Comfort and Convenience
Ford provided us with a fully-loaded production model 2010 Fusion Hybrid, so it was certainly more decked out than what you might purchase on your own. With a base price of $27,625 plus a destination charge of $725, it is not a cheap car by any means.
Our model, with the highest level option package available (Rapid Spec 502A), came to around $32,000. Above and beyond the long list of standard features, this package included an upgraded Sony sound system, a moon/sunroof, a voice activated navigation system with a Sirius-linked traffic and travel guide, leather-trimmed heated front seats, a blind spot warning system, and a back-up camera.
On our long drive, the 8-way adjustable driver’s seat proved to be very useful and the Sirius radio was great, but the Microsoft SYNC system left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. Trying to get it to connect up with my iPhone turned out to be one of the biggest frustrations I had with the car. The bluetooth worked fine for making phone calls, but when I wanted to either stream my music over bluetooth or even connect the iPhone up through the USB port to play my music through the SYNC system, it had so many problems I eventually gave up.
Actually, I take that back. The whole system worked flawlessly for about 30 minutes, after which it all went to hell and all the connections I had set up with my iPhone suddenly stopped working. Leave it to Microsoft to screw this up. I’m not some kind of technologically ignorant idiot either. Give me a few minutes and I can usually figure something like this out without any problems. I rarely have to use directions, but after many trips to the SYNC manual, I still couldn’t figure it out.
Even with the navigation system there were problems. It simply took too many steps to make it do what I wanted it to. Compared to the interface design that went into my iPhone, the SYNC system needs help. It was even more of a conundrum to me because the SmartGauge—which is separate from the SYNC system—is designed so well. Why didn’t they just have the SmartGauge team design the SYNC system instead of Microsoft? It likely would have turned out better.
Because of all the extra space taken up with the Hybrid machinery, the Fusion Hybrid has an incredibly small trunk. It’s definitely big enough to hold about 2 golf bags, but more than that and you’ll be puzzling it out to try and make it all fit.
One unexpected benefit of the high power battery and stop-start system: when you’re parked at a concert venue or tailgating you can turn on the car completely and it won’t use any fuel until the battery drains to a certain point and then the engine will turn on just long enough to charge the battery and then shut off again. At Festival 8 this was a great feature because we had so many things to charge. I’ve been struck lame more than once by dead battery syndrome at a multi-day concert. The Fusion Hybrid essentially eliminates that problem, and it didn’t have that much of an effect on overall fuel economy.
Safety and Build Quality
The optional installed blind spot warning system seems like a great idea gone horribly wrong. If I could have turned the thing off I would have. In parking lots it got confused and beeped at me like there was no tomorrow. When we pulled off the road and were surrounded by bushes you would have thought the world was coming to an end with the amount of incessant beeping this thing produced. Needless to say, it’s an option that has a long way to come.
The back up camera, on the other hand, was great. The clarity with which you can see objects behind you is outstanding. It took a while to get used to the idea of looking at a display rather than the rear view mirror, but once you convince your brain that it is okay you quickly become accustomed to it. In fact, now that I’m driving my own car again I kind of miss the back-up camera.
The Fusion Hybrid felt very solid. Around corners and in traffic I certainly felt confident in the car. I didn’t hear a single squeak or rattle the entire time we were driving it. You can tell a lot about how well a car was designed by the details: all of the seams were well stitched and the interior and exterior molding joints had very close tolerances.
One minor issue: when you come to a stop the engine shuts off, and it is usually unnoticeable when the engine comes back on after pressing the accelerator pedal. But if you have to accelerate very quickly (such as when making a turn across heavy traffic into a parking lot) the slight delay is enough to scare you when you cut across the oncoming traffic. Just be prepared for this and don’t expect completely instantaneous acceleration.
Next Page: Overall Impressions
Related Posts:
- Driving to Phish Festival 8 in a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid
- Phish Reduces Water Bottle Consumption at Festival 8 With Innovative Program
PDF 
Sweet article, thanks.
Sweet article, thanks.
Cool car, one of my financial institutes is a partial sponsor of the Seattle Auto Show, you can actually enter to win a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid…
Cool car, one of my financial institutes is a partial sponsor of the Seattle Auto Show, you can actually enter to win a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid…
Honda Civic hybrid has been around for a long time and it is a beautiful looking car. What does the fusion have that the Civic does not?
Honda Civic hybrid has been around for a long time and it is a beautiful looking car. What does the fusion have that the Civic does not?
Russ,
The Fusion offers more interior room, the SmartGauge, as well as the ability to drive in all-EV mode at speeds below 47 mph.
After experiencing the usefulness of the SmartGauge, I can tell you that it is a feature in and of itself that makes owning the Fusion Hybrid over the Civic Hybrid worth it.
I also refused to own an American made car in the past because of quality but would very much like to today. (great article by the way)
I would love to buy a Fusion but it is out of my price range. I’m hoping that Ford will join other car companies in making a smaller hybrid in the near future. My current Toyota Rav4 is almost 10 years old. I’d like to replace it soon but I’m not worried. I drove my ’86 Toyota pickup for 14 years before I replaced it.
I’m hoping for a Yaris or Fit sized Hybrid both for size and price range. Most of my driving now is my commute to work with the occasional need to fit the family of 4 in for something.
I also refused to own an American made car in the past because of quality but would very much like to today. (great article by the way)
I would love to buy a Fusion but it is out of my price range. I’m hoping that Ford will join other car companies in making a smaller hybrid in the near future. My current Toyota Rav4 is almost 10 years old. I’d like to replace it soon but I’m not worried. I drove my ’86 Toyota pickup for 14 years before I replaced it.
I’m hoping for a Yaris or Fit sized Hybrid both for size and price range. Most of my driving now is my commute to work with the occasional need to fit the family of 4 in for something.
Great article! Great to hear such positive news on Ford’s vision and specifically the Fusion Hybrid.
Great article! Great to hear such positive news on Ford’s vision and specifically the Fusion Hybrid.