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I will be in the market shortly for a late-model sedan and the Fusion is on my shortlist. What are owner's experinces out there? Is the Fusion for me? My experience with Ford says no as I own a 2007 Mustang GT convertible and it's "typically American" with many noises but hey, it's a performance car, a convertible, and weekend fun driver so I can deal with it.
Thanks!
But, I feel that some times when his (dealer) 'technicians' touch my vehicle they can screw up something else. At least that's the way it worked at Toyota...and others.
So while you are out there enjoying the 'free' loaner there is some monkey in the garage working on your own...and making it worse. It's not just Ford, it happens with all of them
Did you find out the cause of your problem ? Thanks for any info you
might be able to provide.
"Ford is recalling 128,616 2010-'11 Ford Fusions and Mercury Milans equipped with 17-inch steel wheels because of a risk of wheel separation, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
"The wheel studs may fracture, potentially causing a wheel to separate," said NHTSA in its recalls summary of the problem. "While driving, multiple stud fractures could occur at the wheel location, and the operator may experience vehicle vibration and/or wheel separation, increasing the risk of a crash."
Ford Fusions and Mercury Milans equipped with alloy wheels are not affected.
The recall also includes 2,940 service steel wheels sold to dealers.
Ford said as of September 30, it was aware of one front wheel separation and five rear wheel separations, according to documents filed with the federal government.
The affected vehicles were built from April 1, 2009 through April 30, 2009 and from December 1, 2009 through November 13, 2010.
Ford dealers will inspect the rear brake disc surface for flatness and replace the discs. In addition, the wheel lug nuts will be replaced on all four wheels. The recall is expected to begin on January 24. Owners can contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332."
That is an excerpt from an inside line story maybe two months ago.
Does anyone know how long it takes for the mirror to change reflectance after a bright light appears. It may be designed to have a relatively long response time to avoid short cycling with every reflection.
One very unusual idea which I read in one of these forums is to rotate the mirror 180 degrees. This is done easily and puts the light sensors at the top of the mirror and the microphone at the bottom. I wonder which is the intended way. The side taper seems more correct in the microphone up sensors down position.
Does anyone have a recommendation as to how I could test the mirror to see if it is working as intended. I hate bright headlights. Recently Audi brightened thier taillights to a nuclear level which is a new problem: they are too bright to begin with but when the brakes come on they are blinding. What is this trend to get brighter and brighter lights? The national highway safety did a research project and concluded that highways are so well lit these days that headlight intensity could be reduced 40% with no issues (and this was before the HID, LED nuclear intensity fad appeared). I actually wear lightly tinted sunglasses when driving at night to reduce some of the retina-searing moments.
I prefer extreme dimming so I have fashioned a little pull down blind over the front sensor which I pull down at night. The mirror works remarkably better at night this way.
I was unable to determine why there are two sensors facing the rear.
It turns out my mirror was operating and not broken but the subtle dimming was hard to see. Now with the opaque baffle over the forward facing sensor, it is dramatic and very helpful.
For reasons puzzling, putting your finger over the sensor does not work to "blind" it. The black electricians tape is specifically recommended by Ford or the manufacturer.
In retrospect I now realize that adding 10 mm to the base of 215mm isn't even increasing the width by 5%. I did not appreciate the very small steps that tire width increments provide.
Yet, presumably, the gain in grip is considerable. Surprising.
I assume that when you select heat you get warmed air from the fan without AC activation but I wonder if my assumption is correct.
Then I read and discovered that Ford "does not recomment towing with the vehicle". I discovered that many 4 cylinder cars have similar disclaimers.
Speculation is that liability concerns make it prudent for the manufacturer to be very conservative in endorsing trailer load since driving at too high a speed could outrun the braking capacity or, with too big a load, over heat the transmission. And so on.
I understand that caution by Ford.
However I doubt that a small trailer (4' x4') with a small load (e.g. a recently purchased generator which weights 230# would pose a problem. There are folding platforms that attach to the hitch receiver and extend outward from the rear of the car which are rated at <300# load (and weigh 50# themselves).
What do people think. Is towing a llight load (total<500#) a likely source of strain or damage to the I4 Fusion?
I suspect that Ford and other manufacturers are concerned that if they give advisories on trailer loads, etc. that they may be liable for issues that arise from overloading. My concern is that if I put a hitch on then subsequent warranty issues may be incorrectly attributed to the fact that I occasionally put a trailer on the car.
I wish to have the traileer for the 3 or 4 times a year when I want to haul a large item or a messy item or one that just won't fit in the car or the trunk. A generator comes to mind as a good example. Typically portble generators weigh in the 200-300# range and should present not overload problems. Agree?
It was in a Ford Motor Cop. owners site with this link
----http://owner.ford.com/servlet/ContentServer?cid=1251117147717&pagename=Owner- %2FPage%2FArticleDetail&recid=1251387049862&parentheadlineimageid=1234280151966&- parentrightrecid=1239636411265
under a section called "care and maintenance tips"
It seems an official Ford site and asks for sign in and password and/or VIN. Seems legit thats why I was so puzzled. It has to be a misprint. I agree with a very long service interval (half way to never).
At the dealership, the car drove ok. The service technicicans were unable to diagnose it immediately as it was the end of the day. From the symptoms, it seems unlikely that the transmission and/or stability control issues were unrelated to the issue they fixed, although I can't be sure. Has anyone seen a similar problem?
thanks,
Sandy.