I'd say the answer to the OP's question is a big "it depends".

You'll see, from reviewing the hybrid fuel economy database here, that many of us experienced "poor" mileage from our initial fuel-ups. Some of that is undoubtedly just getting used to the vehicle, but there definitely seems to be a correlation with engine break-in as well. I've seen it myself, and you can see the data by viewing my fuel economy sticker at the end of this message (click on it and it goes to my '06 FEH FWD's fuel economy entries -- every single fuel-up is represented.)

Some folks complain about fuel economy but don't mention whether they have an AWD or FWD, and there is a slight fuel economy difference between the two (as in non-hybrid AWD and front-wheel drive vehicles). Some folks have very short "commutes" that aren't ideal for the hybrid system, since it's just ready to start shining when they key off in the parking lot at work/school/the corner grocer. Some folks have optimal driving conditions such that hyper-miling is (almost) easy, others (like myself, personally) find there has to be a balance between my goal of maximizing fuel economy and my more important goal of driving safely (which, sadly in some cases, means "aggressively defensively"... eg. I'd get rear-ended if I slowed to lights the way I would *like* to, optimally, and accelerated off them the same way.)

There are as many factors affecting fuel economy as there are roads to drive, really.

If you're anywhere under 5000 miles on the odometer, I really would try not to stress about MPGs. I know it's easier said than done, but experience seems to bear out that patience is rewarded in this case. Often, you'll see an uptick in fuel economy after just 1000 miles but I didn't really feel things started really humming until I hit the 5000 mile mark. I'm coming up on 7300 miles now. It's colder here than it's been since I purchased our FEH, so I attribute that (and a lot of rain) to my slight fuel economy downtick over the past several tanks. Like I said, many factors affect fuel economy... the vehicle is a biggie of course, but there's a lot more at play.

 

OPPS! My bad. My friend has the V6 and she told me once it gets 17. I thought she meant EPA, but it turns out that is her real world number. She says she drives mostly freeway.

 

I'm getting 25-26 right now when its 40 I've seen down to 23-24 when its 30. In the summer I usually get 30-31. The temp is a BIG effect. At least give yours until summer before you give up. Today its 57. I drove around all day, no freeway and I got 34 by the end of the tank that will probably be down to 27-28 when the temp drops (or lower if a cold front comes through).

Toyota may be making big money off the Hybrid concept.... Maybe Honda. Ford certainly isn't.

 

As I mentioned in another post, I know that Toyota used to recommend driving the older version of the Prius at least 30 minutes each week to maintain the battery.

The vehicle I purchased was only driven 150km in the year it was sitting on the lot...thats only an average of 3km a week. In fact, according to the dealer, the vehicle was in fleet storage for most of the time. I would be interested in knowing the effect on the hybrid's battery of prolonged storage.

Also, for those of us who have to drive multiple short trips for work (I'm a community health worker), are there any tips for getting the battery warmed up quicker? Temperature isn't too much of a problem where I live (averaging 35-50f in the winter), so I don't think trying to fit it into our small garage would make a big difference.

 

Effects of *prolonged* storage are documented in your owner's manual.

I think the fuel economy impact you're most likely seeing has little to do with the battery (high voltage hybrid battery or traditional auto battery, alike) and more to do with very short drives.

For reference/point of comparison: I drive, on average, 20 miles per weekday (32.2 km) year-round.

 

The FEH HV battery is well protected against damage from heat, cold charge and discharge, so I would not be to concerned about damage unless you are having problems no one else is having. Too date, there has not been a single battery replacement posted on any of the boards I've visited in the past 2 years.

If I had a garage to park your vehicle in, I would. The best way to warm the battery is to charge it as fast as possible. The HV battery takes the fastest charge when it is low. This is why I leave my battery drained when parking. If it is too cold to accept fake shifts in "L", the small generator can put out enough charging in a low battery to aid in warming it till it is full.

Once you have a charged battery, keep dischaging it as much as possible with EV driving. The constant charging and discharging will keep it warm for longer EV driving, which will increase MPG. With the small generator working overtime with the ICE in cold weather, your putting a good load on the ICE to keep the head temp up there also. My goal is to keep the ICE off as much as possible, but when it is running, it is at a heavy load charging the battery at low rpm's.

If you can swing a Scangauge, I strongly recommend one. Just today, my father stop by my home and said he had a "service engine soon" light come on. I removed my SG from my FEH and plug it in his 2001 Lincoln and found the trouble code and cleared it. It was a bad EGR valve code that was still covered by the emission warranty. It turns out Ford had a fix for his problem with a new design in '04. Found that information from a google search. Many people getting better than other's MPG use a SG as an aid, myself included.

GaryG

 

I've tried to stay out of this. I really have. I seemed to have gotten the title of "Defender of the FEH" due to the fact that I seem to always post whenever anyone bad mouths the FEH, and that I seem to monopolize this board.

However, let's look at things. You ask why we're so caustic and keep pointing to online articles? The reason is that nearly all your questions have already been asked, and answered for you. The FEH FAQ talks about the "reds" that you seemed to have trouble with, energy management and optimum trip decision making. It's not our fault if you're too lazy (or whatever) to not read it, or not to use the information that's packaged just for a new user.

I'm assuming that this is a new FEH (roadwise). You're in BC, in November - January. That's typically the hybrid owners worst months, and you're in it's opening months. That alone makes it a poor MPG time. It's cold and the battery and you aren't broken in. You can't compare starting MPGs against someone who got their vehicle in June; it's not a fair comparision.

You ask why others get great MPGs, when yours is so poor. Again, it's individual results, not an aggregate whole. Some people have commutes that are perfect for the vehicle, and really know how to use it after 2 years or so of use to get their current MPGs. That's a tremendous difference to a new user using a new vehicle, or to someone with a commute that's not so well fitted to a hybrid or a driver who doesn't chose to use any special techniques to maximize the hybrid technology. Experience really makes the difference, as does the temperature. Over at Cleanmpg, you can actually see on a graph an overlay between temperature/MPG and each year overlaid, and my second year just blows away my first year in terms of MPGs, and you can see a very direct corolation between temperature and MPGs.




(Of particular note is the black dashed line of the temperature and black solid line of the MPGs in February to March to see the rather direct Temperature impact.
You'll also note the solid red 2005 MPG line for June, my first months MPG line to the the solid black 2006 MPG line to see the difference a year of experience and break in can do; especially as you can see the dotted red and black temperature lines are about the same for both years.)

Then, there's a variety of techniques that some people are willing and able to successfully employ to get their MPGs up. Until you know how to do that, and successfully do that, you shouldn't worry about the differences.

Lastly, again, as shown in the FEH FAQ, you can see just how clean this vehicle is, and it's not hard to get a real world comparision against a non-hybrid equivalent. (Mine is 16 MPG for an AWD [as it's closest to what I have without the Hybrid tech from over a dozen real world AWD Escape owners] against my 33+? Since each gallon of gas creates all that junk, it's very clear how much greener it must be, just based on that!) This vehicle is clean, there's no SUV that's cleaner.

Instead of getting upset at others who are satisfied with their vehicle, why don't you relax, and allow you and your vehicle a chance to shine?

I'm glad this discussion has remained civil and polite, and I hope it can stay that way.

 

Just gave this thread a quick look and would like to say I am tickled pink with the milage our 2007 2wd is getting. My husband has a 2005 v6 and only gets 12 to 15 mpg city driving. I am getting about 28mpg here in the Los Angeles area with 1900 miles on the odometer. I have not been using all the techniques for hypermiling as I am only 4 miles from work and it takes about 2 miles before it goes EV.

Susanna

 

Mark,
If you are still getting bad fuel ecomomy, try getting your oil changed. When you have this done, make sure you replace the oil with the grade advised by Ford (5w20 synthetic.) The oil itself can make a difference. I took my FEH in one time and they place I tok it to accidentally put regular 10W30 in the ICE. For that 5,000 mile interval, my FE dropped down to 25 mpg from 33 mpg.


I have an 05 FEH AWD. I've owned mine for 16 months. I drive in the Washington DC metorpolitan area. My commute round trip is 90 miles (I end up filling my tanks every 4 days...)
I currently have over 43,000 miles on my odometer. When I first started driving it, I was lucky to get 30 mpg when it had under 1000 miles on it. Last winter I got a max of 27 mpg. During my normal driving during the summer I was able to get 33 mpg at highway speeds (75 mph or greater.) Also the more I drove it, it seems like the longer I could drive in EV mode. (I have a post in another thread about being able to drive up 3 levels in a parking garage when starting with a fully charged battery.) I have demonstrated this to different people I work with and a few have also looked into getting either a FEH or a Highlander Hybrid (the Highlanders tend to get lower MPGs than the FEH.
So far this winter, I am still getting around 30 mpg. That said; on one trip to work when it was really cold here (forgot the temperature) but my MPGs dropped to 24.

With all this said Mark, from what I am reading, you just may need to give your FEH some time/mileage. If you feel there is something wrong with your battery or with your FEH in general, I'd take it to a dealer you trust to have it checked out. If there is something wrong with yours, it should still be under warranty since the number of months/years start from the date of purchase since you purchased it new.

On another note, my mother-in-law has an '05 Prius. It's EPA rating is 60/51 mpg. She said she is lucky if she is getting 38 mpg.

On another note. My sister just bought an '05 Escape with a V6 and AWD. She claims she is getting around 29 mpg driving it in WI. Whether or not she is, I don't know since I live in MD.

 

Those are almost EXACTLY what I get with mine also.

I have tried all the "hypermileing" tips at one time or another, but have given most of them up to some degree. I do use the pulse & glide technique & drive carefully, but going 38 MPH when traffic is cruising along at 43 MPH doesn't work for me. I also refuse to draft another vehicle on the freeway to gain a few MPG as I consider that ridiculously unsafe.

As far as the temp goes, my Mother has an 06 Prius & the fuel mileage on that drops substantially in the Winter also. My Mom gets around 46 MPG in the Summer, and although she hasn't really documented it she says it's a LOT lower in the Winter.

~John