Ford Admits Hybrids Fail at MPG Claims: Fix Issued
07-17-13, 08:50 AM
#1
Ford Admits Hybrids Fail at MPG Claims: Fix Issued
Ford acknowledged today that its hybrid fuel economy claims are unrealistic for real-world driving.
The company announced a plan “aimed at improving on road fuel economy customer satisfaction,” Ford global product development group vice president Raj Nair said today in a press conference. It asks current hybrid owners to bring their vehicles back to dealers for “enhancements” designed to improve real-world hybrid fuel economy.
Those changes include the ability to drive on electric power at up to 85 mph rather than the former 62. That, and a series of other enhancements will improve “customer satisfaction” surrounding the actual fuel economy their hybrid vehicles offer, Ford said.
Other changes include an optimized active grille shutter system to reduce drag. Nair also said Ford is speeding engine warm up times by over 50 percent to allow the engine start-stop system to operate sooner after a driver starts the car. The same tweaks will be made on vehicles being manufactured.
Ford also promised that the changes will be carried out free of charge and that they will not affect vehicle performance — something the brand says has played a key role in differentiating its hybrids from Toyota products. The C-Max offers more output than the Prius.
MPG Scandal Late Last Year
During the presentation, Nair spoke about addressing varying fuel consumption associated with hybrid vehicles in December, 2012. That month, Consumer Reports had also released its real-world fuel economy tests showing both the C-Max and Fusion hybrids returning significantly poorer than advertised fuel economy. It was a big discrepancy (the largest the consumer publication had ever recorded), and one that came shortly after Hyundai had been caught fudging its advertised fuel efficiency ratings.
Rather than the 47 MPG combined claimed by Ford, Consumer Reports returned 39 MPG in the Fusion Hybrid and just 37 MPG in the C-Max hybrid.
It wasn’t long before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would begin testing to evaluate both vehicles.
“C-Max and Fusion are not going through the same process as Hyundai since the later was a case of incorrect information being submitted by the company. The Ford vehicles are undergoing overall fuel economy testing to allow for a comparison of results,” the agency said in an email.
The EPA investigation of Hyundai and Kia that ultimately lead to an embarrassing ”mea culpa” by the South Korean brands began in February, 2012, after scores of complaints were filed by owners. A conclusion was finally announced 10 months later in November.
While the agency confirmed that the two tests are different, it’s hard to imagine that the results are far from being released; especially given Ford’s announcement. As of Friday, July 12, the agency maintained that its investigation was ongoing.
Ford sees Future in Hybrids
Even if the EPA ends up admonishing Ford in its report, the Detroit maker will still be pouring more resources into its electrified vehicle program.
“We’ll be increasing the employees working in electrification engineering by more than 50 percent” this year, Nair said. “We’re also investing an additional $50 million in electrified product development and testing centers.”
Increasing hybrid sales are at the heart of the decision. Ford said it is adjusting production of its Fusion-based mid-size Lincoln MKZ to allow for the hybrid variant to account for 40 percent.
“Electrified sales have been more than 46,000 units through June,” Nair said of the brand’s total portfolio. “That’s more than 400 percent higher than the same period a year ago. In fact, we’ve quadrupled electric vehicle market share, now at nearly 16 percent (15.7 percent).” Things look good.
Some Questions Still Unanswered
It isn’t clear if they will stay that way. Last week, the brand announced that it would cut the price of its struggling all-electric Focus by $4,000; a move most other manufacturers with electric cars are also making.
The EPA still has to release its findings. While it’s unlikely that the EPA findings will align with Consumer Reports completely, a significant drop could prove problematic. That will be especially true if Ford needs to adjust its advertised 47 mpg figure.
The company announced a plan “aimed at improving on road fuel economy customer satisfaction,” Ford global product development group vice president Raj Nair said today in a press conference. It asks current hybrid owners to bring their vehicles back to dealers for “enhancements” designed to improve real-world hybrid fuel economy.
Those changes include the ability to drive on electric power at up to 85 mph rather than the former 62. That, and a series of other enhancements will improve “customer satisfaction” surrounding the actual fuel economy their hybrid vehicles offer, Ford said.
Other changes include an optimized active grille shutter system to reduce drag. Nair also said Ford is speeding engine warm up times by over 50 percent to allow the engine start-stop system to operate sooner after a driver starts the car. The same tweaks will be made on vehicles being manufactured.
Ford also promised that the changes will be carried out free of charge and that they will not affect vehicle performance — something the brand says has played a key role in differentiating its hybrids from Toyota products. The C-Max offers more output than the Prius.
MPG Scandal Late Last Year
During the presentation, Nair spoke about addressing varying fuel consumption associated with hybrid vehicles in December, 2012. That month, Consumer Reports had also released its real-world fuel economy tests showing both the C-Max and Fusion hybrids returning significantly poorer than advertised fuel economy. It was a big discrepancy (the largest the consumer publication had ever recorded), and one that came shortly after Hyundai had been caught fudging its advertised fuel efficiency ratings.
Rather than the 47 MPG combined claimed by Ford, Consumer Reports returned 39 MPG in the Fusion Hybrid and just 37 MPG in the C-Max hybrid.
It wasn’t long before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would begin testing to evaluate both vehicles.
“C-Max and Fusion are not going through the same process as Hyundai since the later was a case of incorrect information being submitted by the company. The Ford vehicles are undergoing overall fuel economy testing to allow for a comparison of results,” the agency said in an email.
The EPA investigation of Hyundai and Kia that ultimately lead to an embarrassing ”mea culpa” by the South Korean brands began in February, 2012, after scores of complaints were filed by owners. A conclusion was finally announced 10 months later in November.
While the agency confirmed that the two tests are different, it’s hard to imagine that the results are far from being released; especially given Ford’s announcement. As of Friday, July 12, the agency maintained that its investigation was ongoing.
Ford sees Future in Hybrids
Even if the EPA ends up admonishing Ford in its report, the Detroit maker will still be pouring more resources into its electrified vehicle program.
“We’ll be increasing the employees working in electrification engineering by more than 50 percent” this year, Nair said. “We’re also investing an additional $50 million in electrified product development and testing centers.”
Increasing hybrid sales are at the heart of the decision. Ford said it is adjusting production of its Fusion-based mid-size Lincoln MKZ to allow for the hybrid variant to account for 40 percent.
“Electrified sales have been more than 46,000 units through June,” Nair said of the brand’s total portfolio. “That’s more than 400 percent higher than the same period a year ago. In fact, we’ve quadrupled electric vehicle market share, now at nearly 16 percent (15.7 percent).” Things look good.
Some Questions Still Unanswered
It isn’t clear if they will stay that way. Last week, the brand announced that it would cut the price of its struggling all-electric Focus by $4,000; a move most other manufacturers with electric cars are also making.
The EPA still has to release its findings. While it’s unlikely that the EPA findings will align with Consumer Reports completely, a significant drop could prove problematic. That will be especially true if Ford needs to adjust its advertised 47 mpg figure.
07-17-13, 09:24 AM
#2
First Hyundai/Kia, now Ford?
I know hitting the 40 mpg mark is the new "benchmark", but these brands are failing to give consumers real-world figures.
Hyundai/Kia offered laughable refunds that costs less than a tank of gas. People bought their cars with the promise of fuel efficiency, and they get the short end of the stick.
I hope Ford is able to remedy the situation far more responsibly.
I know hitting the 40 mpg mark is the new "benchmark", but these brands are failing to give consumers real-world figures.
Hyundai/Kia offered laughable refunds that costs less than a tank of gas. People bought their cars with the promise of fuel efficiency, and they get the short end of the stick.
I hope Ford is able to remedy the situation far more responsibly.
07-17-13, 09:37 AM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
I don't know why Ford seems to be singled out here for undue criticism. Many other hybrids as well have not necessarily delivered the stellar numbers promised for them. When the Prius debuted, for example, despite EPA numbers well above 50 in the city, Toyota service managers routinely told customers in this area that about 45 MPG was what they could realistically expect.....which was what most of them actually got, including several people I know that actually bought Priuses. There are also a number of other examples...I don't have time to list them all.
07-17-13, 09:50 AM
#4
Exactly why I laugh when I see the Ford Ad claim better MPG than Toyota & have better resale value. Toyota has put so much work on its hybrid and Ford jump from no where and claim their hybrid is better. It prove my prediction is correct.
When they mean enhancement, do they tweak & hack your ECU so it will show a higher MPG? Just so it shows 47 MPG while it s really only 39 MPG? BTW, ODO MPG # are always lower than the real calculation at the pump.
Not sure about the 1st gen Prius, but I use to drive my company' s 2nd gen traveling from NY to PA daily. My MPG was pretty stable at 46~47MPG at the pump and 49MPG on the ODO.
Thats 80% highway & 20% city & I was driving 70~75MPH on the highway.
When they mean enhancement, do they tweak & hack your ECU so it will show a higher MPG? Just so it shows 47 MPG while it s really only 39 MPG? BTW, ODO MPG # are always lower than the real calculation at the pump.
Not sure about the 1st gen Prius, but I use to drive my company' s 2nd gen traveling from NY to PA daily. My MPG was pretty stable at 46~47MPG at the pump and 49MPG on the ODO.
Thats 80% highway & 20% city & I was driving 70~75MPH on the highway.
Last edited by grabber2; 07-17-13 at 09:56 AM.
07-17-13, 10:12 AM
#5
I think the differences between Ford and Toyota is that Ford has claim since day one that their hybrids will get EPA mpg.
Also the Fusion hybrid claims 47 mpg but in real life it gets like 39 mpg.
The Camry hybrid EPA mgp is 44, but real world driving is around 41 mpg.
Also the Fusion hybrid claims 47 mpg but in real life it gets like 39 mpg.
The Camry hybrid EPA mgp is 44, but real world driving is around 41 mpg.
07-17-13, 10:45 AM
#7
I can hear it now, "standby for a firmware update to resolve the low mpg issue" 
IMO, i don't where a solution would be, but the best solution might be what Hoovey suggested ^^^.
Ford marketing and test engineers tested and verified the mpg's according to EPA standards, I'm sure. Service managers and technicians are telling consumers to expect a value below the advertised number. But in reality, that has always been the case, even with gasoline engines i.e. my fuelly below; I've hit the EPA highway mpg of 25, like twice..
IMO, i don't where a solution would be, but the best solution might be what Hoovey suggested ^^^.
Ford marketing and test engineers tested and verified the mpg's according to EPA standards, I'm sure. Service managers and technicians are telling consumers to expect a value below the advertised number. But in reality, that has always been the case, even with gasoline engines i.e. my fuelly below; I've hit the EPA highway mpg of 25, like twice..
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07-17-13, 12:56 PM
#8
Lexus Champion
07-17-13, 02:42 PM
#10
I think the differences between Ford and Toyota is that Ford has claim since day one that their hybrids will get EPA mpg.
Also the Fusion hybrid claims 47 mpg but in real life it gets like 39 mpg.
The Camry hybrid EPA mgp is 44, but real world driving is around 41 mpg.
Also the Fusion hybrid claims 47 mpg but in real life it gets like 39 mpg.
The Camry hybrid EPA mgp is 44, but real world driving is around 41 mpg.
Even in this PR, they make claims as if they are offering better performance unlike Toyota hybrids, when you have 2.5l Camry Hybrid being much faster than 2.0 Ford Hybrid while getting better mpg.
07-17-13, 03:07 PM
#11
Lexus Champion
CR recently had an interesting article that listed cars which missed their EPA estimates by 10% or more in CR's Road Test. There were quite a few cars listed. The main types were hybrids and small turbo engine cars. If I can find it I'll list some of them.
07-17-13, 03:39 PM
#12
The funny thing is I'm betting the diesel(not a diesel hybrid, just a 4 cylinder turbodiesel) version of the Ford C-Max sold in Europe gets better MPG's than the stateside gas hybrid C-max.
Really we have no political will to move to more efficient diesel engines already on sale in Europe. It would take an act of congress(not going to happen) to force the oil companies to quit gouging for diesel, which IMO is the main reason diesel has never caught on here. I know we also have more stringent air pollution standards but IMO that hasn't been a problem for VW, Benz, BMW, Audi, or the big three with their hulking 1 ton trucks.
Really we have no political will to move to more efficient diesel engines already on sale in Europe. It would take an act of congress(not going to happen) to force the oil companies to quit gouging for diesel, which IMO is the main reason diesel has never caught on here. I know we also have more stringent air pollution standards but IMO that hasn't been a problem for VW, Benz, BMW, Audi, or the big three with their hulking 1 ton trucks.
07-18-13, 07:36 AM
#13
The issue here, is that unlike a pure petrol car where a difference in speed adds a little difference in fuel consumption, hybrids use no fuel at low speeds and a normal amount of fuel at highway speeds.
This results in a weight average to obtain fuel efficiency, and as the speed increases the mileage obtained in EV mode drops exponentially, the fuel efficiency also drops in a non-linear relationship to speed.
Since the EPA tests these at, I believe, 55 MPH, the difference when traveling at 65 MPH on many highways, or even the 80 MPH speed limits we have here in Texas (ya it's a big state and we need to go fast, so what?), can causes a huge discrepancy.
So, it's not a matter of the tests not being good for non-hybrids. In fact, they work fine, and it's a good basis for RELATIVE comparison between vehicles as individual driving habits DO vary. The problem is simply that driving habits affect actual fuel efficiency in hybrids MUCH MORE than in non-hybrids.
Automakers are stuck in a tough position. It's not valid to criticize the decision to make a hybrid, they MUST do so in order to meet fleet fuel economy regulations and let people drive the gas guzzling performance cars we so love. However, in order to sell the cars they must build, if the tests showed actual performance at the speeds your average person drives, and all differences becomes summarized in a single number (which is a terrible way to compare cars anyways... why bother testing anything else at all then?), the uninformed consumer would never choose the hybrid because there'd be little to no expected benefit.
tl,dr; EPA throws automakers a bone to let them show inflated MPG numbers for hybrid cars they must build for fleet MPG laws so consumers will actually consider buying them.
This results in a weight average to obtain fuel efficiency, and as the speed increases the mileage obtained in EV mode drops exponentially, the fuel efficiency also drops in a non-linear relationship to speed.
Since the EPA tests these at, I believe, 55 MPH, the difference when traveling at 65 MPH on many highways, or even the 80 MPH speed limits we have here in Texas (ya it's a big state and we need to go fast, so what?), can causes a huge discrepancy.
So, it's not a matter of the tests not being good for non-hybrids. In fact, they work fine, and it's a good basis for RELATIVE comparison between vehicles as individual driving habits DO vary. The problem is simply that driving habits affect actual fuel efficiency in hybrids MUCH MORE than in non-hybrids.
Automakers are stuck in a tough position. It's not valid to criticize the decision to make a hybrid, they MUST do so in order to meet fleet fuel economy regulations and let people drive the gas guzzling performance cars we so love. However, in order to sell the cars they must build, if the tests showed actual performance at the speeds your average person drives, and all differences becomes summarized in a single number (which is a terrible way to compare cars anyways... why bother testing anything else at all then?), the uninformed consumer would never choose the hybrid because there'd be little to no expected benefit.
tl,dr; EPA throws automakers a bone to let them show inflated MPG numbers for hybrid cars they must build for fleet MPG laws so consumers will actually consider buying them.
07-18-13, 08:22 PM
#15
The funny thing is I'm betting the diesel(not a diesel hybrid, just a 4 cylinder turbodiesel) version of the Ford C-Max sold in Europe gets better MPG's than the stateside gas hybrid C-max.
Really we have no political will to move to more efficient diesel engines already on sale in Europe. It would take an act of congress(not going to happen) to force the oil companies to quit gouging for diesel, which IMO is the main reason diesel has never caught on here. I know we also have more stringent air pollution standards but IMO that hasn't been a problem for VW, Benz, BMW, Audi, or the big three with their hulking 1 ton trucks.
Really we have no political will to move to more efficient diesel engines already on sale in Europe. It would take an act of congress(not going to happen) to force the oil companies to quit gouging for diesel, which IMO is the main reason diesel has never caught on here. I know we also have more stringent air pollution standards but IMO that hasn't been a problem for VW, Benz, BMW, Audi, or the big three with their hulking 1 ton trucks.
Steve