(sorry about the cross post)
Hi, i'm jeff :-). I just "rescued" a 2006 FEH about a month ago, and even though I am just now posting, I have been lurking around here reading and learning all y'all have to share for the last couple of weeks. This is my first hybrid, which we very carefully picked out after doing a ton of reading and research - if a PHEV was available in our price range, I would have gone that route, but we decided we would get a vehicle that "could" be converted, and wait till prices come down a little or do it ourselves as a side project (leaning that direction.)

This FEH is a 2006, FWD, 33000 miles on it. we picked it up on the cheap side (mid trade-in value) because the seller was not happy with it's performance and was sure there was something wrong with it. (more below)

When we picked up the truck, the dash display read 22mpg. after driving it a while, I figured that would start to raise up to closer to the EPA estimated mileage, but it didn't, stayed right at 22 even thought we drove it carefully for ~60 miles. This was all in Houston - nice and flat :-) When it was time to head back to Austin, I filled it up, reset the mpg and hit the road. I averaged 36 mpg the first 30 miles ( town / 45mph) and 32 total for that trip (~160 miles, the hilly highway at 65mph definitely dropped my average some). Since then we have gone 2 tanks in town in Austin, first tank averaged 29, the second 31. We have been working hard training our selves to drive as suggested here and are slowly getting better, but the milage feels low for how careful we are driving it (very slow acc, coasting, slow stops (more regen than brakepad), keeping speed reasonable (30 - 50mph most trips) and using the tricks such as FS to lower RPM or going to EV mode when possible, etc).

Looking over the truck, it is obvious that it has been used and abused. the oil is dark, even though according to the display it is around 20% (8000 miles?). I know the guys who owned it before us put 10,000 miles on it in less than 2 months. The air filters (battery and engine) were both fairly dirty (I replaced them) and the cabin air filter had been completely removed (I replaced it too). The tires were only inflated to 30psi, now maintaining them at 44psi. The exterior of the vehicle has a lot of little marks, scratches and scuffs, and the interior shows it wear. All of that is why we feel like this was a rescue than a purchase!

So my questions (besides how in the world could they average 22mpg in this thing):
- What other suggestions would you have to check / maintain that might be holding back the mileage because of lack of maintenance or abuse?
- Any ideas how to "figure out" what we are doing / not doing with our driving to improve the mileage another 10%? (beside keep trying and experimenting?)
- Other than the scangauge, is anyone using or working on anything else to monitor SOC, eng / batt temp, etc?

Thanks again for all the great advise, and I hope I can become as helpful to others as y'all have been for me!

 

If you haven't changed the oil yet, I would recommend doing it immediately. The oil display is only based on mileage and assumes top quality full synthetic. It may not have the right oil. When I've bought used cars in the past, I usually change fluids and filters immediately because I don't know the actual history.

 

Do all the mainetance (fluid and filter changes) items prior to considering vehicle mileage.

As for low vehicle fuel efficiency, if one drives short distances as some of us do, then there is no way you will obtain a hypermilage status. If one drives with the air conditioning or defroster on, the economy will suffer and low 20mpg readings are possible.

It may take awhile for changes in the vehicle's computer system to adjust to your driving style.

 

I will try and get the oil changed this weekend, got all the stuff together to do it, just haven't had a chance yet. I had not thought about the fact that the oil could have been anything....

Anyone who has had their computer cleared, How long has it taken to get your vehicle dialed back in?

 

I would say within 30 minutes based upon my experiences last fall when I disconnected the 12V battery to install all new speakers in my FEH.

 

All the big ones have been nailed: Replace the air filters, oil, and reset the system to allow for "non-abusive" driving adjustments to be made, or drive it enough to recallibrate on it's own.

LOL, if our cars could talk, eh? Nice to read about the "Rescue", and I hope you'll be pleased with it. Several of us are looking forward to the day of the low cost PHEV conversion. Heck, I've done work with 3 of the PHEV conversion companies, and GPSman has done work with at least one as well.

My suggestion is for all new hybrid drivers is to relax, and let the driving come to you. You'll figure it out as you go along, the little quirks and benefits that you can push your vehicle to do that'll work for your own individual driving situation. I always suggest that people don't try to do everything at once, start with a few driving techniques and get good at them before moving on. For all the dozens of things I do, I didn't do them all when I got the FEH, I learned them and refined them over years and added to the repitoire.

While it's hotly debated at times, I'm in the school of thought that says, "don't try to be an electric vehicle", let it EV and use it wisely as part of energy management, but don't try to keep the ICE off at all times, let it be a hybrid, that's where it performs best, especially out on the road. In the subdivisions, sure, EV away, but don't try to EV all the time. Many new users try to go as long as possible with the ICE off, but that doesn't always net the best MPG, that recharge for the HVB has to come from somewhere, and with poor energy management and too heavy EV use, you'll find all your EVing about is negated when you're stopped at a light and the ICE is running to recharge all that energy you just expended, or you'll get 12 MPG later on down the road as your ICE runs to recharge the HVB and propel you down the road. At least that's my advice.

Other then that, you seem to be well on your way given what you've stated, and there isn't really one thing that I can suggest that you don't seem to already be thinking about. There are times when I wish Ford or someone would give me a job going around the country so I could visit and take you for a drive, or give you some tips after experiencing your commute(s) and have all these mini-driving clinics to help everyone get the most out of their FEH.

As to the other question, AFAIK, no, outside of Linear Logics Scanguage, there aren't any outside sources that I know of that have been working to give info to the driver on the FEH's SOC and whatnot.

Good luck, and enjoy the ride!

 

We are already figuring out the best parts on our routes to try to use ev / coasting / recharging (regen or ICE) and how that effects other parts of our journey... It's as addicting as any game, and can reward you at the pump for sure.

What is everyones experience when it comes to the life of the brakepads? I was working on the truck last night and noticed the rear pads are pretty worn down - a little life left, but not much. Is 30k miles about right for that?

Thanks for all the help.
Jeff

 

From the description of the vehicle as you received it, it sounds like the previous owner was one of those binary drivers (always gas-brake-gas-brake).

As the FEH was released, Ford engineers predicted that the rear pads would wear faster than the front pads - although this has not always been the experience with members of this forum - so, it may not be unusual given the previous owner's driving habits. [30k miles is rather early]

 

I suppose I should check the front pads too, I haven't taken a look at them yet.

 

I have 65,000 miles on my 2005 and I have 50% of the original brake pad "meat" left.
It would be difficult to intentionally run the brake pads out in 35,000 miles!

( Are you sure this wasn't a rental or something? Mail carrier perhaps? )

You only NEED the brakes for emergency stops, holding you at a stop, and rolling under 6 miles per hour.
Now you have me wondering.... is the MPG so low because the brakes were dragging just a little???!

You can go 10,000 miles on the oil change with normal to light duty use with the BLENDED oil that is OEM. ( Motorcraft )

You can go 15,000 miles on the oil change with normal to light duty use with a full synthetic oil. I use Mobil 1 full syth and when I changed it at 15,000 it was still tanish in color and still translucent. NOT black, and still let light pass through it! Change more often in all city driving, and really hot or really dusty conditions.