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Just to save anyone the step of looking up the phaseout schedule: Up to 100% of full credit: purchased before April 1, 2009 Up to 50% of full credit: purchased between April 1, 2009 and Sep 30, 2009 Up to 25% of full credit: purchased after Sep 30, 2009 and before Jan 1, 2010: Up to 25% of full credit 0% of full credit: purchased after Jan 1 2010: To anyone reading, keep in mind 3 things: 1. You might be subject to AMT, in which case your credit could be anywhere between $0.00 and the full amount. If you have a lot of deductions already, you might not be able to use much of the credit ... because we all owe some minimum tax amount. 2. The phaseout schedule is for ALL vehicles produced by Ford (Escape and now Fusion). So even though Fusion hybrids have a very high credit, that's only available if you purchase in ... well ... the next few weeks. The phaseout dates are based on make sales of hybrids (how many hybrids has Ford sold) and are not based on the model sales of particular hybrid. 3. The full credit amount differs between year, model, and options (2WD or 4WD). I hope this helps people because I racked my brain trying to find out where Ford stood with sales #'s in the fall to see if I could qualify for the full credit. Now its clear!

This is confusing ... there are so many variations of drivetrains out there now ... From what I heard from salesmen, the system is, in fact, a lot more of an AWD system than a 4WD system. Basically its FWD until the system determines the rear wheels need some torque, and then I think about 40% of the engines torque can be transferred ... Perhaps there is some limited-slip differential system that causes it to behave more like a 4WD system when conditions merit it ... AWD systems drive all four wheels at once I think. I know there is a 'low' on the floor shifter in my FEH, but I think that its a bit of a misnomer. I don't believe there's actually a transfer case allowing the low setting, but rather that the generator for the hybrid system is used as a type of 'engine braking' way to accomplish the 'low' gear. I vaguely remember reading that in the manual. I know that 4WD in my Jeep is WAY different than this. True 4WD ends up skipping tires all over the pavement around turns if you were to leave it on on the road (in exchange for the rock-crawling capability).

Hey - Nope, no '4WD' or anything anywhere. I noticed ours has the spffiy 'Hybrid' logo where the '4WD' emblem would be on a gas model ... on the tailgate. But that's normal ... I haven't even thought about it ... I guess we're to look under the truck for a driveshaft, differential, and transfer case ... We do have a 'traction' button on the center console ... close to the USB jack ... but I'm not sure if the FWD have it too ... they might. I think that makes the front wheels a 'limited slip' differential when needed, so it likely is there on the FWD ... I don't know, Ins ... let me know if you find anything anywhere ... but that's all I got ...

Yup, big pile of CRAP, for sure. I take solice in the fact that my salesman, who was trying to retain my business by lying, actually lost the sale by lying ... and also wasted a bunch of his time and effort. If that's how they want to play the game, bring it on, ya know?! You aren't the only salesman I can work with, bud.

Ok, FEH experience so far. It's longwinded, but hopefully outlined well enough so anyone looking into the FEH can jump to areas of concern easily. General overview - I'm extremely happy with the purchase. There's no car on the market in my opinion that has such a winning combination of looks and styling, utility, 4WD capability, safety, gas mileage, technology, and general public appeal. All aspects of the FEH should do me well for many many years to come. Some more detailed points: 1) Gas Mileage - I got about 32mpg highway (roughly 70mph avg) on the drive home. In my few days of driving in the stop-and-go traffic of the south hills of Pittsburgh and in my commute into the city, I've been getting about 30mpg. That's even better than the estimated average mpg ratings. 2) A/C Effects - It was pretty hot and humid over the weekend, so the A/C was on. The truck rarely goes into EV mode with the A/C on. In fact, the ECON mode button must be on in order for the truck to ever go into EV mode while the A/C is on. That's in the owner's manual. And that effects the mileage to some degree (1 or 2 mpg city). Not a problem or issue at all, just stating a fact. 3) Dual Zone Climate Control - I love it. So does the girlfriend. Big plus for us. Fan speed automatically adjusts, which is awesome. (Sorry if this is normal for most people and not too amazing to you, but I'm coming from a Jeep Wrangler, so its a big jump ... I mean, just power windows and locks are amazing to me). 4) Center Console - Great design. The bins inside of the console come out and can be attached in the back or by the floor shifted on the passanger's side. Great for holding your car charge, cell phone, wallet, gum, coins, etc in some easy to access place that doesn't need to be out all of the time. This is a very simple thing, but one of the things that I like the most. 5) 40mph EV Mode - I'm soooo glad I don't have an '08 where the limit was 25mph I think. How often are you really ever under 25mph? (C'mon, fess up). I can drive to work in EV mode about 30% of the time. Aside from acceleration and hills, it's in EV. I wish I could accelerate a bit more w/o the engine kicking in ... but it'll work ... once you get upto speed, the engine will shut off. 6) Speakers - this is one of the two negatives I have to say. The front speakers are below knee-level, making everything sound a little muffled. I wish there was at least some mid-range or tweeters up near the dash. 7) Moonroof / Glare - the second negative I have to say is about the glare from the clear plastic sheilding the speedometer / tachometer / etc from the moonroof. The plastic needs to be tilted up or down about 10 degrees b/c with the shade open for the moonroof, the glare is in my eyes and blocks the speedometer. This might not be a problem for people shorter than 6'1" though or that have the seat up further. All in all though, I love the moonroof. Just can't stare at the MPG readings ... which is probably a good thing safety wise. 8) Ambient Lighting - P.I.M.P. And not totally useless ... it's nice to have that little bit of low light around at night if you're trying to look a directions or need to find something on the floor. It lights up the floor for all passangers and the cupholders in the front. There's something like 7 colors. 9) Brakes - I have no prob with the feel of the brakes. My Jeeps brakes are a lot stiffer, so this will take some getting used to, but they don't feel 'bad'. I can feel a bit of difference between when the generator is causing the loss of momentum and when its mostly the physical brakes. 10) Sync - I haven't done much with it other than make a couple calls, but my girlfriend says it sounds like I'm talking right into my phone, she doesn't hear her own voice over the speakers and through the microphone (which is cool ... even as an electrical engineer, I'm not sure how they accomplish full duplex conversation and keep the other person's voice from feeding back). My Motorola Q doesn't work with Sync totally, but good enough for now, until I get a new, more compatible, phone. I haven't used any media players with it yet though. I'm anxious to check out that USB port! 11) 110V Outlet - I haven't used it yet, but I think it'll be great for a cell charger (instead of having the often awkard and bulky cigarette lighter charger ... the often must be bought separately) and great to have a laptop in the car for a trip. 12) Maintence - This is great - basically, oil change and minimal maintence every 10,000 miles. My Jeep - every 3,000. And often crazy stuff like differential flushes. Not only should I save in gas, but I should also save in routine maintence. Even brakes should see less wear since most of the braking is done through the regenerative system. I'm a little bummed about not having the navigation, so I think for Christmas I'll get a garmin or tomtom or something. Last thing - and this is pretty dorky, but I'm gonna throw it out there - I love the feeling of not throwing energy (and money) to the wind when the car is stopped but running - I love the idea that a lot of that potential energy gained from climbing a hill will, in part be regained when I brake down the other side, especially if I have to come to a complete stop at the bottom of the hill - and I love that the Atkinson Cycle engine is more of a rotatary type than the Otto Cycle, and much more effecient. I'm not a big tree hugger or anything, but I like effeciency. Why throw all of our money into oil of which we burn 50% of in the city idling or everytime we climb a hill, and then brake all of the way down? Instead of throwing money into gas, I'm putting it into a more expensive hybrid, but it'll have a higher resale value than a gas Escape down the road for the simple fact that it'll always get better mileage. My 2 cents ... or more like a $1 worth ... pretty long.

This past weekend I picked up the #2 FEH option listed in one of my earlier posts. I thought I'd give my 2 cents on the experience over the past few days. First of all, you all need to hear the story of how I ended up with this vehicle. After getting word from my salesman that the FEH I ordered 'is supposed to be built come November or December', but that he didn't have anything in writing, no guarantee, and still no VIN, I decided it was time to start working other options since the FEH tax credit will likely be halved come January. My salesman said if I found something else, I could let him know, and they could work out an exchange or something with whatever dealer had it. I took him up on that offer and I told him about Option 2 above ... a 4WD FEH w/o Nav about 3 hours away. I gave him the all of the info and he said him and the sales manager would give the place a call. So I get a call back from him later in the day that 'that car was sold yesterday and driven off the lot last night.' I just didn't believe him, so I called the other dealer ... and sure enough ... Option 2 was still there ... unsold. So I worked out a sale over the phone, got my financing together through my credit union, put a deposit down with my credit card, and picked up the car on Saturday. Yesterday I called my dealer and canceled my order and picked up a check refunding my deposit. I just told my dealer I couldn't give a reason, it was personal, to avoid any confrontation and any problem getting my deposit back. I'm sure he'd of come up with some song and dance or excuse covering up his lie about the other vehicle not being available. Crazy. I can't (... but yet can) believe that my salesman flat out lied about the other car! Or the other dealership lied, but I don't see the advantage to them if they did. They could just say no to any trade. Now, just to sell my Wrangler ... That's long, so I'll start another post about the FEH experience so far.

VP - that's awesome! Thanks for getting that info and the sticker!

Hi, This is a truck that I purchased off a lot that I'm picking up this weekend a state away, and I just wanted to see if it were possible to get the window sticker for it and the production info. 1FMCU59309KA04008 Thanks! I highly appreciate it!

Yeah, the thought of flying somewhere, airfare $$, possibly having to arrange overnight accomodations if the drive is too long back, cab fare from the airport to whatever dealership, etc just isn't my speed. I wanted to keep it within a few hour drive to be able to do the whole thing in a day. It didn't even cross my mind that a dealership would ship a car cross country. If they did, I would think that would cost a little something extra too. (you can hear the grinding of my penny pinching from here, huh?) But I actually decided today to go with option number #2 above today. It doesn't have the Nav and is 4WD instead of 2WD, but it is a Limited and the right color. That'll do - 4WD is prob best for resale up here in often snowy PA. And the Nav thing is extremely cool, but not a 'must.' I'll get a garmin or tomtom if I need one. So, no more games w/ the dealer, no more wondering. The the price was actually $500 less than the sticker (which doesn't have the $1000 mandatory markup that happened Aug 1st). I put money down on it to hold it for Saturday, and they say they'll have it all shined up and ready to roll! Your response the other day pushed me a really think about this option a bit more. And here I am ... picking up my truck on Saturday. Awwww yeaaaahhh. Just got to get my deposit from Dealer A back. For anyone else reading, awaiting a VIN, take it from 2 of us ... look around. The way things are looking with the whole Hybrid situation is that if you don't have a VIN yet, and you're not living in Cali, you won't see your car anytime soon ... probably looking into the early months of '09.

I decided to give this a try and called the 3 places within 150 miles of south western PA that say they have 09 hybrids on the lot ... - Dealership #1 ... base 4x4 (not the limited) ... $31,000 sticker ... asking $33,000 (not worth the drive and $$ benefit of getting it now ... plus no nav and I'm looking for FWD) - Dealership #2 ... 4x4 Limited, no nav ... $32,580 (actually a good deal ... but looking for FWD w/ Nav ... I might do w/o though) - Dealership #3 ... web said 2 '09s ... they actually have none (but 2 '08s w/ 30k miles asking $30,000) One guy said no dealerships can get them for the rest of the year. My 'agreed upon' price, for which I put my down deposit, was $33,725 for the FWD Limited w/ Navigation. That's certainly a good deal considering the markups out there, and I'm truly getting what I want. So, might just be worth waiting and taking the lower tax incentive ... ... assuming, of course, that my dealership can actually get the car they cashed my deposit for 3 months ago when the order was never actually made ... Yoi, and double yoi ... Oh well ... Worst case is this all falls through and I deal with my car for another year until the 2010's come out and scope out the scene then. It's a model worth waiting for ... 5 star crash ratings, SUV w great gas mileage, good looks, hi-tech ... Maybe the price will stabilize too when there's more makes and models out there. Right now, it's akin to trying to get a Wii or PS3 the past couple years at Christmas, or getting an iPhone when it first came out.

I feel your pain, buddy. Same exact situation .. . June order and everything. My sales guy has been 'waiting for a call from the ford sales rep' for about a week now... a call just to see if I might get it in the schedule this month. (I was under the impression that when they cashed my deposit check the order had been submitted to the sales rep, but apparently not). I didn't care too much about the delays (so long as I could get it this year), but with Californians ordering one week, a week later having a VIN, and a month later they're cruising around in their new wheels, I can't help but feel cheated and frustrated. We've all heard a lot of discussion already about all of this, and I understand wanting to reward your high volume and well-performing dealers and markets with automobiles you know they'll sell, but that only makes sense to me as far as Stock orders from dealers are concerned. Why do many of us have to PUSH to get it in 6 months while Californians, and a few other locales, get theirs as quick as if it were any other car? I mean ... I bought the car ... its not like there's a lack of demand for it ... I put a desposit down ... its sold! Can I please have it in a timely fashion ... I'll even take 3 months, or 4 months! There are about a dozen gas models on the lot at my dealership ... I mean, they're already shipping stuff up here. Why not build my FEH while you're at it, and put it on the train with the gas 09's? Think about it - if you can't get it before December, the tax credit goes down to $1500 in January from $3000. It's already going to take 5 years to pay off (@ 12k mi a year and $3.50 gas) the difference compared to the gas model with the same trim as it is. That difference of $1500 is another year in gas. And now there's a few posts about the 09 Nav system being pretty buggy, and some having heat issues. I ordered that too, and it's a pricey option ... too pricey to not work ... again making me think about the $$$ vs Benefit. The 'Value' of the purchase isn't looking as good come January. I'd love to know how many people are experiencing the same situation ... waiting for a VIN and feeling left out in the cold ... those of us whose trucks aren't 'Arriving Soon'

Up to 30 weeks, huh? When I ordered mine back on June 23rd, I was told 6-12 months at that point. If 30 weeks is the 'true' upper time limit, that's actually a good thing from where I'm standing! Bump that 12 months back to about 7 months! :happy feet: (Kinda wish I would have checked out this forum before ordering ... might have done some looking around at different area dealerships to check for best lead time. The fact that different area dealerships would have different lead times on trucks ordered at the same time would have NEVER cross my mind otherwise).

Wow ... I had been kicking myself in the butt for putting a deposit down on my FEHL (reason being that the lead time at my dealership is now apparently a RIDICULOUS 6-12 months and had I not put a deposit down, I could have possible found a dealer with more allocations to get my wheels sooner). Anyways ... now I'm glad I have that bill of sale! Had I put in an order and just waited to haggle price when it finally arrived, I'd be starting $1k higher off the bat.