What did you drive before getting your FFH?

[hybridbear]

I'm curious a bit about the demographics of the Fusion owners on here. What did you own before? What other cars did you look at? For how many of you is the FFH your first hybrid?

 

If you'd like please share your complete car history below. Thanks

Edited April 2, 2013 by hybridbear

[hybridbear]

First car - 1998 Chevy Lumina with almost 200,000 miles

Then a 2000 Chrysler LHS

Then a 2002 Saab 9-3 SE hatchback

Also a 2001 Saab 9-5 Aero

Then a 2003 Saab 9-5 Aero

Then a 2006 Honda Accord Hybrid

And now...the 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

[elle]

I had a Prius, not sure how to categorize that in your first question so put "other." I did not consider a gas only vehicle and wouldn't again unless I could get one like my '84 Honda Civic that got 45 MPG. They don't make 'em like they used to.

 

My next car will most likely be a plug-in hybrid and I imagine the prices on those will be coming down by the time I'm ready to buy. Didn't look at anything but the FFH with any seriousness-- priced out a few others online but nothing came close to the FFH in terms of value.

[DeeCee]

Here is my list. don't recall the exact year of many of them so just listing brand/model:

 

48 Chevy 4-door (first car while junior in high school in 58)

51 chevy 2-door coupe customized (replaced 48 when its engine died)

56 Chevy ( my go to college car)

Triumph TR-3B (first car bought new) (had fun with this one until first child came along)

Corvair (bought used)

65 Pontiac LeMans (new)

67 Pontiac Bonnevile (new)

Dodge Van New)

Jeep Grand Cherokee (New) (biggest regret)

GMC Diesel pickup (new)

40 Plymouth Coupe (used, was in very good condition)

Ford Grand Torino (used)

Mercury Sable (new) (was one of the most reliable cars we ever owned)

Honda Odyssey (owned two of these, both bought new, never had a problem with either one, drove first one for 130,00 miles and second one had only 60,000 miles when I sold it before the FFH arrived)

Toyota Tacoma pickup (used, still have)

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid Se (new)

Edited April 3, 2013 by DeeCee

[GrySql]

First car - 1998 Chevy Lumina with almost 200,000 miles

And now...the 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

The FFH is sure collecting younger drivers, which is what Ford was hoping for with the styling.

Going with this Mondeo platform gives the car a much different styling statement that the other look-alike cars in the field.

I was not considering any hybrid when first looking for a replacement vehicle.

When I saw this car, I kept coming back and looking, then ordered one (10/12) without every seeing one in person, never drove one, fingers crossed.

Glad I did.

 

My first car - 1931 Ford Model A, Standard Coupe 2-door, 40HP 3.3L 4 cylinder, 3-speed stick, leather seating, wire wheels, flow-thru ventilation, gas cap fill in front of windshield - with a 50+ pound flywheel for popping out of the mud. (Paid $35, used)

A few other cars in between then and the present day.

And now, this '13 FFH.

I've noticed some changes as technology has advanced. ;)

[Da0ne]

2000 Mecury Villager (nissan engine) 150,000 when it r.i.p.

2007 toyota corolla (traded in 84,000 miles)

2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 (winter car)

2013 FFH (new)

 

next car would be a plug in if im not in nyc still and actually have a place to charge it

Edited April 2, 2013 by Da0ne

[hybridbear]

I had a Prius, not sure how to categorize that in your first question so put "other." I did not consider a gas only vehicle and wouldn't again unless I could get one like my '84 Honda Civic that got 45 MPG. They don't make 'em like they used to.

 

My next car will most likely be a plug-in hybrid and I imagine the prices on those will be coming down by the time I'm ready to buy. Didn't look at anything but the FFH with any seriousness-- priced out a few others online but nothing came close to the FFH in terms of value.

 

Hmmm good question on Prius...would it be considered an MPV like the C-Max is?

[hybridbear]

2000 Mecury Villager (nissan engine) 150,000 when it r.i.p.

2007 toyota corolla (traded in 84,000 miles)

2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 (winter car)

2013 FFH (new)

 

next car would be a plug in if im not in nyc still and actually have a place to charge it

 

Agree on the plug-in too. Based on your car history it looks like you might be among the younger drivers drawn to the FFH like GrySql mentions. I wonder if my wife and I are the youngest FFH drivers on this forum...she's 24 and I'll be 24 in a few weeks

Edited April 2, 2013 by hybridbear

[Da0ne]

Agree on the plug-in too. Based on your car history it looks like you might be among the younger drivers drawn to the FFH like GrySql mentions. I wonder if my wife and I are the youngest FFH drivers on this forum...she's 24 and I'll be 24 in a few weeks

 

im 31 and yes the style drew me towards them back in 2010 i was in the market for the TCH but read bad reviews and the prius well that was a boring car to me either way glad i waited

[B25Nut]

My last vehicle was a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica purchased in April 2003. I had an Eagle Talon before that.

I considered the Mazda CX-5, the VW CC, Kia Optima, Hyundai Veloster, Toyota Venza and Ford Escape. All the Acuras were too expensive. I put a $34K limit on my purchase and narrowed my choice to the Nissan Altima, Hyundai Santa Fe Sport and the Ford Fusion. All the alternatives were evaluated against the as yet to be released Fusion. On paper, the Fusion was the winner. As soon as the auto press released their test drive results, I ordered my FFH the day after seeing the first 1.6 SE at my dealer. The math made choosing the Hybrid worth the extra initial cost. Knowing that I made the right decision is a very good feeling. I've never told myself "you should have gotten.........".

[aaronj1159]

Agree on the plug-in too. Based on your car history it looks like you might be among the younger drivers drawn to the FFH like GrySql mentions. I wonder if my wife and I are the youngest FFH drivers on this forum...she's 24 and I'll be 24 in a few weeks

Not quite, I'm 22. Just started working full-time 8 or 9 months ago, but I had a nice little savings built up from summer jobs that allowed me to move for the car. I previously had a 2006 VW Jetta (learned on a VW Beetle), and I considered pretty much every car in the class when shopping. I weighed pros and cons for all the cars: gas, hybrids, diesels, you name it. In the end, with my commute and diesel prices, I chose what was fortunately the best looking car in the class. Also, having x-plan available to me gave it an extra little push.

[GrySql]

I've never told myself "you should have gotten.........".

A nice feeling to have. Yes, happy to say, I don't have buyer's remorse.

This hybrid has a lot to keep one's mind active.

 

Last Sunday I had a son-in-law's Mom get in the FFH, start it, use some of the gadgets like the rear camera, as I told about the active noise cancellation, etc.

Getting out she said "this car everything that I wish my car had, and better mpg's - darn it, and it's so big and beautiful".

Last year she'd bought a new Nissan eco-box car that gets 33mpg and according to her is uncomfortable and so noisy on the road she's starting to hate it.

[elle]

My last vehicle was a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica purchased in April 2003. I had an Eagle Talon before that.

I considered the Mazda CX-5, the VW CC, Kia Optima, Hyundai Veloster, Toyota Venza and Ford Escape. All the Acuras were too expensive. I put a $34K limit on my purchase and narrowed my choice to the Nissan Altima, Hyundai Santa Fe Sport and the Ford Fusion. All the alternatives were evaluated against the as yet to be released Fusion. On paper, the Fusion was the winner. As soon as the auto press released their test drive results, I ordered my FFH the day after seeing the first 1.6 SE at my dealer. The math made choosing the Hybrid worth the extra initial cost. Knowing that I made the right decision is a very good feeling. I've never told myself "you should have gotten.........".

 

Yes, I did a similar thing. Read every review that came out to make sure the decision was something I could be comfortable with. I don't regret the purchase though, in retrospect, the energi might have been my better bet. But I will have this one paid off in a few years and can then think about what I might want to do next :)

[corncobs]

I traded my '07 Chevy HHR (voted for MPV) for the FFH before that I was driving a 2000 VW Passat TDI and even before that I had 3 other cars that aren't known in the US.

I was ready to pull the trigger on a new US made Passat TDI but something held me back and after running into the new Fusion I knew what I was missing with the Passat. ... Exciting and stunning new looks.

[acdii]

If I list all the cars I have owned over the past 30some years, it would be 2 pages! :)

 

 

However, since 2003

 

2001 Crown Vic Sport(Rare)

1999 F350 Dually Diesel Crewcab LB

2007 Prius Base

2008 Hyundai Veracruz

2009 Camry Hybrid

2010 Fusion Sport

2010 Flex SEL EB

2010 Fusion Hybrid(currrent)

2012 F150 Screw EB

2013 Fusion Hybrid SE

(soon) 2013 Fusion HyTi

 

Out of all those, the 2 I regret getting rid of, the 2010 Sport, just burned too much gas and had this problem of causing my right foot to turn into a brick, and the other is the 2010 Flex Ecoboost. You never know how much something is actually worthy until its gone. My 2010 Fusion Hybrid though has been rock solid and getting even better now with nearly 40K on it., Finding it much easier to get high EPA on it. I think driving the 13 for a while helped me maximize driving the 10.

[hybridbear]

Not quite, I'm 22. Just started working full-time 8 or 9 months ago, but I had a nice little savings built up from summer jobs that allowed me to move for the car. I previously had a 2006 VW Jetta (learned on a VW Beetle), and I considered pretty much every car in the class when shopping. I weighed pros and cons for all the cars: gas, hybrids, diesels, you name it. In the end, with my commute and diesel prices, I chose what was fortunately the best looking car in the class. Also, having x-plan available to me gave it an extra little push.

Cool! Glad to see another millenial on here ;) Did you find that because of your youth you were disrespected at some dealers? First Toyota dealer I went to when shopping to consider the TCH was rather rude to me. I think they looked at someone who's young and thought that I wasn't really going to buy a car

 

My last vehicle was a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica purchased in April 2003. I had an Eagle Talon before that.

I considered the Mazda CX-5, the VW CC, Kia Optima, Hyundai Veloster, Toyota Venza and Ford Escape. All the Acuras were too expensive. I put a $34K limit on my purchase and narrowed my choice to the Nissan Altima, Hyundai Santa Fe Sport and the Ford Fusion. All the alternatives were evaluated against the as yet to be released Fusion. On paper, the Fusion was the winner. As soon as the auto press released their test drive results, I ordered my FFH the day after seeing the first 1.6 SE at my dealer. The math made choosing the Hybrid worth the extra initial cost. Knowing that I made the right decision is a very good feeling. I've never told myself "you should have gotten.........".

I also carefully read all the reviews I could find online. It seemed that every few days I was googling it to find more information...

 

The math definitely shows the value of the hybrid for us too. It's so strange to me when I ride in someone else's car or have a rental while ours is in the shop to not have silence at stops and smooth electric acceleration.

 

Likewise, no buyer's remorse...as long as there aren't major problems from buying the first year of this model I won't have any buyer's remorse

 

A nice feeling to have. Yes, happy to say, I don't have buyer's remorse.

This hybrid has a lot to keep one's mind active.

 

Last Sunday I had a son-in-law's Mom get in the FFH, start it, use some of the gadgets like the rear camera, as I told about the active noise cancellation, etc.

Getting out she said "this car everything that I wish my car had, and better mpg's - darn it, and it's so big and beautiful".

Last year she'd bought a new Nissan eco-box car that gets 33mpg and according to her is uncomfortable and so noisy on the road she's starting to hate it.

I think a lot of ppl feel that way about those cheap cars. They don't realize on a test drive just how miserable they can be long term.

 

Yes, I did a similar thing. Read every review that came out to make sure the decision was something I could be comfortable with. I don't regret the purchase though, in retrospect, the energi might have been my better bet. But I will have this one paid off in a few years and can then think about what I might want to do next :)

The C-Max Energi is priced much closer to the price of the regular C-Max. The Fusion Energi commands such a price premium that I don't know how it could be worth it. I don't think the C-Max Energi would be worth it either, except for the current tax credit.

[aaronj1159]

Cool! Glad to see another millenial on here ;) Did you find that because of your youth you were disrespected at some dealers? First Toyota dealer I went to when shopping to consider the TCH was rather rude to me. I think they looked at someone who's young and thought that I wasn't really going to buy a car

 

I also carefully read all the reviews I could find online. It seemed that every few days I was googling it to find more information...

Yeah, at some of the dealers, especially when I wasn't wearing my watch and class ring, the salesmen were almost reluctant to even come initiate talks! This even happened at the VW dealer I had my old car regularly serviced at (but had never purchased from). One of the Ford dealers in town didn't have a hybrid on the lot, but since they were a smaller dealer I thought I'd give them a try first. They told me they had one coming in soon I could test drive. This was in mid February, and I have yet to hear back. Too bad for them.

 

I then went to the HUGE dealer a few minutes away, and the experience was much different. I too spent hours upon hours reading and watching reviews, and when they saw how informed I was (I think I knew more about the FFH features than my salesman), and found out I had x-plan pricing, they knew I was a real customer and treated me right.

[acdii]

It's so strange to me when I ride in someone else's car or have a rental while ours is in the shop to not have silence at stops and smooth electric acceleration.

When I had the loaner for one day, it was a Focus, and we came to a stop light and I thought, why is the engine running? Then realized, uh, yeah, thats actually a good thing!

 

 

 

The C-Max Energi is priced much closer to the price of the regular C-Max. The Fusion Energi commands such a price premium that I don't know how it could be worth it. I don't think the C-Max Energi would be worth it either, except for the current tax credit.

If I liked the C-Max, the Energi would actually be practical for us in daily use. With the 20 mile range (provided that it gets it), we could go to town and back and not use gas, or we could drive on the highway in Hybrid mode, and glide through town to and from the offices, then switch back to Hybrid once we leave town. I briefly considered the Fusion NRG Ti, but the premium on it, even with the so called tax credit of $50( thats about what it actually amounts to in cash), it wouldnt be worth it, the returns in gas savings just isnt there. The Cmax though, Maybe.

[Fynack]

2001 Toyota 4runner

2004 Acura TSX

2005 Infiniti FX35

2006 Lincoln Navigator

2007 Audi Q7

2009 Nissan Maxima

2010 Infiniti FX35

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

2013 Lexus es300h

 

All met or were close to EPA estimates in rain sleet or snow except the Ford :(

[mokee]

Actually, the FFH is my wife's car. I primarily drove a Ford Screw short bed until wife re-tired. I drive the FFH now because she likes me to drive when we go out together, and the FFH gets sooooo much better mpg. Her pink flamingo antenna ball with the Mickey Mouse ears does garner some odd looks, but I prefer to think they're caused by the great looks of the FFH even tho it looks like a catfish..

Edited April 3, 2013 by mokee

[GrayStrider]

1974 Ford Maverick (purchased used, first car)

1980 Pontiac Phoenix (used)

1987 Pontiac Sunbird (used)

1993 Saturn SL2 (first new car)

1997 Chevy Silverado PU (new; hubby's truck)

2002 Saturn L300 (new; totaled while on vacation June 2005)

2005 Saturn VUE (new)

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid SE (new)

 

Still have the Chevy truck, the VUE, and of course, the '13 FFH.

[acdii]

At least you came away from the dark side to Ford! :) LOL

[hybridbear]

Yeah, at some of the dealers, especially when I wasn't wearing my watch and class ring, the salesmen were almost reluctant to even come initiate talks! This even happened at the VW dealer I had my old car regularly serviced at (but had never purchased from). One of the Ford dealers in town didn't have a hybrid on the lot, but since they were a smaller dealer I thought I'd give them a try first. They told me they had one coming in soon I could test drive. This was in mid February, and I have yet to hear back. Too bad for them.

 

I then went to the HUGE dealer a few minutes away, and the experience was much different. I too spent hours upon hours reading and watching reviews, and when they saw how informed I was (I think I knew more about the FFH features than my salesman), and found out I had x-plan pricing, they knew I was a real customer and treated me right.

Sad how that happens. With the dealer I ended up buying from I went in there after having communicated through e-mail with someone and I told them right up front that we're ready to buy, we have X-Plan and which dealer we buy from will depend on how we're treated and the offer on our trade-in. I think part of why we got screwed by the first Ford dealer who sold the other Fusion out from under us after we had put down a deposit is that they looked at me when I went in there and didn't think I would buy. They're a big chain of dealers around the Twin Cities and now I tell people not to go there because of their poor service.

 

If I liked the C-Max, the Energi would actually be practical for us in daily use. With the 20 mile range (provided that it gets it), we could go to town and back and not use gas, or we could drive on the highway in Hybrid mode, and glide through town to and from the offices, then switch back to Hybrid once we leave town. I briefly considered the Fusion NRG Ti, but the premium on it, even with the so called tax credit of $50( thats about what it actually amounts to in cash), it wouldnt be worth it, the returns in gas savings just isnt there. The Cmax though, Maybe.

I've been reading a lot on the C-Max Energi forum since my parents are considering an NRG and they're not very tech saavy and it seems like everyone on there is very satisfied. They've had a few software bugs, just like we've had bugs, but most of their comments about electric range are that they see 15-25 miles depending on speed, etc. People who are jumping right on the interstate are only seeing 15-20 mi EV range, in the city people are seeing 25+ mi EV range.

 

The tax credit is a credit, not a deduction. It is $3750 CASH from the IRS. I plugged it into TurboTax to test and make sure. It is not a deduction, it is a credit. Credits equal cash from the IRS. With the $3750 credit, the C-Max NRG is only about $700 more than the hybrid in base price.

 

Her pink flamingo antenna ball with the Mickey Mouse ears does garner some odd looks, but I prefer to think they're caused by the great looks of the FFH even tho it looks like a catfish..

Hahaha nice. I bet that does especially if you're driving the car without her with you

[acdii]

The tax credit is a credit, not a deduction. It is $3750 CASH from the IRS. I plugged it into TurboTax to test and make sure. It is not a deduction, it is a credit. Credits equal cash from the IRS. With the $3750 credit, the C-Max NRG is only about $700 more than the hybrid in base price.

That is also dependent on how much you made, and how much your refund is before the credit. If you are already getting back everything, then its not going to give you back more. It doesnt give you a refund of $3750 unless you paid out that much in taxes. It reduces your tax burden by that amount. So for some people, it's good, others, worthless. Not my first hybrid tax credit :) Got one with the Prius, and the TCH. I gained $50.

[tombarker13ffh]

That is also dependent on how much you made, and how much your refund is before the credit. If you are already getting back everything, then its not going to give you back more. It doesnt give you a refund of $3750 unless you paid out that much in taxes. It reduces your tax burden by that amount. So for some people, it's good, others, worthless. Not my first hybrid tax credit :) Got one with the Prius, and the TCH. I gained $50.

 

Maybe you've read up on this and I'm wrong, but i don't think so. You ought to get $3,750 in tax credit no matter what you owed or were getting back. If you had a refund of $500, you'd get a new refund of $4,250 for buying the plug-in hybrid. It's not just credit toward your owed taxes, it's real money. I got a first-time homebuyer tax 'credit' in 2010 and it added $5,600 to my already refund of $2,200. Thus I got $7,800 instead of $2,200. Take your current tax bill, whether the amount is positive or negative, and add $3,750 to it.

That would be a complete rip off if they only gave you credit against your owed taxes.

Edited April 4, 2013 by tombarker13ffh