Mercury Milan Hybrid Review Blog -- March 9 - 11

[xcel]

Hi All:

___I finally received a confirmation on receiving Ford’s finest hybrid to date and although it is only for two days, I think we can get quite a bit of driving accomplished within the 48-hour window. Let us hope its not raining.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

[GaryG]

Originally Posted by xcel

Hi All:

___I finally received a confirmation on receiving Ford’s finest hybrid to date and although it is only for two days, I think we can get quite a bit of driving accomplished within the 48-hour window. Let us hope its not raining.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Make sure you use Carl's blip to restart the ICE before it starts on its own because of a low SoC (39-40%). In my '09 FEH I do the blip even from a start and use the ICE to get up to speed. If your battery SoC is 42% or above you will need to accelerate above 1,500rpm or the ICE will shutdown into EV. This causes a loss in Battery SoC as the ICE starts and restart to many times.

I'll bet she's good for 90mpg, any takers?

GaryG

[ksstathead]

90 miles is a long way...

[Nevyn]

Originally Posted by ksstathead

90 miles is a long way...

Yes, but this is Wayne. So that means no A/C, no radio, defrost, no anything accessory wise. I'll cheer him on!


P.S. - I wonder how much drain a "power adjustable seat" puts on the battery?

[Kacey Green]

How much does a seat need to be adjusted once you have it set?

[GaryG]

Wayne, don't forget the HV battery draws air from the cabin to cool and heat the battery cells. That means if it's cold you may want to turn the heater On in that baby.

GaryG

[xcel]

Hi All:

___Whooa did Ford knock one out of the park so far… I drove to my parents home so they could have a look and the Milan allowed 65.0 over 15.2 miles and this is in 38 degree temps! 47 mph glides are Kick @$$

___Warm-up hit from 105 degree F coolant was 40 mpg on the first 5-minute bar too!

___There is an EV moving Threshold bar based on SoC and torque within the EV gauge that works magnificently, Empower EcoGuages are spectacularly clean and concise and glides are as easy as letting your foot off the gas. The average Joe is going to love this one.

___Std. Ford cushy ride even with the Michelin Energy’s at 60 psi.

___Front windows fog up pretty quickly unfortunately so you will be cracking the windows …

___Good Luck

___Wayne

[LadySpirit]

Hi! This is Wayne's mom. Per Wayne's instructions, I have to give you all a little "novice" review of our adventure with the new Milan.

He stopped by earlier to show us the new Milan and to give us a chance to drive it, which I did. We drove it out of town about five miles and back and then downtown, another five miles out, to buy some wiper blades for my Bug from AutoZone.

When we first got in the car, I tried to start the engine and nothing happened -- except it did. There was no sound but the car was running. We backed out of the driveway and couldn't even tell the car was running. Weird! However, when we were driving on the highway at about 55 mph, it was more noisy (road noise and car noise) than the Prius that I had driven before. Another thing I commented on when we got back was I thought there was a police siren in the distance and thought about pulling over, but it did sound like it was at a distance. That happened a couple times during the drive. I mentioned it to Wayne, and he picked it up only after I mentioned it -- it was quite subtle. We came to the conclusion that it was a sound from the car when it switched from gas to electric. I got 45.5 mph during the drive.

I asked Wayne's dad about his impression, and he commented about the road noise too -- "lot more." He said it was a lot like the Saturn Aura we drove awhile back.

Then we drove through downtown-- to the other end of a small town -- and I got 49.5. It drove fine as far as I could tell. When we left AutoZone and got back in the car, I started it, put it in gear, and nothing happened. That was a little scary at first -- did I break it? Wayne said it was because I have to keep my foot on the brake for a few seconds when you start the car. We turned off the engine to reset, and I did it correctly the second time around. It takes some getting used to -- the absolute silence upon starting.

The one thing I did like about the Milan was a guage in the dash that showed when you were in EV versus the gas engine. I think I could really use the way it worked to really get a handle on good driving habits.

Another thing was the light in the sideview mirrors that indicated a car in the blind spot. That was neat.

When we got back home, I looked at the car from the outside, etc. It is an attractive looking car. The trunk looked smaller than the Prius and somehow looked like cheaper materials to me. Impressions! I sat in the back seat and had plenty of leg room (I'm only 5'6"). However, when I first got in the car I had adjusted the seat forward and up for my size compared to Wayne. He said it was a tighter back seat for him when he had the seat adjusted for his size.

The one thing Wayne noticed was my driving had changed from the last time we took a spin -- much more aggressive. I have not been using the ScanGuage in the VW Bug so have reverted back to old habits -- bad habits. I tried some other guage, a little green box, that just frustrated me (useless) -- so I took it out and didn't get the ScanGuage back in until today. Now it is back and I'm sure my driving habits will again change for the better. Wayne said if my driving improved back to what it was when I was using the ScanGuage, I would probably get 65 mph.

I didn't know that Wayne was going to ask me for a written review so my observations would have been more acute had I known. However, first impressions are always the most significant no matter what.

Wayne's Mom -- LadySpirit

[msirach]

Hi Wayne's mom! Thanks for your impressions! 45 mpg for a maiden voyage is very good. From what I know of it, I think you have hit the nail on the head.
The only thing you left out of your comments was: The little green useless box was "pretty."

[xcel]

Hi All:

___Preliminary results and discussion...

2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid

Love the Ford LCD displays. They are far better in person than either the Honda’s or Toyota’s latest in terms of aesthetics and clarity. The Ford graphic people really broke the mold with this display!

Windows fog up to easily for some reason?

47 mph (actually 46 mph) glides can be played with on the highway Transition from 47 WS to 46 mph glide is harsh. Everywhere else however is so buttery smooth you need instruments to verify what just happened actually happened. Very nice job Ford!

Front seat Head rests do not feel like they are active. Mounted forward just in case and could be a comfort issue. Will find out more later.

Ride/handling... Soft ride yet has little body roll in a fast sweeper. A little to soft on most pavement but when you hit pavement expansion joints, she’s harsh. I-43 from the IL border to almost Lake Geneva was a rough SOB late last night.

Engine shuts down immediately and you can use the EV wrap line as a guide for Shift to N if you want to rest. A very soft touch on the pedal yields a nice glide as well. Easier than in the Prius.

Warp Neutral does not work

Electric motors whine under EV and more cabin noise than a Prius-II/III/Insight-II at speed.

Seats are more comfortable than the TCH that I remember. More useable trunk room too.

Dash material is still a little basketball hide like.

NAVI is SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE Visteon POS that used to be in Ford’s. Nice, clear, clean and concise. Synch is really easy to use too.

Preliminary FE results...

Unfortunately it has been terrible weather for maximizing FE today but here are some preliminary results so far.

First drive

From cold in 37 degree F temps with a 28 – 29 mph average speed. 65.0 mpg over 15.3 miles. This included the 5-minute warm-up hit at 40 mpg so she is worth almost 70 without really having a feel for what the Milan Hybrid can and cannot do yet.

65.0 mpg over 15.3 miles in high 30 degree temps.


Mom’s drive at 49.5 mpg!

Fill up and attempted top off

Big problem here and something I have E-Mails in with Ford this morning. First click was fine but a slow fill toward top off revealed fuel pouring out from under the car? Every time I tried to add an ounce or two, fuel poured out from the bottom of the car? I have never experienced this before and I am sure I am not/will not be the only one to experience this! Continuing... The fuel gauge showed its first pixel below full at ~ 122 miles out while still in the 52.5 mpg range. At 236.1 miles out, I am only a pixel or two above ¾. I hope there is 17 + gallons in the tank but it looks doubtful given the attempt at a top off and seeing the gauge drop from Full so soon.

Daylight drive - all-highway

Temps from 35 to 43 degree temps yielded 53.0 mpg over 107 miles per the MFD. Not sure if the display is correct yet as I need another 500 or so miles to provide an offset cal when I attempt another top off for an actual fuel economy calc tomorrow evening or Wednesday morning.

53.0 mpg over 107.8 miles of 100% highway in high 30 degree temps.

Evening/Night drive with continuous light to heavy rain

I turned around as soon as it began to rain hard in Madison, WI. With temps ranging from 34 to 41 degrees F, light to heavy rain for 100 percent of the drive back and from dusk into the late night (lights on), I was down to 50.6 mpg before leaving the Interstate around 165 miles out. I pulled her back to 52.0 mpg with some baseline Rates and Ranges but there are time concerns with the techniques used in the most adverse conditions. Not as bad as heavy snow and below 0 degree temps

52.0 mpg over 236.1 miles cumulative. Light to hard rain and mid to high 30 degree temps.

The following is what is available with a minimal amount of training and continual oversight prior to any drive.

In temps ranging from 34 to 43 degrees F, the Milan/Fusion will allow a 52 to 53 mpg average on the highway with an average speed between 45 and 51 mph while DWL and DWB. In temps between 45 and 69 degrees F, I suspect the Fusion/Milan would allow 55 to 58 mpg. Above 70 degrees F and the Fusion/Milan should easily pop over 60 mpg on the highway.

Suburban driving... In temps ranging from 34 to 42 degrees F at an average speed of 30 mph with minimal impediments, the Milan/Fusion should allow 60 to 65 mpg. In temps between 45 and 69 degrees F, I suspect the Fusion/Milan would allow 70 to 75 mpg. Above 70 degrees F and the Fusion/Milan will easily pop over 85 mpg with minimal impediments. Drop ~ 5 mpg for another 5 mph or 35 mpg average speed.

Suburban driving with Rain... In temps ranging from 34 to 42 degrees F, raining heavily as I experienced tonight and at an average speed of 25 mph with minimal impediments, the Milan/Fusion will allow a 57 to 60 mpg average. In temps between 45 and 69 degrees F and raining, I suspect the Fusion/Milan would be worth 60 to 65 mpg. Above 70 degrees F and raining, the Fusion/Milan should exceed 68 mpg with minimal impediments.

These are preliminary results and achieved in very cold spring temps, poor conditions, worst fuel available and in a car with less than 2,750 miles on the clock.

___Good Luck

___Wayne