Humming sound when starting the car (even not plugin)

[naterry]

Hi all,

I got my 2012 FE yesterday and was very impressed on the quality of the car. I haven't driven it too much but have two questions for now.

1. When I start the car, I can hear the humming sound from hood. I remember when I test drive a 2013 FE, I didn't hear that sound. Is it normal?
2. I have my car full charged and the budget mile shows 66 miles only. Should it show the number closing to 76 miles (EPA test result)? I need to drive at least 60 miles a day so this budgeted 66-miles worries me a lot.

Thank you.

 

[dwf123]

1. When I start the car, I can hear the humming sound from hood. I remember when I test drive a 2013 FE, I didn't hear that sound. Is it normal?
2. I have my car full charged and the budget mile shows 66 miles only. Should it show the number closing to 76 miles (EPA test result)? I need to drive at least 60 miles a day so this budgeted 66-miles worries me a lot.

#1 The car makes lots of noises.... If you live in a cold climate the humming sound is the fan on the heater and/or the pump for the liquid thermal heater on the battery. If you started the car and it is still plugged in it is the solonoid for the charger clicking back in. If you have your foot on the brake it is the electic power for the brakes building pressure for brake fluid. Three possibilities but not all of the possibilities. Check out the forums because many people have posted on this issue. Probably not a major concern, but I cannot say for certain it is not problem...

#2 That your battery shows 66 miles tells me you are probably in a cold climate or you are a fancy dan hot rodder The battery shows the results of your last driving experience. I am going to go with cold climate. Is your commute 60 miles one way? If you are in a cold climate you will have to learn how to drive very efficiently. 60 miles in a cold climate is a close call. I always prestart my car with the heater set at 68 degrees and the seat warmers set at 2. I make certain the car is very warm. When I get in I turn the thermostat down to 64 and the fan down to it's lowest setting. That for me is very comfortable. The cold has created a loss of 25% of my range. In the summer with the AC on I was easily able to get 80 miles out of the car. In the winter I am right at 55-60 miles. My commute is 40 miles one way and I plug in at work and recharge before returning home.

The good news is your are the perfect candidate for this car. You will save tons of money in fuel costs. I have commuted 11,000 miles in the last 7 months and my savings have been $1600.00+ after discounting for electric costs. Learning to drive efficiently requires some thinking and practice but the gauges will help you learn how to monitor your adventure. Happy New Year and good luck...

 

[naterry]

Hi dwf123,

Thanks for detail replies.

#1 So the noises are not the "problems" if the car still can run.

#2 I live in Phoenix so summer should affect the car more than winter. However, in these few days, the temp dropped to around 32F in the morning. I am still waiting the paper work to register the car (got the car from CA and when they shipped the car, they forgot to include the documents) so not sure how many miles I actually can drive. I need to drive 60 miles round trip. There is no 120V outlet or "free" charging station at my work place. That's why I am a little concerned about the budgeted miles showing in the dashboard.

I have applied a blink card but haven't received it yet. I think It may be better to drive my FE to work after I have the charing card on hand.

PS.
1. When you said "make the car warm", did you refer to the "GO time" function in MyFordMobile? I saw I can set the temperature in Go-time settings but is that the temperature for car inside or the temperature for battery?
2. How can I get the energy consumption number such as xxx watt per mile?

Thank you.

 

[dwf123]

I need to drive 60 miles round trip. There is no 120V outlet or "free" charging station at my work place. That's why I am a little concerned about the budgeted miles showing in the dashboard.

At 32 degrees 60 miles is cutting it close. Also, if you are home charging @ 120v then it will take all night to recharge the battery. Phoenix can get very cold. The ideal scenerio is to find some way to charge at work. Other workarounds are to charge the car in the morning with the heater on 68 degrees and set the seat heaters to 2. (Seat heaters use very little power.) When you leave for work, wear a warm coat and turn the heater off. You will have plenty of mileage to do the round trip. On normal days of 40 degrees + you will have plenty of mileage for your commute.
The "GO time" is a good tool if you have a very normal schedule. For me when I get home I set my heater to 68 degrees, turn off the car and plugin the charger. In the morning just before leaving I use the app to turn the car on. It will stay on for 5 minutes and turns itself off. The heater in the FFE heats up very quickly because it is a resistance heater not a hot water heater. My car is toasty when I leave and I turn the heater down to 64 degrees and low fan setting for my commute.

How can I get the energy consumption number such as xxx watt per mile?

This is my favorite gauge. Most people use the Energy Batteries with plus or minus surplus. Here is how you get there - Left side of steering wheel, left click, choose "Trip" gauge. You have a chocie of 2 trip gauges. I use trip 1. When there, right click the the left steering wheel button and choose "Enhanced" mode. This will tell you how many Wh/mile use are using and how many Kwh you have used. You will have to get used to it. When you start it will tell you you are burning 999 Wh/mile. After about 1/2 mile you will see it settle down and the watts will drop until you reach your normal driving condition. My goal in the warm weather is 250 Wh/mile which equals 4 miles per Kwh. I know my battery charges to 19.5 Kwh so roughly speaking I can drive 4 miles X 20 Kwh = 80 miles. In the winter my goal is 333 Wh/miles which equals 3 miles per Kwh or roughly 60 miles per charge.

Obviously there is a big learning curve in the FFE. It doesn't happen overnight and will take reading the manual, playing with the car, reading posts right here and testing your own techniques on the road. I would not encourage you to drive that commute without charging at work, however after a month driving the car you will be able to do it. You will learn how the three T's effect your car - Terrain, Technique and Temperature. And you will learn how to milk extra miles. Ford has done a good job of giving us tools for driving efficiently on the highway. Absolutely don't get discouraged. You will master & love this car.

 

[Fluke]

I second what dwf123 has said. At least during your initial use of the car during the winter 66 miles will be very difficult to obtain and may result in frustration. During more temperate weather, this trip will not be hard at all.

I make a routine 52 mile trip at least weekly in Kansas City. During the summertime this trip was completed with 30-40 surplus miles on completion. In the winter I can make the trip, but may only have a couple of miles surplus at the end (I have made it with the temperature down in the low teens F). I have several chargers available along the route, so I don't worry. If I had to do a daily 66 mile route in the winter without a charger network as a backup, I'd be concerned.

The other aspect to consider is that the range on the FFE will probably tend to decrease over the years. The biggest drop will be within the first few years and then the battery degradation should slow down. In other words, although your technique will improve tending to make this winter commute possible, the battery will probably be working against you in the coming years.

 

[naterry]

I already have Schneider L2 charger installed at my home. So all I need to worry is to find a way to charge at work.

To set the heater to 68 degrees before turning off the car is a very good idea. I was just thinking how to make my schedule normal to fit "Go time" settings. With this trick, I can have my schedule flexible.

Sounds like the owners of FE are all good at math and trip planning. We need to calculate the range all the time and plan where to stop for charging. But I think FE has 23 Kwh battery. Why does your battery charge to 19.5 Kwh only? (and how do you know that number?)

I was hoping to start driving the car to work soon. After reading all of your posts, I think I better to practice and get used to the car first before I do so.

Thank you. Your comments are all very helpful.

 

[dwf123]

But I think FE has 23 Kwh battery. Why does your battery charge to 19.5 Kwh only? (and how do you know that number?)

I am not an engineer! But, like you suggested we are all into kWh and the math. Someone smarter then I, a nuclear engineer, reversed the math on the enhanced trip gauge and came up with 19.5 kWh. You can find those posts on this forum.

Additionally, we are all worried about battery life. After the Nissan fiasco, Ford provided 2 major functions to enhance battery life. 1) Liquid thermal cooling/heating of the battery and 2) Reduced capacity charging. Ford has hinted at this on numerous occasions, but never actually said it. It is a testement to Ford's engineering that they produced a car with a smaller battery, yet managed to get better mpg. To the best of my knowledge you cannot charge the battery to 23kWh.

This is all open to comment.....

 

[naterry]

So "full charge" is about 85% of battery capacity. Then the budgeted 66 miles showing on the dashboard makes sense (= 85% of EPA 76 miles). Hope I can get 10% more so I am more confident to commute every day.

I finally got my 90 days permit today and can start to enjoy the car / try all gauge the car has. May have more questions then.

Thank you.

 

[dwf123]

Have fun!

Naterey, The number of miles on the battery is a factor of your last driving efficiency. In the Summer I have had 90 miles show up on the gauge. Start driving, you'll get it.....

 

[naterry]

Today is my first day to drive my FE to work. I turned off A/C and managed to take local streets as many as possible. On the highway, if there was no traffic, I tried to keep the speed around 63 mph. In the end when I got home, I still have 20 miles range on the dashboard. Very happy about the results.

I am fighting with building facility manager of my company to get the permission to plug in one of the 110V outlets. If I succeed, I will have no fear to turn on the A/C in summer.

 

[naterry]

BTW, to get the "current" kw/hour, I need to keep reset the "trip". Otherwise, it will be the "average" kw/hour. Right?

Thanks.

 

[Stang2FocusEV]

@ naterry,

Looks like you'll be getting your money's worth from your commute to work. I heard on the news today that $4.50 gas prices are expected for this summer. I'm so glad we have made the transition to EVs, buying the FFE is one of the smartest purchases I've ever made.

 

[dwf123]

Nate -

Way to go on plus 20 miles in your commute. First time out and made it!!

Your BTW is yes, you do have to reset the trip meter each trip to be able to monitor your current, in route, kWh usage.

Their are lots of tricks to use when driving to enhance your mileage. I'll tell you my story. I drive 80 miles round trip each day. I live in Newport, RI and drive to Westerly, RI. I cross two large and high bridges and follow US Rt 1 to Westerly. It is a 4 lane country highway, speed limit 50 mph with 18 stop lights. I set the cruise control to 60 mph, summer AC on 72 degrees and fan speed of 1, winter 64 degrees, fan speed of 1 and seat heaters on 2. I always precondition the car before leaving. I drive with my "gliding style" - using drive, neutral and low. When i crest the top of the Newport & Jamestown bridge I shift into neutral and coast down the other side. When I approach a stop light, if I see it way ahead, I shift into neutral and coast, shifting back into drive and into low to slow down when approaching. The use of the shifting enhances my range considerably and saves my brakes. It is a lot of fun. The only thing you have to be careful with is that when slowing down your brake lights do not come on so keep a watch behind you.

I am not a "Zen" driver. I bought this car to commute but I am not going to freeze or sweat myself. I want confort and fun when driving, however, the car meets my goals in range and it will meet yours commuting 60 miles round trip.

If you have 50 employees in your company, tell your facility manage, he/she can have installed, free of cost, a level 2 charger. There is a company that is offering free chargers for companies with 50 or more employees. I have lost the website but it is in the forums somewhere and/or bing it. Plus tell him/her that the future is now! Get ahead of the curve and lead the way!!!

 

[naterry]

dwf123, 80 miles? I thought I already commute a lot of miles......

Bad news today. The facility manager doesn't allow me to plug into one of the outlets in garage (underground). She said it is safety issue.

For the winter time, I am ok but will see how it works in summer when I must turn on the A/C. So far, I really like the car.