2006 Ford Fusion

[one more cast]

The old lumina is on her last leg and I've been looking at Hyundias, Nissan's and now the new fusion is catching my eye. Does anyone here own one yet? Ford Fusion

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Okay, I have driven one and they are really not up to par with the Malibu that it is set to compete with. Power, room, handling and braking drive em all and compare.<br /><br />Remember I am bias I work at a Chevy dealer and drive an Impala which is even more comfortable.

 

[one more cast]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Bob, This will be my wifes car and her boss and co-worker both have impalas so they are out. We haven't driven anything except a used altima so far. Our '97 luminas morning knock is getting louder and lasting longer but we will run it until it dies. I'm not real impressed with my '02 silverado so I'm thinking about trying a different brand. Why are 2005 impalas with 10,000 miles on them only selling for just under $12,000? They seem to be a nice car but no resale value. That could be a good thing for me because I keep them awhile.

 

[dolluper]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Maybe has something to do with the catalitic's going so soon in their life's,whole exhaust one piece 1400 bones and usually on back order.Stay away from Chevy 3.1 they eat intake gaskets,some of the 3.4 too, 3.8 is sweet

 

[JasonJ]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

OMC, I think part of the problem with car values is the marketplace itself. Up to this point, everyone flocked to the SUV craze, but that trend is cooling. Latest reports are that SUV sales are dropping, and car sales are going up, which will increase the value of cars. With the demise of the Ford Excursion, no longer made because it was basically an inefficient schoolbus, manufacturers are going to be trying to stay with consumers who are realizing that gas prices no longer allow for frivelous waste like large SUVs. The mid and small SUVs will outsell any large SUVs, and I predict within 5 years no SUV larger than a Jeep Grand Cherokee will be manufactured for sale in this country. It happened before, it will happen again, we will be buying more efficient vehicles.<br /><br />If that Fusion is based on a Mazda platform, it will be vastly superior to an Impala, hands down. May not be as fast, but it will out value it in a heartbeat.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

The 2005 Impala's you see for 12K are rent a car turn in vehicles. When GM had the crazy employee price for everyone sale (glad that's over) all the rent a car companies were given extra incentives to trade also. The Impala's have flooded the market. The primary sign that they were rent a cars is the lack of the on-star system. The rental car fleet cars are sold with less options. The average new car loss in value is 40% the first year so the resale always look worse after the initial year. 2005's are a year old now.<br /><br />As far as the catalitic converters going yes it was common on 2002 and they are covered under the 80K warranty on the cats.<br /><br />Jason.... watch for use of more DOD (displacement on demand) engines in SUV's. Do a search on the 2007 Tahoe due out in Jan 2006 and it will have DOD. The Trailblazer has that option and so does the new Impala.

 

[Boomyal]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Originally posted by JasonJ:<br />.... and I predict within 5 years no SUV larger than a Jeep Grand Cherokee will be manufactured for sale in this country.

Guess I better hang on to my '94 2500 Burb w/ only 42k miles on it. Might end up being one of the few games in town and the sales price might go thru the roof.

 

[dolluper]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Rumors are getting big now on GM's retro coming out in 07,it's going to be muscle v8,rear wheel drive,to compete with Mustang retro.Possibly the Camero or Firebird,all because the Gto isn't doing as well as they taught

 

[skeeterboy]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Huh a pontiac not selling well?? Theres something ive never heard of. The GTO is UGLY period and its not a true GTO they just slapped the tag on it so they could atleast sell one or two. If they make it retro that would be sweet. They had to boost the HP to 400 just to keep up the Stang GT with 300HP, now thats pretty sad. Go with the Fusion the resale value will not drop like a GM impala.

 

[QC]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

The GTO is awesome despite the poor sales and the not so great looks. The reason it isn't selling is that it is about $8K more than the new 'stang, but it will royally spank it with it's 400 bhp. It is made in Australia where it is called a Holden Monaro. I am pretty sure a "true GTO" would have a badge slapped on it too . . .<br /><br />The Malibu is the same platform as the 9-3 Saab and a thing called a Vauxhaul Vectra (Also badged as an Opel Vectra in the rest of Europe and a Holden Vectra in Oz). I have rented a bunch of Vectras in the UK and they are VERY solid. My .02.

 

[KM2]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

OMC, <br /> I saw the new fusion on Motorweek tv. Nice looking car. Motorweek raved about it too.

 

[Dave Abrahamson]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Here is the retro Chebby HHR. Looks to me like an overgrown PT Cruiser. Hope they come back with a Firebird. That would be a cool retro project.<br /> http://www.chevrolet.com/hhr06/?c=hhr_textam_img

 

[jimr]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

We were lookng at the 3.8l powered impala a coupla of years ago and would have owned one if the dealer hadn't tried screwing us. We went to a different dealer in the tulsa area and told them what we were looking for and they said they did not have any but the buick regal was a nicer car. we drove one and bought it. a lot nicer interior and rides better. resale would probally be higher if it wasn't for the employee pricing to the public but still higher than impala.

 

[KRS]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

No discussion on car value isn't complete without considering the current rental fleet, and the effect it has on car value:<br /><br />1) when rentals are rotated out by the rental company, the market becomes flooded with that make/model and value takes a hit.<br /><br />2) car owners don't want to drive to work in what appears to be a rental car. Car manufacturers have done a study showing that car owners stigmatize rental cars as cheap and lacking personality, so when they see that same make/model for sale on the car lot, it turns people off. I read that car manufacturers are considering stopping fleet pricing deals to rental agencies in an attempt to boost the appeal of the value class of cars in the new and resale markets.<br /><br />I don't have a Fusion, and I haven't driven one..... I'm 6'3" tall and 300 lbs.

 

[Johnshan1]

Re: 2006 Ford Fusion

Check out the mazda 3, holds its value amazingly well, has a great warranty and is just plain a good car (based on the volvo s40). If thats too small (drive one first they look smaller then they are) then check out the mazda 6. <br /><br />I drive a chevy as does my wife and we wont buy another chevy due to the plain fact that they do not hold their value (unless your talking pickup truck). We dont drive our vehicles long- maybe 2-4 years and we cant afford to take a hit everytime we get another car. Mazda will be our next car, again trucks are a different story of course (imo) and I will stick with chevy.