Ford C Max, Prius killer?

...agree with this sentiment and this may help Ford. May be helping Volt.

 

Still looking to purchase a car in the next 2 to 3 months. I did another test drive of both the Prius liftback and the Prius V. I liked the Prius V much better personally, it has a better ride, better visibility, and I like the cabin layout more.

I am keeping my options open and still researching the C-max hybrid. If any drives one please post your review here. I am not sure when my local dealerships will have any.

 

My boss ordered the C-max over the weekend. He said they expect it to the dealership in late Sept. He still has option to cancel once he drives the car. I am not sure if he did the regular or Grand C-max version. He did not like the length of my V so guessing he went with the regular C-max. The car he is trading is the 06 Honda Civic Hybrid which has had one failed battery pack swapped out under warranty already along with the computer.

 

The C-Max got EPA certified at 47/47/47 mpg.

Ford C-MAX Hybrid: 47-47-47 | Green Energy News

It's starting to look quite appealing to me. I want a hybrid with good rear visibility, true fold flat seats, over 45 mpg, and a lot of headroom. Right now, that's only the Ford C-Max.

If the C-Max has any impact on the hybrid market, which it may not because Toyota dominates the market, I think this may be the first car that really pushes Toyota to step up their game.

 

Ford canceled the grand c-max. They wanted the line to be hybrid only like the Prius. He should get 7 more mpg in the city compared to his civic hybrid according to the epa.

I hope you are able to swap cars in october and give us a comparison between the v and the c-max hybrid.

 

Actual real-life price out the door is the deal breaker or maker.

 

Bear in mind that the C-Max is a smaller car than the v. The reduced footprint and cargo space accounts for much of the mileage difference. You need to decide between the mileage hit and need for space. The interior volume on the C-Max is closer to the Prius HB, which gets even better mileage.

 

Right. The C-Max has more interior space than the liftback but less than the V. It's mileage is also in the middle, as is its price. It all makes sense. However, the C-Max is the tallest vehicle of the three, with the most front and rear headroom, which taller people like me may appreciate, and it's also the heaviest vehicle by far, which may help with regard to ride quality and crash safety.

In an industry where so many non fuel-efficient cars are being built, it's a really interesting alternative to the industry leader.

 

Never mind. Misread $1k for $10K incentive.

 

The c-max is heavier than the v, and sits on wider 17 inch tires, instead of 15 inch tires. That means rolling resistance should be higher. The c-max and v have similar cd, which are higher than the lift back, but the c-max is both wider and taller. This makes cdA higher in the c-max, which means higher drag. The c-max has a more powerful engine and battery, which likely adds to that highway test efficiency. Hence, the only conclusion since rolling resistance, and drag are higher is that the c-max drive train is simply more efficient. YMMV, but the figures are 51/48 liftback, 47/47 c-max, 44/40 v. The prius liftback beats the c-max because of its lighter weight, thinner tires on smaller rims, and lower drag.

Now the c-max has a larger passenger area than either prii and a higher driving position. The c-max and v have different shaped cargo space from each other and the lift back. With the rear seats down the c-max has significantly more cargo space than the lift back, but only a little more with seats up. The prius v does have that station waggen form factor that has significantly more cargo space even with rear seats up.

Drive the cars, check out if it can carry your cargo.

 

The weight isn't necessarily a good thing when it comes to accident avoidance.

The crumple-zones may crumple more too.

 

Extra weight and taller vehicle are two things that are normally negatives when it comes to handling and accident avoidance. The multi-link suspension and wider tires should help the c-max, as the weight and high center of gravity hurts it. For ride quality, heavier is also worse, but... often to get things light and inexpensive automakers don't use the components for the best ride. You can see that toyota in the lexus ct200 added a better suspension, but kept it light but more expensive by making it out of aluminum. Ford seems to have taken some weight hits to use better performing components. Its all a trade off - price, weight, performance. All of these cars prius liftback, v, c-max all should be fairly good. Keys here are handling and braking.

 

IIRC, though, Ford's hybrids usually don't reach EPA estimates in real-world usage, as least based on what I've heard. A lot of automakers can design their cars in ways that more or less game the EPA tests, but end up in less-than-stellar real-world results. Just look at the controversy regarding the Elantra.

 

You heard wrong. My Ford Escape Hybrid AWD was rated 28 mpg and got a solid 30 mpg from it. A great vehicle.

 

The Escape didn't have a wildly high rating either. The fact that the Cmax runs a higher speed on the battery has a lot to do with the rating, IMO. At some point, the engine will have to recharge that battery and the efficiency will suffer. Motor trend tested the first gen CamHy versus the FusionHy and despite the massive difference in ratings (for the same reason, electric motor speed difference), the cars returned near identical numbers when driven several hundred miles. Physics trumps the EPA ratings, IMO. I can't wait to see Consumer Reports' numbers. They seem to have much more realistic testing because their testing includes a 150 mi road trip.

 

Here is the first substantive review of the C-Max I've seen:

2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid First Drive

One mystery revealed: why Ford never has a picture of the rear cargo area on their website.​

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jayhawksrule,

Thanks for the review link. I have been looking for some real road tests but most reviews just seem like glorified press releases. I guess we won't see some real ones until the car is out in the marketplace.

I have been anticipating the C-Max because it seems to fit the bill for how I use an automobile. My commute is relatively short but I do take long trips from time to time. Cargo room is also a factor. I was hoping there was more information on ride comfort in that review and what it's like to spend 3 or 4 hours in the car.

My local dealer will be getting one in toward the end of the month but they don't know which model. At least it affords me the opportunity for a test drive.

 

Here's another review of the C-Max in Automobile Magazine, a little more lukewarm than Edmunds. Actually, I can't really tell if I like the car or not in this review. They definitely don't love it:


First Drive: 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid - Automobile Magazine


In this first drive/review (in which the drivers hypermiled), 60mpg was achieved:

2013 Ford C-Max EPA rated at 47 mpg: first drive gets 60 mpg - National Car & Truck Enthusiasts | Examiner.com

Aol Autos says they like it:

Ford's New Hybrid Brand, C-Max, is Here ... And We Like It!

 

Here's a video review, comparing the C-Max to the Prius V. The reviewers seem to like both cars.