Ford Fusion – The best car you don’t know about

For some odd reason, when people are chatting about new cars, they rarely mention the Ford Fusion. For a really good car that’s been around for a while, the Fusion seems to get less name recognition than Archibald Leach, better known as Cary Grant. That’s a shame. The Fusion is not only one of the very best cars produced by Detroit, but it is one of the best midsized sedans made by any company. (Ford Fusion model overview with ratings, available to online subscribers.)

What makes it good?

For starters, it’s fun to drive, with a good ride and crisp, responsive handling. It’s also the right size, compact enough to be maneuverable yet large enough to seat five people with ease. Then there’s the wide choice of configurations. Besides the usual front-drive configuration, the Fusion also offers an all-wheel-drive model and a full-hybrid version. Sadly, perhaps, not both at the same time.

Two more pluses: Not only does the Fusion have excellent crash-test results but it’s also one of the more reliable cars in our annual auto survey. It is more reliable than the ubiquitous Toyota Camry, an honor it’s held since the Camry’s 2007 redesign.

What we’re testing now: We just bought three front-wheel drive Fusions, which have been updated for the 2010 model year. Both our 175-hp, four-cylinder SE and 240-hp, 3.0-liter V6 versions have a six-speed automatic. The third example is a Hybrid model, which has a four-cylinder engine aided by an electric powertrain that brings net horsepower to 191. Standard safety gear on all includes antilock brakes, stability control, and six air bags.

What price?

Sticker prices ranged from about $22,150 for the basic four-cylinder to $32,400 for our loaded Hybrid, including options and shipping. The V6 SEL stickered at $28,400.

Without any arm-twisting, we paid about $26,000 and change for our just–arrived V6 SEL. That included customer incentives Ford is offering right now and struck us as pretty reasonable considering what was included. Among the goodies was full leather upholstery, heated eight-way power seats, a power moonroof, a good Sony audio system with Sirius satellite radio, the Sync Bluetooth voice-activated audio and communications system, blind-spot and crossing-traffic alert system, rear-view camera, and 17-inch aluminum wheels.

Can’t say but…
It’s too early to make any judgments about driving dynamics or how well all the bits and pieces work together. Given our past experience with several Fusions we’ve already tested, and a few new ones we’ve briefly sampled, we expect the 2010 models to be at least as good as the cars they replaced, all of which we liked. The enduring mystery is why more people don’t already know about this car. 

–Gordon Hard  Photography by Mike Leung.

Comments

[UH2L]

Part of the reason people don't know about the Fusion is because so many magazines, (such as CR) and much of the media have biases burnt in to their brains and treat Honda and Toyota like they can do no wrong by being quick to recommend them to people. Then people start believing the notion that "Japanese cars are always better" and these people won't even look at other products, especially ones from the Detroit Three. Such behavior is a disservice to our country, our auto manufacturers, and their employees. It's good to see that your eyes are beginning to open up, but biases are hard to get rid of.

[SteveMI]

In response to UH2L....seems to me that it's you and a few other members of this website who are the ones who have a serious bias. CR gets hundreds of thousands of AMERICANS to supply the data that CR then crunches. This data determines the reliability ratings that are at the heart of CR's auto reviews. Far from your baseless assertion that CR is "quick" to recommend Japanese badges, the thoughtful, thorough and unbaised reviews that CR produces strike me as the sort of thoughtful deliberation that I wish some contributors to this blog would exercise.

[Cale]

It's a gem. Look for Fusions to top Accords and Camrys for the best used car value.

[Automotive Body Parts]

That’s a amazing car..Thanks for the information!

[Andy]

I recently tried out the Fusion at the NY auto show. I was considering it for my next car based on the good review here. However, I found the rear seat headroom to be truly horrible. I am not very tall but I found that when sitting in the rear seat, I was not able to lean forward without hitting the ceiling. It felt claustrophobic. Why could they not have raised the head room by a couple of inches in an otherwise promising car?

[B. Good]

To UH2L: "Bias" you say? It took American car companies over 20 years of serving up mediocre-or-worse cars to earn the REPUTATION they have today. Buying inferior American products does a disservice to everyone. I, for one, am thrilled by the new Ford Fusion, especially the hybrid. If Ford can keep making better and better models, the "bias" you perceive may well go away. Just note that the reputations must be earned. Toyota and Honda have earned their current do-no-wrong reputation, though slowly there is some tarnish as some quality problems are beginning to surface. If they don't FIX these problems, their reputations may suffer.

[E. Browning]

In response to UH2L: Biases can also come from personal past experiences of purchases made, and the value & service received therefrom.
A disservice to country: Poor analogy: It was a disservice to my pocketbook when I purchased ill-performing cars with premature built in obsolescence. Your criticism of CR gives me the opportunity to evaluate & weigh your comments for what it is worth. Please drive happy, safely & with a clear conscience.

[Paul]

UH2L: The reason people have the notion that "Japanese cars are always better" is due to the fact that Honda/Toyota have delivered consistently better performing, more well put together cars for many years throughout their entire model range. Ford has a great car in the current Fusion (and a few of their other recent releases), but that is recent history and not all Ford's cars are as refined and reliable. So an educated bias still exists. In my perception, Ford is in a really good position with the Fustion. Not that it matters, but the Accord has been built in Ohio, U.S.A. since 1982. The Fusion is built in Mexico. Think about that when you talk about disservice to our country.

Cale: That's a very keen observation. One of the drawbacks of buying a used Accord/Camry is they retain their resale values so well and therefore aren't cheap. If these 2010 Fusions are as reliable as the previous Fusions have been, I'll be looking closely at these as a bargain alternative.

[david]

The Ford Fusion V-6 is rated 77 and the base one is rated 69. With the exception of sports cars such as the lotus elise, cars ranked below 80 don't deserve serious considerations. I see no reason to get the Fusion at all.

[Bull Run]

The reason I'm not a big fan of consumer report auto data, is simply most of the data cannot be taken as fact. Take a Corvette report, a 50 yr. old man has saved up all his life to buy the car he always wanted, he washes it every Sunday, so what is his revue of his car?? A couple buys another Mini-van, No body wants to own or be seen in a Diaper wagon, but they have to own one..They hate it. They are not going to buy a $36,000 Toyota diaper wagon,so they buy a Dodge minvan for $16,000, which they already hate, so how will they rate this in a CR report??Take the Large Honda SUV, and the Isusi large SUV, both are exactly the same vehicle, but the CR reports that the Honda has MUCH better repair records..Why, because Honda's are preceived to be a better vehicle, and people will not accurately report when they are NOT.. Take CR as any report, with a grain of salt.

[Jason]

Based on the previous-generation Mazda6, the Ford Fusion is easily the best product in Ford's line-up. The 2010 redesigned model is getting all the attention, which it deserves. The real deal is the 2009, which dealers are selling for $5k off sticker or more!

[Ray]

Having read all reports and blog entries, as well as test driven and successfully negotiated with my Ford dealer, I bought a 2010 Fusion. If the car is half of what I have heard and read, I will be very happy. I think the bottom line is to do all the research, listen to the critics and make up your own mind. It is useless to throw sticks at folks who don't agree with you or others. Read, listen and go with your analysis (and gut). I wanted to buy American this time and am happy and proud that I did.

[MikeCanada]

The Fusion is a fantastic used car bargain. I picked up an 08 with 15,000 miles on it for $15,000. It's an SEL V6 loaded. I've had it for a year and could not be more pleased.

[WALTER HEBERLEIN]

Re. the report on the Fusion hybrid: According to my survey of 3 Ford dealers the actual price for a Fusion Hybrid is MSRP + the tax credit the purchaser will get from our federal government. That makes the price an additional $2500 to $3500 more. An out-the-door price on the 1 Fusion Hybrid expected to arrive at one of those dealers early last month was $39,700. So Ford dealers apparently plan to rip off the public like Toyota did. The customer not only pays the amount of the credit but sales tax on that amount as well.

Which is why I bought a new 2009 Prius early last March, taking advantage of a huge oversupply of them resulting in a discounted price, no tax credit ripoff (its no longer available for Prius buyers) and full blue book trade in value for my 2004 Hyundai. The result was the cost was no more than trading for a new Sonata and I get 2.5 times the gas mileage the Sonata would give me.

Thought y'all would like to know!

[Jerry]

To those folks who think that CR is not biased simply because CR is simply giving you the facts based on what CR readers report in the CR survey: CR also writes their opinion. Anyone who carefully reads CR's reviews know that they think that fuel economy is more important than safety. If an accident was between a Toyota Prius and a Ford Taurus, which vehicle would you prefer to be in?
CR never wrote a word about how GREAT the Five-Hundred did in safety. However, CR did choose to mention how impressed they were with the safety of the Honda Civic, the Honda Accord, and the Volkswagen Jetta, even though they did not score nearly as well in safety as the Ford Five-Hundred.
In fact, CR stated about the Five Hundred, "There are adjustable, locking head restraints in the front and rear outboard seating positions, but only the front versions are tall enough when fully down to adequately reduce rearward head travel in a rear impact." How then would CR explain the fact that the Five Hundred received the highest rating ("good") in protecting rear occupants in a rear-end crash. The 2006 Camry received only a "marginal" rating while the Accord received the worst possible rating of "poor".
During a crash, I would very much rather be in a Five Hundred than a Civic, Jetta, Accord, Camry, Smart Car, or Prius - no contest!
Another bias CR has is its incredible hype on the Prius. About 3 years ago, CR reported in their magazine that the Prius has the best combination of fuel economy, roominess, and acceleration. This opinion in CR magazine was so outrageous that they eventually toned down the retoric on their website.
Anyone who analyzes what CR writes also clearly knows that they make a big fuss about quietness and fit and finish.
CR has for decades been biased towards Honda and Toyota and have not been fair to American cars. CR realizes the fact that the Fusion is so good that it cannot ignore it anymore, in fear that more readers would catch on to CR writing biases.

[Jeff Bartlett - Consumer Reports]

You are correct in that CR has a bias toward cars that perform well in our tests, have proven safety scores and features, and average of better than reliability.

That certain brands trend better in these areas is not our bias, but rather the test and survey findings.

Safety scores and information are provided on all models in the same manner. Likewise, our road tests are formatted very tightly, ensuring comparable coverage for each model. The expert reports in our New Car Buying Kits are even more rigid in structure and much deeper in results.

Regarding shading content between print and Web, or in concern for perceived biases -- This simply doesn't happen. Nor is it even a topic for hallway chatter.

Conspiracy theorists would be very disappointed to learn how straightforward and unbiased Consumer Reports testing and reporting is.

[Jerry]

It is a fact that in CR's yearly auto magazine, CR wrote that the Toyota Prius has "unsurpassed combination of fuel economy, roominess, and acceleration". If that is not a biased statement, then I don't know what is. CR's statistics that they report clearly show that the Fusion is far roomier than the Prius and that the Prius that CR tested goes from 0-60 in 10.6 seconds while the Fusion that you tested does it in only 8.0 seconds. The Prius beats out the Fusion in only fuel economy of those three listed. CR's web site states about the Prius, "The Prius has excellent fuel economy, decent acceleration, and good interior room. Obviously they toned down their "opinion". Can anyone prove me wrong? Yes, safety data is provided for all models; however, CR does chooses either to mention or not to mention safety in their "reviews". They chose not to mention the Taurus/Five Hundred's safety except to state, "There are adjustable, locking head restraints in the front and rear outboard seating positions, but only the front versions are tall enough when fully down to adequately reduce rearward head travel in a rear impact." The fact is that that statement is false, because the Five Hundred received the highest rating ("good") in protecting rear occupants in a rear-end crash. If CR reports just the facts, then why did their "editorial" contradict the facts? Does anyone have a good answer? It is true that CR does report on the statistics of fuel economy, roominess, and acceleration; however, they also make "editorial" comments as in the example on the Prius having, "unsurpassed combination of fuel economy, roominess, and acceleration.

[Matt]

I bought a used 2009 SEL V6 Fusion in January and so far so good. I replaced my 2006 Hyundai Sonata (it was my third Sonata) after feeling badly about the US car companies' situation. I really like the SYNC, I really like the solidness I feel on the road. The only thing my Sonata did better was its turning circle. My friend bought a 2008 Mercury Sable, in my opinion a WAY underappreciated car.

[Mark]

Please tell me which is the ford's costliest car?

Thanks,
Mark

[coolcar]

Has the new Fusion retained the original's blend of handling and ride?

[coolcar]

Mark-

If you're counting SUV's, the Expedition is the priciest.
If you're not, it would be the Shelby GT500.

However, Ford motor company, consisting of Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, and Volvo, plus a stake in Mazda, produces the Lincoln Navigator as its most expensive model, and the Lincoln Towncar (yes, it's still around) as its most expensive non-SUV.

[em, virginia]

I am seriously considering purchase of the Ford Fusion. There are times when I find myself upping the tempo in the freeways (an embedded inclination during my 10 years of driving through the German Autobahns and Italian Autostrada). Does the Fusion stay smooth at 90 to 100 mph?

[Peter Stowell]

So CR gushed about the Prius? Now they're gushing about the Fusion Hybrid. Good taste, CR. I bought one in March before the hype was in high gear and am averaging 48 mpg with it. It was my first new American car purchase in 20 years. I pride myself on picking out great cars before CR gushes about them (a new '77 Subaru, an '88 Mazda GT Turbo, for example) and waiting for them to catch up to me. With the Fusion Hybrid, I just barely eked out a win. They love it, I love it, and I am proud that it was Made in America, er, Mexico being part of America. Drive one if you can find one. Being gouged by the dealer? I found two in Maine who refuse to ask over MSRP just on principle. What if CR wasn't biased and they just follow the data. No, wait, then there couldn't be a conspiracy, could there?

[Copel Marcus]

The Fusion as introduced was a clean, tidy, boring-looking car that went very, very well. Except: until the 2010 version, Ford seemed to have missed that Toyota sells quietness as a measure of quality. The earlier Fusions produced dreadful road noise. But boring looks, I believe, are the real reason why nobody got excited about the Fusion. The 2010's at least have a NASCAR-influenced front fascia and a little more bizzaz. And they're significantly quieter. Maybe the world will catch on.