Monday, April 17, 2017

Top 5 Reasons I Love my Plug In Hybrid {Earth Month Series}

This is post 2 of 5 in my Earth Month Series. You can find post #1 here and post #2 here

Last August my husband and I purchased a 2013 Ford C-Max Energi. We had strict criteria in finding a plug-in hybrid and this ticked off all the boxes for us, from price to cargo to seating capacity to fuel economy. It has been one of our wisest purchases, and also one of our most researched.


So here's a quick roundup of the top 5 reasons we love our plug-in hybrid, aside from the obvious carbon-saving reasons:

1. We save a lot of money on gas.
The money we've saved on gas would cover 2.5 car payments, and we haven't even had the car for a year. Some days we're able to use only the battery without switching over to the gas engine. But even when we're on longer trips we get nearly 40 miles per gallon.

2. It's fun to drive.
The car is small and nimble but still feels solid and safe. It's quick off the line. It's easy to maneuver into parking spaces. In short: it's everything my minivan is not.

3. It fits the whole family.
This is the main reason we chose the C-Max over a Chevrolet Volt--seating for 5. And I can even fit a week's worth of groceries in the trunk. The are places to put all the odds and ends that a young family accumulates--snacks, drinks, books, etc. It's not the car we'll take on long road trips, but it's just perfect to drive into town for dinner or to run errands.

4. Tech features.
We're enjoying the Ford Sync system. Todd and I both have taken lots of calls in the car and it's very convenient and safe to do so while driving. And our inner data nerds love that we can control and follow the car's stats through an app on our phone. It's as close to The Jetsons as we can get in 2017 within our budget.



5. Less maintenance.
We've only needed one oil change since we've bought the car. And aside from a recall repair we were made aware of a few months after getting the car it's only been in the shop once for a minor issue.

We're glad to be early adopters of this plug-in technology, signaling to the auto industry that people really do want these kinds of cars. It's evident that the market is changing with the Tesla 3 and Chevy Bolt coming out soon with vehicles that get over 200 miles range on a battery charge. And with the advent of increased wind and solar technology, it will become cleaner than ever to power this car with every passing year.

What's are your hesitations with plug-in or hybrid cars? Or why do you love yours? Post your comments below!



2 comments:

  1. Love this post! I bought a slightly used 2014 Toyota Prius Plug-in (almost impossible to find this model in the Midwest) in August of 2015 and am very happy with it. I bought it for the lower emissions, but the savings on gas is also great. I wish I had known about the Ford - I would have considered that as well if I had known it existed (Consumer Reports, why didn't I see it in your reports?). I did look at the Chevy Volt but didn't like the bucket back seats.

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    1. We looked at the plug-in Prius, too, and had the same availability issue. We actually found the CMax up in the Chicago area because they aren't available down here (or Champaign, Terra Haute, Indianapolis, or St. Louis...). Todd took the train up, got a cab, picked up the car, and drove it home. Availability of these kinds of cars isn't an issue on the coasts...it might be worth looking into buying one there and having it transported here.

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