Ford drivers plug in

Ford has released the results of aggregate data collected from its US green passenger car fleet, showing plug-in hybrid (PHEV) owners spend nearly 60 per cent of their time in all-electric drive – that is, without needing to run the petrol engine.

The data was gathered with the help of MyFord Mobile, a smartphone app designed for use with the company’s Fusion Energi (essentially a Mondeo PHEV), C-Max Energi (a small Focus-based PHEV people-mover) and Focus Electric EV. It’s available for iOS and Android devices.

On releasing the app in early 2011, Ford touted it as containing everything owners and drivers need to know about their cars. But it’s also proved a useful conduit for Ford to gathering and analysing data to establish how the fleet is being used, how efficiently, and what kind of contribution it’s making to wider reductions in CO2 emissions.

Ford admits that not every owner uses the app, and it hasn’t released details of what proportion of the fleet’s drivers do. But available data from users has shown that just in the first half of 2013, the proportion of time PHEV drivers spend in all-electric mode has risen from 41 to nearly 60 per cent.

The MyFord stats also show that Ford’s electrified fleet, which owns nearly 16 per cent of its segment in the US, was driven between 160,000 and 256,000km every day over the first half of the year. Of the 5000-7000 individual trips making up that figure, 84 per cent are short – 32km or less one-way.

The data has also turned up a noticeable shift among new Energi drivers towards engine-off driving in the first 30 days of ownership. MyFord Mobile product manager Joe Rork says this is proof positive the app and the strategies behind it are working.

“The daily per cent driven in electric mode continues to inch upward, suggesting drivers are using the information provided by MyFord Mobile to change how they drive and really get the most out of their vehicles,” he said in a statement.

The company has assured owners that its data analysis doesn’t extend to individual driver information – only anonymous group data in aggregate form so that it can “continue to deliver the best possible ownership experience”.

Working through an embedded AT&T wireless module that allows the car to talk to their phone, MyFord Mobile offers drivers constant updates about the energy-efficiency (or otherwise) of their driving, and available range in the car as they drive, calculated in real-time on how hard they’re going on the accelerator pedal.

The app’s trip-and-charge log gives drivers instant trip feedback on total energy consumption, average fuel economy and an instant score on overall efficiency. It also includes GPS details of proximity to charge stations.

Ford includes a "multiyear" AT&T wireless subscription with every EV and PHEV it sells. Each car can set up individual user accounts with as many drivers as use it.

Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site…