Ride Report - '11 Ford Fusion SE
May 1, 2012, 11:35 am
#1
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Ride Report - '11 Ford Fusion SE
Last weekend my father and I flew down to Melbourne, FL to look at a couple of universities in the state. I had booked a mid-size (Corolla or similar) and got a "Carfirmation" email saying there was a white 2011 Ford Fusion waiting for us -- an unexpected but lucky upgrade for us.
http://www.ford.com/cars/fusion/
Car Description: SIR FUSION 2.5S
Class: F
The SE trim is the mid-level option for the Fusion. KBB says it's worth an average of around $16,770 with the options when in excellent condition with 15,293 miles, which is what it had when I picked it up. My father and I drove it 419 miles over two days, going as far as Jacksonville. Compared to the Corolla (or similar) that I was expecting, this was a welcome upgrade, although I disagree with it's fullsize classification.
Powertrain: If any of you read my report for the 2012 Escape XLT, you may or may not be surprised to learn that the Fusion has the exact same engine - the 2.5L Duratec inline 4-cylinder. It left the Escape frighteningly underpowered, and this car was no different: the 175 horsepower didn't really get you going anywhere very quickly, and the 172 lb-ft of torque didn't do much either. Like the Escape, a 6-speed transmission is nice, as is the downgrade button. It supposed to get 23-33 miles per gallon, and I averaged 29.5 ^
Ride/Handling: Unlike the Escape, the transmission was not nearly as jumpy with the Fusion. On the other hand, gear shifts aren't that smooth, and with six gears there are plenty of them. I'm still not a fan of I-4 engines.
Steering was light and easy to turn, but the car would also stay straight even at higher speeds. The brakes felt firm; it felt like if I really had to stop quickly I could do so easily (unlike the opposite; if I had to get moving quickly it might be better to run alongside). The Fusion was also very stable, although in sharp/fast turns you could definitely feel the car swaying to the side.
Interior: The Fusion I had wasn't anything spectacular, at least not for a fullsize. It was equipped with the Charcoal Black cloth trim, which I didn't have a problem with. The instrument cluster display had a very cool blue backlight, which my dad even said was Star Trek-esque
The display in the cluster could display info for Trip A/B, distance to empty, instantaneous gas mileage (bar graph style), or a timer. With the air conditioning on, the distance to empty was never very accurate (the lowest we got it to though was 6 miles, and it probably had less than that!).
The radio cluster simply displayed the time, and radio information when on. No compass or outside temperature readout anywhere. There were two cupholders behind the gear shift handle, as well as an extra cupholder on the bottom side of each door in the storage slot. There was at least one DC power outlet, at the bottom of the radio/climate control cluster; I didn't look for any others but I'm sure there was at least one more. Center front armrest had two storage compartments, a small one near the top, and another, larger one beneath it.
The engine was decently quiet, although nothing to rave about. It's inherently quiet from the I-4 design, but it just sounded exceptionally buzzy. I think much of the road noise can be attributed to the condition of the roads themselves (there was a good amount of construction on I-95), so thumbs up there. Like the Escape, the light, wiper, and turn signal controls are on one single stalk, and felt very natural to use. I was surprised by how much space is in the trunk; it was large for a standard size car, but I'd say at or below average for a fullsize (much smaller than an Impala or non-2013 Malibu, for instance).
Exterior/Design: The white paint stayed surprisingly clean during the rental, which was nice. The Fusion has a cool, sleek look to it, especially with the silver-colored grille in the front.
Features: Although the car-firmation said the car did not have satellite radio, it was in fact equipped with Sirius. Other than that it was pretty basic (cruise control, tilt (not telescopic) wheel, power driver seat, etc.). The sun visors for both the driver and passenger were the sliding kind, which can come in handy sometimes; the side-view mirrows also had the blind-spot spotter mirror insets which I always appreciate. The car also had fog lights ^
Value: I had originally agreed to pay $34.25 base rate/day for a mid-size, but the email statement said I was charged $38.49 a day. However, minus the Fuel Purchase Option (which worked out fantastically - I brought the car in on fumes), it's only $2.94 more all in than I was quoted online (which is always less than what gets charged at the airport due to fees and stuff), so I don't think I'm going to dispute it. Should I? I think it just means more Gold Rewards points for me (when I otherwise would have paid more in taxes?). Standard and fullsize cars were both quoted at $40.94 a day, so either way this was still pretty good.
Summary
PROS:
CONS:
Final verdict: Like I said, this was a welcome upgrade from a Corolla. If I had booked a standard-size car I would have been happy with it as well. However, it's certainly no full-size, and I would not accepted it had I booked that. With reports of the Taurus being introduced into the fleet as full-size cars, perhaps we'll see the Fusion reclassified back into the SCAR category where it belongs. This car was good for what we needed, but there are better options out there.
-J.
http://www.ford.com/cars/fusion/
Car Description: SIR FUSION 2.5S
Class: F
The SE trim is the mid-level option for the Fusion. KBB says it's worth an average of around $16,770 with the options when in excellent condition with 15,293 miles, which is what it had when I picked it up. My father and I drove it 419 miles over two days, going as far as Jacksonville. Compared to the Corolla (or similar) that I was expecting, this was a welcome upgrade, although I disagree with it's fullsize classification.
Powertrain: If any of you read my report for the 2012 Escape XLT, you may or may not be surprised to learn that the Fusion has the exact same engine - the 2.5L Duratec inline 4-cylinder. It left the Escape frighteningly underpowered, and this car was no different: the 175 horsepower didn't really get you going anywhere very quickly, and the 172 lb-ft of torque didn't do much either. Like the Escape, a 6-speed transmission is nice, as is the downgrade button. It supposed to get 23-33 miles per gallon, and I averaged 29.5 ^
Ride/Handling: Unlike the Escape, the transmission was not nearly as jumpy with the Fusion. On the other hand, gear shifts aren't that smooth, and with six gears there are plenty of them. I'm still not a fan of I-4 engines.
Steering was light and easy to turn, but the car would also stay straight even at higher speeds. The brakes felt firm; it felt like if I really had to stop quickly I could do so easily (unlike the opposite; if I had to get moving quickly it might be better to run alongside). The Fusion was also very stable, although in sharp/fast turns you could definitely feel the car swaying to the side.
Interior: The Fusion I had wasn't anything spectacular, at least not for a fullsize. It was equipped with the Charcoal Black cloth trim, which I didn't have a problem with. The instrument cluster display had a very cool blue backlight, which my dad even said was Star Trek-esque
The display in the cluster could display info for Trip A/B, distance to empty, instantaneous gas mileage (bar graph style), or a timer. With the air conditioning on, the distance to empty was never very accurate (the lowest we got it to though was 6 miles, and it probably had less than that!).
The radio cluster simply displayed the time, and radio information when on. No compass or outside temperature readout anywhere. There were two cupholders behind the gear shift handle, as well as an extra cupholder on the bottom side of each door in the storage slot. There was at least one DC power outlet, at the bottom of the radio/climate control cluster; I didn't look for any others but I'm sure there was at least one more. Center front armrest had two storage compartments, a small one near the top, and another, larger one beneath it.
The engine was decently quiet, although nothing to rave about. It's inherently quiet from the I-4 design, but it just sounded exceptionally buzzy. I think much of the road noise can be attributed to the condition of the roads themselves (there was a good amount of construction on I-95), so thumbs up there. Like the Escape, the light, wiper, and turn signal controls are on one single stalk, and felt very natural to use. I was surprised by how much space is in the trunk; it was large for a standard size car, but I'd say at or below average for a fullsize (much smaller than an Impala or non-2013 Malibu, for instance).
Exterior/Design: The white paint stayed surprisingly clean during the rental, which was nice. The Fusion has a cool, sleek look to it, especially with the silver-colored grille in the front.
Features: Although the car-firmation said the car did not have satellite radio, it was in fact equipped with Sirius. Other than that it was pretty basic (cruise control, tilt (not telescopic) wheel, power driver seat, etc.). The sun visors for both the driver and passenger were the sliding kind, which can come in handy sometimes; the side-view mirrows also had the blind-spot spotter mirror insets which I always appreciate. The car also had fog lights ^
Value: I had originally agreed to pay $34.25 base rate/day for a mid-size, but the email statement said I was charged $38.49 a day. However, minus the Fuel Purchase Option (which worked out fantastically - I brought the car in on fumes), it's only $2.94 more all in than I was quoted online (which is always less than what gets charged at the airport due to fees and stuff), so I don't think I'm going to dispute it. Should I? I think it just means more Gold Rewards points for me (when I otherwise would have paid more in taxes?). Standard and fullsize cars were both quoted at $40.94 a day, so either way this was still pretty good.
Summary
PROS:
- Fuel economy
- 6-speed transmission and downgrade button
- Sirius radio
- Surprisingly large trunk (for a standard-size car)
CONS:
- Performance
- Buzzy engine
- Not a full-size
- Did I mention performance?
Final verdict: Like I said, this was a welcome upgrade from a Corolla. If I had booked a standard-size car I would have been happy with it as well. However, it's certainly no full-size, and I would not accepted it had I booked that. With reports of the Taurus being introduced into the fleet as full-size cars, perhaps we'll see the Fusion reclassified back into the SCAR category where it belongs. This car was good for what we needed, but there are better options out there.
-J.
May 1, 2012, 11:46 am
#2
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I had two of these, but with the 6 cylinder motor (receipt says FUSION 3.0N).
I believe you forgot the most unique feature of this trim: colored floor lighting. The first car had purple, the second was orange. The same color is visible in the cup holders.
I believe you forgot the most unique feature of this trim: colored floor lighting. The first car had purple, the second was orange. The same color is visible in the cup holders.
May 1, 2012, 12:02 pm
#3
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It's an option. The pictures I see online look really cool though.How was the V6? Was that also straight-up F (class-wise)?
-J.
May 1, 2012, 12:07 pm
#4
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There's a button you can push to change the colors...about a dozen color choices to cycle through IIRC
May 1, 2012, 9:34 pm
#6
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I booked three C rentals last week. Twice I got "SIR FUSION 3.0N", once was a high mileage Corolla. I don't know how to find the class of the car.
The engine was pleasant. Being used to manual gear, I felt the automatic was slow to gear down and thus accelerate.
Good to know about the button to change the color, I much prefered purple over orange
The engine was pleasant. Being used to manual gear, I felt the automatic was slow to gear down and thus accelerate.
Good to know about the button to change the color, I much prefered purple over orange
Jul 3, 2012, 6:52 am
#7
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Last weekend I had the Fusion SEL, which was fully decked out with heated seats, heated mirrors, power seats, Microsoft Sync and Bluetooth, Sirius Satellite radio, full leather interior, dual A/C control, etc. Basically everything except sunroof and build-in navigation system.
I really enjoyed the car and it had about 11K miles on it.
The only downside with the car for me was the engine, which was pretty weak if trying to accelerate from 50 to 70 on the highway.
Fuel Economy is phenomenal though, I drove from PIT-Charles Town, WV-WAS-Joppa, MD-Baltimore-Joppa-Camden Yards-WAS-PIT... Altogether, gas was only $100.
I guess it is a trade-off for the weaker engine.
I really enjoyed the car and it had about 11K miles on it.
The only downside with the car for me was the engine, which was pretty weak if trying to accelerate from 50 to 70 on the highway.
Fuel Economy is phenomenal though, I drove from PIT-Charles Town, WV-WAS-Joppa, MD-Baltimore-Joppa-Camden Yards-WAS-PIT... Altogether, gas was only $100.
I guess it is a trade-off for the weaker engine.
Jul 3, 2012, 9:56 am
#9
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The only downside with the car for me was the engine, which was pretty weak if trying to accelerate from 50 to 70 on the highway.
Fuel Economy is phenomenal though, I drove from PIT-Charles Town, WV-WAS-Joppa, MD-Baltimore-Joppa-Camden Yards-WAS-PIT... Altogether, gas was only $100.
I guess it is a trade-off for the weaker engine.
Fuel Economy is phenomenal though, I drove from PIT-Charles Town, WV-WAS-Joppa, MD-Baltimore-Joppa-Camden Yards-WAS-PIT... Altogether, gas was only $100.
I guess it is a trade-off for the weaker engine.
-J.
Last edited by GW McLintock; Feb 17, 2020 at 10:33 am
Jul 7, 2012, 8:33 pm
#10
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Nice report! Having recently bought a Fusion SEL with all the options I fully agree with your pros and most of your cons. Personally, I've never noticed a buzzy engine sound... in fact of all the cars I've driven over the years, I find the Fusion has very little exterior noise bleed into the interior, even the engine, which makes it nice not having to boost radio volume to drown out road noise. Enjoying all the comforts of more expensive competitors, the only regret I have is not paying for the V6.
I also agree that this is not an F vehicle. I went back and forth between the Fusion and Taurus before deciding on the Fusion and difference in size between a real F like a Taurus and the Fusion is very noticeable.
I also agree that this is not an F vehicle. I went back and forth between the Fusion and Taurus before deciding on the Fusion and difference in size between a real F like a Taurus and the Fusion is very noticeable.
