or laptop, Ford has put a lot of safeguards into the system to conserve battery life, including the temperature management systems, controlling the rate of charge/discharge and managing the SOC.

 

BTW, just because the speedo is off, doesn't mean the vehicle speed signal is off.  The signal comes from a sensor on the transmission shaft and is then interpreted by the PCM.  It's then sent out to all kinds of various modules over the network including the speedo.  Those modules then do what they want with the signal - the speedo is generally calibrated to have a fudge factor to make sure it's always a bit optimistic.  One way to confirm this is to set your cruise control.  Note how the set speed displayed from the cruise is always a bit lower than what the speedo is reading.  The cruise control uses the actual vehicle speed signal, not the fudged speedo signal.  So when you change tire size, you might "correct" the speedo, but it means the rest of the modules will all be receiving incorrect signals.  The PCM and HPCM will be doing their calculations based on a signal that's indicating a lower vehicle speed than actual and their calculations of load/torque output won't be as accurate.  The stability control/ABS systems won't be as accurate since the wheel speed signals won't match the vehicle speed signal.  It may be so small that it won't make much difference, but just beware of what you're getting into.

[Cobra348]

And let us not forget the hit on mileage when swapping out the OEM Michelins.  I experience it after getting the snows put on, my brother ('18 FFH) got it when he changed to a different tire.  A couple other posters are in another thread and have experienced the same MPG drop when leaving the OEM tread.

 

While I don't like saying "keep it stock" I think in the case of the tires that's the way to go.

[Sky14FFH]

Meelee for once I agree with Waldo.   Even he gets it right sometimes.  Miracles happen. 

Agree with Cobra too.  Unless you can find BETTER low rolling resistance tires than the Michelin Energy Savers (that's going to take a lot of timely research), I wouldn't change things up.  And it's not just low rolling resistance that makes them more efficient.

 

A LOT of r&d went into the FFH.  There isn't a lot of tweaking other than aero mods and driving style you can do to make them any better.  Paul T Jones would be the expert on all that.