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I have 5K on my Fusion... my average MPG is 26.7!! Yeehaa!!
I live in middlesex NJ, but I drive in Staten Island and Brooklyn all day long as I am in Sales. So far no complaints w/the car and I look forward to getting better MPG.
JR
I don't think so. The computer just gets the information from the engine computer about how many fuel injection events have happened and calculates the fuel used.
HTH
:surprise: oops! I reset mine on every fill up. My average has been about 26.7MPG.. Seems about right when I do a quick calculation of mileage gone between fill-ups.. :surprise: :confuse:
Time to do some inside info searching!
I'll check into a proprietary DVD see if it lists specs for light throttle shift points.
Paul
Found something quicker than I thought, not in rpm though.
Cut & paste oops, I put it columns, but did stay?
Shift Speeds Chart Throttle Position Shift Final Drive Ratio 3.86:
Closed 5-4 55-38 km/h 34-24 mph
4-3 32-16 km/h 20-10 mph
3-1 18-2 km/h 11-1 mph
Minimum Monitor 1-2 5-21 km/h 3-13 mph
PID TP 2-3 16-32 km/h 10-20 mph
20% 3-4 32-48 km/h 20-30 mph
4-5 48-64 km/h 30-40 mph
Wide Open 1-2 40-56 km/h 25-35 mph
2-3 89-105 km/h 55-65 mph
3-4 129-145 km/h 80-90 mph
4-5 a — —
a Speed limited to 177 km/h (110 mph). WOT 4-5 shift will not occur.
It looks as if I need to talk to my dealer. Car is still holdind first and second until 3000 rpm or so unless throttle is completely closed. It looks like it should be "short-shifting" if I go easy on the throttle.
My partner does not drive conservatively from the stoplights and gets about 23 to 28 mpg on average with little highway driving.
The point, is its probably not your car getting bad fuel economy, its your right foot.
NOT doing jack rabbit starts from stop lights can increase your fuel economy up to 30%.
If you don't like getting passed at stop lights, just ask yourself this question, Is that jerk in the faster car going to pay my gas bill? Makes it a lot easier to drive sensibly.
You should be trying to get the car into 5th gear as soon as possible. Sometimes you have to let up on the gas until you get and upshift then continue to accelerate.
Mark
Fordvehicles.com states that the Fusion has a, "5-Speed Manual Overdrive Transaxle". Really? This is Overdrive?
It's the same engine in both Escape and Fusion, yet the Fusion works 17% harder to move a lighter car at the same highway speed. Is it just me, or does 3000 rpm at 70 MPH sound like hi revs for a 5th gear Overdrive? Are there other Ford 5 speed manual trannies that run such high rpm's in Overdrive?
I ask because I either have an '06 Escape with a great combo of 2.3L motor and auto Overdrive tranny, or a lousy '06 Fusion with a buzzy 2.3L motor and 5 speed Overdrive manual tranny working a lot harder for the smae results.
I could not find specs for fusion, but for Mazda6 I found a spec showing final drive ratios of 4.388 or 3.863 for the 4 cyl. I am assuming these are the numbers for mtx and atx respectively...though the document does not really seem to clearly indicate this. This difference would equate to rpms of 3000 vs. 2600 at the same speed.
Has anyone else noticed anything like this?
In contrast to the Milan, the Fusion S seats seemed super-comfortable to me.
The Fusion uses variable valve timing, the Escape does not. The Fusion may develop its torque at a higher RPM.
I remember when the Audi TT came out, a sports car, that it turned 4k RPM at 80. Both the tach and the speedo pointed str8 up at 80mph and 4krpm.
The Fusion tranny is directly from the Mazda 6. It was specifically developed to be sporty. Having a shorter 5th gear gives you more passing power before having to down shift.
Mark
Ford claims this box is a "5 Speed manual Overdrive", which it is NOT. Overdrive, as I understand the common idea, lowers the engine speed (RPMs) for highway cruising - thus allowing the engine to work less hard, and the fuel economy to increase at high cruising speeds.
For the Fusion to really have a manual Overdrive transmission, there obviously needs to be a "6th" gear in this tranny, a legit "overdrive" gear. I can see where Ford wanted to have a peppy performance from the stick version 4, and I think it is plenty peppy, thank you, but claiming it is an Overdrive tranny is damn close to an outright lie.
I would like to hear from someone with a five speed AUTO tranny on the i4 motor to discover what RPMs are required to hold a steady 70 MPH.
I wanted the manual, BTW, but not the wife...alas, I let that one go, and it looks like maybe it was for the best.
Given it's in the mid 20K's, it is attractive as the euro AWD's are well into the $30K's and with mediocre reliability for your trouble. I'd consider Subaru and Suzuki but their dealers are very sparse ion my area, and Subaru is expensive.
What is the Fusions' AWD version like, anyone?
What kind of mileage do you get with AWD on the Fusion?
Is the system full time, or "emergency" (I.e., it only kicks in if the front wheels detect slippage (similar to GM's system).
IN comparison, the same test, same distance, same speed with a Mustang V6, I averaged 24-25MPG at around 3000RPM's.
It's all in retrospect, I-4's will deliver good fuel economy on most situations, but the downside is higher speeds, specifically over 55MPH since federal EPA testing limits that as the highway cycle. So automakers will tailor vehicles accordingly. Yes, a 6th gear would help a tad, but not by much. It would require a 6th to 4th (or even 3rd) in high speed downshifting situations since in most situations over 90MPH the I-4's are running breathless maxing it's HP just to keep cutting wind.
BTW, in this similar situation, drive very closely to a big 18-wheeler, and not only will you FEEL the difference, you will also see it in your fuel economy since the 18-wheeler is cutting the wind for you.
I would not care about mpg at that speed...70-80 mph would be more meaningful. I believe CR does their hwy test at a steady 65 mph, they got 29 for the V6 and 32 for the I4.
I don't think the idea of tailgating an 18 wheeler to improve gas mileage is so great either
Class-exclusive Active All-Wheel Drive System enhances the level of traction and control in all weather conditions.
On the highway, the vehicle is driven by the front wheels for good efficiency. When increased handling or traction is required, AWD actively controls power to
all four wheels independently.
This gives Fusion a balanced level of control.
• Seamless operation with no switch and totally
transparent operation
• Tuned with an emphasis on performance while offering
all-weather driving confidence
• Constantly predicts traction conditions and delivers
torque to the appropriate wheel by monitoring:
– Vehicle speed
– Throttle input
– Steering angle
• Helps eliminate torque steer and helps balance the
vehicle when cornering
• A quarter turn of the slipping wheel will activate the torque transfer
• An active on-demand coupler can deliver the
precise amount of torque to the rear wheels
• Paired with Traction Control, AWD can transfer 100
percent of the available torque side-to-side
Mark
I was wondering about the following and would like to get your thoughts.
1. When do think the duratech 35 will make it's debut in the Fusion and at what power? I don't see how they would put less than 250 hp., because of where the Ford Five Hundred will be as well as the Fusions competitors.
2. When will the Fusion get the new Ford/GM tranny?
3. When do you think the Fusion Coupe will make it's debut?
4. I wish Ford would put the adjustable center armrest in the Fusion like they have in the MKZ. I'm finding it difficult to get totally comfortable in the seat because the armrest is to far back.
Wrt traction control, is this a true brake-based system (spinning wheels are braked)?
GM's systems, by comparison, usually just reduce engine power and have proven to be of little use.
Besides the obvious safety concerns, wouldn't you be concerned about rocks hitting your car from the 18-wheeler? Talk about having your front hood having plenty of stone chips after such a trip.
There's no doubt that the Fusion's exterior styling is pretty darn sharp. I like it a lot myself--with the lone exception being the tail light assemblies. However, I like them a lot better than those found on the Nissan Altima. To me, the Altima's are garish! I truly hope that Ford does really, really well with the Fusion over the next few years. They should as nice as the overall product appears to be at this point in time, and I believe it will only keep getting better and better. As long as the Fusion's reliability proves to be really good for the first two model years, then their sales should increase dramatically for the third and fourth model years of the car.
I wish Ford the best of luck with the Fusion!
Ron M.
1./2. Yes the 3.5L will be fitted. So far the MKZ, Edge, MKX will debut the engine and have first rights...then the 500/Mtg/FS. Once the factories phase in the production of the 3.5L, over the 3.0L, then the Fusion/Milan will receive it. The Duratec30 will stay though, and used on 3 other products. Power will be roughly at what it's going for now, 263-265HP.
3. Still under consideration
4. I agree, luckily in my LS it's adjustable.
Venus,
Follow the bigrigs that aren't hauling construction debris or such and make sure they have splash guards on. Can't say I've had an encounter with stone chips. A bra usually helps as well, which I use on such trips...not so much for the stone chips, but mosquitos.
Curb weights:
2007 Ford Five Hundred SEL FWD: 3649 lbs.
2007 Ford Five Hundred SEL AWD: 3825 lbs.
Keep in mind the FH uses a CVT with it's AWD system for the time being so we'll have a better comparison soon when the 2008 FH gets the new Duratec35 and 6-Speed ATX paired with the AWD system. The CVT will be gone once the 3.5L goes under the hood in case anyone is wondering why I mentioned that.
You didn't even state specifically WHY you prefer one over the other based on actual experience. You don't site an article that states one is better than the other.
GM is famous for using cheaper versions of systems like ABS that used vacume power instead of a CPU. Don't automatically assume that Ford is the same.
Now I know on old Windstars that DID not have Electronic Throttle control, the brakes were used first then the spark was cut, you could smell the unburnt fuel.
Also your example of not wanting to loose power while crossing a wet street is a poor one. Spinning wheels aren't going to get you across that street any quicker.
ALSO i've plowed a 4x2 Explorer through 10 inches of snow with JUST the advance trac system. You had to kind of nurse it through, but it went.
Mark.
When I am driving around in my Fusion the car seems to bring out the agressive driver in some folks. I have been cut-off numerous times, tailgated to no end. Literally challenged at red lights, cars/Trucks/Suvs you name it...
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
This is the same Haldex AWD system that is used by Volvo and until recently Mercedes.
If you don't have anything other than negative unsubstantiated comments to make, keep them to yourself.
Incidently, Fusion is just won JD Powers Most Appealing Mid-size Sedan.
Mark.
What I got out of the comments here was the Ford AWD system is inheriently front wheel biased, and designed to promote rear wheel traction if the front wheels loose traction.
That's a __good__ thing.
And __good__ that Ford won the JD Powers award. It is nice to have AWD alternatives.
A4 and up have Torsen (Torque sensing) center differential with longitudinally mounted engine. Under normal condition it runs 50/50 front/rear split (now changed to 40/60 for more sporty characteristics), which then changes depending on driving conditions. Big advantage of the system is that it is primarily mechanical (with electronic support, of course), which makes the response "instanteneus", or even "proactive" - nature of the differential is such that
A3 and TT use Haldex clutch, which is also used by other manufacturers (like Volvo) - designed to work with transverse engines. Advantage of those is less space and weight premium, cost (I think) and better fuel efficiency. However, they rely much heavier on electronics, which basically creates an inherent delay in response. Moreover, the manufacturers often set them to be FWD in normal conditions and employ rear wheels after slip occurs. It is basically "reactive" system. In extreme situations, it can be even dangerous, as the changes of driving characteristics may be sudden and unexpected (delay!). But truthfully, nobody should drive that way at the first place
Ford's (Volvo's, Mazda's) systems are similar to the latter (Haldex based).
2018 430i Gran Coupe
The "instantaneous" advantage of Torsen might be a bit overrated. A regular Haldex system takes only 150 milliseconds to stop wheel spin completely. (That's about the time it takes an air bag to fully deploy.) Haldex systems with PreX (Pre-charge or Instant Traction) can deliver up to 1200 lbs ft of torque "instantaneously", and 1700 lbs ft in 1/60th of a rotation.
Just to make it clear - Haldex is a good system, probably sufficient for most people and it's getting better. I suspect that under normal conditions a normal driver would not even distinguish between them. But if it was trully better, WRC vehicles would be using it and they don't.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
Is Haldex better overall than Torsen? I cannot say, but electronic control is an advantage of an Haldex differential over a Torsen differential, IMO. I'm sure Torsen has advantages in other areas, but I still think the instantaneous thing is a bit overrated. For one thing, there are now Haldex differentials that are also "instantaneous."
Besides, the question might not be all that important, because the superiority of one AWD system over another goes well beyond the type of differential used. You can build a inferior/superior system using either one.
If all one wants AWD for is to have better traction in a few situations, such as when launching or snow, then Haldex is a good compromise.
IMHO, adding a Haldex-based AWD system to a basically FWD platform makes more sense than a more expensive RWD platform.
I agree - if we are talking about "budget" style design, aimed at meeting a specific price point. If one looks for "more" (whatever that means) and mileage is not a big issue, real full time AWD is the way to go.
There is also another aspect - if one has a "dormant" AWD that only activates in compromised traction, they really need to know how to react to changing handling characteristics. But nobody really teaches that. With full-time AWD, it comes natural, as the car is more predictable for its driver.
2018 430i Gran Coupe
> not contribute to any more confusion and return to the
> focus of this topic
^^^^^
Focus is a different forum...:)
Mark
Overall, people are amazed that Ford turned out such a vehicle.
Mark
2018 430i Gran Coupe
Also try spilling a soda on both a leather and cloth seat and see which one is easier to clean up.
I've sat on plenty of leather. While some is okay, it is never as comfortable as cloth. I rather have what is most comfortable...you can feel free to contimue to overpay for your plastic coated leather upolstery