> I need a USED Plugin Hybrid that is NOT a Prius (range too short) or
> Volt (Perfect, but wife wants 5 seat belts).
>
> Is the Ford Cmax Energi the only affordable thing left?.
> Does anyone have one? Anything about it you dont like?
Yeah, we’ve got a C-Max Energi, got it when they came out, and it’s been our
primary driver ever since. We’ve also got a Focus EV, Smart ED, and Model X,
so I’ll compare it to those.
Obviously the Focus is what it’s most similar to… In a lot of ways, the C-Max
just a slightly taller Focus. That means more headroom and legroom, and since
the sitting posture is more vertical, more front-to-back room generally. There
are also little under-floor cargo compartments in the back seat that don’t
exist in the Focus, and there’s a somewhat higher degree of automation,
generally… The specific feature that we wind up using a ton, that doesn’t
exist on the Focus (or any of the other cars we have or have had), is the
automated rear hatch… Wave your foot under the rear bumper, and the rear hatch
opens. Great for loading groceries with both arms full, or when you’re holding
a kid in one arm.
EV-only range is 16mi-20mi, depending on who’s driving, which is more than
enough for most days around town. Occasionally we’ll leave it out overnight,
or loan it to someone else, and it’ll dip into the gas tank. Fortunately the
gas tank self-vacuum-seals, with a pump that evacuates the air so the gas won’t
go stale. The tank is nominally 14 gallons, we generally wind up adding about
ten gallons every two or three months. So, not quite
no-trips-to-the-gas-station-at-all, but we generally just get it washed and
replace the window-washer fluid while we’re there. Not as bad as visiting the
gas station every week, with an ICE. We’ve taken it on longer road-trips
occasionally, and usually 110V charge it overnight as we travel, which at least
helps a little bit. Now that we have the Model X, we’d just take that instead.
Relative to the Model X, it’s easy to park, fast to charge, and there isn’t the
“will-they-or-won’t-they” guessing-game quality to the back doors. And because
it’s not an expensive vehicle, my wife can run it into trees and walls and
stuff without feeling too guilty.
Relative to the Smart, it’s sort of the opposite of the Model X… The Smart is
much easier to park, and feels like a go-kart… you can just kinda sling it
around, and if it were to fall apart or whatever, you could pick up another off
of eBay any time. No sign of that yet, it’s been perfectly stable and
reliable, but it’s also as much more “manual” than the C-Max as the C-Max is
from the Tesla… No backup cameras, gizmos, automation, just a car. But also,
just two seats.
We really love the C-Max. I hadn’t anticipated that I would, I’ve always been
a car guy, and assumed that it would be too aesthetically unappealing to be
lovable, but it just winds up seeming practical and convenient, rather than
ugly.
-Bill
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