Ford hybrids fall short of fuel economy claims: Consumer Reports

Ford Motor Co's C-Max and Fusion hybrids fall about 20 percent short of their fuel economy claims, Consumer Reports magazine said on Thursday, after running real-world tests on both models.

The influential magazine said the Fusion hybrid delivered a 39 miles per gallon both on the highway and in city driving, while the C-Max hit a combined 37 miles per gallon. Ford has said both vehicles would command 47 miles per gallon.

"These two vehicles have the largest discrepancy between our overall-mpg results and the estimates published by the EPA that we've seen among any current models," Consumer Reports magazine said in a blog post on its web site.

Ford was not immediately available for comment. But the company has said it expects to see a wider range for fuel economy on its new generation of hybrids because they are more powerful. Drivers can consume more fuel when they take advantage of the hybrids' higher performance.

(Reporting By Deepa Seetharaman; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)