rprobst

I noticed a hood alignment issue on a Fusion I saw on a dealer's lot, so I plan to check both the back and front hatches when mine gets here. Congratulations on getting yours. Looks like 2 months exactly from when you ordered.

My order has now reached the exalted status of "unscheduled - clean". I feel like I've just earned my yellow belt.

Yay!

There is so much good information on this forum! Thank you. The main problem I have is finding something later, when I finally realize I need it. I would never think to look in a thread called "1 week ... 3 problems" for an explanation of how big a data plan I will need if I use Spotify instead of Sirius. I know, I know, search is the answer. But I do wish the topics discussed in each thread were easy to discover.

Right, the brightest ones are above average

This dealer never mentioned allocation one way or the other. But from what akirby said, I assume it counts against their allocation. This dealer is quite large, so I hope they have a big one!

Thanks! It's good to get to this stage of the process. But it will be even better to drive it home. <pant> <pant>

Happy news! I have just ordered a Fusion Energi Titanium under the X-Plan. Fourth time was the charm; the 4th dealer I called was willing and once the GM said OK, it moved pretty quickly. It was definitely worth finding a dealer who would support X-Plan for this vehicle. About $2700 under MSRP. And that does not count the $1500 "First 3 payments on Ford" incentive, nor the $750 "Private cash" coupon. The sales rep said he would apply these discounts when the car came in, if they were still valid. I'd say "All's well that ends well" except it doesn't end here, now the waiting for production and delivery start. But it feels really good to have placed the order. Oh, BTW, the sales rep said he wouldn't be surprised if it took until April for the car to show up...

I just ordered today, and my VOC says JOB #2 ORDER

Model: Ingot Silver 2013 Fusion Energi Titanium (driver assist, adaptive cruise, navigation, moonroof) Date Ordered: 02/06/2013 Promised Delivery time: none, but sales rep said "maybe not until April" VIN Available: not yet Window Sticker Available: not yet Scheduled Build Week: TBD Scheduled Build Date: TBD Actual Build Date: TBD Released from Factory for Shipping: TBD Rail car ID available: TBD Estimated Delivery Date: Estimated Delivery Date: Actual Delivery Date: TBD State: CA

Dealer # F72036 Order # 4511 FUSN ENRGI TTNM (P0S) Ingot Silver Thank you for providing this service. You are much appreciated!

OK, I just read the explanation that chuckokie36 linked to, and it answered my question. In case anyone else was wondering, when they say "commodity" they mean some sort of material that is in short supply. Not zero supply, that would cause a material hold, but in short supply, so it affects scheduling. The linked explanation goes into glorious detail on the scheduling process. Thanks for re-posting, chuckokie!

Just realized that when I edit a previous post, it doesn't show up in View New Content, so I am bumping to bring this graphic to your attention.This is a visual way to compare the mileage and range of the 4 major PHEVs. Yes, Honda does look pretty good; from what I have read, this is due to the use of clutches to disengage the generator at hiway speed. Of course, that is the only way that the Honda looks pretty good. Too bad; if it weren't so ugly, I would seriously be considering it.

Yes, that's the only part of the miniature that is actual size.

Heh heh. Washington Times writes a misleading headline. Dog bites man. But the actual story makes sense. BEVs don't work, Hybrids and PHEVs do. I don't have "range anxiety", I have range sanity. Give me a PHEV any day.

What does that mean? In my industry, something is commoditized if it is not differentiated; any brand will do, since they're all the same. But it sounds like this is a different meaning for the word. Can someone please define it for me?

Yes, I liked it a lot. But the Clydesdale ad was a beer ad, not a car ad. My comment was only about the car ads.

If Lincoln offered an MKZ Energi, this would make me seriously consider spending the extra money to upgrade from a Fusion Energi.

I was pretty disappointed in the car ads this year. The CLA ad was the best, and the only one (IMO) worthy of comparison to great SuperBowl car ads for years past. All the rest looked either poorly conceived or poorly executed.

Plus total range, once battery and gas are both used up. And the window sticker and the car mags could print a simple graphic that shows these 4 numbers as an L-shape. This will simplify mileage and range comparisons between PHEVs. Here's what it should look like:

The saga continues... The first 3 Ford dealers I contacted are not selling the Fusion Energi under X-Plan. But I live in a metro region and there are 20 Ford dealers within 50 miles of my home, 16 of them EV-certified. One of them has to want to sell me an Energi under X-Plan. So I made a spreadsheet with all 20 dealers, with name, location, phone number, distance from my home, and columns to keep track of when I called, who I talked to, what they said, etc. Sorted the list on distance and started from the top. The first dealer I called -- the 4th on the list, after the first 3 who said no -- said yes. Well, not immediately. The telesales rep said she needed to check with her general manager (right answer). Took 3 days of back-and-forth to get his answer. But she said he said they will honor X-Plan for Energi. So I drove down today and met with a "sales consultant". He took all my info, then said that the sales representative who does X-Plan orders for them will be in on Monday, and will call me then. (What's the difference between a sales consultant and a sales representative?) So I am not counting my chickens yet, but I'm feeling good. After my experience with that first dealer, who said yes, took a deposit, then said the GM didn't approve (and they still haven't returned the deposit), I won't consider this a done-deal until I have the signed order confirmation in hand. But maybe I didn't need that spreadsheet of 20 dealers... BTW, while looking for my X-Plan dealer, I started to negotiate with the 3 who said no. Two of them said MSRP was their lowest price, while 1 offered $600 off MSRP. So X-Plan will be a considerable discount. Finally, what a difference in tone between that first dealer and the folks I visited today. The people I am now working with seem so much more professional. I didn't realize there could be such a wide range in quality in dealerships.

What I am hoping is that they have worked through all the non-drivetrain issues (panel alignment, headlights, etc) on the gas-powered Fusions, and most of the hybrid issues as well, so all they need to get right at this point is the new larger battery unit and the revised software. If I were really risk-averse, I would wait a year before jumping into a Fusion Energi. But I have waited several years already for a plug-in, keeping my previous car longer than I planned to, and I don't want to wait until 2014. C'mon, Ford, go for great quality in year-1!

Probably a good idea to wait until you can get a miniature in Ruby Red. As I said, I didn't want the Ingot Silver until I got a miniature in that color. These miniatures have a mysterious power...

The way I look at this, better that they hold the cars a little longer and get the issues flattened. It's months before you get it, but years after that that you have it. Be patient until the kinks are worked out.

Have you posted pictures of your car? I'd like to see it. I am definitely now leaning towards silver. I liked the Ice Storm color when I saw it at the SF auto show, but my wife made a good comment -- she said that this color will look dated in a few years -- "remember when people were getting blue-green cars?". But silver is a timeless color, always in fashion.