Motor Mouth: Fusion adds traction to make new friends

In the car's second year, Ford Motor Co. has added a feature to its Fusion midsize sedan that makes Merrimack Valley drivers sing. The 2008 Fusion is available with all-wheel drive. Local dealers report that a quarter to a third of the Fusions they sell today incorporate the feature. They expect that to increase as soon as foul weather draws near.

"It is strictly weather driven," said John Wall Sr., owner of Wall's Ford in Salisbury. "The feature is very Northeast oriented."

Both Wall and Henry Nassar Jr., owner of Nassar Ford in Lawrence, expect the addition of all-wheel drive to boost Fusion sales at their dealerships. They'll sell more, they said, than they would if the five-passenger, four-door car came with front drive only.

Where we live, four-wheel traction is becoming a common fixture in motor vehicles of all types. Down south, car companies sell even SUVs equipped with two-wheel drive either front drive or rear drive, depending on the size of the model. But around here, dealers scarcely even bother to stock any two-wheel-drive sport-utilities. In rugged SUVs especially, people demand the winter-time traction that only four-wheel power can provide.

As the '08 Fusion illustrates, that selling point is extending more and more to passenger cars. All-wheel-drive automobiles are already widely available in the luxury market, where buyers more readily pay extra for enticing features. For example, the Quattro four-wheel system is available across the Audi line. BMW offers its X-drive feature as an option on many of its sedans and coupes. The Mercedes-Benz 4Matic brand of all-wheel drive equips a large share of C-Class models sold by Mercedes dealer Smith Motor Sales of Haverhill.

Now, more mass market models are adding all-wheel drive. New versions of the Pontiac Vibe and Toyota Matrix hatchbacks offer all-wheel-drive options this year. Ford sells all-wheel-drive editions of its Taurus and Mercury Sable large passenger cars. And now comes Fusion.

At the moment, a basic Fusion with front-wheel drive and a four-cylinder engine is the most popular version at both Nassar and Wall's. That's largely due to the economy. Adding $875 for an automatic transmission in place of the car's standard-issue, five-speed manual, a Fusion S starts with a list price of $19,735. To get a V6 engine, you have to step up a level to Fusion SE, adding more than $2,300 to the sticker price. The lowest priced all-wheel-drive model lists at $23,930, about $4,200 more than a starter-level Fusion.

In addition, buyers who choose the four-cylinder engine save more money at the pumps. When equipped with a 160-horsepower, 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine and auto transmission, Fusion earns an EPA fuel-economy rating of 20 miles per gallon in city driving, 28 mpg on the highway. With the 221-horsepower V6, Fusion's fuel-use rating drops to 18 mpg city, 26 mpg highway. Add all-wheel drive available only with the V6 engine and you lose a little more. Its EPA rating is 17/25.

"That's a great selling little package, because the pricing on it is phenomenal," Wall said of the four-cylinder, front-drive Fusion. He noted that some shoppers who come in to look at the smaller, lower-priced Ford Focus end up purchasing a four-cylinder Fusion. They're tempted to move up a grade by standard equipment that includes air conditioning, remote locking, tire pressure monitoring and advanced anti-lock brakes, tinted glass and speed-sensitive wipers, plus six airbags, including side-curtain bags.

A step up to the SE package brings alloy wheels, fog lamps, trip computer, power driver's seat and fold-down front-passenger seat, along with an upgraded audio system with a six-disc CD player replacing the single-disc player found in Fusion S.

The top-line, Fusion SEL adds larger, 17-inch wheels, automatic headlights, heated outside mirrors with puddle lamps, and automatic cabin-temperature control.

While it saves dollars, a basic, Fusion S with a four-cylinder engine doesn't give up much in performance, reported both Nassar and Wall. Although the V6 motor possesses more power, the four-cylinder is set up for spirited performance, propelling Fusion with gusto enough to make the engine seem larger.

"There really isn't that much of a difference in the power that you experience between the engines," Nassar said. "I can't feel the difference."

"They like the shape of the car," Nassar said. At Wall's, shoppers interested in other models stop to comment on Fusion after it grabs their eyes in the showroom, John Wall said.

The Salisbury dealer doesn't expect the dominance of four-cylinder Fusions to last indefinitely. Demand for V6 models will probably pull even with four-cylinder demand, he speculated. That will happen fastest if fuel prices start to ease.

But winter's approach will also play a role. Since you have to buy a six-cylinder engine to get Fusion with all-wheel drive, a popularity spurt for the surest-footed Fusions will automatically increase sales of the V6 engine.

For a lot of drivers, the loss of a few miles per gallon is a justifiable tradeoff for a feature that can help keep them on the roads in all seasons.

Warranty: 3 years/36,000 miles basic warranty; 5 years/60,000 miles powertrain warranty; 5 years/unlimited miles corrosion warranty; 5 years/60,000 miles roadside assistance

Photos

With the addition of all-wheel drive as an option on the sleekly styled Fusion sedan, Ford increased the popularity of the car in the Merrimack Valley, area dealers Nassar Ford and Wall's Ford reported. Courtesy photo