| by TCC Team | |
(2008-02-20) |
Click for High-Res Photo Gallery: 2008 Ford Fusion
Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, Ford had a secure spot at the mid-size table. Honda's Accord and Toyota's Camry were strong sellers--but so was the Taurus, which sold more than 300,000 copies a year in those good years. The Taurus had, in fact, saved Ford's bacon in 1986 by completely redefining the company's public face, jellybean styling and all.
The Taurus was the best-selling car in the U.S. from 1992 to 1996, and then Ford blew it, big-time. The follow-up 1996 Taurus was an overstyled mistake that killed Ford's momentum. Eventually, it was banished to rental-car fleets and it wasn't until a decade later that Ford recovered from the mistake.
It was in 2006 that Ford leaned on its corporate cousin, Mazda, and borrowed the underpinnings of Mazda's 6 sedan to create the new Fusion. More than badge engineering, Ford actually stretched out the 6's platform and gave it a uniquely crisp style, with a signature Ford grille up front.
And since its debut in 2006, the Fusion's been nothing but a success for Ford. It's basically a larger, better equipped, lower cost cousin of the Mazda6--with one or two caveats. Today, in the 2008 model year, the Fusion is still a good alternative to the bigger Accord and Camry--and Chevy's resurgent Malibu .
Back in 2006, TheCarConnection.com road-tested the Fusion SEL with V-6 power. This time, we took a four-cylinder for a spin to see whether the sub-$20,000 sedan was an even better value.
STYLING
Taking styling themes established by Ford's 427 concept car during the 2003 auto show season, the Fusion wears a clean set of lines that are as un-Taurus-like as possible. It's handsome from every angle, but particularly so from the front where the three bold chrome slats make up the grille and the headlights manage the neat trick of being both somewhat rectangular and swooping up into each front fender.
It's a simple and tasteful look that carries over to the interior. The cabin's comfortable and functional, without too much frippery. The dash design is well balanced, with a hooded binnacle in front of the driver covering four round gauges. The center stack includes all the audio and ventilation controls laid out with intuitive operation in mind, and there's a neat round clock that adds some sense of elegance to the environment.
However, there is frip available if you want and need something to avoid the creeping generic feel. There's multi-color LED backlighting, similar to that found in the Mustang. Here, instead of toggling through the rainbow colors lighting the gauges, you only get to change the lighting for the footwells and twin cupholders in the console.
The test car Ford delivered had black leather with red inserts and red stitching, which looked good. Available as part of a sport package that includes 18-inch wheels, the red-trimmed cabin was rakish enough to brush away the usual family-sedan blahs.
PERFORMANCE/FUEL ECONOMY
The Ford's standard engine is a 2.3-liter four-cylinder rated at 160 hp. Mazda's similar four-cylinder is rated slightly lower, at 156 horsepower, but it's a difference we doubt you'll recognize on the road.
But there is an important difference. The Mazda offers both an automatic and manual transmission with either engine. Four-cylinder Fusions will come with either a five-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission--but the six-cylinder only comes with an automatic.
If you stick with the base engine, you won't miss much in performance or fuel economy. But the slightly larger sedans from the competition are better at sipping gas than the Fusion. The Ford turns in fuel economy of 20/29 mpg, which is pretty good for the class. Honda's four-cylinder, manual-shift Accord is rated at 22/31 mpg, while Toyota's similar Camry gets an EPA nod of 21/31 mpg. Nissan's four-cylinder, six-speed Altima is a champ at 23/32 mpg, while Chevy's Malibu doesn't even offer a manual gearbox--but still turns in 22/30 mpg.
The bigger engine can turn in 0-60 times of about 8 seconds, but the four-cylinder's not much slower. And it emits the kind of noises that won't remind you of a farm implement. While we love Honda's benchmark four-cylinder in this class, the Fusion's engine note is refined, too.
HANDLING/RIDE
Because the Fusion shares its platform with the Mazda6, it partakes of the typically Mazda verve in the ride, handling and "fun to drive" department.
The chassis and suspension come over pretty much intact from Mazda. That includes a short/long arm front suspension, a multi-link independent rear suspension, and rack-and-pinion steering. There's nothing startling in all this--it's typical family-sdean stuff--and nothing wrong with it, either.
The Mazda breeding sets the Fusion distinctly apart from the Chevy Malibu or the Toyota Camry, which have more of the traditional big-car feel. The Honda Accord is comparably tight, with minimal body lean and firm damping, but its entry price point of $20,360 is already a solid $2000 above the Fusion's $18,010 base price. Nissan's Altima also has a good reputation for sharp handling, but it feels like a much more massive car, too.
The Fusion won't corner like a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, but it's vastly more composed than the typical Detroit family sedan and quite comparable to the best import sedans.
COMFORT/UTILITY/SAFETY
Though it shares its platform with the Mazda, the Fusion's actually a substantially bigger, roomier car, thanks to two inches more wheelbase, an additional four inches of overall length and more than two inches of extra width. At 190.2 inches long, the Fusion is 3.4 inches longer than that Mazda and its 107.4-inch wheelbase is 2.1 inches longer. But the most significant dimensional difference is width, where the 72.2-inch-wide Fusion spans 2.1 inches broader than the Mazda.
The Altima, for comparison, checks in at 189.8 inches long, with a 109.3-inch wheelbase, while Toyota's Camry is 189.2 inches long and has a 109.3-inch wheelbase. The Accord is substantially longer at 194.1 inches, with a 110.2-inch wheelbase, as is Chevy's Malibu, which has a 112.3-inch wheelbase and an overall length of 191.8 inches.
So while it's on the smallish side of the family four-door equation, the Fusion's ample width and length translate into good passenger room--better than Mazda's 6 and, if memory serves, Ford's last world-car attempt, the Contour. Drivers won't feel squished at all across the front, and the flat-feeling seats at least don't put the driver's legs hard up against the door panels and center console.
Yes, the back seats are nice, too. But what's better is that there's enough room to enjoy them. In stark contrast to that old Contour, the big rear seat has enough like room so that a six-footer can sit behind a six-footer in front, with enough comfort for a lunch run. If the driver is five-eight, that six-footer might even be comfy for a couple of hours back there. And of course, this is a car designed for American tastes, so there are plenty of cupholders.
The standard Fusion S comes with dual front, side and curtain airbags, as well as anti-lock brakes. It also scored the highest possible ratings in IIHS side-impact and frontal offset testing. You can't get a stability control system, however.
QUALITY/FEATURES
The Fusion doesn't want for convenience items, including power windows and locks, cruise control, air conditioning and a CD player with MP3 capability.
New options for the 2008 model year give the Fusion some features that a few years back, wouldn't have been available even in the top-line Benzes and BMWs. There's optional satellite radio and DVD navigation with voice activation; a reverse sensing system; and Ford's Sync system, which uses Bluetooth and an in-car display screen to control music sources and telephone calls. All by itself in the class, the Fusion SEL also offers Ford's keypad entry system, which can be a real help if you ever lose your regular key.
Also for 2008, a new Sport Appearance Package option gets new 18-inch wheels and tires, a spoiler, red seat inserts, and red contrast stitching on the seats, steering wheel and center console. Our test car had this package, raising its as-tested price over $23,000.
Higher-spec SE and SEL models can be ordered with a sunroof, contrast-color leather inserts for the seats, as well as carbon fiber-look trim.
The Fusion we drove seemed to be fit together with care--but we didn't care for some of the big swaths of black plastic found on the interior. The aluminum-look trim did liven up the dash a bit. It never looks cheap, but details like green-lit gauges seem old-school compared to the soft blues of Volkswagens, or even the ambient white lighting on Lincoln vehicles.
VALUE/CONCLUSIONS
Despite the greater power of the V-6, the four-cylinder version is the more enjoyable Fusion if you care more about driving finesse and prowess. It's the slick shifting of its five-speed manual that completes the Fusion's sport-sedan personality; while it's perfectly happy as a V-6-powered family four-door, the five-speed version has an extra facet to its personality that is missing in Chevrolet's auto-only Malibu, for example--or even in the manually geared but softly sprung Toyota Camry.
The Mazda6 is among the very best driving cars in its class and most of those manners transfer over to the Fusion. The suspension rides comfortably over inconsistent roads, and the whole thing remains quiet under virtually all circumstances. The steering may not have quite the quality of the Subaru Legacy's, and the whole assembly doesn't work with the stunning precision of the Honda Accord, but it's fully competitive with everything else.
And in four-cylinder mode, the Fusion's a bit of a bargain, especially compared to the newer Honda Accord and even the smaller, pricier Mazda6. For an enthusiast with more than one body to transport, and more than one mission to handle, the Fusion's in the same class as the Accord and the Altima--a dual-personality sedan that's adept at pleasing most drivers.
It's not going to be the quickest, best handling, most luxurious, or highest value player in its market segment. But it's completely competitive on all those counts and it's easily more stylish than its direct competition.
2008 Ford Fusion S
Base price: $18,010; price as tested: $23,315
Engine: 2.3 liter four-cylinder, 160 hp/156 lb-ft
Transmission: Five-speed manual or five-speed automatic, front-wheel drive
Length x width x height: 190.2 x 72.2 x 57.2 inches
Wheelbase: 107.4 in
Curb Weight: 3181 lb
Fuel economy (EPA cty/hwy): 20/29 mpg
Safety equipment: Dual front, side and curtain airbags; anti-lock brakes
Major standard features: Air conditioning, tilt/telescoping steering wheel; cruise control; power windows/locks/mirrors; intermittent wipers; rear defroster; AM/FM/CD/MP3 player
Warranty: Three years/36,000 miles
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