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While I LOVE that Ford has a car that competes with the Prius, I'd still say they only claim to have beaten them. In reality it seems they have put out a great car that should compete well with the Prius family.
The C-Max is being compared to the Prius V which is the larger Prius with more cargo area. Yet, the C-Max is much much closer in cargo area (24.5 ft^3) to the regular Prius (21.6 ft^3) versus the Prius V (34.3 ft^2).
So, the C-Max falls somewhere between the Prius and Prius V. This is also where the price falls at $24,995. The Prius starts at $24,000, and the Prius V starts at $26,550.
It is again also where it falls mileage wise:
Prius: 51/48/50
Prius V: 44/40/42
C-Max: 47/47/47
The one area they do have the edge is power. The C-Max uses a 2.0L atkinson engine and with the electric motors puts out 141hp. The electric motors put out 35kW (47 hp). The combined rating is a claimed 188hp. I find that a bit high considering the Prius' 1.8L engine specs. Its 1.8L atkinson engine puts out 98 hp while the electric motors put out 80 hp. Adding these together gives you 178 hp. But, in actuality the combined horsepower is only 134. So, I have my doubts that the C-Max has a peak power output (not combined) of 188 hp. If it does that is great, and I'm sure they'll get buyers to sway their way because of it. I just find it hard to believe.
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