No problems, mechanically.
Ford is building some its best products ever, no doubt. A lot of hype is out there about this one in particular, but to me it is just that – a bunch of hype. The car is a decent buy, but I would put it behind the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Chevrolet Malibu, Hyundai Sonata, and KIA Optima. It’s just kinda’ bland. However, it is still a good car.
The engine is powerful enough and a little more refined than before (seems as though some good sound-dampening may have been done to hush the hard-working small V-6). The transmission shifts precisely. Road noise is suppressed sufficiently, and the ride is comfortable.
The seats provide sufficient support and hold a person in place well (front buckets). Rear seat space is adequate and comfortable.
Gas mileage is decent for a mid-sized sedan, but certainly not stellar. I averaged 24mpg, combined. Not bad for a V6 in this category. For this gas mileage, though, you’d expect more power.
However, the controls on the steering are not natural. It’s quite distracting to try to use while driving. Additionally, the SYNC system is very cool, but not user-friendly. It’s about time we started seeing more products that can be used without referring much to the manual.
Overall, it’s a good car. The appearance may be on the bland side to some, but it still looks pretty sharp. Although I wouldn’t put it at the top of the list, it is up there, which is saying a lot for such a competitive field. The fit and finish on this product is more evidence that Ford is certainly now into building quality. Buyers of this car shouldn’t be disappointed, but may eventually come to the realization that their ride is a little “blah.”
"It’s just kinda’ bland. However, it is still a good car."
The above statement sounds like the perfect description of a Toyota Camry. This indicates to me that Ford hit this one out of the park!
Seriously, I think the Fusion is a better car than at least 2 or 3 of the cars on your list, and just as good as the others, especially when equipped with AWD.
After driving Accords, Camrys and a Nissan Altima coupe we bought a Fusion. There is no doubt in my mind it's a MUCH better built car. In the early 90's we had a Honda. It was probably the most poorly built car we ever had.
And YES, the Fusion IS bland. I'm planning to add a few sporting touches as I can afford them. For now if I want to be noticed I'll drive my Mustang. When I don't mind being regarded as a doddering old man, I'll drive the Fusion.
"but I would put it behind the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord"
The Fusion fits the bill for the person who doesn't care for the road noise of the Honda, and wants something that handles better than a Camry.
I totally agree. Having driven all three (Accord, Camry and Fusion) there is no way I'd put the Fusion "behind" Camry and Accord. It's just better in every respect. Consumer Reports agrees. It rates the Fusion 2 full levels above the Camry and 1 full level above the Accord in reliability. I guess that's why Fusion sales are UP 22% while Honda and Toyota sales are down.
I have to agree on the "bland" look of the Fusion - actually, the front end looks bold and nice, but the rear end just doesn't match. It appears too high and narrow, in my opinion, with small brake lights, giving the odd perception that you are looking at a compact-size car from the back and a mid-size car from the front. They should stretch out the trunk and reduce its height, and it would look better.
19:54 & 19:14 - Yes, the Fusion is a very nice car - it is very competitive with the Accord & Camry,. But "better"? I wouldn't go that far.
By the way, to all of you Japanese car bashers out there -
Why do you fail to mention that the Fusion is based on the same platform as the Mazda 6?
All of these cars are very good vehicles, I would also say that the Malibu is fairly competitive too. (Although I would prefer the Fusion and the Camry over the others).
"Why do you fail to mention that the Fusion is based on the same platform as the Mazda 6?"
Probably because Ford OWNS Mazda. We owned a Mazda built in the mid-80's in Japan. It was one of the most poorly built cars I've ever seen. When Ford purchased Mazda, the quality went way up. The horrible little Mazda truck was replaced by the solid and reliable Ford Ranger, and the build quality of all Mazda lines went up dramatically. We now own a Fusion BECAUSE Ford had control of the build quality.
In reviewing the sales figures for the past year and past month, I was ECSTATIC to see that even bankrupt GM sold more cars in the past year than Toyota. I was also excited to see that Ford sales in September dropped by less than HALF of what Toyota's did and less than a FOURTH of Honda's. Ford is currently building the best cars in the world, while Toyota is recalling hundreds of thousands of cars for defective brakes and floor mats and dealing with hundreds of roll-over lawsuits, and Honda is still battling transmission failures. I took two friends out to look at new Fords this weekend. Both were import owners and both settled on Mustangs. The Ford dealership had NO Fusions and informed us that they were selling them as fast as they could be unloaded off the trucks. Their used car lot looked like a Honda/Toyota/Nissan lot. Patriotism still lives in the hearts of a few Americans.
To the above comment:
It was Ford that killed Mazda's quality. And by the way, would you mind explaining how your Mazda was so poorly built?
I see that all the time. Domestic owners claiming that the import vehicle they owned was "one of the most poorly built vehicles I've ever seen", but backing it up with NO evidence.
22:06 Will you please stop using "Patriotism" as an argument?
What you consider "patriotism" sounds more like intolerance and prejudice to me.
You call those who happen to drive "imported" cars "unpatriotic", but do you ever think that you should stop labeling people based on the vehicles that they drive?
That person driving an import might just be a veteran, the widow of a veteran, the brother, sister, mother or father of a soldier serving overseas.
I really think you need to stop this labeling.
It is very offensive.
By the way, as of November 2008, Ford owned less than 14% of a stake in Mazda, not only does Ford not own Mazda, they don't even hold a controlling share.
I sincerely hope that this information does not in any way change the way you feel about your Ford Fusion, which happens to be based on the Mazda 6, and happens to be assembled in Mexico. It also happens to be an excellent car, American or not.
I have to say my dad has a 1988 Mazda B-2200. Looks like it may have had a hard life before he got it. Still it only had 120k miles on it, and it needed the engine rebuilt. My pap-paw's 88 Ranger has 275k and no engine rebuild. Whenever our money goes overseas we are hurting ourselves. That is money that is not making it into our country.
"It was Ford that killed Mazda's quality. And by the way, would you mind explaining how your Mazda was so poorly built?"
Okay, for starters, the body rattled from one end to the other. The bolts FELL OUT of the front body panel by 80,000 miles. The frame sagged FROM THE WEIGHT OF THE CAR at 86,000 miles. My alignment shop told me this was TYPICAL OF JAPANESE CARS. They even had a NAME for the problem. They referred to it as the "Japanese flimsies". The car leaked oil and BURNED oil. Half the time it refused to start. After being told that I'd need to have the sagging frame straightened and reinforced, I traded the car for a Ford with 139,000 miles on it. It was solid as a rock and ran flawlessly with no repairs for years.
As for other import experience, our Honda Civic burned a quart of oil a week at 50,000 miles, had failed CV joints at 45,000 miles, had rattles galore, needed brakes at 30,000 miles (no domestic we've owned required brakes before 70,000 miles) and the engine seized due to a failed rod bearing at 99,000 miles. It was sold to a junk dealer.
No Ford we've ever owned ever required ANY repairs in 100,000 miles and one was driven 325,000 miles with less than $500 in total repairs.
Hope this answers your question. Ford BUILT Mazda's quality. The Mazdas built after Ford took over quality control were better by far. I'm proud of my Fusion ONLY because Ford was responsible for taking a cheap, mediocre Japanese car company and making it into one of the world's best cars. I'm well aware that Ford has sold controlling interest in Mazda, but Ford still oversees quality control on the Fusion, which is the ONLY reason I'd buy one.
"Okay, for starters, the body rattled from one end to the other. The bolts FELL OUT of the front body panel by 80,000 miles. The frame sagged FROM THE WEIGHT OF THE CAR at 86,000 miles. My alignment shop told me this was TYPICAL OF JAPANESE CARS. They even had a NAME for the problem. They referred to it as the "Japanese flimsies". The car leaked oil and BURNED oil. Half the time it refused to start."
Yeah, they like to pull that trick on people. No car is just going to sag under its own weight. Sorry, I don't buy it. That shop took you on one heck of a run-around.
"I'm well aware that Ford has sold controlling interest in Mazda, but Ford still oversees quality control on the Fusion, which is the ONLY reason I'd buy one."
Are you the same person said that Ford owned Mazda?
Well anyway, Ford did not improve Mazda, it's the other way around.
"Yeah, they like to pull that trick on people. No car is just going to sag under its own weight. Sorry, I don't buy it. That shop took you on one heck of a run-around."
No, TWO shops made the same assessment. Why would an alignment shop DENY themselves business by saying "Your frame has sagged from the Japanese flimsies and we can't fix it" rather than fixing it to get my money?? Gee, that makes about as much sense as saying that Toyotas are better than Fords.
After a body shop told me that straightening the sagging frame probably wouldn't fix it for long (because it was so poorly built) I traded it for the Ford with 139,000 miles on it. Shortly after trading for the Ford I hit an 8-inch high curb straight on at 50mph (dodging another car). The impact was so severe it knocked my glasses off. I took the Ford to the SAME SHOP that told me my Mazda's frame had sagged and had them check out the Ford because of the severe impact. Their response was "It's perfect. We can't find ANY damage and it doesn't need an alignment". Now why on Earth, if they wanted to "take me on a run-around" would they tell me the Ford was perfect and DIDN'T NEED ANYTHING"?? They didn't even charge me for inspecting it. The very reason I use this shop is that they ARE honest.
"The car is a decent buy, but I would put it behind the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Chevrolet Malibu, Hyundai Sonata, and KIA Optima."
I just have to wonder why, when you had so many other cars on your list that are better than the Fusion, did you buy the Fusion? Certainly if you feel ALL of these other cars are better why wouldn't you have gone with one of them? Were you looking for the number 7 car on your list to live with day to day?
Also, the steering wheel controls are pretty easy to use for me and the SYNC is very user friendly. Anything primarily voice activated usually is pretty easy to use.
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