2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - Review

By Eric Loveday

Eric Loveday

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Eric Loveday is a car enthusiast with a love for everything automotive. He purchased a 1970 Chevelle at age 16, quickly outgrew its dated engineering... More

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2010 Ford Fusion

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According to a recent test drive and review of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid by Wards Auto, "If Ford can keep churning out vehicles such as the 2010 Fusion Hybrid sedan, it will go a long way toward silencing critics of the Detroit auto makers."

The Fusion Hybrid offers outstanding numbers for its class.  At 41 mpg in city driving, and 36 mpg in highway driving, Ford has rasied the bar for midsize hybrid sedan.  The combined rating put the Fusion at 38.5 mpg overall.  Numbers that Ford is happy with and soon to be buyers will be too.

But what about the driving experience?  Most reviews have been extremely positive overall with the Fusion hybrid and Wards Auto tends to agree with other reviewers.  During a recent test drive in the cold of winter, Wards reviewer Byron Pope had only one major dissapoint with the Fusion Hybrid.  He was unable to acheive the mpg numbers listed by the EPA.  How far off was he?  Pope only achieved a combined 33 mpg throughout the course of his test drive, far short of the listed combined rating of 38.5 mpg.

Pope goes on to state that it was the dead of winter and perhaps cold temperatures and constant use of the heater provided him with lower mpg than expected stating that, "Running the heater on full blast most of the time siphons popwer from the battery, causing the car to rely more often on its gasoline engine."  The statement is true, but in real world driving, the heater is oftened used.