Consumer Reports

[pippin65]

Consumer reports rated the FFH the most reliable family car in it's newest issue. The "regular" version was number two...

[lolder]

Edmund's long term FFH car had an on the road failure recently with a red triangle "Stop Safely Now" message. It occurred a day after a dealer oil change servicing. They diagnosed a failed 12 v battery. This battery never gets rigorous in use testing that merely starting conventional vehicles provides as it does not crank the ICE. apparently the DC to DC converter would not provide sufficient buss voltage for the car to run. The ICE did not start and the vehicle ran the HVB down to "L" during the stop.

Edited November 11, 2010 by lolder

[EGFP]

Reliable and also safest.

 

The FFH and its cousins, the MMH and now the MKZ hybrid, are the safest hybrids out there by all measures. The rollover rating for the FFH was actually improved in mid-2010, when the cabin roof was strengthened. It was not widely publicized, but it led to an additional star in ratings for rollover resistance. This is simply the safest hybrid on the market.

 

Very good reliability and safety work for me.

 

I looked at the Prius, Camry Hybrid, Lexus HS 250h, Civic Hybrid and diesels from VW/Audi before my purchase of an MMH. I am really happy I went with the MMH. It makes the most sense now to me as it did in my pre-purchase research and test-driving.

 

Ford rocks!

Edited November 12, 2010 by EGFP

[zhackwyatt]

Reliable and also safest.

 

The FFH and its cousins, the MMH and now the MKZ hybrid, are the safest hybrids out there by all measures. The rollover rating for the FFH was actually improved in mid-2010, when the cabin roof was strengthened. It was not widely publicized, but it led to an additional star in ratings for rollover resistance. This is simply the safest hybrid on the market.

 

Very good reliability and safety work for me.

 

I looked at the Prius, Camry Hybrid, Lexus HS 250h, Civic Hybrid and diesels from VW/Audi before my purchase of an MMH. I am really happy I went with the MMH. It makes the most sense now to me as it did in my pre-purchase research and test-driving.

 

Ford rocks!

 

:( Anybody want to give me a 0% interest loan for 30 grand??? lol.

[Kelly Trusz Urban]

:( Anybody want to give me a 0% interest loan for 30 grand??? lol.

http://www.ford.com/cars/fusion/incentives/

type in the car and your zip, there are alot of 0% deals.

[georgeny]

http://www.ford.com/cars/fusion/incentives/

type in the car and your zip, there are alot of 0% deals.

 

Small print " Not available on Fusion Hybrid. For all offers, take new retail delivery from dealer stock by 1/3/2011. See dealer for complete details."

[Kelly Trusz Urban]

Small print " Not available on Fusion Hybrid. For all offers, take new retail delivery from dealer stock by 1/3/2011. See dealer for complete details."

that stinks, they excluded the hybrid on the $500 military rebate too. seems they're discouraging green purchases.

[dogo88]

that stinks, they excluded the hybrid on the $500 military rebate too. seems they're discouraging green purchases.

 

Not really. Rebates are for vehicles that may not be selling well, FFH are.

 

Dan

[Waldo]

that stinks, they excluded the hybrid on the $500 military rebate too. seems they're discouraging green purchases.

 

If you can only get enough parts to build a limited number of cars, wouldn't you try to get as much money for each one as possible?

[rfruth]

The hybrid probably isn't a big money maker for Ford but it gets the CAFE numbers up and its a feather in their cap + sales are up 7 percent so no incentives are needed

 

http://www.golf-talk.co.uk/news/car-mpg-comparison-hybrid-ev-or-plug-in/12458567

[AptosDriver]

Edmund's long term FFH car had an on the road failure recently with a red triangle "Stop Safely Now" message. It occurred a day after a dealer oil change servicing. They diagnosed a failed 12 v battery. This battery never gets rigorous in use testing that merely starting conventional vehicles provides as it does not crank the ICE. apparently the DC to DC converter would not provide sufficient buss voltage for the car to run. The ICE did not start and the vehicle ran the HVB down to "L" during the stop.

So what can you do about that? It sounds like a serious problem.

[FFHdriver]

So what can you do about that? It sounds like a serious problem.

This sounds no worse than having a dead battery on a non-hybrid that won't start the car because the battery wasn't charged. . The article doesn't say how the car was driven or what condition the 12v battery was in. I don't think anyone on this forum has reported a similar problem.

[lolder]

So what can you do about that? It sounds like a serious problem.

All of the eCVT full hybrids like the FFH and Prius are disabled by a battery failure, either high voltage or 12 vdc. A conventional non-hybrid vehicle, after it is started will usually continue to run after a battery failure so long as the alternator is functioning. Battery failure ( open circuit ) is rare but it will disable a hybrid. You would think that the DC to DC converter would keep 12 vdc power available to operate the accessories and computers but FORD, at least, senses the battery failure and signals for an immediate stop. They must have a good reason. Checking for the "green eye" will not protect you from the consequences of having a mechanical connection failure within the 12 vdc battery. The heavy 12 vdc current drawn when starting a non-hybrid sometimes warned you of an impending connection failure but that does not occur in a hybrid. I don't know if the "infant mortality" failure rate of the 12 vdc battery is higher in the FFH than other cars but it results in more road side breakdowns.