2022 Ford Maverick Real-World Fuel Economy: Extraordinary Achievements

2022 Ford Maverick Real-World Fuel Economy: Extraordinary Achievements

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By now, if you’re here at Cars.com, you must be familiar with the Maverick we got in March. Our requirements for this thing were pretty loose: We wanted a hybrid powertrain—a 191-horsepower combination of a 2.5-liter four-cylinder, electric motor with a continuously variable transmission driving only the front wheels—and heated seats.

Given the limited availability of the Maverick in early 2022—the thing has proven to be such a seller favorite that Ford shut down the ordering tap in the middle of the 22nd model year and is now on the cusp of reopening for 2023—we were so lucky we found the one we did. It’s a loaded version of the Lariat, which means it has a Ford Co-Pilot360 security system, leather seats, and all the bells and whistles—but without all-wheel drive; This is not available in hybrid. Given the efficiency and utility of the Maverick, we’re willing to forgive that kind of shortfall and possibly make up some snow tires when the weather inevitably turns bad in our area later in the year.

The Road

My standard fuel economy route is a roughly 200-mile loop that starts at the Cars.com office in Detroit in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and heads east to the western edge of suburban Detroit before turning north along that edge, all on the streets Surface with choppy driving and speeds generally from 25 to 50 mph. From there, you head west on highways to Lansing, Michigan, then south to Jackson, Michigan, and back east to Ann Arbor, all at highway speeds of 70 to 75 mph.

In order to simulate typical user conditions, the climate control is turned on with the air conditioning turned on, while the windows are left out for optimum aerodynamic efficiency. No cruise control is used, but speeds are always kept within 5 mph of the posted limit. Acceleration and braking are done at a moderate pace, keeping up with traffic, but no stop-pull sprints during the test. With a beautiful 80-degree day, plenty of sunshine and light volumes of traffic, I set off on the loop to see what Maverick could do when specifically testing the nature of fuel-sipping.

Results

It must be said: the fuel economy of the Maverick hybrid is truly extraordinary for this type of vehicle. Thanks in large part to the fact that the truck really, truly It wants to stay in electric mode for as long as possible, and if you drive it normally (not even with extreme caution), it will do just that.

The route I took breaks down driving into about 25% of suburban express traffic and 75% of highway speeds. For the first 45.3 miles of city driving, the Maverick did 29.3 miles in electric mode, resulting in a calculated result of 52.7 mpg. Keep in mind that this is with normal acceleration and running the air conditioner a full mile because it was warm and humid that day. For 42/33/37 mpg city/highway/combined, that’s already some big numbers, but much higher numbers can actually be achieved under normal and average conditions of use.

The total range driven for testing was 204.5 miles (of which 40.6 were electric) during which the Maverick trip computer said it achieved 40.9 mpg during the entire trip, again beating official highway and combined EPA ratings. My calculation based on measured fuel used versus miles traveled a bit better than that, coming in at 41.5 mpg.

These are exceptional numbers for a very useful, comfortable and stylish mini pickup that can be had for a relative bargain. Mileage is one aspect of the Maverick that made it the must-have truck for 2022. Given that 2023 is largely unchanged (with only new colors added and a new Tremor off-road package) and the order window reopens soon, we expect the Maverick’s popularity to continue unabated. Relentless in the new year.