Ford turning profit .. did they cut too many corners?

[SVT_MAN]

First of all, please understand my disclaimer: I am posting this because I want your input on where you feel Ford really is on their quality march. I am a Ford owner and I want Ford to succeed. I realize my vehicle and experiences may not be typical, but I can prove that at least SOME of what I am experiencing IS typical.

 

On the whole, I'm encouraged by the progress that Ford has made in quality over the past 5 or 6 years (at least outside sources claim they have). But my car is making me wonder about how horrendous their quality was prior to their quality march. I kind of worry how they earned a reputation for quality. Some of their praise seems a bit undeserved after the experiences I've had with a Ford that was built under Ford's "new" quality standards.

 

You see, I drive a 2006 Ford Fusion SEL. I'm worried because - despite the great reviews and predicted reliability the Fusion has - the Fusion, for me at least, has not been a particularly reliable, cheap, or safe vehicle for me so far.

 

Okay - so it's never broken down or stranded me anywhere. Most of my problems have been nuisances rather than things that strand me. But some of them are safety issues -I'll touch on that later. I'm kind of conflicted on this car.

 

Do I like driving it? Most of the time I really enjoy piloting it. Do I love the car? Eh. Not sure. It's a love hate relationship if I'm honest. The Fusion is a great car in many ways, but it has some serious shortcomings in some very important areas. Let me explain.

The Good:

It handles well, it rides decently (my car has the low profile tires, so it isn't great though), and it has decent power. I like the styling and it has a comfortable and useful interior. That said, Ford SERIOUSLY dropped the ball in some areas too. See below.

 

The Bad:

 

Ford's emphasis on safety is a bit peculiar on this car. Some of it is good. For instance, they give the car tons of air bags. That is good indeed.

 

So, what's the problem? The problem is that air bags are only used if I can't PREVENT an accident from happening. I like my cars to give me all the tools possible to AVOID a crash. I'd much rather avoid a crash than have to use those 100000 airbags. The problem is that in crash avoidance, aside from decent handling, Ford misses the mark BADLY. How, you ask?

 

Let's start with the brakes ...

 

This car features THE WORST brakes I've come across in a while. GIVE ME A "BRAKE" FORD! These brakes are an absolute joke. At just 21,000 miles, they were already shaking and kicking back the caliper nastily. Ford told me this is "normal." Really? AT 21,000 miles?

 

Add to that the fact that my car (despite being an SEL model) does not have ABS, and the whole story is quite embarrassing when you come right down to it. Every review I've read, even on the new 2010 + models, has complained about poor stopping power and lousy brakes. It isn't anything but the truth! The Fusion V6 took 203 ft to stop from 70 mph! That is PATHETIC. Ford needs to get their act together when it comes to brakes. I know they can do a decent job - just look at the Ford Mustang's braking power (courtesy of Brembo, yes) ... heck, even my 99 Mustang GT had / has great brakes.

 

That Ford would skimp on brakes on a FAMILY-ORIENTED CAR (where safety should be paramount) is disappointing to say the least.

 

But even the brakes aren't what worries me the most about the Fusion.

 

The next bit of cost cutting honestly bothers me even more. You see, the Fusion is somewhat of a death trap if you do get into an accident .. you see, my car lost its door functionality to the passenger door. Here's what happened:

 

I'm building a house right now, so I wanted to get some supplies to do some wiring in my house. I pull into Menard's parking lot with my father in the passenger seat. My dad gets ready to get out of the car, pulls on the handle. He looks at me funny and says "What am I doing wrong?" I said, "You just pull the handle towards you, it's not rocket science."

 

Well, as it turns out, my dad wasn't doing anything wrong; THE LATCH MECHANISM WAS BROKEN. AT 38,000 MILES! NO WARNING. NO ABUSE. NO KIDDING.

 

Does anybody else find this positively pathetic? But it gets worse. Not only could we not open the door from the inside, but WE COULD NOT OPEN IT FROM THE OUTSIDE EITHER! How is this NOT a safety issue? How is there NOT a TSB or recall on this issue?

 

To add insult to injury, this is the 3RD DOOR HANDLE ASSEMBLY on my car that has either broken or stopped working. The first two were repaired under warranty. This one happened outside of warranty. I'm just waiting for the next door to break.

 

Now I'm zinged $400 for this stupid issue from a car that is dubbed "best in class quality." Forgive me, but I think that a car that is top tier quality should feature door handles and latching mechanisms that last longer than 40,000 miles.

 

The UGLY?

 

I'm not alone with my door handle problems ..

 

Run a Google search: "2006 ford fusion door handle repair"

 

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=2006+ford+fusion+door+handle+repair&aq=9m&aqi=g8g-m2&aql=&oq=Ford+Fusion+door&gs_rfai=C-H2Z4wxJTKiUO4_KMsewiMYCAAAAqgQFT9DVezE&fp=a85214c6b676fae7

 

Only 571,000 results.

 

The CONCLUSION

 

I'm sort of torn on this car. On one hand, I love it. It's a great vehicle overall. On the other hand, it's had some really pathetic, disappointing problems. It also has some transmission behaviors which make me worry about the tranny longevity too. Should I really have to worry about a car this new? Honestly?

 

The Fusion could be a great car. It has most of the right ingredients. That Ford would skimp on basics like braking ability and door handles is stunning to me. If I wasn't a Ford enthusiast, I honestly think I would have jumped ship by now. I've had some really annoying and frustrating problems with this car. Some of you might remember the annoying buzzing noise that was emitted from a fuel line that rattled because Ford didn't bother installing cold-weather insulation. That was fixed but the memories aren't. I'll always remember being quite peaved, annoyed, and embarassed whenever the engine loafed because it sounded like my car was a piece of junk. (Funny looking back at it now - maybe it was telling the truth all along.)

 

For me at least, Ford needs to get these basics right if they even want to THINK about competing. I personally feel like Ford can still improve their quality more and needs to. Right now, it seems like they are riding a wave of good vibes from a media sympathetic to the company because they did not take bail out money. For Ford to be profitable sustainably, they're going to have to do more on the quality side. I'm not saying they aren't making improvements, but frankly, these issues my vehicle has had are embarrassing - and if they are typical, I can't see Ford continuing to succeed.

 

Chime in. Let me know your thoughts, experiences, etc. I'm not trying to start a flame war .. I bleed blue. I want Ford to succeed. Frankly, it's a bit embarasing when your friend's Chevy Impala (which I thought were crummy) has never been to the shop and your Ford Fusion (top quality, right?) has been there a bunch of times ...

Edited July 23, 2010 by SVT_MAN

[TomServo92]

We leased a 2007 Fusion and now that the lease is up, we're taking the purchase option because it's been such a damn good car.

[suv_guy_19]

The 2006 Fusion wasn't really the start of the good ford though. That really started with the Flex...Ford gets better and better going forward.

[SVT_MAN]

The 2006 Fusion wasn't really the start of the good ford though. That really started with the Flex...Ford gets better and better going forward.

 

How about Ford's continuing poor performance with the 2010 Fusion's brakes? I know the Edge has had complaints of lousy brakes too. I just don't understand how Ford can be touted as high quality when they cannot get a basic component like brakes working at the world class level their engines are at.

 

And I understand that the 2006 Fusion isn't as good as the Flex - but the Fusion was Ford's first fully computerized design. It was a big leap forward for them by most accounts. I'm just trying to figure out if my car is victim to first model year bugs or if Ford still isn't as good as they should be. I know that the door handle issues are a problem on the 2007, 2008, and 2009 models as well. So basically, it's a flawed design made worse with cheap parts ...

 

And, I'm sorry .. but Ford's brakes have been bad for a long time. I'm not sure how much longer they can suck without Ford addressing them. I know they've said that they want to address the SHO's problems with brakes as well .. but talk is cheap. Let's see some action.

Edited July 23, 2010 by SVT_MAN

[SVT_MAN]

We leased a 2007 Fusion and now that the lease is up, we're taking the purchase option because it's been such a damn good car.

 

I'm glad you've had a better experience than me. Have you had any TSBs performed? Maybe I just expect too much out of a vehicle.

Edited July 23, 2010 by SVT_MAN

[TomServo92]

I'm glad you've had a better experience than me. Have you had any TSBs performed? Maybe I just expect too much out of a vehicle.

 

No TSBs. It hasn't been back to the dealer since I drove it off the lot. Just routine maintenance.

[LarryQW]

You look to be complaining about just two things, the door handle and weak brakes.

 

Most of the Google results past the first page were not relevant combinations of the words. Still it indeed appears in general that the door handles on the 2006 Fusion are lacking. It must be frustrating it must be to have all those annoying failures. Ford and/or your dealer should be doing something for you.

 

Brakes are frequently Ford's weak spot as a company. My Taurus X was near the bottom of the list on Consumer Reports and other ratings on brakes for similar vehicles. OTOH, the difference between the top and bottom is only a few percent. In practice, I've never felt unsafe braking in the car with my family, even when heavily (over) loaded with people, camping gear, cargo boxes and four big bikes on the hitch.

 

From your comments, I tend to agree these are areas that Ford needs to give some attention. But overall, if this is all you've got, it's not horrible. Nevertheless, I'd probably be flaming too at all the aggravating door handle failures.

 

So far my 2008 Taurus X has been working well without flaws for 3 years now. I'm extremely happy with Ford's quality myself.

 

I think Ford's dramatic quality improvement started right around 2006. Whenever I look at Consumer Reports quality, I see all the black circles turn into red circles about that year. You may have missed the quality ramp.

[RichardJensen]

If I flip a coin and it comes up heads, does that mean that all coins everywhere always come up heads?

 

Anecdotal evidence is worthless.

 

Sorry about your car, but please, don't attempt to assess the quality of about a million vehicles based on a sample size of one.

Edited July 23, 2010 by RichardJensen

[SVT_MAN]

You look to be complaining about just two things, the door handle and weak brakes.

 

Most of the Google results past the first page were not relevant combinations of the words. Still it indeed appears in general that the door handles on the 2006 Fusion are lacking. It must be frustrating it must be to have all those annoying failures. Ford and/or your dealer should be doing something for you.

 

Brakes are frequently Ford's weak spot as a company. My Taurus X was near the bottom of the list on Consumer Reports and other ratings on brakes for similar vehicles. OTOH, the difference between the top and bottom is only a few percent. In practice, I've never felt unsafe braking in the car with my family, even when heavily (over) loaded with people, camping gear, cargo boxes and four big bikes on the hitch.

 

From your comments, I tend to agree these are areas that Ford needs to give some attention. But overall, if this is all you've got, it's not horrible. Nevertheless, I'd probably be flaming too at all the aggravating door handle failures.

 

So far my 2008 Taurus X has been working well without flaws for 3 years now. I'm extremely happy with Ford's quality myself.

 

I think Ford's dramatic quality improvement started right around 2006. Whenever I look at Consumer Reports quality, I see all the black circles turn into red circles about that year. You may have missed the quality ramp.

 

Yeah, you nailed it. The brakes I can live with .. but door handles? I would like to think that in this day and age I can buy a car that I don't have to worry about door handles and latching mechanisms breaking ... simply unacceptable in my book.

[aneekr]

SVT_MAN, I too wish the experience with your Ford Fusion was more positive all around. But RichardJensen summed it up perfectly in stating that n=1 is not appropriate to draw some of the conclusions stated in this thread about an entire organization's processes. It would be just as fallacious for me to assert that because my own Ford Fusion (a Job 2 2010 MY 6 speed manual unit built 11/2009) evinced nary a sample defect thus far, Ford simply cannot improve its processes any further.

 

Regarding the 2010 Fusion's brakes, this comparison from Car and Driver (of an SE 6MT model, similar to mine) elicited no major complaints about that subsystem and produced test results not significantly different from the other two cars tested. I'm actually quite impressed at the balance Ford achieved with low brake dust, firm brake pedal feel, quietness, and reasonable stopping distances in my 2010 Fusion; certainly compromises have to be made among these attributes in designing a car's braking system as with many other engineering endeavors. I don't autocross or run laps at O'Reilly Raceway Park in my Fusion so I can't comment on how well the brakes perform under such extreme conditions.

[papilgee4evaeva]

Well, to be fair, you do have a first-model-year version of a car. Most manufacturers' first versions of new cars have problems that get ironed out in subsequent model years... and they change the features available on the car.

 

And please don't use a Google search to prove a point. After the first page of results, they become less and less relevant to what you're searching (I found articles on oil changes, for example).

[SVT_MAN]

If I flip a coin and it comes up heads, does that mean that all coins everywhere always come up heads?

 

Anecdotal evidence is worthless.

 

Sorry about your car, but please, don't attempt to assess the quality of about a million vehicles based on a sample size of one.

 

Why straw man me, Richard? What does it prove?

 

How much clearer can I get about my intent for this post? Let's review my second sentence:

 

I am posting this because I want your input on where you feel Ford really is on their quality march.

 

See? I'm asking BON members how they feel Ford is doing on their quality march. Any Neanderthal can recognize this is a small scale, informal opinion poll at best - not some high brow study that predicts reliability and failure rates based on statistical analysis. I've already read those, and I've conducted those studies in college too. You know, the funny thing about statistics is that they can be manipulated easily. Not that *cough* Toyota *cough or anyone else would do that. Hmm. (See global warming tree rings.)

 

They didn't do me much good in predicting what would happen to my vehicle either.

 

Funny thing. When your door handle breaks, you know what the failure rate of your door handle is? 100%. At that point, I don't care what a predicted reliability study says. My door handle failure rate is 100% and the averages mean nothing to me at that point.

 

Please read my post next time. If I wanted to know how Ford is doing on the whole according to a study, all I have to do is look at Consumer Reports or JD Power & Associates. We've already seen those studies here 1,000 times.

 

Moreover, as if it wasn't bad enough that you completely straw-manned me when it came to my intent with this topic, you then come to this conclusion that my situation is an anomaly that should be thrown out and disregarded, like yesterday's newspaper. I must say, that's pretty impressive.

 

Since I wasn't doing a full scale study, and merely conducting an informal opinion poll, sample size doesn't matter because I'm not looking to collect any data for research purposes. But, let's say I was. Your implication is that my car's data point should be thrown out of the sample because it is an anomaly. Hmm. That's interesting.

 

I guess we should throw out all the other cars from the sample that were having their door handles repaired last week too then because they were clearly anomalies in your book too. (Notice how nicely I worked in a straw man for you, Richard?)

 

They were the reason why my part was on back order for 7 days.

 

Please don't attack me for the sake of attacking me and don't misrepresent me when I clearly have much different goals than you've made me out to have.

[ANTAUS]

I know brakes have been a sore issue with Fords that past few years, and supposedly they have been addressing it. I think the new F150, Edge, Mustang, Taurus are some examples where they have improved if I remember correctly. I do have to share that my father once broke the chrome door 'paddle style' door handle on his Jaguar some years ago just opening the door, it just snapped in half, just laughed about it since considering it was a Jaguar, we were expecting everything else to go wrong (and never did), but the door handle was really the only sore point. He never lived it down, to this day we'll call him "Dr. Claw", or "Monster Hands" for what he did.

[Marginal Economist]

First of all, please understand my disclaimer: I am posting this because I want your input on where you feel Ford really is on their quality march. I am a Ford owner and I want Ford to succeed. I realize my vehicle and experiences may not be typical, but I can prove that at least SOME of what I am experiencing IS typical.

 

On the whole, I'm encouraged by the progress that Ford has made in quality over the past 5 or 6 years (at least outside sources claim they have). But my car is making me wonder about how horrendous their quality was prior to their quality march. I kind of worry how they earned a reputation for quality. Some of their praise seems a bit undeserved after the experiences I've had with a Ford that was built under Ford's "new" quality standards.

 

You see, I drive a 2006 Ford Fusion SEL. I'm worried because - despite the great reviews and predicted reliability the Fusion has - the Fusion, for me at least, has not been a particularly reliable, cheap, or safe vehicle for me so far.

 

Okay - so it's never broken down or stranded me anywhere. Most of my problems have been nuisances rather than things that strand me. But some of them are safety issues -I'll touch on that later. I'm kind of conflicted on this car.

 

Do I like driving it? Most of the time I really enjoy piloting it. Do I love the car? Eh. Not sure. It's a love hate relationship if I'm honest. The Fusion is a great car in many ways, but it has some serious shortcomings in some very important areas. Let me explain.

The Good:

It handles well, it rides decently (my car has the low profile tires, so it isn't great though), and it has decent power. I like the styling and it has a comfortable and useful interior. That said, Ford SERIOUSLY dropped the ball in some areas too. See below.

 

The Bad:

 

Ford's emphasis on safety is a bit peculiar on this car. Some of it is good. For instance, they give the car tons of air bags. That is good indeed.

 

So, what's the problem? The problem is that air bags are only used if I can't PREVENT an accident from happening. I like my cars to give me all the tools possible to AVOID a crash. I'd much rather avoid a crash than have to use those 100000 airbags. The problem is that in crash avoidance, aside from decent handling, Ford misses the mark BADLY. How, you ask?

 

Let's start with the brakes ...

 

This car features THE WORST brakes I've come across in a while. GIVE ME A "BRAKE" FORD! These brakes are an absolute joke. At just 21,000 miles, they were already shaking and kicking back the caliper nastily. Ford told me this is "normal." Really? AT 21,000 miles?

 

Add to that the fact that my car (despite being an SEL model) does not have ABS, and the whole story is quite embarrassing when you come right down to it. Every review I've read, even on the new 2010 + models, has complained about poor stopping power and lousy brakes. It isn't anything but the truth! The Fusion V6 took 203 ft to stop from 70 mph! That is PATHETIC. Ford needs to get their act together when it comes to brakes. I know they can do a decent job - just look at the Ford Mustang's braking power (courtesy of Brembo, yes) ... heck, even my 99 Mustang GT had / has great brakes.

 

That Ford would skimp on brakes on a FAMILY-ORIENTED CAR (where safety should be paramount) is disappointing to say the least.

 

But even the brakes aren't what worries me the most about the Fusion.

 

The next bit of cost cutting honestly bothers me even more. You see, the Fusion is somewhat of a death trap if you do get into an accident .. you see, my car lost its door functionality to the passenger door. Here's what happened:

 

I'm building a house right now, so I wanted to get some supplies to do some wiring in my house. I pull into Menard's parking lot with my father in the passenger seat. My dad gets ready to get out of the car, pulls on the handle. He looks at me funny and says "What am I doing wrong?" I said, "You just pull the handle towards you, it's not rocket science."

 

Well, as it turns out, my dad wasn't doing anything wrong; THE LATCH MECHANISM WAS BROKEN. AT 38,000 MILES! NO WARNING. NO ABUSE. NO KIDDING.

 

Does anybody else find this positively pathetic? But it gets worse. Not only could we not open the door from the inside, but WE COULD NOT OPEN IT FROM THE OUTSIDE EITHER! How is this NOT a safety issue? How is there NOT a TSB or recall on this issue?

 

To add insult to injury, this is the 3RD DOOR HANDLE ASSEMBLY on my car that has either broken or stopped working. The first two were repaired under warranty. This one happened outside of warranty. I'm just waiting for the next door to break.

 

Now I'm zinged $400 for this stupid issue from a car that is dubbed "best in class quality." Forgive me, but I think that a car that is top tier quality should feature door handles and latching mechanisms that last longer than 40,000 miles.

 

The UGLY?

 

I'm not alone with my door handle problems ..

 

Run a Google search: "2006 ford fusion door handle repair"

 

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=2006+ford+fusion+door+handle+repair&aq=9m&aqi=g8g-m2&aql=&oq=Ford+Fusion+door&gs_rfai=C-H2Z4wxJTKiUO4_KMsewiMYCAAAAqgQFT9DVezE&fp=a85214c6b676fae7

 

Only 571,000 results.

 

The CONCLUSION

 

I'm sort of torn on this car. On one hand, I love it. It's a great vehicle overall. On the other hand, it's had some really pathetic, disappointing problems. It also has some transmission behaviors which make me worry about the tranny longevity too. Should I really have to worry about a car this new? Honestly?

 

The Fusion could be a great car. It has most of the right ingredients. That Ford would skimp on basics like braking ability and door handles is stunning to me. If I wasn't a Ford enthusiast, I honestly think I would have jumped ship by now. I've had some really annoying and frustrating problems with this car. Some of you might remember the annoying buzzing noise that was emitted from a fuel line that rattled because Ford didn't bother installing cold-weather insulation. That was fixed but the memories aren't. I'll always remember being quite peaved, annoyed, and embarassed whenever the engine loafed because it sounded like my car was a piece of junk. (Funny looking back at it now - maybe it was telling the truth all along.)

 

For me at least, Ford needs to get these basics right if they even want to THINK about competing. I personally feel like Ford can still improve their quality more and needs to. Right now, it seems like they are riding a wave of good vibes from a media sympathetic to the company because they did not take bail out money. For Ford to be profitable sustainably, they're going to have to do more on the quality side. I'm not saying they aren't making improvements, but frankly, these issues my vehicle has had are embarrassing - and if they are typical, I can't see Ford continuing to succeed.

 

Chime in. Let me know your thoughts, experiences, etc. I'm not trying to start a flame war .. I bleed blue. I want Ford to succeed. Frankly, it's a bit embarasing when your friend's Chevy Impala (which I thought were crummy) has never been to the shop and your Ford Fusion (top quality, right?) has been there a bunch of times ...

 

Run a Google search: "2006 Toyota Camry door handle repair" - Only 2.75 Million hits

[Moosetang]

You've got a first model year car which was built right as Ford was reinventing itself, built over a year before Alan Mulally took over. I feel bad for the troubles you've had but nothing about any of that really reflects on present-day Ford. Ford today is lauded for the standard features in their cars, industry-leading tech in inexpensive mainstream cars, and for generally being more fun/engaging to drive than the competition. Are they perfect? Heck no, but that doesn't mean they're doing us dirty.

[rmc523]

Funny thing. When your door handle breaks, you know what the failure rate of your door handle is? 100%. At that point, I don't care what a predicted reliability study says. My door handle failure rate is 100% and the averages mean nothing to me at that point.

 

Actually, your door handle failure rate would be 25% since there's 4 doors LOL Sorry, I had to.

[jpd80]

Like most things in this world, Ford is a work in progress and even though the first generation of Fusion and

Edge helped set them on the right path, the unifying CD4 Mondeo/Fusion will be a quantum leap.

 

While some criticism of Fords near recent vehicles may be justified, it should be tempered with the

knowledge that new improved versions are on the runway. In that respect, Fiesta is a great indicator

to the types of next generation vehicles we can expect. Ford has already hinted that next gen Taurus

will be wider/roomier so that points to more room in next gen Fusion and Focus too,

maybe Edge as well. All whilst avoiding bankruptcy in the face of global financial melt down.

All when a larger more prominent motor company went bust....

 

Good times.

[twintornados]

SVT_MAN...sorry to hear your "tale of woe" about your Fusion...I have a 2006 Fusion SE....The driver door handle broke on me...I fixed it myself for $25 dollars with Ford OE parts, my brakes held on until about 60K miles. When I bought my car, I insisted on the side air bags and anti-lock brakes and had the dealer find me one with them. As I roll up to 100K miles, my Fusion has been very reliable in every measure of the word.

[Ford Jellymoulds]

Not being able to take a corner in a RWD Ford car is the only corner that has be cut in Europe having all its eggs in a FWD basket not so00h good, no choice from Ford.

 

To much cash sitting in my bank doing nothing on the sidelines.

 

Edited July 23, 2010 by Ford Jellymoulds

[MY93SHO]

Well the front rotors on my 2007 HHR are warped at 50,000 miles. After looking on the internet it seems to be a common complaint.

 

Now I could stamp my feet, bitch , and writes post on forums complaining about it or I can just replace the rotors and pads with some aftermarket parts and see how that works.

 

Pads and rotors are still easy to replace.

 

As a mechanic friend of mine said: " The best way to fix the brakes on my wife's car would be to not let her drive it." (tends to brake at the last second) " But. it's not worth the hassle, rotors are cheap." :hyper:

[mustang2]

First of all, please understand my disclaimer: I am posting this because I want your input on where you feel Ford really is on their quality march. I am a Ford owner and I want Ford to succeed. I realize my vehicle and experiences may not be typical, but I can prove that at least SOME of what I am experiencing IS typical.

 

On the whole, I'm encouraged by the progress that Ford has made in quality over the past 5 or 6 years (at least outside sources claim they have). But my car is making me wonder about how horrendous their quality was prior to their quality march. I kind of worry how they earned a reputation for quality. Some of their praise seems a bit undeserved after the experiences I've had with a Ford that was built under Ford's "new" quality standards.

 

You see, I drive a 2006 Ford Fusion SEL. I'm worried because - despite the great reviews and predicted reliability the Fusion has - the Fusion, for me at least, has not been a particularly reliable, cheap, or safe vehicle for me so far.

 

Okay - so it's never broken down or stranded me anywhere. Most of my problems have been nuisances rather than things that strand me. But some of them are safety issues -I'll touch on that later. I'm kind of conflicted on this car.

 

Do I like driving it? Most of the time I really enjoy piloting it. Do I love the car? Eh. Not sure. It's a love hate relationship if I'm honest. The Fusion is a great car in many ways, but it has some serious shortcomings in some very important areas. Let me explain.

The Good:

It handles well, it rides decently (my car has the low profile tires, so it isn't great though), and it has decent power. I like the styling and it has a comfortable and useful interior. That said, Ford SERIOUSLY dropped the ball in some areas too. See below.

 

The Bad:

 

Ford's emphasis on safety is a bit peculiar on this car. Some of it is good. For instance, they give the car tons of air bags. That is good indeed.

 

So, what's the problem? The problem is that air bags are only used if I can't PREVENT an accident from happening. I like my cars to give me all the tools possible to AVOID a crash. I'd much rather avoid a crash than have to use those 100000 airbags. The problem is that in crash avoidance, aside from decent handling, Ford misses the mark BADLY. How, you ask?

 

Let's start with the brakes ...

 

This car features THE WORST brakes I've come across in a while. GIVE ME A "BRAKE" FORD! These brakes are an absolute joke. At just 21,000 miles, they were already shaking and kicking back the caliper nastily. Ford told me this is "normal." Really? AT 21,000 miles?

 

Add to that the fact that my car (despite being an SEL model) does not have ABS, and the whole story is quite embarrassing when you come right down to it. Every review I've read, even on the new 2010 + models, has complained about poor stopping power and lousy brakes. It isn't anything but the truth! The Fusion V6 took 203 ft to stop from 70 mph! That is PATHETIC. Ford needs to get their act together when it comes to brakes. I know they can do a decent job - just look at the Ford Mustang's braking power (courtesy of Brembo, yes) ... heck, even my 99 Mustang GT had / has great brakes.

 

That Ford would skimp on brakes on a FAMILY-ORIENTED CAR (where safety should be paramount) is disappointing to say the least.

 

But even the brakes aren't what worries me the most about the Fusion.

 

The next bit of cost cutting honestly bothers me even more. You see, the Fusion is somewhat of a death trap if you do get into an accident .. you see, my car lost its door functionality to the passenger door. Here's what happened:

 

I'm building a house right now, so I wanted to get some supplies to do some wiring in my house. I pull into Menard's parking lot with my father in the passenger seat. My dad gets ready to get out of the car, pulls on the handle. He looks at me funny and says "What am I doing wrong?" I said, "You just pull the handle towards you, it's not rocket science."

 

Well, as it turns out, my dad wasn't doing anything wrong; THE LATCH MECHANISM WAS BROKEN. AT 38,000 MILES! NO WARNING. NO ABUSE. NO KIDDING.

 

Does anybody else find this positively pathetic? But it gets worse. Not only could we not open the door from the inside, but WE COULD NOT OPEN IT FROM THE OUTSIDE EITHER! How is this NOT a safety issue? How is there NOT a TSB or recall on this issue?

 

To add insult to injury, this is the 3RD DOOR HANDLE ASSEMBLY on my car that has either broken or stopped working. The first two were repaired under warranty. This one happened outside of warranty. I'm just waiting for the next door to break.

 

Now I'm zinged $400 for this stupid issue from a car that is dubbed "best in class quality." Forgive me, but I think that a car that is top tier quality should feature door handles and latching mechanisms that last longer than 40,000 miles.

 

The UGLY?

 

I'm not alone with my door handle problems ..

 

Run a Google search: "2006 ford fusion door handle repair"

 

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=2006+ford+fusion+door+handle+repair&aq=9m&aqi=g8g-m2&aql=&oq=Ford+Fusion+door&gs_rfai=C-H2Z4wxJTKiUO4_KMsewiMYCAAAAqgQFT9DVezE&fp=a85214c6b676fae7

 

Only 571,000 results.

 

The CONCLUSION

 

I'm sort of torn on this car. On one hand, I love it. It's a great vehicle overall. On the other hand, it's had some really pathetic, disappointing problems. It also has some transmission behaviors which make me worry about the tranny longevity too. Should I really have to worry about a car this new? Honestly?

 

The Fusion could be a great car. It has most of the right ingredients. That Ford would skimp on basics like braking ability and door handles is stunning to me. If I wasn't a Ford enthusiast, I honestly think I would have jumped ship by now. I've had some really annoying and frustrating problems with this car. Some of you might remember the annoying buzzing noise that was emitted from a fuel line that rattled because Ford didn't bother installing cold-weather insulation. That was fixed but the memories aren't. I'll always remember being quite peaved, annoyed, and embarassed whenever the engine loafed because it sounded like my car was a piece of junk. (Funny looking back at it now - maybe it was telling the truth all along.)

 

For me at least, Ford needs to get these basics right if they even want to THINK about competing. I personally feel like Ford can still improve their quality more and needs to. Right now, it seems like they are riding a wave of good vibes from a media sympathetic to the company because they did not take bail out money. For Ford to be profitable sustainably, they're going to have to do more on the quality side. I'm not saying they aren't making improvements, but frankly, these issues my vehicle has had are embarrassing - and if they are typical, I can't see Ford continuing to succeed.

 

Chime in. Let me know your thoughts, experiences, etc. I'm not trying to start a flame war .. I bleed blue. I want Ford to succeed. Frankly, it's a bit embarasing when your friend's Chevy Impala (which I thought were crummy) has never been to the shop and your Ford Fusion (top quality, right?) has been there a bunch of times ...

I have an '02 Ranger XL. Bought new, no problems. Nothing. Zip. Nada. Well, a Toyota did hit it. I drove home. The Toy was totalled.

[silvrsvt]

I have a 06 Mustang GT and the only issue I had with it was the Passenger side rear disc brake hung up on it and wore it down to the rotor at 50K or so. I replaced it and its been good since then...I even had a serious front end collision with the car that winded up costing 10K to fix and no problems besides an annoying rattle at times when the engine is cool and its cool out.

[Pioneer]

I had to replace the ignition coil on my 2000 Focus at 151k miles.

 

Damn Ford and thier cost cutting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

/sarcasm

[glyphmon]

I kind of feel the OP's pain in this regard. While I have a generally positive feeling about my 07 Milan AWD, it has left me wondering if I really want to keep the car on a number of locations.

 

Within the first 5000 miles I experienced while driving at about 50MPH in a straight line without traffic what I can best describe as the transmission rapidly switching gears (both up and down) for no apparent reason. I floored it and it seemed to come out of it, no codes were set and the service department said it was most likely just a stuck valve or something like that in the transmission.

 

The car has developed an annoying rattle in the driver side front door which can be agitated by even the slightest of uneven pavement.

 

License plate lamps, both have burned out and required replacement.

 

And the biggest kick of all is that my rear brakes now need replacing, rotors included.

 

My car just turned 35,000 miles last week. I bought it new with 8 miles at the beginning of November 2007 and have had it serviced regularly at a dealership since then.

 

The ride quality has generally been superb but I loathe the way this transmission shifts. I understand that six speeds makes for a more fuel efficient vehicle, but it seems to me like the car is always trying to decide what gear it wants to be in, and not listen to what gear I want it to be in.

 

Comparing this to my older car which I still drive daily and actually prefer to the Milan, a 00 Sable LS 24v, I will be the first to admit that with 175,000 miles it has its share of rattles and I have put a lot of money over time into suspension, brakes, tires, and so on. However, it knows it can shift into 4th gear/overdrive and lock the torque converter at 35 MPH and drive that way all the way to the stoplight without downshifting. And if I want to downshift I can take my foot off the gas, put it right back down and press hard and it will go. I think I had my rear drums replaced at around 100,000 miles but don't recall off the top of my head. The transmission was rebuilt under extended warranty at 97,500 miles, I took ownership of the vehicle at 70,000 miles.

 

While the overall build quality of the Milan and Fusion may be much improved over previous models, I certainly agree, I don't think the first-gen Fusion and Milans were quite there. I may trade the Milan within the next couple of years if something better comes along (maybe a newer Milan, used of course) or I may look at something in the VW/Audi stable since they no longer make my preferred brand. I fully intend to keep the Sable running as long as there is no major mechanical breakdown (engine, or transmission) and the body doesn't rust out.

 

That's my experience, but I don't believe these experiences are results of corners being cut, to address your initial question. Good luck with your Fusion.

[RichardJensen]

Why straw man me, Richard? What does it prove?

Not a straw man. A straw man argument is not 'on point'.

 

Your point is, in short, "Is Ford cutting corners? Because my car has a door handle that broke"

 

That can be restated thus, "Do you think all coin flips come up heads? Because my coin flip has come up heads."

 

Substitution of one scenario for the other keeps the sentence logically coherent. Thus it is *not* a straw man.

Your implication is that my car's data point should be thrown out of the sample because it is an anomaly.

Did I say that? Did I imply that? I merely said that YOUR SINGLE DATA POINT was not SUFFICIENT.

 

Good GRIEF. Get a thicker skin man.

 

As for the opinion poll, do you honestly think you're going to get better results than a statistical survey conducted by JDP (or Consumer Reports), by asking a fistful of Ford fans what they think about Ford products based on their personal experiences?

Edited July 23, 2010 by RichardJensen