Drove a Hybrid Maverick for the First Time

[ldanielsjr]

I was finally able to test drive a hybrid Maverick XLT on Thursday (AUG 24 2022). I was at Gary Yeoman's Ford in Ocala for some service work on my 2018 Explorer and noticed two Mavericks on their retail lot - XLT hybrid - $46,999 (white, CoPilot 360, 168 miles) / Lariat (cyber orange, LUX) - $54,000. I was told that both were purchased at auction for well over MSRP and that was the reason for the pricing. Both are listed as 'pre-owned' vehicles .

I was straight forward with the sales manager and told him I was not in the market for either of those as I plan to order a MY23. I wanted an opportunity to drive the hybrid to help solidify my decision to buy one, and they accommodated my request without hesitation. The hybrid XLT (my planned purchase with some additional options) did not disappoint. I had about a thirty minute test drive with a friendly sales rep, especially for him knowing that I was not planning to purchase at the end of the test drive. He was knowledgeable, but I found quickly that I actually knew more about the Maverick, features and options than he did, mostly thanks to this site .

I also wanted to see the location of the hybrid battery under the rear seat. I had concerns about how much space it would take up and how they had it positioned under the seat and its accessibility. I was happy to learn that it is not much larger than a conventional car or truck battery and it is stored in a way that does not destroy the under seat storage, even on the passenger side where it it located.

I enjoyed the drive and found it to a worthwhile and valuable experience. All in all, I am confident that it helped me continue leaning towards the MY23 Maverick hybrid.

Sponsored

 

[Trucklet]

I also wanted to see the location of the hybrid battery under the rear seat. I had concerns about how much space it would take up and how they had it positioned under the seat and its accessibility. I was happy to learn that it is not much larger than a conventional car or truck battery and it is stored in a way that does not destroy the under seat storage, even on the passenger side where it it located.

For what it's worth, that battery under thee rear seat in the hybrid IS the regular 12V car battery. The bigger high-voltage battery that actually does the "hybrid stuff" is somewhere else. (Not sure where - I had the EcoBoost)

 

[Bob The Builder]

Interesting prices on that pair of Mavericks. Looks like a little bit of a bidding war at that auction. I'd be mildly curious to know how long those two rigs sit on the lot before Mr. or Mrs. MoneyBags shows up. LOL.

 

[ClemsonU88]

I've driven mine a hundred times by now and am thoroughly pleased with it still. It's smooth, quiet, has good acceleration when I want it, and gets around 47 mpg when I drive it "gently".

If you don't want 0 to 60 in 3.2 seconds, I think you're going to love the hybrid.

 

[CuriousGary]

I was finally able to test drive a hybrid Maverick XLT on Thursday (AUG 24 2022). I was at Gary Yeoman's Ford in Ocala for some service work on my 2018 Explorer and noticed two Mavericks on their retail lot - XLT hybrid - $46,999 (white, CoPilot 360, 168 miles) / Lariat (cyber orange, LUX) - $54,000. I was told that both were purchased at auction for well over MSRP and that was the reason for the pricing. Both are listed as 'pre-owned' vehicles .

I was straight forward with the sales manager and told him I was not in the market for either of those as I plan to order a MY23. I wanted an opportunity to drive the hybrid to help solidify my decision to buy one, and they accommodated my request without hesitation. The hybrid XLT (my planned purchase with some additional options) did not disappoint. I had about a thirty minute test drive with a friendly sales rep, especially for him knowing that I was not planning to purchase at the end of the test drive. He was knowledgeable, but I found quickly that I actually knew more about the Maverick, features and options than he did, mostly thanks to this site .

I also wanted to see the location of the hybrid battery under the rear seat. I had concerns about how much space it would take up and how they had it positioned under the seat and its accessibility. I was happy to learn that it is not much larger than a conventional car or truck battery and it is stored in a way that does not destroy the under seat storage, even on the passenger side where it it located.

I enjoyed the drive and found it to a worthwhile and valuable experience. All in all, I am confident that it helped me continue leaning towards the MY23 Maverick hybrid.

$47K for a Maverick XLT? At a Ford dealer in Atlanta, where I put down a $1K deposit on a Maverick, there was a new Escape SUV plug in hybrid for $42K on the lot. Drove it. Great vehicle, but not a truck. ($42K is a good value too; Toyota RAV4 plug-in hybrid is around $50K, I believe.)

If this dealer tries to add a “market adjustment “ (dealer markup) of more than $2-3K to my XLT $32K order at 22 prices, I’m not ordering now; I’ll continue to drive my 2016 CMax hybrid a while longer.

Ford has got to watch out for dealers marking up factory prices, which will make Mavericks unattractive, value-wise.

 

[bluedevilruss]

Gary Yeoman salesperson emailed me back the price on that XLT when they first posted it, and I couldn’t hide my disgust in the “not no, but heck no” reply back. Usually I’m cordial when I tell the dealer that price won’t work. I didn’t care if I never heard back from that one.

 

[Dad]

Gary Yeoman salesperson emailed me back the price on that XLT when they first posted it, and I couldn’t hide my disgust in the “not no, but heck no” reply back. Usually I’m cordial when I tell the dealer that price won’t work. I didn’t care if I never heard back from that one.

Several Maverick shoppers have had bad experiences with the Yeoman dealership. As I recall, one of our members had placed a deposit and when she went to pick it up they had sold it out from under her.

 

[ldanielsjr]

Gary Yeoman salesperson emailed me back the price on that XLT when they first posted it, and I couldn’t hide my disgust in the “not no, but heck no” reply back. Usually I’m cordial when I tell the dealer that price won’t work. I didn’t care if I never heard back from that one.

I told him from the start that the $47K price was a non-starter for me. I also told him that I totally understood if he didn't want me to test drive it. I think the sales rep was in a bit of a bad spot, but kept trying to tell me things like "there are only three hybrids for retail in the entire country." I told him that it would likely be available for a while at that price.

 

[ldanielsjr]

For what it's worth, that battery under thee rear seat in the hybrid IS the regular 12V car battery. The bigger high-voltage battery that actually does the "hybrid stuff" is somewhere else. (Not sure where - I had the EcoBoost)

Thanks for the clarification ... that makes perfectly good sense now. I went back and looked at some photos of the engine compartment and didn't even realize there is no 12V battery in there. Thanks again.

 

[ldanielsjr]

I've driven mine a hundred times by now and am thoroughly pleased with it still. It's smooth, quiet, has good acceleration when I want it, and gets around 47 mpg when I drive it "gently".

If you don't want 0 to 60 in 3.2 seconds, I think you're going to love the hybrid.

That's great to hear ... I do have a question since you have driven yours for a while now. Do you do much highway driving, say in the 65-70mph or higher range? If so, do you get any benefit out of the hybrid or is it running strictly on the ICE at that point? My commute to the office is 35 miles, and about 20 of that is at 60-ish highway speed. Curious if the hybrid benefits me in that scenario, or if the 15 miles of so of city type driving will make up for it?

 

[ClemsonU88]

That's great to hear ... I do have a question since you have driven yours for a while now. Do you do much highway driving, say in the 65-70mph or higher range? If so, do you get any benefit out of the hybrid or is it running strictly on the ICE at that point? My commute to the office is 35 miles, and about 20 of that is at 60-ish highway speed. Curious if the hybrid benefits me in that scenario, or if the 15 miles of so of city type driving will make up for it?

Sounds like we have a very similar drive. I drive 32 miles to work, and about 20 miles of that is between 55-60 mph. The rest is 45ish stop & go. I get between 45-51 mpg most days.

We drove about 500 miles to Disney, and most of it was around 75 mph. I got about 37 mpg.

The truck will switch to electric when I'm going 65-70 if I'm going down a hill, but it's rare that it switches to electric otherwise at that speed. If I'm going 60 or below, it'll switch to electric periodically on flat surfaces too. Since my drive to work is largely 55-60, I get electric enough to help.

If you drive gently (no jack rabbit starts) and break in advance, (not knowing what type of hills you have to deal with) I would expect you to get AT LEAST 45 mpg on your trip. I got 46.5 mpg on my way to work this morning and should get about 55 mpg on the way home.

 

[ldanielsjr]

Sounds like we have a very similar drive. I drive 32 miles to work, and about 20 miles of that is between 55-60 mph. The rest is 45ish stop & go. I get between 45-51 mpg most days.

We drove about 500 miles to Disney, and most of it was around 75 mph. I got about 37 mpg.

The truck will switch to electric when I'm going 65-70 if I'm going down a hill, but it's rare that it switches to electric otherwise at that speed. If I'm going 60 or below, it'll switch to electric periodically on flat surfaces too. Since my drive to work is largely 55-60, I get electric enough to help.

If you drive gently (no jack rabbit starts) and break in advance, (not knowing what type of hills you have to deal with) I would expect you to get AT LEAST 45 mpg on your trip. I got 46.5 mpg on my way to work this morning and should get about 55 mpg on the way home.

Wow - that is great news! I have not had the opportunity to ask someone about their experience with the hybrid and your commute is almost identical to mine. I live in northcentral Florida so I have no hills to deal with, completely flat for me. If you are averaging 45-51 mpg most days, that is far better than I would have thought possible, so that is great news. Thanks for the response!

 

[Dallas Maverick]

The bigger high-voltage battery that actually does the "hybrid stuff" is somewhere else. (Not sure where - I had the EcoBoost)

The Hybrid battery is bolted to the underside of the car (not in the compartment) and is directly below the passenger seat..

 

[ldanielsjr]

The Hybrid battery is bolted to the underside of the car (not in the compartment) and is directly below the passenger seat..

Thanks for the visual ... that helps a lot. I realized after my post that the photos I took of the engine compartment did not include the 12V battery, but didn't think about that being the one I was looking at under the rear seat.

 

[Dallas Maverick]

Thanks for the visual ... that helps a lot. I realized after my post that the photos I took of the engine compartment did not include the 12V battery, but didn't think about that being the one I was looking at under the rear seat.

Munro just posted a detailed video of the underside of the Hybrid. You can see the battery at the 9:00 mark.

Sponsored