Cold Feet on the Hybrid

[bengbrewer]

So I ordered my Hybrid Oct18 and its scheduled to arrive at the dealer on Friday. I wasn't required to put any deposit down on it when I ordered it. Based on all of the reading that I am doing on the severely poor MPG on the hybrid (35-40mpg) vs 47 on the sticker, I am having serious second thoughts on if I should just get a standard Gas.

 

Another thing adding to this is the fact that the year end $500 bonus will NOT apply to the Hybrid.

 

I feel that I can drive the gas vehicle how I want without having to worry about changing my driving style in order to get the necessary MPG savings that a hybrid would save me.

 

http://services.forddirect.fordvehicles.com/inventory/WindowSticker.pdf?vin=3FA6P0LU3DR190747 (car I ordered)

 

$28,380

-500 cash back

-750 coupon from brochure

27130

 

http://services.forddirect.fordvehicles.com/inventory/WindowSticker.pdf?vin=3FA6P0H75DR140743 (car I am debating)

 

$22,740

-500 cash back

-500 year end bonus

-750 coupon from brouchure

20990

 

$6140 difference

 

There is also 1775 in missing options that I have not accounted for, so really its a difference of $4365 $80/month)

 

http://i45.tinypic.com/33ub9z6.jpg

 

If I knew I was guaranteed 47mpg with normal driving style, I think it would make sense.

 

I realize that some people may think this isnt morally right. However, on the flip side, I know Ford isn't going to reimburse me every year for the MPG difference that the car isn't getting (37 vs 47). I feel its up to me as the consumer to look out for my best interests.

 

Thoughts?

[nmadole]

I am only averaging 30 MPG in my Hybrid currently... I love it but if I were to do it again... I probably would go with a gas model. My MPG is on my blog. http://fusionhybridmpg.blogspot.com/

 

Even when the weather was good I was only getting around 35 MPG

 

Love the car, disappointing gas milage

[twintornados]

Thoughts?

 

Yeah...buy the hybrid and learn to drive it properly.

[bengbrewer]

Any other perks only on the hybrid that may offset some of my concerns? E.g. Noise canceling speakers.

[nmadole]

The 110 volt outlet with the tech package is nice. The car thanks you for driving a hybrid whenever you turn it off.

[bengbrewer]

look guys, Ill be the first to admit that I am selfish and I was only doing this for MPG savings since I drive 20,000 miles per year.

 

If I'm not going to see a $ per month savings, then I'm going gas.

[fordmantpw]

look guys, Ill be the first to admit that I am selfish and I was only doing this for MPG savings since I drive 20,000 miles per year.

 

If I'm not going to see a $ per month savings, then I'm going gas.

 

Ummm, isn't that the point?

 

Keep in mind when comparing the hybrid to the standard issue I4, you will have better performance from the hybrid, and you will be missing out on that going gas. But, if you drive mostly highway miles, my bet is you wouldn't be saving enough to make up the difference in payment, even with 47 MPG. According to the sticker, the difference in fuel savings is $4300, which is less than the $4365 price difference. Factor in financing charges, and for pure fuel economy, you won't break even for about 6 years. If you keep your car longer, you will be money ahead, if you get rid of it sooner, you will be money in the hole (based on MPG ONLY).

[lmp180psu]

I have had my Hybrid for almost a week now and have 250 miles or so on it. My lifetime average is 33.2 right now (had 7 miles at delivery and no reset), but 3 of the days I have been driving in snowy, slushy, and wet conditions, so that isn't the best conditions for mileage right now. For the most part I have driven more conservatively to try to get better gas mileage, but in some ways it "feels" like I am driving slower since the car is just so quiet and smooth, but I am going near the speed limit or over without me knowing it. I go 45 and it feels like 25-30, especially in EV mode. On the 2-3 good weather days, I have taken some shorter trips (less than 10 miles), and got 64, 46, and 54 mpg. Mostly lower speeds with some slight to moderate hills thrown in.

 

I have the 18" Goodyears, so they probably won't maximize the mileage, but I knew that going in. I wish I was getting upper 30's at least, but with the conditions, and it being so new, I will hold out judgement on being disappointed etc for 2-3 more tanks. I understand and went through your debate between gas and Hybrid. When I was doing my Hybrid vs gas $$$ comparison, I used 42 mpg combined for the Hybrid, and 28 mpg combined for the 1.6 gas, and if I can get 42 once the weather is better, I will be quite happy. I am actually enjoying the CVT transmission too. It is nice not to feel shifts anymore, and have the instant response for acceleration.

 

As nmadole said, the Thanks for Driving a Hybrid! message each time you turn the car off is cool too LOL. Seriously though, you can't make a bad decision with either one. Now the recall on the 1.6 might make me hesitate slightly, but it looks like they figured out the issue(hopefully). Good luck!

[elle]

For me there are two reasons to drive a hybrid. One is that I like burning less fuel and the other is that I am always very happy to be in my Prius when gas prices go up. If you look at the sticker and do the math there is not a lot of savings over the course of a year, and these cars don't pay for themselves quickly, but they do suck down less gasoline than most cars. It will look better and better to you the more expensive gasoline becomes, and I enjoy filling up half as often as I used to.

 

Don't buy a hybrid wanting sticker numbers if you're not willing to work with the car to get something more out of it, though. Either enjoy what you do get, work with it, or buy the gas model.

[ghent360]

Consider you won't be getting the sticker MPG from the gasoline model either. I have 1300+ miles so far and my lifetime average is 40MPG.

 

If you drive 20k miles/year the difference between 37MPG (Hybrid) and 25MPG (Gas) is around $930.

 

If you are driving mostly highway miles, get a Jetta or Passat TDI, lots of torque and good highway mileage. They don't look as good, but you can't have it all.

[jeff_h]

Double-check your numbers on the cash back, I think it's $500 for hybrid but $1,000 for the gas model, expires Jan 2nd.

[twintornados]

<p>

....If you are driving mostly highway miles, get a Jetta or Passat TDI, lots of torque and good highway mileage. They don't look as good, but you can't have it all.

 

Or if you can wait a bit longer, Mazda will be rolling out their new Mazda 6 with the Skyativ-D low compression, clean diesel. 2014 Mazda6 Autoblog article

Edited December 27, 2012 by twintornados

[terryblauser]

Consider you won't be getting the sticker MPG from the gasoline model either. I have 1300+ miles so far and my lifetime average is 40MPG.

 

If you drive 20k miles/year the difference between 37MPG (Hybrid) and 25MPG (Gas) is around $930.

 

If you are driving mostly highway miles, get a Jetta or Passat TDI, lots of torque and good highway mileage. They don't look as good, but you can't have it all.

Watch out for the Diesel fuel premium. I'm seeing 25% extra for ful vs ULR.

 

[bengbrewer]

I'm getting a Fusion.

 

Just need to decide if I go with the one I ordered (hybrid) or get a gas SE.

[Charlee]

If you're going with gas, I think it's better to pay more and go with the 1.6 (now that it's fixed) instead of the 2.5. I would have paid $3100 less if I had gone with 1.6 SE equipped the same as my SE Hybrid. I keep my cars for 8 or more years, so I'll probably make up that difference, but even if I don't, I have no doubt I made the right choice. I'm anything but an environmentalist, but it feels good spending less money on gas. The extra I spent goes to North America, not the Middle East.

I also really like the fact that the ICE is not running in my garage. Quietly backing out of it is a real joy every morning. I'm also getting tired of statements about "the severely poor MPG on the hybrid (35-40mpg)". Severely poor? Give me a break. Even if you drive 70 mph+ on the highways, you'll end up with at least 38 mpg. It's not 47, but as ghent said, you're not going to get EPA numbers from the 1.6 (or 2.5) either at that speed.

[twintornados]

I'm getting a Fusion.

 

Just need to decide if I go with the one I ordered (hybrid) or get a gas SE.

 

I have a 2012 Fusion with the 2.5L / 6 speed automatic set up. I get the posted EPA of 33 on the highway and sometimes even a little more...when I run non-ethanol gasoline (Fasttrac locally sells a non-ethanol premium blend)I will get even better MPG by 1-3 miles per gallon better...All without the extra doo-dads that Ecoboost brings and without the extra $$$....something to think about.

[rfruth]

The hybrid = less soldiers per mile and is fun to drive so easy decision

Edited December 28, 2012 by rfruth

[neod192]

Double-check your numbers on the cash back, I think it's $500 for hybrid but $1,000 for the gas model, expires Jan 2nd.

 

I just stopped by my dealer and had them look-up the incentives. It looks like the old cash cash (which used to be $1,000 on the gas and $500 on the hybrid) is not just $500 on the gas model. The new year end bonus is $500 on both the gas and hybrid models.

 

So in the end the incentives are just like before: $1,000 on the gas and $500 on the hybrid. Kind of bummed, since I was expecting some nice end of the year incentives ...

Edited December 28, 2012 by neod192

[keithmcelhinney]

Also remember that with winter mix gas you are going to get a lot less MPG on either, but 10% (typical loss of mpg due to ethanol) of 47 is almost 5 mpg and 10% of 25 is only 2.5...

 

-Keith

[rkytop98]

Yeah...buy the hybrid and learn to drive it properly.

 

This has to be the best advice I've seen regarding MPG in Hybrids. It's a totally different kind of vehicle. You have to be willing to adjust your driving style if you want optimal performance. You have to be willing to be a little slower off the line and arrive at your destination a minute or two later (or not get to the red light quite as fast as you used to).

[DarkeRetribution]

This has to be the best advice I've seen regarding MPG in Hybrids. It's a totally different kind of vehicle. You have to be willing to adjust your driving style if you want optimal performance. You have to be willing to be a little slower off the line and arrive at your destination a minute or two later (or not get to the red light quite as fast as you used to).

 

And that has to be the most popular and most overly stated excuse in this forum for hybrid buyers not getting close to advertised mpg. It's amazing how easy and effortless it is for human beings to blame each other when things don't go right instead of admitting fault themselves or accepting that they bought a product that doesn't perform as advertised. None of you even have the slightest clue how anyone else drives and yet you're so quick to act like you know without a doubt their driving habits and styles are soooo bad. I mean seriously. If I said I had a 2013 fusion hybrid and had bad MPG I'd have 3-4 people near cursing me out on this forum and another 5-7 swearing I've never driven a hybrid before and don't know how to drive one lol. It's funny really. Here's my opinion since we've all heard everyone elses. The new car gets nowhere near 47mpg combined and if I had to put a statistic on the number of ford fusion hybrid buyers that have reached this is probably less than 5% based on nationwide reviews and consumer reports. If we were going by posts in this forum then 1%. I'm getting a hybrid titanium and I know I won't get 47mpg combined. It will be a treat when I do, but I don't expect my lifetime mpg to ever reach that and I'm fine with that. I'm fine getting anything this car will give me because its still better than the competition..but when I do get my car and I ask if anyone else is getting poor mpg too don't tell me it's because I don't know how to drive. Some of you are so rude to people.And to anyone on the fence about getting the hybrid because of poor MPG.. you do have an alternative..a perfect one actually. Buy the gas model and continue contributing to global warming. In 5-10 years temperatures will be so warm you'll be crazy not to get a hybrid.

Edited December 29, 2012 by DarkeRetribution

[CheesyRider]

*Edit* Post made in error and removed.

Edited December 29, 2012 by CheesyRider

[elle]

This has to be the best advice I've seen regarding MPG in Hybrids. It's a totally different kind of vehicle. You have to be willing to adjust your driving style if you want optimal performance. You have to be willing to be a little slower off the line and arrive at your destination a minute or two later (or not get to the red light quite as fast as you used to).

 

This is so true. A car is just a complicated tool, and like any tool it will work better if you use it properly. And, if you're not willing to learn to use the tool to get the best performance out if it, you ought to be happy for the performance you get. That is why these cars provide such elaborate feedback, so that people can adjust to what the car offers and increase their performance. I'm not a hypermiler by any stretch but I look forward to having the additional feedback that the Fusion will offer me on braking score so that I can start to take that into account more as I drive my new car.

[Guest auser99]

I must admit that when I first purchased my 2012 FFH a week ago, I was very disappointed in the gas mileage. Locally I was getting about 32mpg. I initially wanted to get a Hybrid because twice I week I have to commute about 35 miles each way in rush hour traffic in Washington, DC, and I was driving a Yukon Denali (13 mpg). So on Thursday and Friday, its time to put the Hybrid to the real test, driving in DC traffic durring rush hour. On Thursday I averaged 49 mpg round trip, and Friday I averaged 46 mpg round trip. My Hybrid seems to perform well in this kind of traffic. So, I'm happy.

[Guest abjb]

There's more to it than how good your mileage is.

 

2 of my friends are perfect examples.

 

1 is a certified hyper-miller. He gets 50+ mpg out of his OLD civic HF.

But he burns almost as much gas as I do in my Mini CooperS (25mpg) because he goes out of his way to avoid red lights and stop signs...DUH

 

Friend #2 has a Civic EX that does get good milage.

But he can't get away from those jack rabit starts and driving 10 to 15 over the posted limit.

His major problem (he can burn MORE gas than me) is he doesn't plan his trips.

If he has 3 places to go he might go to the the middle one first, then back toward his house then on to the 3rd then the trip home is COMPLETELY random.

 

ab

Edited January 12, 2013 by abjb