Deleted member 4846
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To start, the dealership, Tuscaloosa Ford, honored my X plan. 24.7k out the door. I also threw them a test. When the first salesman met me at the door and asked what he could help me with, I told him I saw a hybrid Mav arrive earlier and I was there to buy it. He said sorry it was already sold. That made my day. His too when I told him it was me who it was sold too. They were finishing the detailing when I arrived. Truck had 18 miles on it. Then I got something from the salesman that floored me. It spent a little 'extra' time on the PDI drive. I was OK with that. I could not find anything wrong, and didnt want to. I was excited to say the least. My wife too, she did not get out of the truck the entire time.
Now to the meat and taters yall want. I did 90% Highway today, cruise set at 74 mph.
Power: The powerband is unbelievably smooth all the way through. I never needed more power than the truck gave. Merging and passing were effortless. The engine does drone a bit, but just turn your radio up a little more. Whether at a start, or passing some idiot on the interstate it responded WELL.(That really helped as the world knew I had a new truck I waited months for and every idiot got out on the road and tried to run into my new truck).
Fuel economy: I did some testing. At 74 it hit 35-37 depending on terrain. 36.5 was the average. It stayed in Hybrid mode. I eased it down to 70. Truck hit a solid 40 mpgs. I was impressed. Then I took a two lane highway a little earlier and I noticed it. 55-60 is the worse fuel mileage I got. 30 mpgs. I think that may have been due to a 80 mile drive in pure hybrid mode. I stopped for fuel. I do not know when the dealership topped it off(before or after the PDI) but the truck only held 3.2 gallons after an 115 mile trip. Now below 55 is where this truck SHINES. It seems the ICE only fired off to reheat the truck or charge the battery. My fuel mileage SKYROCKETED. I nearly stayed in electric mode. The last few roads home that are true back roads it was again nearly all electric. The heater was still on, cant wait to try it on a warm day.
Hybrid transitions: This truck swaps from Ice to Elec to Ice and back flawlessly. Unless you are listening for the slight groan of the engine, or have the coach up on the screen you will never know it. It is that smooth. At idle it shudders a hair when the ice comes on. This thing is the definition of smooth.
Electronics: My radio and AA worked well. Once I saw the lag and then never again. There is already a software update for it. The Ford Pass works very well. Start, stop, lock, unlock is all very well. The auto dimming lights worked to perfection. I highly recommend just going through it and setting everything to your preferences. The lane keep vibrates like you hit the rumble strips. Worked well.
The ride-The ride was excellent. Very car/crossover like. Going from a 350 to that was different to say the least. It sits very well. One thing I did not expect that no one mentioned was the setup of the hood. It is set up just like a large truck and gave me a nice familiar feel. The seats are comfortable and I never felt the need for more room.
Now for the bad- There is ALOT of road noise. More so than most any new vehicle I have driven. Its not unbearable, but it is there. Not bad with the radio going. No automatic wipers. This is simply a gripe of someone who had them and loved them. Just dont understand it. I also have not found a button to turn all the cabin lights on. I use this a lot and would like to see it, but I will chalk that up to me not knowing where it is. No lumbar adjustment I could find. I will look again tomorrow, but this could be a glaring omission.
That is about all I have on this truck. After a day with it I love it. My wife loves it. I would be happy to answer questions or send pictures that anyone needs.
Update: The auto brake. I thought this would be useless, turns out Ive been missing out most of my life.
It seems it takes a minute after startup for the battery to get enough charge to really put out. This morning on my little trip to town which did NOT result in a tag due to them shutting down for the week it only hit battery a small amount on the way but killed it on the way back. It also seems the heat does run off of some electric. It also seems to drain that battery. I imagine that under warmer conditions my fuel mileage will greatly improve. Also I have learned that if you are easy on the throttle you can hit 40+ mpg on electric only. When you are regening power it is best to not let the needle get to full green. Keep it as high without going over to hit 95-100% energy returned.
One thing I did not expect and no one really emphasized was how much the engine regen kills coasting. Let off the throttle and she will start soaking up that energy.....just be aware. Also it seems to do much better with cruise and letting it just do its thang.
" I also have not found a button to turn all the cabin lights on. I use this a lot and would like to see it, but I will chalk that up to me not knowing where it is. "
There is this thing called an "Owner's Manual" that may be of help...
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