Considering you are the ONLY person on this entire site that I have seen making these ridiculous mileage claims Gary (for ANY year feh), I am thinking something else here is false.

Anyone with any year FEH can figure out that you must be a considerable traffic impediment even IF your impractical claims were to be true.

You HAVE NOT owned both a 2008 and a 2009. Nor has anyone else on this site claimed to have owned both on here yet other than I. I am not comparing the 08 to a 10 as you are trying to relate to. The actual, REALISTIC comparison I am making from a REAL LIFE experience is between a 2008 FEH loaded and a 2009 FEHL.

I have owned both. My wife knows almost nothing of hypermiling. I can't think of a more practical, real world comparison than a soccer mom running my kid all over the city and our making several in state highway trips. 37000 miles worth of testing Gary.

The 09 I own does not, and never will get better gas mileage than the 08 I owned.

The 09 I own does not, and never will get better gas mileage than the 08 I owned.

The 09 I own does not, and never will get better gas mileage than the 08 I owned.

Buy a 08 and test them for yourself, until then compare what you can with the vehicles you ACTUALLY have experience with.

 

Steve, Sean stated false information no matter about hypermiling - This statement "The 2009 does not have improved mpg over the 2008, nor do the epa figures reflect improved mpg. If it did, Ford would have been marketing the crap out of the mpg improvement."

The EPA figures are what I was referring to mainly and stated so in my response. Tell me you didn't know the '08 FWD FEH is rated 30/34mpg and the '09 FWD FEH is rated 31/34. Sean's statement should be false to you also. The EPA says the '09 FEH gets better mileage than the '08, not the same or worst like Sean was stating.

GaryG

 

I agree that it's possible Steve, but we ARE getting the epa claims with the 09 but anything better takes alot of effort. We were getting MUCH better than EPA claims with our 08 and it was completely by accident and without effort.

Just to pick ONE 2009 fuel sucking software "revision" between the two model years would be the 2500 MINIMUM rpm in the 2009 at over 89 degrees. Yep, this is NOT a malfunction. This is a PROGRAMMED change.
It is IMPOSSIBLE to drive any speed over 40mph at less than 2500 rpm with the a/c on when the outside temp goes over 89 degrees. Let off the gas and the rpms drop, but just TOUCH the pedal with even the lightest pressure and the engine will immediately jump to 2500 rpm. 41mph to 65 mph, 2500 rpm.... This is NOT as fuel efficient as the 2008 was period, especially around town where you are only averaging 45mph or so..

I hate to be repetitive but with both vehicles we drive/drove the SAME streets, in the SAME city, in the SAME state, the SAME times during the day. My wife has the SAME job, at the SAME location, the SAME hours. My kid goes to the SAME school and the SAME after school activities.

I really can't say much more, but it sucks to be challenged everytime I try to help clarify information from experience.

There are TONS of differences between the two trucks, some better on the 09, most WORSE. I will admit that I expected MUCH more out of the 09 from the reviews I read before deciding to make the switch.

If I could do it over again, I would KEEP my 2008. We loved it to death and miss it sorely. With the incentives at the time and the tax incentive, it was possibly the best new vehicle purchase I have ever made.

 

LOL you are correct here gary.... don't choke on that one mpg CLAIM...

Have you ever compared the 2008 to the 2009 other than the window sticker Gary?

 

FWIW, since I'm still a newbie by anyone's standards in this forum, I can also confirm that Ford will not/cannot update the firmware/software on the FEH. Mine is an 06 and I was also hoping to get some of the bennies of the new design. I wen to the dealer and spoke at length with their Hybrid guru and it is all as Steve says. Bummer!

That said, I still love this thing! With my local area commute, I'm averaging 35-39 MPG. On the highway, that drops to about 31. Must be something to do with my right foot. Nonetheless, I am more than pleased with the Ford Hybrids and will look at getting a Fusion Hybrid (used, of course) when the time comes to replace our family car.

 

I keep a public mileage log that anyone can view, do you? Trust me, Wayne Gerdes could recognize as he has in the past when someone is posting false data on his mileage log site at http://www.cleanmpg.com/index.php?pa...9&viewcar=2612

In addition, my mileage during the '07 Hybridfest MPG Challenge has been documented and can be viewed by a simple google anytime just like those false statements you made about the '09 FEH EPA rating not being improved over the '08 model.

Now your assuming I'm a "considerabe traffic impediment" when you've NEVER seen me drive. You sure know more about the FEH EPA rating than what's on my window sticker and how I drive my FEH more than anyone here. I seen your anger before at Ford and again when you stated "Ford would have been marketing the crap out of the mpg improvement." Now that's the real problem and you don't want people here buying new Ford Hybrids.

The only thing I'm demonstrating with my mileage log is that Ford is making a better product and Hybrid than the competition. I also did the same by purchasing an improved '09 FEH and can backed it up with my mileage log and lack of repairs needed. I've posted the bad with the good and try to help everyone I can with my experience. As you have seen, I will also call people on giving false information.

GaryG

 

Yes I have Sean, I even compared the '05, '06 and '07 to the '08 and '09 FEH. Since you didn't know the EPA rating of your own '08 or '09 FEH, you most likely don't know the EPA rating of the '05, '06 and '07 FEH. You see Sean, your way out of your league here my friend. I know just about all EPA ratings of all Hybrids made that have been certified by the EPA. Did you know I was comparing my '05 FEH to my '09 FEH? Did you know my '05 FEH has a much better EPA rating than the '08 and '09 FEH? Of course not! Do you think my 5 years of testing the first, second, third and forth FEH ever produced would give me the experience of the FEH to know how to evaluate them, drive them and get the most MPG out of them? Of course not!

Your real smart Sean, you've owned an '08 FEH and now are bashing the '09 FEH which may prove to be the best non plug-in hybrid in history. The '08 FEH history has a much worst EPA rating than the '05 FEH. LOL now!

The good news for Ford is I'm proving the '09 FEH is not only more efficient than the '08 FEH, but it has the highest EPA percentage above all Hybrid EPA ratings sold in America.

GaryG

 

The 2008 will add 600 RPM to the engine at temperatures above 96 degrees (F) external temperature - but only if the A/C is running. It is interesting that there is a different cutoff for the 2nd Gen FEH.

FWIW, I believe GaryG's MPG numbers. He has achieved them at hybrid gatherings that are judged by impartial observers. But I'm not interested in hypermiling.

My 2008 AWD is standing just above 30 MPG lifetime. But my normal commute is only 10 miles

 

You are right that I am not as happy with my 09 as I was with my 08, great observation skills on that one.

That's exactly what I have been saying all along. I'm glad you finally get it.

In my opinion, the 2009 does not get better gas mileage than the 2008.

It's ok for you to disagree with that, really.

You can continue to mislead people with your outrageous mileage claims that can't possibly be achieved with normal everyday driving.

Please share with us any information regarding you actually driving a 2008 in the same manner as you drive your 2009.

Steve,

I don't argue that Gary has achieved these numbers at hybrid gatherings either, but what part of a hypermiling session at a hybrid gathering is similar to real world, every day vehicle use?



carry on!

 

Sean, I've driven the '08 FWD FEH on the same exact roads and routes as my '05 FWD FEH with straight gas and found very little difference in mileage. They both get in the lower 50mpg range but I have seen as high as 70mpg on this same route in ideal weather conditions in my '05. Just after Florida switched to E10 we both got our '09 FWD FEHL. My '09 and most likely your '09 (in the State of Florida) has never had a tank of straight gas to compare the drop in mileage with E10. I suspect you don't have a SGII and don't monitor your mileage as closely as I do. As we both were ordering our '09 FEH in April and May of '08, Florida gas stations were going to E10 and marking the gas pumps accordingly. Weather you seen a difference in mileage with E10 in your '08 FEH remains to be seen because you no longer had your '08 FEH after the E10 change. This means that you were comparing the '08 FEH with straight gas and your "normal driving" habits to the '09 FEH on E10. Your '08 FEH has the same engine, eCVT, O2 sensors with very little programming changes than my '05. Therefore your '08 FEH performs almost the exact same as my '05 FEH on E10 and straight gas. They both perform great on straight gas but terrible on E10.

If you drive your '09 on E10 like you did your '08 on straight gas, your going to see a drop in mileage from the '08 most likely. If you still had your '08 and compared it with the mileage you get in the '09 with both using E10, the '09 would get better mileage IMO. My '09 FEH does not jump to 2,500rpm's in 90 degree weather with the A/C ON like yours so you may have a problem. If anyone has this same issue with a '09 FEH, please post about it so we can get to the bottom of what's causing it.

If I drove like I did in the '07 Hybridfest MPG Challenge all the time here in Florida, my LMPG average would be a little better. The fact is, I drove like you most likely by not planning or concentrating on getting good gas mileage. That's all over for me now and I plan every trip and concentrate my skills on driving into what you see in my mileage log. I've never got a ticket for driving to slow but I have been pulled over for driving to fast in my '09 FEH. I'm constantly complaining about people driving to slow and not knowing how to drive by not paying attention to driving or the people behind them. I don't get on I-95 and hold traffic back like some hypermilers I know because I know skills in driving fast with traffic also. The big problem with my '05 FEH is E10. It won't get out of its on way getting up to speed on an ON-Ramp. The '09 FEH has no problems like my '05 on E10. The fact is, I start the engine in my '09 from EV every time I need to accelerate with or without traffic behind me. On the other hand, my '05 will accelerate faster in EV from a stop than accelerating with the engine on E10. After 15mph I do start the '05 because it does alright to about 38mph with the engine on E10. After 38mph I constantly have to fight to lower runaway RPM's in the '05 but not the '09. I truly love my '09 because it's more efficient on E10 than my '05 on straight gas for me. The Sync, Nav system and other electronics on the '09 make a world of difference also.

GaryG