Ford Fusion vs. Ford Fusion Hybrid

_HighVoltage_

_HighVoltage_

Captain Volvo
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I posted several weeks ago that a friend of mine is looking for a new car. She finally decided on a 2010 Ford Fusion. But now she has two options
- the regular 175hp I4
- the hybrid version

The hybrid is $5,000 more. I'm not sure what to tell her. I really don't know if it's worth it.

Discuss.

Edit: It is worth mentioning that she doesn't care about the environment (we wouldn't be friends otherwise) she only wants good gas mileage. The problem there is that her driving style isn't very economical. I think she only knows two options - brake on, and pedal to the metal. So I'm not sure if the hybrid is even going to work right for her.
 
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$5000 buys you a lot of gas. I personally think the regular four pot Fusion is good enough. I'd take it over the hybrid because it will probably cost less to maintain in the long run.
 
It's been my experience that hybrids work best in cities, where there is a lot of stop and go traffic. If she lives in the country, or even the suburbs, a hybrid wouldn't save her much gas. Certainly not $5K worth.

I would go with the V6, but that's just me. :grin:
 
Her daily commute is 25miles with very few stop-starts. Mostly driving 40-55mph.
 
_HighVoltage_ said:
Her daily commute is 25miles with very few stop-starts. Mostly driving 40-55mph.
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That screams standard engine. I second Wizegui, 4 banger all the way.

Personally, a base Fusion S would do the trick if I were new car shopping. It, oddly, has alloy wheels while the SE trim doesn't.
 
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Hybrid is likely not a good choice for her but look into what kind of incentives she can get. I know that gov't gives decent tax returns for people buying a hybrid so see if you can find out how much it would be for the Fusion. It might end up being cheaper with the incentives than the standard.
 
Yeah, Prizrak is right.

Either way though, it's a solid choice for a new car.
 
I drove the Fusion 3.0 V6 for about 4000 miles, mostly highway, and it returned a steady 27MPG all the way. I'm not sure how that compares with the 4 pots though.

Great car by the way :)
 
_HighVoltage_ said:
Her daily commute is 25miles with very few stop-starts. Mostly driving 40-55mph.
Click to expand...

This confirms regular flavor is the the one for her.

Very little stop start means very little hybrid benefit.
 
Grab the non-Hybrid. The Hybrid doesn't have any additional options other than the electricity. If it had more standard options it would be worth it.
 
I've heard the Fusion called "the hybrid that doesn't really drive so much like a hybrid." That's good, though I still worry about the replacement costs of those huge batteries. If it were up to me, I'd stick to the regular gas engine (...and probably opt for the V6).

Have her try the gas and hybrid versions and see which one she likes better. Also, I second the "look into incentives and how they work" bit.
 
_HighVoltage_ said:
Her daily commute is 25miles with very few stop-starts. Mostly driving 40-55mph.
Click to expand...

Yeah I have a commute of 20 mile highway 5 city and average above my highway mpg for my car so I don't think a hybrid is necessary there.
 
I'm a sucker forl fancy lights and gadgets, and I have to say that the growing plants/leaves in the dash of the hybrid has me smitten. :p
 
Shame you don't get many diesels in the States, because that would be the perfect answer to that question. That said, the normal engined one makes more financial sense than a hybrid. And since she is looking to save money, that is the way to go IMO.
 
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