C-Max - Anybody got one?

[jock mcsporran]

Looking at a new car for the missus and wondering if a C-Max is worth considering. 5-seater, 2.0TDCi probably.

Any comments on them, good/bad? Is the 2.0TDCi the one to go for or is the 1.6TDCi perfectly adequate? We won't be pulling caravans but might do a few family trips to Europe and take bikes/etc. Reviews seem favourable from a driving perspective at least but I won't be the main driver so practicality and reliability take priority this time.

Any must have options?

Current car is an X-type Estate so the internal space seems similar (although packaged a bit different).

Cheers

[M2mob]

Hi, have had an 05 plate cmax for just over 5 years. It's been absolutely fantastic. Service, mot and tyres plus one battery and one headlight bulb and that (clutching a large piece of wood) has been it! It's the two litre tdci 136 engine with six speed manual. Size wise is great day to day, I have a roof box for holidays (pram and other baby stuff in there), that set up works well for us. The only slight snag is that with the roof box on some car park entry barriers are too low for it. Would recommend them to anyone.
Cheers
M2

[Dids444]

Hi,

We've had our 07 plate CMAX for about 4 years and 40k miles and it's been as good as gold - ours is the 1.6 TDCI which has a 5 speed box by the way. The missus has it for her daily runner so it's lots of small journeys and it averages low 40's mpg. We've only used it occasionally for a long run but it's comfy and a nice drive.

The only issue we have had was a rear brake caliper that failed but that wasn't silly money to replace. Apart from that it's just been routine servicing and consumables. I'd recommend one.

Not sure what age of car you are looking at but the original CMAX model was facelifted in 2008 I believe. I'm not sure if there were any mechanical revisions but there were some nice interior and exterior tweaks

cheers
p

[Karlos TDCi]

Not a C-max owner, but a regular Focus owner with the 2.0 TDCi. I drive the 90bhp 1.6 TDCi at work too, so know how both engines compare. The 2.0 is the better engine - far more pulling power/torque and I've averaged 47mpg over the last 27000 miles. The 1.6 is fine if you're just after economy and silly-cheap tax, but I find it a little gutless. Saying that, both engines can be easily and cheaply remapped to eek a little more power out of them. I had my 136bhp 2.0 remapped and it's at 171bhp now, which is much more pleasant.
One thing to watch out for is the dreaded DPF - most 2.0 engines didn't have them prior to 2008. The 1.6 engines before 2008 had a dreadful system that required a special fluid to be topped up at every service to help the DPF regenerate. The newer ones, I believe, do not have that system and are more reliable, but it would be wise to check. They are not cheap to replace!

[jock mcsporran]

Cheers for the responses. Looking at a new one, been offered a deal that's hard to ignore. Will probably go for the 1.6 ecoboost in 180hp mode. The DPF is one of my concerns with the diesel. Most of her journeys are fairly short and she's not known for putting her foot down to help it regenerate.

[blueST]

jock mcsporran said:

Cheers for the responses. Looking at a new one, been offered a deal that's hard to ignore. Will probably go for the 1.6 ecoboost in 180hp mode. The DPF is one of my concerns with the diesel. Most of her journeys are fairly short and she's not known for putting her foot down to help it regenerate.

This would be a concern for me. Going for a good razz every now and again might ward off problems but you do here a lot of nightmare DPF stories. Do Mazda use the same engine in the5? If they do, I know someone who has had a DPF nightmare despite using it on the motorway every day. My Dad has a nearly new Grand C-Max 2.0 TDCI. Low 40s MPG in mixed driving, which seems to stay the same no matter what type of journey he goes on.

[dav123a]

Having a think about a Cmax I've seen a 10 plate.Could do with a bit of info on the interior. How hard wearing is it with kids ? How clever are the seats ? All slide independently , storage under seats, middle seat turns into a table that sort of thing.