2014 Fusion the car to get?, lease/buy? hybrid/gas? reliable?

[zylander]

Im currently searching for a new everyday commuter car. Originally I was going to just settle with a Civic because of the price until a brand new Fusion came into my shop yesterday. I absolutely loved the styling inside and out and all the technology. At this point I am pretty set on the Fusion but before pulling the trigger Im looking if there is any reason not to get it and if I do which model, ect.

Of all the cars in the $25-$35k range is the Fusion the car to get? What do the Fusion owners here think of them? Im not really interested in any Toyota as I find them pretty dreary and very dull to drive. The only other car I find myself kind of looking at is the 2014 Accord. I dont like the exterior as much as the fusion but the interior is pretty nice.

As far as Fords go, how is their depreciation and reliability? Which ever car I buy I will probably keep for 3-5 years. Is it worth it to buy or would I lose less money if I just lease it? Hows the reliability on the new Fusions?

Finally, I have never owned a hybrid and Im trying to figure out if spending an extra ~$10k over a gas version is worth it given how much I drive. Between my round trip 30 mile commute to work plus other everyday driving Ill probably do around 10k-12k miles/yr. Is a hybrid really worth the premium over a standard car?

 

[aShufflinZombie]

My parents own the 2012 Fusion with sun and sync. Hasn't been in the shop for anything other than oil, filter and a battery. Love it

 

[DaTT]

Battery? Already?

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Fusion & Accord Sport - two best midsize cars your price range.

 

[aShufflinZombie]

Battery? Already?

Supposedly, the dealership said it was a bad cell. They 100% covered the tow and the battery.

 

[nwo]

Finally, I have never owned a hybrid and Im trying to figure out if spending an extra ~$10k over a gas version is worth it given how much I drive. Between my round trip 30 mile commute to work plus other everyday driving Ill probably do around 10k-12k miles/yr. Is a hybrid really worth the premium over a standard car?

If you have to pay an extra ~$10k for a hybrid, it's definitely not worth it if you only put 10-12k miles/year.

If you are going to lease, definitely stay away from hybrids, the extra fuel efficiency definitely won't make up for the cost since most lease agreements limit you to 10-12k/year.

I think the hybrid gap is a lot smaller nowadays though, since the 10k hybrid price difference has been replaced by electic vehicles which may actually be worth it, even if you drive only 10-12k per year. Especially if you are able to get tax incentives/credits and have access to cheap or fairly inexpensive electricity. But most EVs have a long way to go until they become mainstream.

 

[tortillasoup]

Fusion sucks. My neighbor has one and it gets pitiful gas mileage and is an underwhelming vehicle. Try the Accord, it's a much nicer vehicle all throughout. If you want to save on cost of maintenance, get the I4 Accord as the V6 Accords have timing belts which = $$$.

 

[nwo]

Dropping 25-30 grand on a ford is blasphemy if you ask me... If you're gonna drop 25-30 why not get an accord? They have pretty good MPG and arguably the best resale value. Therefore, at least you won't have to worry about depreciation if you are going to purchase rather than lease. I'd also recommend the 4 cylinder accord. Cheaper at the start, cheaper maintenance and better gas mileage...

 

[postmortemIA]

Fusion sucks. My neighbor has one and it gets pitiful gas mileage and is an underwhelming vehicle. Try the Accord, it's a much nicer vehicle all throughout. If you want to save on cost of maintenance, get the I4 Accord as the V6 Accords have timing belts which = $$$.

right, timing belt on 100,000 - planned maintenance thing vs. many other unplanned things that can come by then. You never know what will break by then. Sure, if you buy reliable brand you'll most likely be fine. But OP is looking for car for up to 5 yrs, so most likely timing belt is non-issue.

I would too pick Accord over Fusion, and I already have one, that is V6. Accord tends to keep value much better. For sure, it is because it does no fleet sales.

 

[Pulsar]

Dropping 25-30 grand on a ford is blasphemy if you ask me... If you're gonna drop 25-30 why not get an accord? They have pretty good MPG and arguably the best resale value. Therefore, at least you won't have to worry about depreciation if you are going to purchase rather than lease. I'd also recommend the 4 cylinder accord. Cheaper at the start, cheaper maintenance and better gas mileage...

That got quite a chuckle out of me.

In case you missed it, the 80's are over, and Honda and Toyota don't rule anymore. Ford no longer makes junk... and hasn't for a long time according to every market measure out there. But if we're going to live in the past, then I stand by the right to call all the Japanese makers out on crap quality and piss-poor rusting steel. Oh wait...

The comparitive prices are the same, and how you option the two will decide on which is more expensive. The accord edges the Fusion in gas mileage, but by all accounts most like the Fusion styling more and enjoy the driving dynamics better as well. That is subjective, and I suggest you check them both out in person. You can't really go wrong with either.

 

[rcpratt]

Love my Fusion. I have the smaller EcoBoost (I forget the details), over the past 9 months I've averaged almost exactly 30 mpg with probably 60-70% highway driving.

MFT is my only complaint. 99% of the time it's fine, but the two times a year it locks up are really annoying.

 

[Topweasel]

2013 2.0 EB Titanium Fusion here.

Really easy for me to get 30+ MPG out of it. I have a short Highway drive, so I only average about 26MPG regularly. But it's been fantastic, it drives well, very comfortable, and has actually given my room mate who had a pretty feature rich 2012 CTS envy. So much so he just traded in his Mustang and CTS for a packed F150 FX4 EB that he now absolutely loves. Overall its one of the more solid feeling cars I have driven consistently. Something that didn't always use to be the case.

I wanted the 2.0 with its 250ish HP and 270 Torque for its get up and go performance. But if your used and want the feel of a normal every day 4 banger. The 1.5 with 180HP is probably a better buy. You can get most of the other features and save several thousand and get mid to high 30's for MPG highway, plus things like the start-stop for even more savings.

 

[Tweak155]

We had a 2008 Fusion and now have a 2010 Fusion... so maybe not what you're looking for... but both had at least 1 issue to handle under warranty, but one was extremely minor. I think the 2008 just had a headlamp go out which is no big deal but the 2010 had a transmission problem that I'm not sure was the car's fault. My wife was driving it and told me the the engine was loud when she was on the freeway and then the check engine light came on.

I wasn't able to identify if she had it in the wrong gear or if the transmission skipped a beat, but the dealer said the error codes didn't specify exactly what happened and all they did was re-flash the transmission control. Haven't had any problems since.

Overall I'm happy with the Fusion, it gets good mileage (31-33 freeway, 23-25 city) and is pretty roomy.

 

[Tweak155]

I'll also add I've only driven one Ford vehicle that I couldn't believe they put out for sale... the newer style Escape. It just feels so cheap and poorly designed.

For the record, I previously owned a 2010 F150 and 2010 Ford Focus, and currently own a 2013 mustang and 2003 expedition on top of the 2010 Fusion. They've all been great. The 2010 Focus was nothing amazing but for its purpose, it was fine.

 

[etrigan420]

I've mentioned it in other threads, but I absolutely love my '13 Fusion Hybrid.

We also test drove a Camry, an Accord, and an Optima, and the only car to come close to the "total experience" that we enjoyed with the Fusion was the Optima.

The Camry and Accord were...nice, but it felt more "same ol' same ol'" that Toyota and Honda have been doing for years (not necessarily a bad thing). The Kia and Ford offered equivelent or better features with styling that didn't scream "we're just gonna go ahead and rest on our laurels because, let's face it, we're Toyota and/or Honda".

Approaching 20,000 miles driven, 43mpg, and have it scheduled for it's second oil change.

I could not be more pleased with this vehicle.

I *will* say that in your usage scenario I would probably opt out of a hybrid...

 

[JTsyo]

I have a 2013 Fusion hybrid. I get 47 mpg during the summer and about 37 during the winter (using heat makes the engine stay on longer). My drive is mostly local so that's where the hybrid makes sense. The 47 they advertise for the highway doesn't really hold true once you're above 60mph from what I've seen.
The hybrid came with a leather interior and it's very nice. I had two recall (software update, fuel leak replacement) so far but no other issues for the last year.

Would recommend.

 

[Topweasel]

I have a 2013 Fusion hybrid. I get 47 mpg during the summer and about 37 during the winter (using heat makes the engine stay on longer). My drive is mostly local so that's where the hybrid makes sense. The 47 they advertise for the highway doesn't really hold true once you're above 60mph from what I've seen.
The hybrid came with a leather interior and it's very nice. I had two recall (software update, fuel leak replacement) so far but no other issues for the last year.

Would recommend.

Have you gotten the latest update? They shipped with the electric pretty much shutting off at 60-65. But middle of the year they scaled it up to 80 assisted. Should be pretty painless for them to reflash it for you.

 

[zylander]

Thanks for the responses, I think Ill opt out of getting a hybrid.

On the Fusions that are equipped with navigation. Is it true that you can not control it while driving and that it only responds to voice control?

 

[ThatsABigOne]

I will also vouch to go with an Accord.

 

[nwo]

On the Fusions that are equipped with navigation. Is it true that you can not control it while driving and that it only responds to voice control?

I dunno about Fusions, but that's how it is on a 2008 Camry hybrid

I absolutely hate that "safety" feature

 

[jagec]

If you're looking at the Accord, look at the Hyundai Sonata as well. I had one as a rental and was pretty impressed by it.

 

[postmortemIA]

New Fusion 'is' comparable to new Accord... but just for fun, I've looked at 5 yrs old cars ... 2008-2009 Fusion vs. 2008-2009 Accord. All Fusions I've found were <$10k and All accords were >$10k. So I hope you'll get new Fusion for cheap.