howardbc

The media reported a recall of Fusions (among other Fords) for airbags and seat belts on September 26, 2014: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2014/09/26/ford-lincoln-mkz-fusion-cmax-airbag-seatbelt-defect/16258897/ Mine fits the dates and location of manufacture. Will Ford notify us or should we just go to the dealer? Thanks.

Great photos, Hybridbear! Thank you. We had a lot of cars at our NDE (National Drive Electric) event here in the Phoenix area. Mostly Teslas, Leafs, and Volts. I had the only Ford Fusion Energi. A lot of interested people, although I am still chagrined at the basic lack of knowledge about hybrids, plugin hybrids, and EVs in the general public.

Just an FYI to anyone who has still not received their check from Ford: I did NOT receive any kind of notice from FedEx or anyone else that I was going to receive a delivery. It just showed up one day.

Yes, rtshinn. I think you're right. I try to "sell" the gas/money-saving aspect of my car but very few people also mention the negative impact of gasoline on our climate and planet. If they don't bring it up, I figure they don't "believe" in climate change and I am not about to start an argument with them.

I agree, HotLap, that Ford is to be commended for mailing out the checks. It sure puts the behavior of GM to shame, although their new CEO sounds good. If the window-sticker on your 2014 FFE had 88mpge (electric and gas) and 38mpg (gas only), then I assume you won't get a check. Those are the corrected EPA numbers, although I've always done better than that with my 2013 FFE. Congratulations on buying a very advanced car. If it's your first hybrid, there will be a learning curve while you adjust to coasting/braking/driving with a lot more thought than with a standard ICE (internal combustion engine) car. Come back to this forum often. The members are terrific at answering and explaining things.

Good for you, JeffPrice. I'd do the same but need the money for something else. That reminds me that there was supposed to be a settlement by Toyota for all the owners who had serious/life-threatening problems with their cars that caused their values to be lowered. I never heard a single thing more about it. Toyota, you should be ashamed.

I just got mine too! I almost feel kind of badly for accepting it, but I sure could use the money right now. My mpg (not MPGe) is down to 95 with our horrible heat, but that is still so amazing. I usually got 43-45mpg (on average) in my Prius. The FFE is 1000 pounds heaver and a WHOLE lot better-looking. I think it's wonderful that Ford is sending the checks. Has any other car company ever done the same thing? Without a class-action suit being involved? Thank you, Ford!

I'm jealous. I bought my FFE in March of 2013 and I still don't have my check. 'Sure could use the money. So Ford must not be using the "first-come, first-served" model for dispersing the checks.

'Sorry, I tried to reply to your post, Fusion Energi, but obviously I am "post-"challenged! Were you at work or in a parking garage when he pinned you in? You were wise to not allow his unreasonable anger to escalate. I hope this is the only bad experience you have with a member of the "Mean and Stupid" club.

Okay, after owning my 2013 FFE for over a year, I am still just puzzled by the purposeful lack of interest by some friends and family in how it works, etc. You would think that a couple of male relatives who are very interested in cars would especially want to know how this one works, etc. Instead I get, at the most, feigned indifference. One flat-out refused to even look at it. He still acts very uninterested. Is anyone who doesn't drive an ICE considered an unAmerican traitor to the oil and gas companies? If so, why? The few questions I get are usually negative - like "I bet it uses a lot of electricity to charge it up" or "I hear the batteries die" or "I can get great mileage using diesel" or so on. I know how to answer these questions/comments, and my skin is pretty thick, but I would love to know why some people love to "pooh, pooh" such amazing new technology. I have given up trying to get them to be even curious about my car, so now I don't even mention it. I have run into a lot of acquaintances who are genuinely interested, but I am just mystified by the cool, almost hostile, attitude from friends and family. I can't believe it is just me, because I read stories about people cutting charge cords or threatening Tesla owners. I know Henry Ford certainly ran into opposition when he introduced an alternative to the horse-and-buggy. But haven't we come a long way since then?

Hi, Mjasim. Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your 2014 FFE! 'Sounds like you are already doing great with your new car. Try to locate the few public chargers you might come across on the weekends. For example, if you're going to be in a restaurant for an hour, you might as well be using a charger, especially if it is free like the Volta ones. If you haven't done so already, I encourage you to connect with the Phoenix Electric Auto Assn. I joined years ago to get myself educated about hybrids and electric cars. I got very helpful information with no pressure. They occasionally have events around the Valley to educate the public and to allow one to show their car. If you need more info, let me know. Enjoy your car!

I'm in the Phoenix, Arizona, area. I guess my fuel economy also went way down last Summer too, but I wasn't keeping as detailed records as this year. I had been getting over 1000 miles out of a tank when the weather was more moderate, but I "only" got 972 miles out of my last tank, which was 11.70 gallons. My Lifetime MPG was down to 95.6 mpg the last time I drove the car. It had been as high as 139mpg one time this past Winter. But the car is just a dream so far. I've had the car for 1 year and 4 months. I've got 8123 miles on the odometer. My Lifetime brake score is 90%. I'd love to hear from other owners in very hot climates as to how their FFEs are doing this Summer. Thanks.

I got an email from EDTA this afternoon, advising that sales of plugins (including EVs and plugin hybrids) have gone up 96% in the last 12 months! I couldn't find the original email, but this says the same thing: http://pluginchicagometro.org/2014/08/number-evs-american-roads-increases-96-year/

Hi, Spartyof83. I have a 2013 FFE too. I haven't had this happen but also don't think I've ever shut my car off right after unplugging either. What you describe is very concerning. I'm afraid I have no ideas as to what it could be. I'm only responding just so you don't think we're all ignoring you. Please let us know what the dealer says. Thanks.

When I use a public charging station, I attach the following note to the open charge port door that says: "If you are driving a 100% EV and need this charger, call me and I will come move my car. My cell # is -------------." Also, I check MFM to see when the charge is complete and try to get back to my car around the same time. Just a thought ...

More good tips. Thanks, JATR4. I know I shouldn't have any "Go" times but will look and delete any just in case.

Thanks, pluggedin. I was in a hurry to get back inside my house and didn't want to wait in my hot garage, but that is a great tip about getting back in the car and hitting the "Start" button, etc. I didn't check MFM either. So I didn't know it hadn't done any charging until I rushed back out to the garage later only to discover than it hadn't done any charging. I will definitely be more patient next time and follow your suggestions. Thanks so much.

For over a year, I have manually plugged in/charged my car every night before I go to bed. I use a standard 120v outlet in my garage. I don't use any kind of "Go" times or anything that is programmed. I just plug it in every night around 9-11pm and it has been working great. The other day I drove my car in the morning, but I knew I'd need to make another trip later that day, so when I got home from my morning trip I plugged my car in so that I would get at least a small charge-up before my next trip in a couple of hours. However, the green light on the charger cord never blinked. The blue light around the charge port door never lit up. Anyone have any thoughts on why it wouldn't charge? I know the car has the ability to remember certain things. Have I somehow "trained" it to only charge at night when I'm home? If so, how do I un-train it? But it does charge during the day when I use a Blink or Volta charging station. Getting my own Level2 charger is out of the question right now because I would have to spend at least $1000 just to install a 240v outlet. (Power box on opposite side of house and wires would have to go up and across my roof.) Then there's the expense of the L2 charger itself. It has been extremely hot here. But it's just as hot at the Blink and Volta chargers and they work great. I'm stumped. Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks.

Great idea, SteveEnergi! I often plan where I am going to have lunch or shop depending on the availability of charging stations. Then I go out of my way to tell the restaurant/store manager why I am in their establishment that day. I'm also trying to encourage them to advertise on the free Volta charging stations. It's discouraging how few charging stations there are. If I'm going to be parked for at least an hour, it just makes sense to have a charging station available. Another irritation is to be totally unaware that a charging station exists at a particular mall until I just happen to accidentally drive by it. I have cards from Blink and ChargePoint, and have emailed Volta, but none of them send out notices when new stations are installed. I have found the current apps for locating charging stations to be lacking. Is there a new one that anyone would recommend? Thanks.

Same story for me. It was 110 degrees outside (much hotter inside my car with its black leather) after I charged up at a free Volta station in the Phoenix area this afternoon. Then even though I had an almost full charge, the system went into Hybrid mode a couple of times because of the heat. Of course I had the A/C blasting on Max. The heat here just makes a huge difference in the battery life. But I am still very glad I bought this car. Whereas my Lifetime MPG was 120-140 during the Winter, now it is around 105 in the heat. But that is still so much better than a regular (non-plugin) hybrid. And when I relate my MPG data to ICE-owners, their mouths just flop open and they are speechless.

Thanks so much, both Russael and Ashley, but I'm pretty sure Russael has armed me with the knowledge to discover the problem and fix it on my own. I got a damp rag and a dry towel and went out to my car to check the top grooves/area of my windows. Sure enough, I discovered that a labeling tag from inside the wind deflectors that had been installed by the Ford dealer in 2013 were coming loose in the heat! I removed the labels from all 4 wind deflectors and the windows now all work great. Going into my car's 2nd summer in Arizona heat, the labels just couldn't stay stuck any longer. They were on the inside of the deflectors so I didn't even know they were there. By the way, I highly recommend these kind of deflectors for anyone who hates rain blowing into your car but likes the fresh air. Also, when I park, I can lower my windows to let out a little of the trapped heat and no one can see that my windows are cracked open a little. I have had these wind deflectors on every car I've owned for well over 25 years. Here's what I'm talking about but my dealer installed a product made specifically for the Fusion: http://www.weathertech.com/ford/2014/fusion/side-window-deflectors/ Thank you both again. I appreciate the great help. This forum is just wonderful.

Recently my right rear window keeps going back down after I close it. So far I have managed to eventually get it to stay closed, but I worry that one day it won't stay closed and I will be in a pickle. I use my window switches every time I drive the car, which is maybe 3-4 times a week. I like to crack the windows a little to let the heat out while parked at the store or wherever. Then when I come home, I like to lower my windows at least halfway to let some air circulate. It's when I go to raise the windows all the way up to the top that I have been having the problem with one not wanting to stay closed. My 2013 FFE (Titanium) is 1 year, 3 months old, with approximately 8000 miles. Has anyone else experienced this little glitch? I will contact my Ford service department but thought I'd check with everyone here first. I'm sure it's just some kind of a switch and/or electronic gizmo that is being cranky, but would like to advise the service department if others have had the same problem. Thanks.

This really surprises me that the Lifetime EV miles are so hard to find/calculate. 'Seems like that would be something Ford would want to brag about.

Thanks so much! If I was supposed to fill out the form in the link you sent, I was completely unaware of that. Anyhow, I did fill it out and it certainly gave me the confidence that Ford knows about me. This forum has always been so helpful. Thanks again.