1 year update

[bdginmo]

I'm right at one year of ownership. My overall impression is very positive. I would highly recommend this vehicle to friends and family.

 

Miles: 16804

 

Repairs:

 

The electric heater had to be replaced. I was noticing that occasionally the heater would blow cold air when operating in EV mode. When this happened I could not switch to EV-Later mode (in hopes of having the ICE provide heat). The EV modes were locked out with X's over them when pressing the EV button. I had to pull over and power cycle the car to switch to EV-Later. This repair was made under warranty.

 

Commute:

 

My typical commute is 60-70 miles round trip to/from work. It's probably about an 80/20 mix of freeway/city driving, but like most metro areas traffic could  be stop and go on the freeways sometimes. Even when the freeways are open I try to stay as close to 60 mph as possible. I have not taken any long road trips yet.

 

Energy Efficiency:

 

Over 16804 miles I put 281.7 gallons of gasoline in the vehicle. The trip computer recorded 973.3 kwH of usage. Using 0.74 as the charging efficiency ratio I pulled ~1315.3 kwH from the wall. Sometimes I would charge frequently while other times I would burn through whole tanks of fuel without charging at all. My electric rates are 0.1218 / kwH in June-September and 0.0579 / kwH for the other 8 months of the year. I spent $552 in gasoline and $105 in electricity for a total energy cost of $657. My MPG ended up being 59.7 and my MPGe was 52.4. Note, that I compute MPGe from the total energy pulled from the wall. My highest MPGe on a single tank of gasoline was 69.0 over a distance of 996 miles. When comparing energy savings to a 28 mpg 4 cyl standard Ford Fusion I saved ~$550 in the first year. This was a bit lower than my original estimate and is due mostly to lower than expected gasoline prices the past 12 months, but also partly because I drove less miles than expected as well.

 

Charging/Battery:

 

I'm beginning to establish a behavior regarding charging and battery maintenance. Because my electricity rates are so low in the cold season (0.0579 / kwH October-May) I will probably charge as much as possible during this time. And because my electricity rates are higher (0.1218 / kwH June-September) and because gasoline prices are low I will probably limit my charging in the summer. Based on larryh's excellent research on battery longevity showing that a lower SoC during high ambient temperatures will significantly reduce calendar degradation this seems like an excellent strategy for me. I will be careful to avoid leaving the car parked with > 50% SoC especially during the afternoon. I live in St. Louis where summer temperatures are often > 90F. I can also keep my car parked in shaded garages both at home and at work. I can only charge the car at home though. I plan on upgrading to a 240v L2 EVSE in the next few weeks.

 

Pros:

 

1. Better than expected MPG in hybrid mode. I can usually get around 50 MPG without too much effort. Obviously this is substantially better than the 38 MPG EPA estimate.

2. I like being able to remote start the vehicle with my phone. This comes in handy when I park it at the airport with a billion other cars and can't remember exactly where I parked. It's also useful in other situations where the key fob doesn't have enough range.

3. I really like the seat warmers. I am a complete pansy when it comes to cold weather.

4. Opening the moon roof and the right rear passenger window slightly creates a nice air circulation behind the driver's head. This limits my need for the AC as long as it isn't too hot.

 

Cons:

 

1. I think the acceleration is a bit sluggish sometimes. It's probably on par with or slightly better than my previous 2007 4 cyl Ford Fusion though.

2. My Ford Touch is a bit slow to respond sometimes.

3. Trunk space is severely limited, but I knew this going into the purchase. You learn to adapt.

Edited July 16, 2016 at 04:42 AM by bdginmo

[larryh]

For the past 12 months, I have spent $344 on fuel and electricity.  For the previous 12 months, it was $404.  Other than that, my only maintenance expenses were yearly oil changes and a few tire rotations and balancing.  I had some updates applied to several of the computer modules the first year to correct bugs.  I had the rear view camera replaced under warranty last year.  I have 36,000 miles.

Edited July 16, 2016 at 09:33 AM by larryh

[troylikesbikes]

Purchased mine 1 year ago next week.

 

11k miles purchased used, 46k sitting in the garage this evening.

 

Slapped some tires on at about 30k, change the oil about every 5k miles whether the car likes it or not, going to get its 2nd air filter next week, 1st cabin filter at 40k, thinking about having the tranny fluid replaced here soon just to be on the same side for the next 50k, will probably ditch the original 12V as well, just to not be stuck in a lurch at exactly the wrong spot.

 

The thing runs, nothing has broken, the wife now takes it to work and back for its EV workout, and then I run it 5500 miles on a cross country road trip, where the miles come from.

 

It is the hybrid that hybrids should have been when they came out. None of this 42 mph, take the brake to turn off the engine crap, battery alone can heat and cool, you can charge it over the course of a day by using L to come down from interstate speeds, and then cycling the EV button, then run around town EV the next morning for breakfast or getting gas or whatever, and then  off you go again.

 

Last trip had 2 tanks at 50+ mpg on secondaries, and all the rest were solid 42-46 mpg. 32-38 at 80mph on interstate, loaded and with A/C on, directly correlated with headwinds as best I can tell. Give me still air and even at 80mph I am happy with the mileage. Give me 55-65 mph hilly secondaries and I am a kid in a candy store, kicking the car between EVLater and EV modes to get over smaller hills to coast and EV as far as I can on the other side, getting juice back in on the downhill sections, the thing is a blast. 

 

Let my aunt drive it last Saturday when I stayed at her house on my way from Mount Washington back to Denver last week, and Monday morning she went out and rounded up an off lease CMax Energi, which were selling at a fair discount over Fusions.

 

Comfortable, efficient, big enough to sleep in the back, wish I didn't need to lug a spare with me, it kills trunk space, would like 3-4 more gallons in the tank, but other than that I can't complain. Now that I am coming to the end of my usual 30K+ extended test drive, I must admit, this one might be a keeper. 

Edited July 20, 2016 at 02:53 AM by troylikesbikes