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Ford says C-Max mpg reduction has hurt sales


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http://www.autoblog.com/2014/04/22/ford-c-max-mpg-reduction-hurting-sales-report/

 

 

 

The Ford C-Max is having a rough time. Sales for the five-door hybrid hatchback were down 39.1 percent in March to 2,295 cars, and sales from January through March were down 42.5 percent to 5,566 units. In an interview with The Detroit News, Ford Americas boss Joe Hinrichs places the blame on lowering the model's fuel economy rating.

"We're definitely seeing consideration on C-Max decline over time. We need to reinvest in the product because it's a great car," said Hinrichs to The Detroit News.

 

 

Remainder of article at link

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If that's true then it's surprising. The real difference between 43 and 47 mpg is minimal in terms of actual fuel cost and for me at least would be far outweighed by other vehicle attributes.

One more reason for displaying uel economy as gallons-per-100-miles instead of miles-per-gallon. People would see what a miniscule difference such a change in ratings actually is.

 

Could also be that such a vehicle just doesn't have a huge market and those who wanted one already have one. It's not like the similar Prius-v is tearing up the sales charts either.

Edited by NickF1011
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It might be different but when cross shopping with a Prius, and psychologically being close to that 50MPG number will make a difference for most consumers. I dont think the name is damaged, but I do agree they need to reinvest and maybe phase in the next generation of Fords hybrid system.

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I think it would sell better without the hybrid components and its cargo space returned.

It would sell better if it looked better and had more tech options. It is a basic transportation car. That being said Hybrids don't sell as well when gas is under $4 a gallon.

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It would sell better if it looked better and had more tech options. It is a basic transportation car. That being said Hybrids don't sell as well when gas is under $4 a gallon.

 

Having a unique look to differentiate it from non-hybrids was actually a selling point (IMO). That was part of the Prius appeal.

 

That said - hybrid sales are down everywhere including Prius (down 20% YTD), mainly due to lower gas prices as you point out.

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So did Prius - no correction there.

 

I'm not saying it was the only factor, but the sales drops for C-Max began right after the correction. So while that obivously is not the same reason for Prius sales going down, it's certainly a factor in C-Max's lower sales.

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Ford screwed up in 2010 when they dropped the Aux HV Battery A/C to cut cost. The battery is most efficient at 78F and the efficiency drops off in cold or hot weather from there. Ford's batteries also had a heater with the block heater option, and that was dropped in 2008. The only way to keep the battery at the right temperature is with cabin heating and A/C. This means you have to cook the driver with the heater to get the battery warm in cold weather, and freeze the driver in hot weather to keep the battery cool (near 78F). Both the cabin heater and A/C already reduce MPG big time, so designing a system like this is suicide once the word gets out.

 

I bought the C-Max Energi because it's a plug-in and can cool and heat the cabin on the charger. The EPA rated it with a 21 mile range in EV, but I average 30 miles in EV year round by hypermiling. This winter, I had a 39.6 mile trip on a single charge because I didn't need the HVAC system that time of year. I now have a little over 5,000 miles on my Energi and have not finished the original dealer fill-up. I recently took a trip to Sea World just to burn the gas (E10) which is getting near a year old. This brought my lifetime MPG average from 560 to 341 today.

 

If I were Ford, I'd drop the C-Max and Fusion Hybrid and improve the plug-in with a separate battery HVAC system. I'd pay more for that car, and I will never consider their standard Hybrids again.

 

Gary

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What tech options does it not have available? Adaptive cruise and ventilated seats are about the only ones I can think of. One of the reasons we bought the car had more to do with the content and quality than the fact that it was a hybrid. We've heated seats, nav, dual zone hvac, leather, electric lift gate, and a whole lot more. Granted, we may be the exception rather than the rule, but compared to the Prius, the C-Max is practically a luxury car.

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I think two issues here (I hesitate to call them problems...):

 

1. The form factor was against it from the beginning. I understand Ford wanted a dedicated bodystyle for its hybrid for marketing reasons but honestly the small MPV type layout was probably the worst body style Ford could have chosen since it just does not resonate with American buyers at large. You could point to Prius V and say but that is sort of the same thing... but at the end of the day, it is a Prius and most V buyers are just previous Prius owners trading in for something different. Very few people are buying V specifically for the wagon/MPV capacity.

 

2. Marketing, or rather the lack of. I'm not saying Ford needs to buy market share with endless TV ads but I will bet that awareness of C-Max is pretty low amongst new car buyers. And probably not that much better with prospective hybrid buyers. My parents are looking to replace their 2001 Escape and are favorably inclined towards hybrid cars. I mentioned C-Max... neither of them have ever heard of it... and my father is a "Ford man" having owned 15 different Ford/Mercury/Mazda over 40 years.

Edited by bzcat
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I think it would sell better without the hybrid components and its cargo space returned.

 

I agree, reducing the price by $5,000 would put it at a $20,000 base price making it more acceptable to more buyers.

 

I'd call Ford's gimmick of marketing the C-max as a hybrid only car a failure.

 

 

Of course it would, but how many of those sales would come from Focus hatchback and Escape?

 

Who knows, who cares. I would be more concerned about stealing sales from other automakers than from other cars on the same lot. It would sell at a premium to the focus hatchback and people buying a Trucky escape would not buy a MPV like the C-max.

 

 

We're regularly over $4 here.

 

Flex outsells C-Max most months now. Wonder which one is more profitable...

 

The C-max may be more profitable but no one here would know for sure.

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Who knows, who cares. I would be more concerned about stealing sales from other automakers than from other cars on the same lot. It would sell at a premium to the focus hatchback and people buying a Trucky escape would not buy a MPV like the C-max.

 

Who cares? Any automotive executive worth a crap would care. It's not going to sell at a premium to a Focus hatchback and an escape is anything but trucky.

 

Randomly introducing models without any regard to where the sales would come from and the net result is a recipe for disaster. Or as we like to call it - GM.

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When I look at the C-Max I just see it as looking old compared to most of Ford's lineup too. Techy, efficient, or whatever, it just doesn't look very new compared to some of their other vehicles now. Not really the image you want on your high tech future car. Just my opinion though.

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When I look at the C-Max I just see it as looking old compared to most of Ford's lineup too. Techy, efficient, or whatever, it just doesn't look very new compared to some of their other vehicles now. Not really the image you want on your high tech future car. Just my opinion though.

I would have to agree with you Nick.

Of all the possible issues including mpg, price, features, styling..., my personal inclination is that styling is the key issue.

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Who cares? Any automotive executive worth a crap would care. It's not going to sell at a premium to a Focus hatchback and an escape is anything but trucky.

 

Randomly introducing models without any regard to where the sales would come from and the net result is a recipe for disaster. Or as we like to call it - GM.

 

We will have to agree to disagree.

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