There on the cover is the newly redesigned Ford Fusion along with the Camry, Altima and Malibu. All in their Hybrid versions.
Now I don't know about you, but when a car magazine gives prime placement to Hybrid sedans and secondary placement to the fact that within the same issue the new Nissan 370Z, Ferrari California and Ford Mustang GT, there must be a shift in the minds of the readers. Perceived or otherwise, C&D seems to think that this Hybrid showdown is important.
And after reading the article, I have to agree that it is important.
It looks as though Ford has beaten Toyota at the game Toyota essentially created. Based on the scoring criteria at C&D, criteria which includes items like comfort, ergonomics, fuel economy, performance along with subjective categories like "gotta have it" and "fun to drive" the Fusion comes out on top with a pretty convincing win.
Scoring 204 points out of a possible 250, the Fusion beats the second place Camry whose score was 189. Interesting to note that the other cars, the Altima and Malibu scored within 11 points of the Camry with the Altima scoring 184 and the Malibu 178. It appears as though the Fusion really had a significant win in this showdown.
But how, you might be asking.
Don't worry, I asked the same thing.
The Fusion was ranked #1 in the "fun to drive" and "gotta have it" subjective categories, with the author suggesting that the Fusion was the most engaging of the hybrid vehicles as well as the most efficient.
Bright spots like this Fusion suggest there still may be some fight left in Detroit after all.
The author writes, "Ford really hit all the marks with this hybrid Fusion, combining excellent fuel economy with slick manners and an engrossing personality. Fun and fuel economy have finally gotten married in a mid-size sedan."
Now the hurdle for Ford, getting people into the showroom to give the Fusion a look.
I guess the question to ask is, would you be willing to give the Fusion a chance. And in that same vein, do you agree with the outcome? Did C&D get it right in ranking the Ford above the Toyota?
Let us know your thoughts...
Ford Fusion Crowned KING OF HYBRIDS Beating Toyota At Their Own Game
FYI, your link doesn’t work.
Their is no link to the Car and Driver Article on their website yet.
The magazine is at the newstands.
And yes for all the Detroit Naysayers, The Ford Kicked the Toyota's Butt......
It Won Period.
I’ve got an ‘06 Fusion, and I just love it.
I really, really liked the Lincoln MKZ until I discovered it was a nicely dressed Ford Fusion. I’ll buy that hybrid, hell yeah. From what I understand, it got over 50 mpg.
Sorry I refuse to buy anything that is made by the UAW... Period..
William Largeness just finished an expose on California and the USPS purchasing thousands of “Ethanol” alternate fuel trucks & cars with taxpayer money.
Interesting facts - no access to alternate fuels so they are consuming regular or premium gasoline.
Hybrids need Larger engines & use MORE GAS!!
Ethanol is more expensive IF and WHEN available.
Huge scandal on this fiasco - wonder if we will read about it in the LA Times or see ABC,CBS,NBC & CNN follow up.
I just compared the Ford Fusion to the Toyota Prius on the Kelly Blue Book site. According to KBB, the Prius has substantially higher fuel economy, and substantially lower cost of ownership over 5 years. I think Ford still has some work to do.
The Fusion is based on the Mazda 6 platform and the 6 is a very good car. Nice to see that ford is putting a good engine in it too.
Ford has resorted to buying technology it couldn't develop itself.
My only question is, “How long will it last?” My wife’s Civic? 12 years with only brakes and exhaust. My 2001 Highlander? Brakes, oxy sensors. My ‘91 LS400? Still goin’ strong, but don’t drive it too much anymore. It likes Hi-test. My last American car? Astrovan. 5 transmissions in under 80,000 miles. I guess I just don’t trust ‘em. Where is the Fusion built?
If we didn’t own a 08 Escape, the Fusion was definitely a looker, hybrid or not. Fuel mileage is very comparable to Toys and Nisses. So is quality. Cost is comparable.
remember. Detroit is building cars GOVERNMENT don’t want us to have. If SUV’s were so unpopular, why did Toyota, Nissan, Kia, and the other so called imports offer their own SUV? Why did Toyota and Nissan offer Pick Up Trucks, which incidentally cost more than the American Original concepts?
Ford better run with this rating. It’s all about marketing and American manufacturers have had some marketing nightmares in the past. Times have changed.
Oh, good. Now that they are producing the cars that people want to buy, I assume that they will make billions of dollars, and all our problems will be solved.
But it's, “Fun to drive”. Which means it goes from zero to sixty in under a minute.
Bought an ‘07 AWD Fusion. Why? Neither Toyota nor Nissan sold an AWD version of the Camry or Altima. As far as hybrids go they hold no appeal for me. Let me know when Ford starts putting Cummins diesels in the Fusion and I will really take notice. Get the govt to tax diesel like gas and they can take off.
The car is pretty cool.
However, mpg......18/26 v6 auto. Not much better than my truck aside from the highway speeds.
You call THAT a hybrid?
If I get a car, I will have to go foreign because American efforts are a flat joke.
I only wish Honda still sold the Insight. It is absurd nobody has anything approaching that yet, not even the Prius. That sucker would routinely get 70 mpg in America running unleaded, not diesel.
Ford expects the 2010 hybrid to get 38 mpg in the city....not bad.
Maybe worth buying.
However, according to an article, the 2010 Prius will get over 50 mpg. Much better than the Fusion.
However, it is a different class etc....when comparing the Fusion to Toyota hybrids in a similar class.....it DOES beat Toyota hands-down.
Nice to see something that Ford did well.
We bought a Fusion in April...love it! Great car! Fun to drive, smooth, quality all about....we got the one with the “works!” (except on GPS...would like that in our next one)...but it has evertything else...6 CYL, dual exhaust, spoiler, leather interior, moon roof, satellite radio, nice stereo, etc. It’s a great ride with lot’s of nice features—super good deal for money...highly recommend it.
But it’s still just a hybrid, over priced and under useful, and a money loser on every sale for all the companies.
And I don’t think Toyota made this game, the EV1 predates any hybrid from Toyota.
One thing I found funny on my recent cross country trip was the number of hybrids out there, on the highway, not getting any benefit from their dual engine, probably actually getting worse millage than me.