'Ford Gains Ground With Fusion'

[Panthera Pardus Nigresco]

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1895529,00.html

[Cameljockey]

I'm 51 years old and have been driving (legally) for 35 years. I have owned a total of 3 GM products and never a piece of Jap crap. I'm a Ford driver through and through. Like my wife's uncle used to say, "A Chevy will carry you but most likely leave you, a Ford will carry you and bring you home. I've been driving the same 5.0 Mustang for 11 years and it has over 300,000 miles on it, and it still runs like a scalded dog (when I want it to) and still gets 18mg in town and 22-24 on the highway. It wouldn't bother me a bit (with the exception of the Corvette and Challenger) if GM and Chrysler both went the way of the dinosaur.

CJ

[Odie]

Well, sir, I've owned a 1973 Ford Torino with a 351 COBRA engine...kept it for 15 years and traded it in with 124,000 miles on it. Engine and drive train were sound as a silver dollar, but everything else was wearing out !

Sold a 1976 Chevy pickup that had 107,000 miles on it that I put there.

My son is driving a 1993 K5 Chevy Blazer that I bought new off of the lot and it has 97,000 miles on it and my current vehicle is a 2003 Chevy Silverado pickup with 57,000 miles on it, bought new off of the lot.

My wife is driving a 2001 PT Cruiser with 65,000 miles on it, again, bought new off of the lot.

So, Chevy, Ford, or Chrysler, I've had good luck with all three.

We tend to keep vehicles an average of 15 years....so we treat'em right and they last for us. Otherwise, it's too dang expensive ! :D

[Cameljockey]

If they can't produce the product that people want and trust, they go down. Also Odie, I don't see any of your vehicles with as many miles as my 'Stang!

[Foggy]

Most of the new cars I've owned over the years were Chrysler products. I've owned a lessor number of new Ford products and two American motors products. And since I'm a stickler for maintenance I've never had any problems with any of them.

Must admit owning three small Jap trucks. Isuzu, Toyota and Nissan, and all three have perfect drive trains but the body sheet metal tends to rust quick on any of these trucks if built before the late 1990's.

Living my whole civilian life in a GM town - I've never owned a GM car - just personal choice.

When I went shopping for a new car, the GM and Chrysler financial bailout precluded looking at those models. So I searched the internet for customer satisfaction sites on the mid-size Ford Fusion mainly because I liked it visually and Ford wouldn't take any government money. The customer surveys were so high on this model I went ahead and researched the V-6 power train. The 3.0 liter Fusion Duratec V-6 is engineered by Mazda but manufactured here in a U.S. Ford engine plant. It is a double overhead cam (chain driven), four valves per cylinder hemi head configuration with all aluminum alloy block and heads. Multi-point fuel injection 220hp at 6200 rpm. This is mated to a six speed auto transmission.

Ford does not make these in flex-fuel configuration - they seem not enamored with ethanol.

When I went to a Ford dealer for a test drive - I was hooked. Solid and quiet in operation with electronic traction and stability control - and it can accelerate and handle like a scalded cheeta.

Most all my buddies are hardcore GM - I give them rides and they become believers. One even went so far to trade in his full size older Chevy truck for a new Ford F-150 truck - the first time he ever allowed a Ford product in his driveway.

I still don't want GM and Chrysler to die. It would give me a troubled heart. And only time will tell.

[CybrSlydr]

I think the Mercury Sable I drive has an engine in the same family as the one in the Fusion - it's a 3.0L DOHC 220hp V6 Duratec 24v.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1342/3172230810_66b07e4473.jpg

It also runs very quiet, very nice ride and will get and go when you put the pedal down.

It's a '96 and has been with our family for about... 10 years. I think we got in in 99 or around there. Only maintenence it's needed was to replace a gas tank that got a hole when my mom ran over some FOD on the road and replace the tranny after my brother decided it'd be fun to run it backwards and then slam it in drive and floor it to try and squeal the tires... Kids. :rolleyes: :D

[Snuffy]

Based on the photographic evidence provided, its apparent that FORD doesn't know how to install an engine properly!

The flywheel assmebly should always go to the rear of the car ... :D

My ex owned Fords, they were her choice not mine. When they went bad she couldn't do the nagg thing and blame me for her problems. :D

Myself, I own GMC.

[Willy]

I've owned Fords, hope to never repeat the mistake. I've never had much luck with them over the long haul. Or Chrysler products either.

I do love my GMC pickups though.

[Toastmaker]

I have a good friend who owns a 2002 Ford Fusion. He LOVES it, and he's a rocket scientist (retired NASA/ORBITAL engineer).


;)

[Foggy]

I think the Mercury Sable I drive has an engine in the same family as the one in the Fusion - it's a 3.0L DOHC 220hp V6 Duratec 24v.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1342/3172230810_66b07e4473.jpg

It also runs very quiet, very nice ride and will get and go when you put the pedal down.

It's a '96 and has been with our family for about... 10 years. I think we got in in 99 or around there. Only maintenence it's needed was to replace a gas tank that got a hole when my mom ran over some FOD on the road and replace the tranny after my brother decided it'd be fun to run it backwards and then slam it in drive and floor it to try and squeal the tires... Kids. :rolleyes: :D

My 2009 Fusion 3.0 liter intake manifold is made of carbon fiber composite. The short block is aluminum alloy - don't know if the early series is cast iron. And it has variable valve timing - the cam timing is advanced at lower rpm and retarded at higher rpm - for fuel economy. My onboard computer is indicating an average of 24 mpg city and highway with my driving - which is heavy foot...

[Foggy]

Here's a better angle than Cyber's shot.

Being an old Mopar man going back to the Chrysler 426 race hemi and the 440 and 426 B blocks - this Ford engine has my respect.

GM always lagged behind in latest technology for their engines to save on production costs starting in the 80's. They figured the average customer wouldn't care as long as it was a GM - they were king of the mountain.

I had an American Motors Spirit for a beater commuter car in the early 80's. Bought it new cheap and it had the Chevy "Iron Duke" 4 cylinder push rod engine. Everybody said the Iron Duke was simple and bullet proof...

The wrist pins started knocking at 45,000 miles. This engine had the oil and filter changed every 3000 miles. Seems as though to save on production costs GM eliminated drilling 4 oil spurt holes down at the connecting rod big ends. What costs did those not drilled holes save on GM's bottom line?

A year after I unloaded this car (I wasn't paying for an engine rebuild) I found out there was a class action suit filed (and eventually won in consumer favor) about this very Iron Duke engine - the early Chevy S-10 pickups were loaded with this boat anchor.

[Snuffy]

Speaking of cutting production costs and corners ...

I had a 1973 Chevy Malibu ... (living in NY State at the time) and it was getting on near winter and so I decided one day to flush and refill the antifreeze ..

I looked for 35 minutes for a drain cock on the radiator shell and couldn't find one. Finally in desperation I drug out the owners manual and for changing out the antifreeze, the instruction maual said to "elevate the opposite rear corner of the car from the neck opening and insert a hose and siphon the old antifreeze out."

Now just incase you didn't know ... antifreeze could hurt you if you swallow too much of it.

I got to thinking, how much did GM save by eliminating that drain cock, vs how much more they raised the cost of the automobile new that year?

Needless to say, I got mad, took a screwdriver to the clamp ring screw on the bottom hose and yanked the damned thing off and let the car piss on the ground.

:killersmiley:

[CybrSlydr]

Speaking of cutting production costs and corners ...

I had a 1973 Chevy Malibu ... (living in NY State at the time) and it was getting on near winter and so I decided one day to flush and refill the antifreeze ..

I looked for 35 minutes for a drain cock on the radiator shell and couldn't find one. Finally in desperation I drug out the owners manual and for changing out the antifreeze, the instruction maual said to "elevate the opposite rear corner of the car from the neck opening and insert a hose and siphon the old antifreeze out."

Now just incase you didn't know ... antifreeze could hurt you if you swallow too much of it.

I got to thinking, how much did GM save by eliminating that drain cock, vs how much more they raised the cost of the automobile new that year?

Needless to say, I got mad, took a screwdriver to the clamp ring screw on the bottom hose and yanked the damned thing off and let the car piss on the ground.

:killersmiley:

:biglol::biglol::biglol: