Ride Report - '12 Ford Fusion SEL
Nov 28, 2012, 12:33 am
#1
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Ride Report - '12 Ford Fusion SEL
After visiting friends in Rochester last month, I did a one way from the SLC airport to the Downtown Salt Lake HLE instead of taking a cab. Since SLC has Gold Choice, I took advantage of an ICAR reservation. I was originally assigned a Cruze LTZ that had 23,000 miles on it, but spotted a 2012 Fusion SEL in Gold Choice -- once I saw the FlexFuel badge, my mind was made up.
www.ford.com/cars/fusion/2012/
Car Description: 12 SIR FUSION 3.0S (2012 Ford Fusion SEL w/ Sirius)
Class: F
Since the 2011 and 2012 model years are so similar, I'll mainly discuss the differences between the SE and SEL trims in this report. For more detailed information about the Fusion, you can check out my ride report about the 2011 Fusion SE from May
The SEL trim is the third of four trims, above the SE but below the Sport. This model had a MSRP of $27,815 when new. The odometer read 22,317 miles when I picked it up, and I only took it 43 miles in just under a day.
Powertrain: After my experience with the SE back in April, I swore never to take another Ford with a 2.5L engine; the only reason I considered this was because it had a V6. Both the 2.5L I4 and the FlexFuel-capable 3.0L V6 in this Fusion SEL are from the "Duratec" family of engines, and to be perfectly honest I'm not impressed. The 2.5L generated 175 horsepower and 172 lb-ft torque; the Duratec 30 makes 240 horsepower and 223 lb-ft torque, which is a very good improvement (interestingly, my late '92 Taurus had a 3.0L Vulcan V6, but that made 140 hp!). However, the Fusion still felt sluggish, with a 0-60 time of 7.4 seconds. The 3.0L-powered V6 is supposed to get 22 mpg in the city and 30 mpg on the highway; I don't know what I did wrong, but I averaged 15
Handling: I felt that handling was very much the same as with the 2.5 SE: brakes were firm, suspension absorbed bumps nicely, steering a little lighter than I prefer. The six-speed SelectShift automatic transmission, standard on V6-equipped Fusions, didn't make the smoothest of gear changes but got the job done. On the other hand, the manual mode was a joke (or perhaps more of a prank -- I gave up on it completely when it decided that third gear would be a good idea at highway speed
). If you do attempt to use it, it is operated with a gear lever-mounted thumb shifter similar to the 2012 Malibu.
Interior: This is where the SEL shined. Unlike the '11 SE, this one had all of the standard bells and whistles. The power-adjustable (10-way w/ lumbar driver's, 4-way passenger's) heated Medium Light Stone leather seats were pretty comfortable, and I liked the leather-wrapped steering wheel with cruise, audio, and Bluetooth mounted controls. The color-selectable mood lights were my favorite gimmick and every time I got in the car I picked a different one
There was a decent amount of space in the Fusion, although I still disagree with it being classified as a full-size car.
This car was also equipped with SYNC (Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity with voice commands). It sounds very useful in theory, but I could not get it to connect to my phone after spending probably over an hour trying over the entire course of my rental. The AM/FM/XM radio and CD player included an auxiliary jack and the 6-speaker sound system was fine. Interestingly, it seemed that a lot of XM stations were not available; for instance, it skipped from XM10 to XM15 (meaning I couldn't play my home station XM12/Z100).
Exterior/Design: I do like the design of the Fusion; the three-bar silver grille still looks pretty cool to me. It's nothing too spectacular, but the Fusion by no means comes off as generic. Like the SE I rented in May, this Fusion was painted in White Suede. One thing I noticed was that the fuel intake was cap-less (i.e. it had no screw-on cover).
Features: The SEL comes with a lot of nice standard features, including SYNC, power seats, leather-wrapped tilt and telescopic steering wheel with wheel-mounted audio/Bluetooth/cruise controls, color-selectable ambient lighting, automatic headlamps and dimming rear-view mirror, heated side mirrors with integrated spotter mirrors and exterior approach lamps ^, and quite a bit more. None of the optional features were included in this particular vehicle, but it was certainly good enough for me.
Value: Using the USAA CDP-discounted Freedom Rate (XCT1), I ended up paying $30.13 on an ICAR reservation, with over $10 of that being taxes and fees. In this case, a taxi would have been cheaper (renting is normally cheaper when going to, rather than from, the airport), but I had some errands to run as well so I didn't mind it too much.
Summary
PROS:
CONS:
Final Verdict: This car is light years ahead of its 2.5L-powered SE brother. That doesn't mean it's any good though. It's very nice on the inside, but I wish I stuck with the Cruze
The '13 Fusions can't join the fleet quickly enough.
-J.
www.ford.com/cars/fusion/2012/
Car Description: 12 SIR FUSION 3.0S (2012 Ford Fusion SEL w/ Sirius)
Class: F
Since the 2011 and 2012 model years are so similar, I'll mainly discuss the differences between the SE and SEL trims in this report. For more detailed information about the Fusion, you can check out my ride report about the 2011 Fusion SE from May
The SEL trim is the third of four trims, above the SE but below the Sport. This model had a MSRP of $27,815 when new. The odometer read 22,317 miles when I picked it up, and I only took it 43 miles in just under a day.
Powertrain: After my experience with the SE back in April, I swore never to take another Ford with a 2.5L engine; the only reason I considered this was because it had a V6. Both the 2.5L I4 and the FlexFuel-capable 3.0L V6 in this Fusion SEL are from the "Duratec" family of engines, and to be perfectly honest I'm not impressed. The 2.5L generated 175 horsepower and 172 lb-ft torque; the Duratec 30 makes 240 horsepower and 223 lb-ft torque, which is a very good improvement (interestingly, my late '92 Taurus had a 3.0L Vulcan V6, but that made 140 hp!). However, the Fusion still felt sluggish, with a 0-60 time of 7.4 seconds. The 3.0L-powered V6 is supposed to get 22 mpg in the city and 30 mpg on the highway; I don't know what I did wrong, but I averaged 15
Handling: I felt that handling was very much the same as with the 2.5 SE: brakes were firm, suspension absorbed bumps nicely, steering a little lighter than I prefer. The six-speed SelectShift automatic transmission, standard on V6-equipped Fusions, didn't make the smoothest of gear changes but got the job done. On the other hand, the manual mode was a joke (or perhaps more of a prank -- I gave up on it completely when it decided that third gear would be a good idea at highway speed
). If you do attempt to use it, it is operated with a gear lever-mounted thumb shifter similar to the 2012 Malibu.Interior: This is where the SEL shined. Unlike the '11 SE, this one had all of the standard bells and whistles. The power-adjustable (10-way w/ lumbar driver's, 4-way passenger's) heated Medium Light Stone leather seats were pretty comfortable, and I liked the leather-wrapped steering wheel with cruise, audio, and Bluetooth mounted controls. The color-selectable mood lights were my favorite gimmick and every time I got in the car I picked a different one
There was a decent amount of space in the Fusion, although I still disagree with it being classified as a full-size car.
This car was also equipped with SYNC (Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity with voice commands). It sounds very useful in theory, but I could not get it to connect to my phone after spending probably over an hour trying over the entire course of my rental. The AM/FM/XM radio and CD player included an auxiliary jack and the 6-speaker sound system was fine. Interestingly, it seemed that a lot of XM stations were not available; for instance, it skipped from XM10 to XM15 (meaning I couldn't play my home station XM12/Z100).
Exterior/Design: I do like the design of the Fusion; the three-bar silver grille still looks pretty cool to me. It's nothing too spectacular, but the Fusion by no means comes off as generic. Like the SE I rented in May, this Fusion was painted in White Suede. One thing I noticed was that the fuel intake was cap-less (i.e. it had no screw-on cover).
Features: The SEL comes with a lot of nice standard features, including SYNC, power seats, leather-wrapped tilt and telescopic steering wheel with wheel-mounted audio/Bluetooth/cruise controls, color-selectable ambient lighting, automatic headlamps and dimming rear-view mirror, heated side mirrors with integrated spotter mirrors and exterior approach lamps ^, and quite a bit more. None of the optional features were included in this particular vehicle, but it was certainly good enough for me.
Value: Using the USAA CDP-discounted Freedom Rate (XCT1), I ended up paying $30.13 on an ICAR reservation, with over $10 of that being taxes and fees. In this case, a taxi would have been cheaper (renting is normally cheaper when going to, rather than from, the airport), but I had some errands to run as well so I didn't mind it too much.
Summary
- 3.0L Duratec V6 engine (240 hp, 223 lb-ft)
- 6-speed automatic transition w/ manual mode
- 22/30 mpg
- SEL trim, third highest of four trims
PROS:
- Lots of creature comforts
- SYNC connectivity
- Spotter mirrors
- Changeable ambient lighting
CONS:
- V6 still seems sluggish
- Still not a full size
- Manual mode should be renamed "secret surprise mode"
- 15 mpg?? I did better in a Jeep Liberty!
Final Verdict: This car is light years ahead of its 2.5L-powered SE brother. That doesn't mean it's any good though. It's very nice on the inside, but I wish I stuck with the Cruze
The '13 Fusions can't join the fleet quickly enough.-J.
Nov 28, 2012, 6:28 am
#2
Join Date: May 2012
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Posts: 986
Very nice review. I currently have a '12 Fusion SEL, but with the 4 cyl engine, so I will do a mini review of it and the SYNC, since you were unable to get it to work.
I was disappointed to find out the my rental did not have the 6 cyl engine. Can't remember the last time I rented a car with more then 4 cyl. The engine has no issues at speed, routinely drive 75 mph on the way to work, and average 32 mpg. The largest issue is acceleration, or lack of. One day I took the back roads home from work, and the route runs through the hills. The car handled better then expected and handled the curves at 65 mph with little issue. As mentioned before the SEL has both engines. The fastest way to tell the difference is to look for the flex fuel badge on the rear, as the 6 cyl is flex fuel capable, and the 4 cyl is not.
SYNC review
What can I say, SYNC is a Microsoft product and it shows. My biggest issue is the compexity of the system. While it has a lot of great features, it takes a good deal of programming and menu selections to work the features. Most cars can switch between the different media, FM, AM, CD, etc, with no problem, but the Fusion has one setting for SYNC, which handles Aux in, USB, and bluetooth. Each time the car starts, it defaults back to Aux. You have to dig into the menus to switch to bluetooth, which is not fun at speed. The system is also capable of reading your text messages and responding, but this also involves digging into menus. There is some voice activation, but most of us don't have time to learn the system for your average car rental.
My final verdict is the Fusion is a great car, and I would take it any day over the Camry LE, Altima, Avenger, Mazda 6, etc.
I was disappointed to find out the my rental did not have the 6 cyl engine. Can't remember the last time I rented a car with more then 4 cyl. The engine has no issues at speed, routinely drive 75 mph on the way to work, and average 32 mpg. The largest issue is acceleration, or lack of. One day I took the back roads home from work, and the route runs through the hills. The car handled better then expected and handled the curves at 65 mph with little issue. As mentioned before the SEL has both engines. The fastest way to tell the difference is to look for the flex fuel badge on the rear, as the 6 cyl is flex fuel capable, and the 4 cyl is not.
SYNC review
What can I say, SYNC is a Microsoft product and it shows. My biggest issue is the compexity of the system. While it has a lot of great features, it takes a good deal of programming and menu selections to work the features. Most cars can switch between the different media, FM, AM, CD, etc, with no problem, but the Fusion has one setting for SYNC, which handles Aux in, USB, and bluetooth. Each time the car starts, it defaults back to Aux. You have to dig into the menus to switch to bluetooth, which is not fun at speed. The system is also capable of reading your text messages and responding, but this also involves digging into menus. There is some voice activation, but most of us don't have time to learn the system for your average car rental.
My final verdict is the Fusion is a great car, and I would take it any day over the Camry LE, Altima, Avenger, Mazda 6, etc.
Dec 1, 2012, 10:26 am
#4
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 4,396
Dec 1, 2012, 12:43 pm
#5
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