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At what speeds does the hybrid work?

Cakes

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I just took delivery of a 2021 hybrid and i would like to know at what speeds the hybrid works. I was expecting long range improvement in gas mileage and after 700 miles it only seems to be kicking in around town. Example: i drove 260 miles to Houston and only 3.2 miles were "electric"? any insight would be appreciated.
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Wslinky

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I just took delivery of a 2021 hybrid and i would like to know at what speeds the hybrid works. I was expecting long range improvement in gas mileage and after 700 miles it only seems to be kicking in around town. Example: i drove 260 miles to Houston and only 3.2 miles were "electric"? any insight would be appreciated.
The 3.2 is electric only, meaning the gas engine isn't running at all. These miles are usually only at low speeds. My understanding, since I don't have my truck yet, is you can trick the system to electric once you are to speed by tapping the break.

The electric motor still provides some benefit besides the electric only miles, the electric motor provides "boost" when you are at higher speeds.

Using either the EV coach and or the break coach can help increase the benefit of the Powerboost.
 

Just Me

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I just took delivery of a 2021 hybrid and i would like to know at what speeds the hybrid works. I was expecting long range improvement in gas mileage and after 700 miles it only seems to be kicking in around town. Example: i drove 260 miles to Houston and only 3.2 miles were "electric"? any insight would be appreciated.
Mine doesn’t seem to get much electric only use at interstate speeds. Light throttle in town and I can get a few miles out of it. I haven’t been close to 24 mpg in over 2000 miles. Must be a heavy foot keeping me around 18-19 mpg.
 
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Cakes

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Thank you both. Yes, not much out of it at all unfortunately. We take long trips on highways and we were hoping for great gas mileage. My mileage thus far is 4-5 miles per gallon better than my 2010 King Ranch but not in the 20's.

Even the Ford people I speak with seem a bit uneducated on the hybrid piece as well. I will try tricking it by applying brake pressure. If that fails then I guess I'm going to have to accept the engineering as is.

Any other insights as we continue to learn would be appreciated and I'll do similarly.
 

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I've only had mine (Powerboost KR 4x4) for 5 days but I found that the tap the brake trick to enter electric-only doesn't seem to work anymore above 60mph. I need to play some more to find the actual disable point. But I was regularly using it to enter electric mode in the 40's and early 50's. This was in ECO. I don't know if Normal changes the algorithm yet either.
 

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I haven't gotten into electric above 45mph. I doesn't take much throttle to kick the ICE back on.
 

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I sustained 58 mph in electric only on the freeway today for about a mile and a half before I needed to speed up and pass another vehicle. Other than that my previous top speed in electric only was around 45 on city streets.
 
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Cakes

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That's very helpful. How do I put the truck in ECO mode?
 

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That's very helpful. How do I put the truck in ECO mode?
Drive mode knob, just to the right of your knee on the center stack.

You want to turn one position left to bring up the animations and it will show your current mode (unchanged). Then continue turning left to go Tow/Haul -> ECO -> Sport. So if I want to toggle from Normal to ECO, I turn left a quick 3 ticks (not two!), and to go from ECO to Sport I turn a quick 3 ticks again (not two).

I wish that left of Normal was just ECO -> Sport, and right of Normal was Tow/Haul -> [various off-roads depending on packages]

FYI this is the order on my KR Powerboost FX4. I don't know if the order is same on other trims and packages.
 

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Drive mode knob, just to the right of your knee on the center stack.

You want to turn one position left to bring up the animations and it will show your current mode (unchanged). Then continue turning left to go Tow/Haul -> ECO -> Sport. So if I want to toggle from Normal to ECO, I turn left a quick 3 ticks (not two!), and to go from ECO to Sport I turn a quick 3 ticks again (not two).

I wish that left of Normal was just ECO -> Sport, and right of Normal was Tow/Haul -> [various off-roads depending on packages]

FYI this is the order on my KR Powerboost FX4. I don't know if the order is same on other trims and packages.
It's the same on Platinum. I played with it a couple of times. Now I hop in and drive. "Normal" is fine for my driving. "Eco" makes it feel like a 4 cyl to me. "Sport" I can tell it is hopped up some but if I want "sport" I'll hop in my Mustang.
 

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Cakes

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Put it in eco today and looks like I'm getting electric fairly regularly under 40 mph and gas now about 21 mpg. Doesn't take any pressure to throw it back to ICE. Love my truck though and the acceleration. Was hoping for better but will keep learning and report back anything useful.
 

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Maximizing hybrid mpg performance is all about learning to let momentum work for you. The more charge that you can generate for your hybrid battery (which unfortunately is not something the truck tells you, you're just going to have to get a feel for it), the more you're gonna get into electric only mode.

Your truck is basically a giant aluminum and steel billboard on wheels, so air resistance has a huge effect on the truck. On windy days, if your driving into the wind, you're gonna be on the gas, period. The truck will not give you good mpg in that situation.

Tailwinds though, I've had the truck get 30+ MPG with the wind on my back. So I suppose it evens out.

Every downhill, even the slightest downhill, is an opportunity to charge that battery. Take your foot off the gas and coast. Or even better, lightly hold the brake. The battery quickly and efficiently charges during these engagements.

Sometimes a brief burst of acceleration and then coasting is more efficient than keeping the gas engine engaged for a long straightaway. So when you can, accelerate quickly to a high speed, then coast. Do this a few times, a charge will be built up on the hybrid battery and the electric motor will engage.

Using all these tactics to keep the battery charged, the electric mode will engage more often and at higher speeds, even in normal mode. If the battery is well charged, then you should see electric mode engage on straightaways at 30 mph, and in the right conditions you can slowly accelerate the truck to 50 - 55mph. You'll then stay in electric mode and collect all that sweet gas free MPG until the battery gets too low. At all times and at all opportunities, try to coast or brake to keep that electric charge built in. When the battery is too low and there's no regenerative braking, the engine will both be powering your truck and charging the battery. The truck will be very inefficient during that time, so regenerative braking/coasting is essential. This is also why idling hurts MPG...idle too long, and you're starting from scratch to rebuild the hybrid battery's charge.

You can employ the same tactics for highway driving as well. I've seen electric only mode engage on as high as 65 - 70 MPH. I achieved this by accelerating to 75+ at the top of a hill and then coasting downhill, rapidly building a charge. At the bottom of the hill, the truck will be in electric, and then you can coast that for a brief time at 60 - 70 MPH. Wind resistance at those highway speeds means that your time in electric only mode is all too brief, but every little bit helps. This is a Powerboost after all...not a Prius.

Doing the above, in ideal conditions (no headwind, warmer temperatures), I've kept my truck right around 25 in normal mode in city driving. The truck will really reward you for learning how to drive it correctly, and I've gotten a full tank of gas with an estimated range of *over* 700 miles before. Then of course I decided I wanted to have fun, put the truck in sports mode, and hauled ass all over town. My average MPG (and estimated range) dropped rapidly lol. But hey, sometimes you want to exchange cash for rapid acceleration...this truck really lets you decide what you want to do with your money!

Also, I put premium gas in the truck (I feel that it's improved mpg by about 1...this is just an observation but not something I've calculated), and I make sure my tires are aired at the same level.
 

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Put it in eco today and looks like I'm getting electric fairly regularly under 40 mph and gas now about 21 mpg. Doesn't take any pressure to throw it back to ICE. Love my truck though and the acceleration. Was hoping for better but will keep learning and report back anything useful.
Add the "Eco Coach" into your instrument cluster too! It is definitely the best way to learn how to stay in the "blue" electric mode as your battery depletes, and just how hard it is to do a fully electric acceleration. It is also fantastic to learn braking to stay in the "green" charging zone without going white. Very awesome training tool. I added it as a screen in the MyView configuration.
 

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The 3.2 is electric only, meaning the gas engine isn't running at all. These miles are usually only at low speeds. My understanding, since I don't have my truck yet, is you can trick the system to electric once you are to speed by tapping the break.

The electric motor still provides some benefit besides the electric only miles, the electric motor provides "boost" when you are at higher speeds.

Using either the EV coach and or the break coach can help increase the benefit of the Powerboost.
Would this mean that the power boost might get better mileage in stop-and-go traffic and serfas street driving? I live in Southern CA so I drive in these scenarios a lot and am wondering if maybe the PB would excel in these conditions.
 

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Would this mean that the power boost might get better mileage in stop-and-go traffic and serfas street driving? I live in Southern CA so I drive in these scenarios a lot and am wondering if maybe the PB would excel in these conditions.
Yes, using the EPA rating of the 3.5 you'll get about 18, the PB is rated for 24. The more city/stop and go driven the bigger benefit you should see. Assuming, you have a light foot and good breaking habits.
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