Blue Oval

I've been very pleased with my FFH's handling in the snow also, using stock tires/rims and driving in northern NJ where we are having record-breaking amounts of snow as well. One time, though, I couldn't make it out of my friend's driveway where he has an extremely steep incline. Finally after 10 minutes of numerous failed attempts I turned off the traction control and, although there was a lot of tire spin and burning smell to deal with, the car surprisingly climbed the ice & snow-covered hill as if it had 4-wheel-drive. I don't understand why Ford doesn't make the Fusion Hybrid available with AWD when it is an option on the Escape Hybrid.

Once in awhile, I also observe false BLIS warning lights on my mirrors but they soon reset on their own. Interestingly, I can't recall ever hearing any sound indicating one was lit up regardless of whether it was an actual valid warning or a false alarm. For the life of me I just can't get excited over this feature...whether the light is on or not I always turn my head after glancing in the mirror just to make sure no other car is present and/or approaching at a high-rate of speed before I change lanes. To rely on BLIS alone is dangerous and even the manual warns you of this. Because of the printed warning, all liability rests with the driver in the event of a collision. Personally, I would rather have LED turn indicators mounted on or underneath the mirrors to warn other drivers and pedestrians of my intentions in addition to or instead of having a light telling me that there may or may not be another car nearby.

Unfortunately this is true about most of today's modern cars. Unless you're driving an SUV (which sits up higher off the ground) your car is subject to substantial cosmetic damage every time you park it. It has happened to me a few times so I feel your pain too. I got too close recently to a high curb while parallel parking and managed to scrape up my Hybrid's wheel rim. A similar low-speed curb contact with my previous vehicle, a Suburban, would have resulted in only a scuffed tire. I have seen numerous vehicles sustain the same front-end damage that yours did. We can all thank the industry design morons who decided to lower the cars, eliminate sturdy, protective chrome bumpers and cover hidden reinforcement bars with body-color painted vinyl . . . all the while knowing they would be prone to damage resulting in expensive repairs.

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I simply don't understand the anti-chrome movement. The reason I selected the new Ford Fusion was because of the styling which, when enhanced by the standard chrome grille and moldings, sets the car apart from the others. When the chrome is removed the car instantly looks like every other plain Jane model out there. I applaud Ford designers for thinking outside the box and heading in the direction of an era when chrome was as important as the paint on a car.

Treeofliberty, thanks for answering my question. I suppose I'll just have to wait until I have more miles on the car before I see higher numbers. In the meantime, 35-36 MPG is still far better than the 15 MPG I used to average on my 2007 Suburban (with a 31 gallon fuel tank) which the Fusion Hybrid wisely replaced.

Add this one to the "Wish List" that already has some great suggestions: How about turn indicators, mounted either on the front fenders or else on the exterior rear view mirrors? I would rather have this feature than some small yellow dot warning me not to switch lanes. Before changing lanes, I always look in the mirror and turn my head to look through the side windows anyway, so to me the yellow dots are almost useless. ~Just not impressed by this feature as it stands alone. I would rather have yellow flashing lights (mounted on the fenders or on each mirror assembly) or even flashing red arrows mounted on the mirror glass, to warn the other drivers of my intentions.

Nice! Good for you. Question: How many miles does the odometer on your FFH show now? Mine just turned 1,100 and the best I'm averaging is 35-36 MPG. When can I expect to start seeing 40-41 MPG?

DC, I'm glad you mentioned your door issue here. The driver's side door on my 2010 has the same problem. The other three doors close with hardly any effort at all but I've noticed that the driver's door requires a little extra momentum or else it won't close entirely. For me I see it as a temporary annoyance as I intend to bring it to the dealership's attention at my first oil change. I have to agree with xmech2K's advice . . . I know better than to mess with it myself and then have to deal with resulting worse problems such as water leaks and wind noise. That would totally ruin my day!

I purchased my 2010 FFH at the end of last year so I could deduct the sales tax off my 2009 taxes. The car's total MSRP (after sticker-shown discounts, destination & delivery costs) listed at $32,790.00. I paid $29,500 plus taxes & registration fees. I really liked the sport blue color but it was not available on the hybrid model so I selected the white platinum metalic tri-coat and it looks great with the added pin striping. I personally chose the Fusion because of the great gas mileage, the incredible ride and especially because of its outstanding appearance. The chrome grill absolutely makes the car, in my opinion. The painted ones make the car look like every foreign car out there. I wanted mine to stand out from all those boring, mono-tone cars. I'm proud that I bought an American-made car and that Ford has finally figured out the importance of making a happy consumer Job #1 by producing a highly remarkable vehicle. The "Car of the Year" award along with many other recognitions are well-deserved praises. The Fusion amazes me each time I drive it. For the price, the ride, fuel savings and its unique appearance, I feel that I made the right choice.

Attn. kremer4: I can't seem to log onto your website, www.hybridcarforums.org . Each time I search for it, both through yahoo and google, every other site but yours appears...especially the hybridcarforums.com site which I know is not the one you suggested we look at. Any ideas? Anyone else have this problem?

Great question. Hope someone can supply an answer because I, too, have thought about going this route in replacing my stock antenna with the one Lincoln mounts on their MKZ models. If they are similar it probably would be a wise choice since both cars have the same radio systems. I wouldn't want to lose any radio reception capabilities, especially while listening to my favorite satellite stations.

Your new, larger wheels look very nice, kremer4. One day, when funds materialize, I would like to change the ones on my hybrid, too. I personally prefer the chrome look and in particular desire larger gaps between the spoke rims. The current stock hybrid wheels have too many small crevices for brake dust to get into and as such are a real pain in the butt to wash by hand. As far as the appearance of the stock antenna, I suppose it all depends on the color of the car it sits on. My car is white and the black antenna sticks out like a sore thumb. Replacing it with a body-color, shark fin style antenna is high on my list of improvements. I'm just waiting to hear more info from others here on the forum who have made the switch to let me know how it performs.

I can't imagine how anyone could say anything negative about the ride. My 2010 FFH is one of the smoothest and quietest cars I have ever driven and that includes my boss's BMW 750Li which lists close to $100K. Each time I drive the Fusion I shake my head in awe and silently applaud Ford engineers for their diligence in getting it right! Perhaps suspension improvements were made along the way...mine was assembled in September of 2009.

I totally agree about the factory headlights on the new Ford Fusion...back when I was a young lad my Schwinn bicycle's headlight had a brighter light pattern! When I complained to the Ford dealer, the tech confirmed that the low-beams were aimed too low so he raised them and it helped somewhat but they are still weak. By the way, I too always use my fog lamps to provide some extra light. Oldschool, how hard was it to replace the low beams with Silverstar bulbs? Did you do the high-beams too or just the low-beams? Should I just skip the Silverstars and go for the HID lights instead?

Sailorman - first of all, you're welcome! I'm glad I was able to locate and provide you with the link. Secondly, I remain mystified as to why your dealer would be reluctant to install the bi-directional remote start unit when other dealers continue to sell and install them. If there was a problem with them Ford would not continue to make them available, both through its dealerships and also on-line, to the general public. Furthermore, I would think more members would have also already reported the reduced battery life here on the Forum. Personally, I am not worried about it because, if there is a problem, the units are covered under the Ford warranty and that is precisely why I chose to go with them as opposed to selecting a non-OEM aftermarket kit.

Sailorman - This is the first I've heard of any battery problems on the bi-directional key fobs. I've only used mine a couple of times since the remote start unit was only recently installed and naturally they operated correctly each time. Fuze-ion - The website I used to obtain the programming instructions was http://www.fordaccessoriesstore.com/GfaWeb/techSpecs.do However, when I clicked on it tonight I was unable to get it to cooperate. Either the system is currently down or else they changed the ability to access the website. I initially found it listed somewhere on this forum. I will go back and try to locate it for you just to make sure I copied it correctly. OK, Fuze-ion...I just clicked on the above link again and this time it went through! When you do it, it will (hopefully) bring up a tech page asking you for the following information. Click on "Select Type" which will allow you to choose "Installation Instructions". A new window will open asking you to "Select Description" ... choose "Electronics". Then under "Choose Category" click on "Remote Start System - Car" (not the "security system" choice). "Available Documents" will offer you 6 to choose from. Click on the one with your car's year. When the installation/programming instructions pages appear look for the pages pertaining specifically to the Fusion Hybrid model.

Hmmmm . . . I wonder if that new sharkfin antenna might have eaten his Fusion! :hysterical2:

Sailorman - that's a good point you made about the factory key with all the buttons vs adding a key fob from another company with the same buttons just to get the remote start button on it. You're right, it makes no sense unless you can get a single Ford key programmed with the security chip and then add the non-Ford key fob but why bother? I chose to go the easy route and simply added the Ford bi-directional remote start key fob to the key that came with my Fusion. Fuze-ion - you can add up to eight (8) remote start fobs to the Ford system. You do need to program each one but its not that difficult. Just make sure you have both keys that came with your car and the original remote start fob when programming additional remotes. The instructions are on-line or else your dealer can program them for you. I bought a second remote control over the parts counter...mine was for the more expensive bi-directional unit...the part number is 9G1Z-15K601-A and the list price was $45.71.

Sailorman: I just installed mine and it looks exactly as in the photo you supplied. The bi-directional remote start shown gets added by a ring to the Ford key that came with the car. Unfortunately, like others have pointed out, Ford is a little behind on the technology when it comes to remote starts. For example, all of my previous GM cars/trucks came with the remote start already built in to the same key fob which operates the doors/trunk/hatch/panic switches on the vehicle. GM's remote starts are also standard equipment on most of their vehicles. Only recently has Ford decided to offer them and they are extra cost items. Alternately, if you want everything on the same key fob, you need to purchase a remote start system from another company that sells their own remote start and alarm systems. Unlike Ford, they are able to replace the key fob which came with your vehicle with one of their own which operates the doors, trunk or hatch, panic and of course, the remote start features. Hope this answers your questions.

Haha! I thought I was the only one who felt this way! That's right, I won't advertise for free, either! Prior to picking up the new car I always instruct the sales person not to mount any decals or emblems on the car or else they can keep it.

Hey, great choice! Those new wheels are going to look sharp! Especially with your color Fusion. Good luck!

Never heard of this happening before. Let your dealer's service dept. manager know next time you're there so they can check for a possible cause. Perhaps they already have a technical service bulletin on this. Hope your rear bumper cover wasn't scuffed . . . I say bring back the more durable chrome ones but that'll never happen!

Wish someone would please explain to me why this is cool. The way I see it, the lens darkening clearly reduces the intensity of all the bulbs in each of the assembly units. Aren't you worried about getting rear-ended because drivers of following vehicles didn't notice you, especially at night nor had the slightest clue you were braking and/or signaling? Additionally, why would you not want all the white light you can get back there when you're backing up? Go figure . . .

Great choice Dave. I've bought cheaper license plate frames in the past, too, and the chrome plating lasts about a about year or two before the pitting begins and shine starts to quickly diminish. In the spring time I will do precisely what you did; bite the bullet and invest my hard-earned dollars on a better quality chrome plate and hope it lasts. The photo I used was a stock photo I found on the Internet. Right now my car sits in my garage surrounded by two feet of snow. If Al Gore's predicted global warming ever strikes northern NJ then I'll finally be able to pull it out to take some of my own photos of the car.