Honest opinion from Hybrid Mav owners

[snowcatxx87]

Nothing does well on ice. It's all the driver.

Wrong. Winter tires.

Video filmed on an ICE RINK for all the "oh they're called snow tires, not ice tires" crew.

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[ITSATRUCK]

Wrong. Winter tires.

Video filmed on an ICE RINK for all the "oh they're called snow tires, not ice tires" crew.

Winter tires make all the difference. A FWD vehicle with winters can perform better then an AWD with all seasons. I will be putting a good set of winters on my Hybrid.

 

[Flomounier1]

I think it's definately worth the money if you get it for MSRP considering gas prices in America right now. The atkinson hybrid engine is not new, so that's good at least. It's had a few years of testing on various cars. Reliability should be good hopefully.

The ride quality is amazing since it's built on a SUV chassis, it handles surprisingly well (better than my 99' Mercedes C Class Sport), the cabin is pretty quiet, it's easy to drive, and has plenty of power. I previously drove an 06 4 Cylinder Ranger and it almost launched you off your seat whenever you hit a bump in the road. It was terribly slow also. Although the truck only has 191 Horsepower, it feels like a car with 240hp due to the added takeoff torque from the Hybrid motor.

My only concerns are the dashboard rattles/creaking sounds. I've had mine for less than 4 days and I have a light plastic rattle while going over small bumps and divets in the road from the front corners of the dash. It seems to be a common issue so far on Mavericks. Ford WILL eventually have to find a way to fix them all but it's too soon for them to know what's causing it probably. I'm going to take mine to the dealer next week and show the service writer the videos I recorded while it was making the noise.

As far as the hood fluttering/shaking some people have reported, I haven't experienced that at all on my Maverick even while driving 80mph into oncoming heavy winds on the freeway.

If I had to be picky and point out an area where ford cheaped out, it would be the under-hood wiring harness for the engine and all the electrical connectors under the car. The wiring harness just consists of the bare insulated wires with fabric/electrical tape wrapped around them. Almost all cars I've seen have a hard plastic shield around the wires that also makes it look a bit more neat. The electrical connectors under the car are the same and held in by plastic clips. After 10 years, plastic does start to get brittle and break. This could be a long term down the road issue with these cars.

The sunglasses holder by the dome light is also pretty cheap and seems like it might break soon. Most cars have a smooth clicking action for the sunglasses holder but this is rough and the plastic almost bends when you press on it to get it to open.

 

[snowcatxx87]

Winter tires make all the difference. A FWD vehicle with winters can perform better then an AWD with all seasons. I will be putting a good set of winters on my Hybrid.

You are right - my FWD car right now bombs around, leaving awd SUV's in the dust! The reaction is hilarious. SUV's getting stuck going up hill. Little car just zips right by.

X-ICE Snow SUV (basically xice4, but renamed for this year). Best tire around.

 

[Fotomoto]

Takes a few minutes to warm it up for heat as it starts on electric

No need to wait. Next time, try flooring the gas pedal and the ICE will instantly fire up. That's a force-start feature.

Fun hybrid fact: you can floor and hold down the gas pedal yet the ICE will only run at a safe "high" rpm but not near redline or bounce off the rev limiter or other potentially dangerous operation. Benefit of fly-by-wire tech.

 

[Watchman]

It was worth the wait. It is a nice truck. It handles snow, ice, and slush as well or better than any FWD vehicle I have driven in the winter.

I'm not surprised as it weighs more than a lot of other FWD vehicles and has a much higher ground clearance.

 

[clavicus]

No need to wait. Next time, try flooring the gas pedal and the ICE will instantly fire up. That's a force-start feature.

Fun hybrid fact: you can floor and hold down the gas pedal yet the ICE will only run at a safe "high" rpm but not near redline or bounce off the rev limiter or other potentially dangerous operation. Benefit of fly-by-wire tech.

Isn't that kinda normal for any modern automatic transmission vehicle, isn't the pedal input just going to a computer which chooses what to actually tell the engine to do?

 

[710-oil-614]

Now that many parts of the US have now had their first taste of winter, I'm curious if any Hybrid owners have driven on icy roads and how the FWD handles (Not snow.. but ice)

FWD handles ice the same as RWD, AWD, or 4WD does once the vehicle is moving.

 

[710-oil-614]

I'm not surprised as it weighs more than a lot of other FWD vehicles and has a much higher ground clearance.

Doesn't weigh much more than other FWD drive vehicles unless you're talking about a Civic, Corolla, or a compact car.

Maverick = 3,695 lbs
Camry = 3,595
Accord = 3,430
CRV = 3,569

 

[brnpttmn]

Doesn't weigh much more than other FWD drive vehicles unless you're talking about a Civic, Corolla, or a compact car.

Maverick = 3,695 lbs
Camry = 3,595
Accord = 3,430
CRV = 3,569

I'd be interested if anyone has the weight distribution on the Maverick vs FWD sedans and CUVs. It seems like, when the bed is empty, a higher proportion of the vehicle's weight would be over the front wheels, which would perhaps provide better traction.

 

[710-oil-614]

I'd be interested if anyone has the weight distribution on the Maverick vs FWD sedans and CUVs. It seems like, when the bed is empty, a higher proportion of the vehicle's weight would be over the front wheels, which would perhaps provide better traction.

I think it would be negligible - really all body weight. Maybe 100-200 lbs? The Escape is just 100 lbs heavier than the Mav (although the Maverick is a little longer).

 

[Bushpilot]

I should also note that the one thing I had potential concerns about before driving the Maverick was how the resistance added by the regen might cause issues on the ice. I haven't experienced any issues yet. I wasn't in eco mode when I drove in the icy conditions since it adds resistance/regen. I'd like to test eco in a more controlled environment first, and I'd be interested in anyone else's experiences.

I have used Normal, Eco, and Slippery in slippery conditions, and so far cannot really tell the difference. That said, at the moment I am defaulting to Eco, and switching to Slippery when it is really slick.

 

[brnpttmn]

I have used Normal, Eco, and Slippery in slippery conditions, and so far cannot really tell the difference. That said, at the moment I am defaulting to Eco, and switching to Slippery when it is really slick.

I default to eco when I remember (still training myself). I have noticed greater regen in eco compared to normal, but it doesn't compare to massive regen in L. I noticed a bit of a difference in slippery when I engaged it, but I've only done that when there was a few inches of unplowed snow on the roads. It seemed to lessen the torque when starting from a stop which did help keep some traction.

 

[Atisko]

Winter tires make all the difference. A FWD vehicle with winters can perform better then an AWD with all seasons. I will be putting a good set of winters on my Hybrid.

Generally yes. However, starting from a standstill accelerating going uphill straight all wheel drive might be a little better getting you started or maintaining momentum .

 

[FirstFord]

Nothing does well on ice. It's all the driver.

...and the tires.

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