2007 Ford Fusion SE from North America - Comments

Hear, hear. Well said.

For the price of domestics you get a better deal =)

We bought a 2006 Fusion SE 4-cylinder for our dog and it is absolutely awesome. Very smooth, plenty of power and solid as a rock. The build quality is unsurpassed. My mom was so impressed she bought a Lincoln MKZ (which is a Fusion with a higher price tag). We've been the import route and regretted it. From now on any car we own will be Ford or GM. The Fusion has a higher reliability rating than either Camry or Accord and is a far better built car. Our one experience with Honda was a real eye-opener. I'm a mechanic and I can honestly say it was one of the flimsiest cars I ever worked on. Under-engineered is an understatement for it.

"In regards to this foreign domestic fight, people need to grow up"

I'd beg to differ. Buying from American companies versus shipping our money to Japan, Germany or Korea is far more important than ever and to say so is hardly "bickering". Only 9 out of every 100 jobs in the automotive industry in the U.S. involves Japanese car companies. That means when you buy a Japanese car, you are putting the lives and livelihoods of the other 91% in jeopardy. Not only that, but both GM and Ford long ago matched or surpassed the build quality of vehicles made by Japanese or German companies.

My family makes it a point to buy only items made by U.S. based companies, whether it is a can opener, microwave or TV set. With a few rare exceptions there are virtually NO foreign products in our home and certainly not in our garage. If everyone did this, we'd have no recession and extremely low unemployment.

I have no issue with those who want to buy a USED Japanese car, however ad hype and myth keep the prices out of reason. In January we bought a used Fusion with 18,000 miles. We got it for $7000 less than a comparable Accord, and it is rated HIGHER in projected reliability, as well as being fully equipped with leather, upgraded sound system and full power. It is one of the most solidly built, best performing vehicles we have ever owned. We prefer to support our own country, not someone else's. We'd buy from American companies even if the quality was NOT as good. The good news is: The quality is actually BETTER.

"ad hype and myth"

...you mean like "quality is job 1"? It's no myth. The Japanese EARNED their reputation.

Now that the American vehicles are greatly improving, they will eventually benefit from their own "ad hype and myth". Just give it time. Hope they survive.

"We bought a 2006 Fusion SE 4-cylinder for our dog"

???

Yeah, but does he have a driver's license?

"Not only that, but both GM and Ford long ago matched or surpassed the build quality of vehicles made by Japanese or German companies."

There isn't ONE reputable source to back up that claim.

"If everyone did this, we'd have no recession and extremely low unemployment."

...and apparently no bank failures, energy crisis or housing crisis either.

"There isn't ONE reputable source to back up that claim."

There are NUMEROUS reputable sources to back up that claim.

J.D. Powers rates a Ford product (Jaguar) and a GM product (Buick) as tied for Best Overall Quality (ahead of Lexus).

GM has had 33% of the "10 Best Cars" ratings for several years.

Consumer Reports rates the Ford Fusion as two full levels ABOVE Camry in projected reliability and one level above Accord.

In 2007 the Pontiac Grand Prix was J.D. Powers "Best in class" in large sedans (beating out the Toyota Avalon). Mustang has for years been their top pick in "Best Sporty Coupe" (beating out the Toyota Solara and Honda coupe).

An October 2007 article on long-lasting vehicles featured vehicles that had survived long use with no major problems. The highest mileage vehicle featured was a Ford with 488,000 miles.

The Cadillac CTS-V is the fastest production sedan in the world and the CTS was chosen "Car of the Year" in 2008 ahead of many foreign competitors.

Corvette sales in Europe soared by 300% when it entered international racing due to its superiority over foreign brands such as Ferrari.

GM produces more 30mpg+ vehicles than Toyota and Honda COMBINED.

The 2010 Fusion hybrid is acclaimed by USA Today as the best Hybrid on the planet.

On the practical, hands-on side, my family has had personal experience with Japanese and German vehicles. None of them were any more reliable than any of our Ford, GM or Chrysler vehicles, and the build quality of the Japanese cars was no better. The body build quality of the German cars was better, but mechanically they were less reliable than our domestics. We put 325,000+ miles on one Ford with less than $500 in total repairs. We put 240,000+ miles on a Dodge with only two timing belts replaced and one hose replaced. Our family's 1977 Buick LeSabre made 277,000 miles with NO repairs.

I don't make statements lightly or without facts. I'm a mechanic, car enthusiast and certified therapist. I study and drive vehicles of all sizes, shapes and descriptions. As a mechanic I know the superior engineering and build quality of domestic vehicles, and as a therapist I know the effect of Japanese ad hype on consumers who casually throw out such statements as "There isn't one reputable source to back up that claim". That is ad hype talking, not FACTS.

"We bought a 2006 Fusion SE 4-cylinder for our dog"

Gee, I feel bad. All I got my dog was a Sable. But it has a bench front seat so he can stretch out in front with me. He likes to stick his mouth over the air conditioning vent.

My neighbor bought her dog an Audi Q7. The car she had before that was a Subaru Outback. The air conditioning in the back seat could not keep her dog from being overly hot and panting. Also her 4 year old complained about being hot. Our friend who owns the Subaru dealership says that is the number one complaint and reason for trade-ins on Subarus.

I have heard the older Taurus/Sable station wagons were big favorites for people who took their dogs to dog shows. Good air in the back and room for dog crates.

11:37:

Your post is all cherry picked results. If you examine the overall averaged totals for GM, they rank below average. Moreover, you neither backed your claim that Japanese cars were surpassed years ago (you only talk current models and do no averaging at that) nor that its "all ad hype and myth". Neither claim is backed by a shred of evidence.

Go to JD Powers' site. Average GM's scores. Present them. Prove me wrong. Show some similar averages from recent years to further prove your point... no? Didn't think so. I've posted the results on other threads and get nothing but crickets responding. Data is so dry!!

You want to back the idea that "it's all ad hype and myth" on the authority of your supposed credentials? You say you're a therapist and that if I post that you lack sources, I'm responding to said hype? If so, you are acting outside of your professional bounds. Long distance analysis of a stranger from what they post on a blog is meritless. My brother-in-law is a psychologist -- I know a little about the profession.

So, to conclude, you wrote "Not only that, but both GM and Ford long ago matched or surpassed the build quality of vehicles made by Japanese or German companies."

YOU are the one who made the broad-brush claim that suggests a better average. When I brought up the fact that you have no sources, you responded by picking out some rather superior examples and treating them as some sort of average... they are not even close. Show me the average scores of GM and Chrysler in particular (Ford is another story--they're a step above the others in nearly every survey) and prove how they are superior. You can't make a claim that GMs are better and have been for years and then think that anything but a corporate average can prove you right.

I wrote "There isn't ONE reputable source to back up that claim".

There isn't...or at least I'm still waiting for one.

Ad Hype? Myth? Who's quoting ads? The "myths" are based on surveys (some of the same ones that you picked individual results from) and personal experiences. Ford had ads touting their quality. Why didn't THEY work? Only the Japanese propaganda does? Why? Hey maybe it's 'cause lots of folks have had good experiences to back up the ads. It's obvious that the claim that Japanese vehicles' reliability is a conjured up scheme is a baseless idea in itself, pulled from prejudice rather than facts.

"If everyone did this, we'd have no recession and extremely low unemployment.

...and apparently no bank failures, energy crisis or housing crisis either."

This is probably very true. Why are people losing their homes? Because they aren't making enough money to pay their mortgages. And why is that? In many cases because their companies have cut back due to foreign companies taking away their business. Banks are failing because people can't work and pay their bills.

It is amazing to me that American citizens are so complacent about the effects of sending our money to other countries. Americans are downright hostile to anyone who dares to suggest buying American. That is absolutely ludicrous. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face!! One out of every TEN jobs in the U.S. is auto-related, and only 9% of that is Japanese. Those who bash domestic cars and people who are patriotic enough to buy them have done irreparable harm to the 91% of their fellow citizens' jobs.

As for an "energy crisis", at present that is solved. Not even those Americans who turned their backs on U.S. industry and bought Toyotas and Hondas can afford to drive them now.

"We bought a 2006 Fusion SE 4-cylinder for our dog.

???

Yeah, but does he have a driver's license?"

It's a SHE and she is very generous in letting me drive for her. She is prone to road rage if she sees a cat and I don't want her chasing one across someone's yard in the Fusion.

We bought her the Fusion to replace her 2001 Pontiac because she was embarrassed by the newer cars other dogs were showing up at the park in. Now she is less self-conscious, although she is mad that this one doesn't have a sun roof. What she really wants is a vintage Mustang convertible.

Yes, and my dog wants a Porsche, but my wife won't let me... I mean won't let him, have one.

09:46.

("Not only that, but both GM and Ford long ago matched or surpassed the build quality of vehicles made by Japanese or German companies."

There isn't ONE reputable source to back up that claim.)

Consumer Reports, maybe? It's not for both GM and Ford. Only Ford. And it's not long ago either. It's the Fusion that achieved only 3 years ago.