In recent years the Ford Taurus has been in between size classes. To more directly match the competition, Ford is replacing it with two cars, the much roomier Volvo-based Five Hundred and the Camry-sized, Mazda6-based Fusion. On paper the Fusion seems a close match for the Japanese cars. But is it really a contender?

Earlier I drove and reviewed the Mercury version of this car, the Milan. The Fusion and Milan differ only stylistically. Since I sampled the V6 with six-speed automatic last time, this time I drove a four-cylinder with five-speed manual.

Styling

I first saw the Ford Fusion at last January's Detroit auto show, and found it strikingly attractive. With strongly chiseled forms in the European fashion, its exterior looked far more upscale that its price. The Volvo S60 has similar yet less attractive styling; since Ford owns Volvo this resemblance could not have been intentional. As far as I could tell without being able to sit in the car the interior also looked much better than I had expected.

Now that I've had the chance to see the Fusion on the road, I find the exterior less striking, but still very attractive; the Camry, Accord, and Mazda6 are relatively bland. Though the Fusion shares nearly all of its sheetmetal with the Milan, I much prefer the Ford's exterior design. The difference? The Ford has wheels with fewer spokes and vertical headlights that better suit the shape of the car. The car looks best with the SEL's 17-inch alloys, but it looks nearly as good with the 16-inch alloys optional on the SE. (A $395 "sport package includes these wheels and an uprated stereo with CD changer--it's well worth the price.) Ford's latest corporate grille also works for me.

The interior doesn't fare so well. The main culprit is the instrument panel, which has too many pieces that don't flow together and the sort of separate inset faceplate for the audio system that most competitors abandoned a design generation or two ago. The trimplate around the HVAC controls also has a downmarket look and feel. To disguise the busyness of the instrument panel and the budget nature of some materials I highly recommend the black interior.

The black interior is further enhanced by the optional leather, which has contrasting stitching. But the cloth isn't bad. If you want a leather-wrapped wheel to go with your leather seats, then you need to buy the top-level SEL. I'd recommend the SEL anyway to get the larger wheels.

Accommodations

The Fusion's driving position is similar to that in a Mazda6. You sit well above the instrument panel, with an expansive view forward. The passenger seat, which is not height adjustable, if anything sits too high. The driving position in an Accord or Camry is lower.

The front seats don't feel quite as good as they look--the cushion could be a bit larger, the foam a bit more contoured--but they'll do. The side bolsters are spaced a bit too widely to clamp the average torso in hard turns, but you won't find better in this class. I still miss the firmer, more tightly spaced bolsters in my Contour. But I'm a bit extreme in this regard.

Despite the new Ford's five-inch greater length, it offers only a half-inch more rear legroom than the Mazda6. And even this small advantage is squandered by a poorly shaped rear seat cushion. This cushion is so flat that I could not keep myself from slouching a couple of inches in leather-trimmed cars. The cloth is better in this regard, as butts stay in place better on it, but the poorly shaped cushion is the same.

The trunk is large, and the rear seat folds to enable even larger items to be carried. When the seats are folded the opening is wide but not very high owing to a beam beneath the package shelf.

On the Road

I've driven both the four/manual and six/automatic. Since I covered the latter in my Mercury Milan review, I'll focus on the former here.

The four-cylinder performs in the Fusion much like it does in the Mazda6. So while smooth and quiet for a four it lacks midrange punch. The shifter is very tall with a large, comfortable knob. Throws require little effort and about average in length. Not a bad shifter, but because the engine lacks punch stick shift enthusiasts won't be flocking to this car.

Like the Milan, the Fusion handles capably and very safely, but not quite sportily. The chassis feels nicely tied down and the rear is easily kept in line through hard turns, but turn-in could be quicker and sharper. I ended up not buying a Mazda6 in large part because the car's handling didn't do much for me, despite all of the raves in the press. The Fusion handles much the same, but with a bit more understeer. Figure about halfway between a Mazda6 and an Accord, with a Camry, Sonata, or Malibu even lower on the sportiness scale. Good, but not nearly as entertaining as my Contour was.

The 16-inch tires on the Fusion SE don't grip as well as the 17's on the SEL and Milan Premier, but are arguably sufficient for the four. With the six I'd want the stickier, crisper handling 17s.

Ride quality similarly falls between the firmer Mazda6 and Accord and the softer Camry and Sonata. Easily acceptable, but nothing spectacular. The Accord and Camry both feel a bit more solid and substantial. Especially the Camry. The Fusion is fairly quiet, but lacks the muffled, almost luxury-car interior "sound" of the other cars. Then again, that's what the related Lincoln Zephyr is for.

I also recently drove a Chevrolet Malibu Maxx SS. Compared to the Chevrolet, the Ford feels like a much lighter, more nimble car. Lower effort steering plays a role in this, but so does greater communication through said steering and quicker, sharper responses.

Ford Fusion Price Comparisons and Pricing

The Fusion starts out a bit more expensive than a similarly equipped Milan, and ends up a couple hundred more expensive when both cars are loaded. Between these two buy whichever looks best to your eyes.

With the current $1,000 rebate, the Fusion is about two grand less expensive than a similarly-equipped Accord or Camry. A Malibu LTZ lists for about the same, but adjusting for extra features like OnStar and chrome wheels give it a lower adjusted price.

Prices change frequently, and differences will vary based on feature level. To quickly generate these and other comparisons with the specific features you want, visit my Web site, www.truedelta.com. (It's the only site that provides true "apples-to-apples" price comparisons.)

TrueDelta's page for the Fusion:

http://www.truedelta.com/models/Fusion.php

Last Words

The Fusion is a thoroughly competent sedan that nevertheless fails to get the heart pumping. Especially not with the four. While a viable substitute for an Accord or Camry, with few weaknesses but also a much lower price, it needs more aggressive suspension tuning and a more sporting engine to appeal to enthusiasts. Car magazines complained about the Contour's back seat, but gushed about how much fun it was to drive. The Fusion has a much roomier (if less comfortably shaped) back seat, but I'm not foreseeing any gushing about the driving experience. Respect, maybe, but respect isn't the same thing as love.

Between the Fusion and Mazda6 I'm not sure which I'd choose. The Ford has a more distinctive exterior and (for me) more comfortable front seats, while the Mazda has a more comfortable rear seat and cleaner instrument panel.

Actually, I take that back. I'd get the Mazda because it offers a manual with the V6.

I'd the Fusion an extra star compared to the Milan because I prefer its styling. But then I deduct one for the 4/manual powertrain. So if you're interested in the V6, consider this a four star car.

To learn more about my reliability research and sign up to participate in it, or to perform thorough, up-to-date new car price comparisons, visit www.truedelta.com. A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

A Note on Ford Fusion Reliability

I cannot practically cover reliability within the context of this review. However, many people are interested in such information, so I've started collecting my own data. Results, once they are available, will be posted to my site, www.truedelta.com, with updates every three months.

Unlike other sources, TrueDelta will clearly identify what difference it will make if you buy a Fusion rather than another vehicle by providing "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats (among others). You will be able to specify the number of years, annual miles, and types of repairs to include in Ford Fusion reliability comparisons.

Before I can report results, I need data on all cars--not just the Fusion--from people like you. To encourage participation, those who help provide the data will receive free access to the site's reliability information. For non-participants, this access will cost $24.95.

For the details, and to sign up, visit www.truedelta.com.

A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

If you're an Epinions member, and you want to receive an email alert from Epinions when I post a new review, click here.

Some of my reviews of related vehicles:
Ford Contour review
Ford Five Hundred review
Honda Accord review
Hyundai Sonata review
Lincoln Zephyr review
Mazda6 review
Mercury Milan review
Toyota Camry review