Only getting 16 miles of EV. Should I be worried?

[bfenster90]

New 2013 Fusion Energi with ~600miles on it and I can't seem to squeeze more than around 16miles out of EV before it kicks over to hybrid. That is with my standard commute averaging 60mph w/ very little traffic. Trying really hard to drive slowly/gently, maximize braking, and even turning the climate control off completely for the trip. (turning of climate control does seem to improve range by ~1mile). I'm using the 120v charger provided with the car.

 

My questions, will this improve over time? am I doing something wrong? did I get a bum battery pack?

[jeff_h]

The estimated range is based on past driving style and current conditions (like running AC or heat), so a steady 60 mph drive for 16 miles sounds about accurate.  if you took a couple days of slower driving around town with some regen included, a full charge would start estimating a higher number.

[Russael]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

 

A 60MPH commute is pretty fast, especially if that encompasses most of your daily trip.  The car is most happy to be driven electrically at 40MPH or less.  My commute during the summer (temps 80 - 95) without climate on, and at a top speed of 40MPH, would yield estimates around 32 miles of range.

 

With the onset of winter, my estimated range for the same commute has sunk to 21 - 24 miles of range without climate, and 16 miles or less with heat on.  I do take advantage of go times to warm the car off of the grid, which also warms the batteries a bit.

 

If you want to try to find another route that is traveled at a slower speed, and if you have the navigation system, choose the Eco route.  It will try to find a route that has the least amount of stop and go, and will try to limit your top speed as well (within reason... if you chose a 500 mile route, it'll most likely put you on the expressway).  That feature is also customizable in the sense of how much of a time delay is acceptable (low, medium, or long).

 

The original software programming of the Ford Fusion Hybrid was limited to 62MPH before it wouldn't go in to EV mode anymore.  That has since been raised to 85... but I bet it only stays in EV mode at that speed for maybe a minute on flat ground.

 

From your current description, your range estimate sounds where it should be for a high speed commute, so I agree with Jeff_h.  Most people manually control what the car does by switching driving modes between EV Now, EV Auto, and EV Later.  They save the battery for city commuting and use the engine for highway travel.  However, the goal is to arrive at home with a depleted battery.

[bfenster90]

Thanks for the thoughtful responses. I guess I don't have an ideal commute for an EV :) Oh well. Glad to get the mileage that I do and hopefully things improve in the summer!

[bfukumoto]

I didn't realize that the EV range when the battery is fully charged varies based on driving style and conditions.  I know the car is rated for 21 miles and had expected to see that number when the battery is fully charged, but I have never gotten more than 16 miles after owning the car since Black Friday.  I have driven the car 400 miles since taking delivery, mostly on freeway during commute hours.  My commute is 30 miles (24 miles freeway, 6 miles surface street) one way.  Average speed in the morning is 30-40 MPH; 45-50 MPH in the evening.  I haven't filled up the gas tank yet since taking delivery and gauge reads 1/4 remaining with 35.8 avg mpg.

[murphy]

The battery mileage number is an estimate based on how the car has been driven.  Once charged the battery has a fixed amount of energy available.  How the energy is used determines how far it will propel the car.  Drive the car at 80 mph with hard accereration and deceleration and it will be empty in a few miles.  Drive it with smooth accereration and deceleration at 35 mph and it will propel the car considerably further. 

 

Think of the battery as a bucket of water. 

Put a pinhole in the bottom of the bucket and it will take a long time to empty the bucket. 

Put a 2" hole in the bottom of the bucket and it will be empty ery quickly.

[Gigi]

bfenster90, What about change in elevation?  If you are going uphill, your EV miles will be lower.

[norcal]

I live in the Bay Area (Marin) as well, and have owned my Energi since late August.  I noticed after Black Friday, when the "Chillpocalypse" started in CA, that my battery charge capacity dropped quite a bit--from about 27 miles of capacity to 20.  So I'm guessing the cold snap has a lot to do with it.  I usually just drive in full EV mode, and I've been surprised how often the car turns on the engine to support other functions.  I usually drive without heat or A/C, but if I just turn on the fan to blow air over the window...it turns on the engine.  Doesn't the battery pack have enough to support climate functions? 

[murphy]

Do you have the car in EV Auto or EV Now?

[norcal]

EV Now--so I'm forcing it to run on battery only.  But the engine turns on and it displays a message on the screen about the engine being turned on for "system performance."  This is only for the defrost.

[Russael]

Defrost by itself not only runs the heater but also the A/C compressor.  That's a huge draw on the battery, upwards of 10kw, so the engineers at Ford made the engine come on to give those high draw accessories more power, regardless if you keep the car in EV Now.

 

My Expedition does the same thing when I put on defrost mode, so I avoid the A/C usage by using the floor/defrost setting.  That will limit it to heat only and it won't activate the A/C.  You can make the Fusion do the same thing, which will prevent the ICE from coming on.

[norcal]

10kw--wow.  I'll use the floor defrost instead--thanks! 

[TX NRG]

I keep my climate off and the temp set down to Lo. I cycle it on only for airflow to prevent window fogging and this keeps it out of battery draining Auto mode and keeps the compressor and ICE from starting in EV Now. It was 18 degrees earlier this week and I still made it 23 miles to the office on EV, and the hybrid battery for the last mile, without the ICE starting. Range has dropped about 5 miles since the summer due to the colder battery now.