The Rosner Files

Ford’s press has been heavily advertising that in side-by-side tests real-life consumers preferred the Fusion to the Camry and the Accord. Ford wasn’t using test dummies either. While the new Toyota and Honda offer interesting new faces Ford has woken up and smelled the coffee. The Fusion is rather well thought-out earning high marks from front and rear passengers ~ matching points with the Camry and Accord in terms of usable space for five. The straight four on the Camry feel a bit more powerful than the Fusion at the bottom-end. But zing each and the Fusion shows the SVT heritage of the very low-pollution PZEV 2.3 liter DOHC all-aluminum engine with 160 horses at 6,250 RPM and 156 foot .

pounds at 4,250 RPM of urge. While standard four-wheel disk brakes with ABS and Electronic Brake Distribution, hailed as the next great thing by the big consumer’s publications, makes slowing under normal and challenging conditions a complete non-issue. A nice 39-foot turning radius also came in handy. Chock one up for Fusion ~ it just feels more sporting and better controlled. Sailing down the freeway each of the cars is pretty darned quiet, a tribute to the extra insulation that usually drags down gas mileage.
Admittedly, the week spent with the Fusion saw more highway than slogging commute traffic, but not by much. A 107 inch wheelbase with an all-up weight of 3,181 pounds make

the Fusion slightly lighter than the competition with a net yield of a hair under 26 MPG in the real world. This makes the Fusion one of the most efficient family sedans pulled from the Press Pool in a very long time. Ford used to try to sell cars on slogans like “Ford has a better idea,” and “Quality is Job #1.” A rightly skeptical public didn’t always buy it. And while there seems to be an unfortunate trend of dropping quality-control amongst the better known Japanese brands ~ Ford spent the money to get the Fusion right ~ and it shows ~ nice work Ford.