Hello all,

This is my first post to this forum after months of research and a week or-so of reading posts. I don't currently own a hybrid, but have more-or-less resolved to go for an 08 FEH when they become available. [My reasoning stems from my height (6'8" - eliminates Prius, Civic, Camry, et. al), my average passengers (me or plus one - eliminates Highlander), and my preference for Ford and full hybrid (eliminates VUE mild hybrid).]

I have read a lot about how to get max FE with hybrids: everything from when to double-tap to get a quick charge, how to accelerate slow to keep the ICE from engaging, and a lot of dialogue about the pros and cons of using the L gear.

My question is: how is "normal" driving in the FEH? What does "regular" driving benefit (or not) from having the hybrid drive? Is the car still responsive in traffic, smooth on the highway, etc.?

Obviously I'm not planning to purchase a hybrid and then drive it harder than I drive my 02 Explorer Sport, but with all of the posts about gas-sipping techniques, I was hoping some owners could fill this newbie in on what the day-to-day experience is like.

Thanks for all of the great info you all provide on this site! It's made my research a lot easier!

 

Sounds familiar....I'm about 6'7" - 250, a wife, baby and a dog.....so we chose between the Mariners and Escapes. We've had our Mariner Hybrid for almost 9 months now and I am very pleased with it. We chose the Mariner over Escape simply on style. As for the Hybrid over the "regular"...well, we both liked the idea of buying less gas and polluting less. And while we could afford the "premium", by my calculations we will break even next February thanks to the various tax credits and fuel savings.

Ok, on to the "real world". I would consider myself a moderate hybrider. I accelerate slowly when traffic allows, leave the heat and AC off as much as possible, coast up to red lights and stop signs, downshift to L to get regenerative braking, etc. My wife....not so much. I drive the speed limit or 5mph over on the highway. My wife likes to drive 75mph. At 50mph I get about 37mpg (with the 4wd MMH), at 60 about 33mpg, at 70 about 31 mpg. That is maintaining an almost constant speed but without "pushing" it to maintain speed up big inclines. Even with her lead foot, my wife still manages to get about 30-31mpg on the highways....though I think I am starting to rub off and slow her down a bit.

In the city this fall I was probably getting about 30mpg....and I live in Philadelphia so my city driving is redlights and buses and traffic. With the AC on MAX (when my son and/or wife are with me) my numbers were in the 25mpg range. Same with the last few weeks with temps in the teens and 20's and the heat running.

While these numbers don't match EPA numbers (my highway #'s actually exceed EPA), nor do they for most people/vehicles. I'm sure that the "regular" versions of these vehicles would suffer decreased FE during the winter and summer months too.

I think the best "environment" for this particular vehicle, is an suburban/rural-ish area. In a true city, too many redlights means not enough recharge and too much engine time. I find that my trips into Southern New Jersey with great distances between traffic lights and 45mph roads do wonders for my average. The same can be said for trips to visit my mom out in the suburbs. I would venture that many of the "hypermilers" here live in suburban areas.

 

I noticed from the start ( when i was a newbie ) that there was little if any difference between city MPG and highway MPG.

Over the months, both have gone up... however most hypermiler techniques apply to city driving conditions.
This car will always have an advantage in slower conditions ( under 40 MPH ) when the engine is allowed to shut off.

I'd say without doing anything fancy, you can bet on high 20's and low 30's for MPG. That still beats the pants off the "regular" Escape, which gets high teens and low 20's.

With practice, you can DOUBLE the mileage of the regular Escape.
How does 600 miles per 15 gallon fill-up sound???

You will love the FEH. ( or MMH )

-John

 

I don't do a whole lot of hybrid tricks. I coast a bit up to intersections thats about it. My tires are at the stock 35psi. On freeway onramps I floor it and I'm going ~70 by the end of the ramp (yes it kills the mileage for that short few hundred yard dash but I want to merge with traffic, not impede it). Even with a 9mile commute (hardly ideal) I averaged about 30MPG in the summer in a 4WD. On days where I had a longer drive with little freeway travel that would climb to almost 34MPG. On the freeway it was a pretty consistent 29MPG. The winter, unfortunately is a pretty big drag on mileage. I get about 26MPG when its 35-45F. Below 20F and its about 23-25MPG.

The car is very smooth on the highway. That onramp discussion above tells you that you have plenty of power to accelerate to speed. No problems with power at all.

 

AMB4 -

Remember, many of the "techniques" and "tricks" for hypermiling that are discussed in this forum ....are to "get around" and "improve on" what the Ford engineers have designed into the truck to make the hybrid powertrain invisible to the average customer. (for example, the "ICE cut-off switch" thread)

The FEH/MMH is designed to be smooth/normal/regular to the 80% of consumers who don't read these forums and don't care to be bothered by what is under the hood. I think Ford has done a fine job in designing an extremely advanced vehicle (drive-by-wire, brake-by-wire) that can be operated as if its was just another Escape or Mariner. John (in post #3) is correct, if you compare the same driver in the same conditions in the FEH/MMH with likely alternatives - V6 Escape, RAV4, etc. - you will consistently notice FE and emissions benefits.

(Comparisons of the 'FEH to the Prius' or, 'FEH in winter to FEH in summer' are not valid to some of the discussions)

 

Congratulations on your intent to buy an FEH!

I love mine. As far as "normal" driving, I drove mine for almost a year, pretty much the same way I had driven my previous cars, & even then I was seeing my mileage numbers go up. But with the Fuel Consumption & Power Flow displays, I began to see how my driving affected those numbers. So I decided to go in search of ways to keep them going up. I did a computer search & discovered Milwaukee Hybrid Group, GreenHybrid, & CleanMPG, where I'm constantly learning new ways to maximize my mpg's.

 

I drive my 06 FEH both ways, on some tanks I stretch the mileage all I can -on other tanks depending on my lifestyle(& the weather) at that particular time I almost ignore the mpg totally.

The best I have ever gotten on one tank was 33mpg. The worst was in 10º weather & I got about 21mpg.

I love the Hybrid, even at its worst mpg it is way better than a normal V6 Escape(I would never buy a normal 4 cylinder). I absolutely HATE stopping for gas, with my old truck I stopped 2 & sometimes 3 times a week for gas. With the Hybrid, it is once.

I have never gotten anywhere near 600 miles on one tank, but I regularly get over 400.

~John

 

That has been my biggest surprise, and disappointment.

I use a 4WD SUV mostly in the winter months. So, as it turns out, the hybrid's MPG performance in cold temperatures is significant to me.

My heart dropped, as I watched my MPG drop from 31 to 24, as the temps dropped to 5degF.

Still, it does better than my old Cherokee which avg around 17 MPG, and was of around equal size.

 

I see lots of answers regarding gas mileage. For my part, I offer this:
When I take off from a light, I can squeal the tires if I want to. When I want to pass a slow truck on the Highway, I can punch it and get to 80 quickly if I want. It defrosts quickly. The stereo system will go as loud as I need it to. It handles bumpy stretches well. It drives in the snow like I would expect an SUV to drive. It is not overly loud in the cabin (but it gets louder with the back seat folded). When I am accelerating up a steep hill, it revs up higher than you might be used to (but, I'm told that is normal). When I filled the back with gravel, it still handled well.
Is this the kind of stuff you wanted?

-Scott

 

To everyone who's responded so far - in less than one day! - please allow me to say THANKS! When one or two people respond that they can drive the FEH "normal" and get great results, it's a bit early to jump to conclusions. But when nine people take the time to share their experiences in less than 20 hours' time on the board, I think that says a lot!

It sounds like all but one of my concerns and/or questions has been answered!

I'm less-than-wild about "no electronic stability control / RCS" on an 08 FEH they've made a) lighter and b) more "box"-like, but from day-to-day driving to hypermiler techniques, it sure sounds like this is the hybrid SUV for me!

I'm not 100% sure when it'll be, but when I pick-up the 08 I promise to post to share my initial thoughts and impressions!

-Andrew-