Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan

blumstein

Enjoy! Please post your impressions after you drive it for a while. Paul

blumstein

I have a 2007 Milan. The worst thing is not being able to judge where the back of the car is when parallel parking. (Yes, you've heard that before from many people).

I notice that the 2008 has an optional backup sensor. I figured that would solve the problem for others; I ain't about to trade in a new car. Someone I know told me that one of his cars (a Mercedes, I believe) has those sensors but they are worthless since they pick up everything... i.e., too sensitive.

I was wondering whether any of you have the Fusion/Milan sensors and what you think of them.

Paul

akirby

Parallel parking? I haven't parallel parked in at least 10 years. Everything here in North Atlanta has been converted to diagonal parking (pull in, back out).

I have a 2006 Fusion and it took me about 6 months to get used to the view out of the rear and being able to judge the distance - now it's not a problem. You can get aftermarket backup sensors and even a backup camera if it's really a problem.

urnews

I have a 2006 Fusion and it took me about 6 months to get used to the view out of the rear and being able to judge the distance - now it's not a problem.

Congratulations Allen. We've had our 2007 Ford Fusion exactly one year as of today and I still haven't gotten used to the view when trying to back up. Rear visibility is certainly not one of the Fusion's strong points.

akirby

The thing that bothered me the most at first was the distortion in the rear window. It makes cars behind you appear to be skinnier than they really are. Maybe they need one of those messages on the rear view mirror - Objects in Mirror are wider than they appear.

mschmal

Go for the rear spoiler if you can. This spoiler ends at the bottom edge of the rear window and deletes the third brake light on the parcel shelf that seems to block so much rear glass.

Mark

taylor69

Try adjusting the height of the mirror.....kind of hard to explain, but look at the "arm" that connects the mirror to the windshield. Adjust the arm to the highest possible position. This will improve rear visibility AND reduce/eliminate the distortion that you are experiencing.

focus090

so i got my new 2008 fusion a week ago and i love it. its a SE v6, silver exterior with black interior, and a rear spoiler. i love it, its such a sturdy car and its just so smooth. are there any little secrets about it that i should know? like certain hits on the info display to display something other than the norm? just curious. i've read all the info on the car and would hate to miss something. i also noticed that distortion when i flip the rearview mirror to night viewing. it hurts my damn eyes! i look forward to reading more that you guys all put up, and i'll keep postin'.

biznaga

Read somewhere where the moon roof decreases head room in the Milan (Fusion too, I guess).

Anybody know for sure?

akirby

A moonroof decreases headroom by a couple of inches in almost EVERY car. It's normal. There has to be somewhere for the roof panel to go when it opens.

biznaga

Thanks, Makes sense. Guess I will have to actually sit in one to see if it bothers me or not.

akirby

Totally depends on the car. Some have plenty of room with one and some have no room without one. Make sure the seat is adjusted properly for height when you do the comparison.

scape2

Ford is doing great stuff and its coming down the pipeline!
Imagine a 275HP 4cyl Fusion! With great MPG at that!

http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=27455 :shades:

Karen_S

A reporter seeks to interview buyers of models equipped with Ford Sync. Please respond to jfallon@edmunds.com no later than Friday, February 1 with your daytime contact information and a sentence or two about why you purchased Sync.

scape2

Owner of an 06 SEL V6 Fusion loaded with every option. I have now reached about 27,000 trouble free miles. This car is solid, reliable and a very good value. Spent thousands less for a comparable Accord/Camry. Think out of the box....

smokeyjoe

Hi all,

I have owned two Fords in the past ('97 Escort, '01 ZX2) and two Camrys ('00, '03), all of which have essentially been completely trouble-free. The Camrys have had excellent rides, but the thigh support and awkward steering wheel placement always left me very uncomfortable, especially on long drives.

I test drove a number of cars on the market, including the Accord and Altima, and came back to the Fusion, as it has a ride very comparable to the Camry, and the interior is MUCH better than the Camry's....much more comfortable.

I bought an SEL V6 with Moon & Tunes and leather interior. I now have 1,200 miles on it, and the car has not developed any rattles or squeaks, and has been very pleasurable to drive. I must say that for the cost, I am not sure why there isn't more chatter about the Fusion vs. the Accord and Camry.....Ford makes extremely reliable vehicles, and they are exceptional values compared to the imports. I still own my '03 Camry (wife's car now), but I anticipate replacing it with a Fusion down the road.

I will note that the leather seat bolstering is very weak and will smoosh to nothingness after a few weeks. Luckily, my dealership (Tom Wood Ford in Indianapolis) provides EXCEPTIONAL customer service and had their seat guy fix this under warranty...essentially, the seats are now better than new. Also, the moonroof will take away a good 2 - 3 inches of headroom, and the way the roof liner is connected is not helping matters, since it uses velcro that does not firmly attach. The dealer noted this was common to all Fusions with moonroofs and there is no fix.....

Overall, I would not hesitate to replace this car with another Fusion if something happened to it. This is truly a Camry-killer......

keithm1

I wonder who may have had this problem. I had the liscense plate light system replaced last year. They seem to over heat. I don't think I'm the only one. A few weeks back the power lock on the front passenger side failed. You couldn't lock the door any way you tried. If you did the key fob & locked them, it still didn't work. The alarm would go off, however if you opened the front passenger door. Both issues were fixed in short time by the dealer under warranty. I DO consider these to be very minor issues compared to the overall satisfaction. I still hope for the '09 year they drop in the 3.5 V6. Might make me consider trading next year.

fredvp

Hi
I have a '08 Fusion. I've noticed that the
starter seems to be automatic. I just
have to turn and hold the key at start for
a instant and release it and it finishes
cranking itself. I don't recall the dealer
mentioning that!
Fred

akirby

I think it's called Easy Start or something like that. It's not even mentioned much in the media releases. It's a precursor to the hybrid system that auto-starts the engine.

mschmal

One other trick is to turn to the own position then wait for at least one ding from the seatbelt minder to allow the fuel pump to spool up.

As for the 2009. Will it be the 3.5L Or will we just get the new heads for the 3.0 with 230 hp like in the 09 Escape?

Its hard to understand why Ford is not dropping the 3.0 altogether as they have more than enough capacity for the 3.5 which is probably similar cost and has better fuel econ.

Mark

akirby

The tweaked 3.0L reportedly has better fuel economy and I don't think they have the capacity to produce 80-100K additional 3.5L engines for the Fusion/Milan not to mention the new Flex plus the 3.7L variant for the MKS. I think they'll offer the 3.5L in some capacity - on the Milan or maybe as a special edition.

scape2

that it actually is a capacity issue with the 3.5 right now. The 3.5 is going more into the higher level Ford vehicles. Also read the new 3.0 will have about 240HP, the new 2.5 4cyl will have about 180HP and an "optional" 3.5 will have about 270 HP. All this is supposed to take place in 2009-10 model redo.
Myself, I do enjoy my 06 Fusion SEL V6. However, my life is changing, kids are growing up. I will be trading my Fusion for a Verve!..

graydude1

Has anyone found an aftermarket source for a moonroof visor? I get so much pressure buffeting when mine is open that I have to close it 50%. I'm hoping a visor or airdam will help. Any suggestions?

au1994

I just spent about 100 miles in a Milan Premier on a business trip. I walked away impressed. Very comfortable, plenty of power and good MPG. According to the computer I got 23 MPG in some spirited hwy driving. Car seemed to be put together very well and was holding up jusr fine to 9700 rental car miles.

The only negative I noticed in my 100 miles was it seemed a little noisey when accelerating, but thats pretty minor. At speed I thought the noise level was acceptable.

Not in the market right now, but the Fusion/Milan would warrant consideration if I was. And for the record we have an 07 Passat Wagon and an 06 Ram as out vehicles right now.

mschmal

Capacity is not an issue. Ford retooled Cleveland Engine Plant #1 last year then never started prodcution. They were suppose to start it up this quarter but have delayed that until forth quarter 08.

Mark

theman123

Well I'm glad to hear that you were impressed with the Milan. Question was your car a V6 or a 4 banger ? The 4 banger is know to be allot more noisier for the simple fact that it doesn't have as much horsepower as the V6 causing it to work harder. If it was the V6 the engine is really a 10 year old reworked V6. So, it's not as refined sounding as other more modern V6 engines made by other companies. Also, Ford put it in the Fusion/Milan because it's tried and true. All the quality problems are long gone. That's why the Fusion/ Milan rank so high in quality because of the old engines.

explorerx4

i expect to be picking up my fusion in a couple of days, so i will be able to post her soon.

au1994

it was a 4 banger. Noise aside I was pleasantly surprised by the pick up.

savetheland

Actually 2.3L I4 is not an old engine, it is pretty modern. It was developed in 2000s jointly by Mazda and Ford and it is darn good engine. It is not so unrefined as you described. I had it on my Ford Focus and it was blast to drive.

theman123

Thanks savetheland, I'm not dogging you or telling you off. However, I should have stated it more clearly that I was talking about the V6 not the 2.3 liter 4 banger not being very refined by modern standards. I know the 2.3 liter is a fine engine. Mazda uses it in allot of the cars. Mazda, has a turbo charged direct inject version of the 2.3 liter engine in the Mazdaspeed 3 and it's kicking out 260 HP. People and critics alike have raved about the 2.3 liter engine. As far as your Focus. The Focus community is heated that Ford dropped the 2.3 liter from the Ford Focus and going soley with the smaller more fuel efficient 2.0 liter engine.

However, the Duratec V6 has been around since the Taurus. It was state-of-the-art 20 years ago but it's a reliable work horse compared to modern engines. Don't get me wrong I'm not dogging the V6. I had a 1995 Ford Taurus and I loved that car dearly. When you stepped on it. The engine sounded like it was about to explode. I would get and Fusion/Milan with the V6 no questions asked. The only thing that would stop me from getting the V6 is that fact that gas might hit $4.00/gallon by the end of the summer. So, I would want a more fuel efficient 4 cylinder engine.

The 221 HP V6 engine was one of the biggest complaints against the Lincoln Zephyr which is now the MKZ. Critics said that the Duratec V6 is a good motor but it's not made for a luxury car. So, that should give you a good idea of how refined the motor sounds. Along with the fact that allot of other car manufactures had V6's with more power than the 221 HP Zephyr. That's why Lincoln dropped the old V6 in favor of the new 3.5 V6 for the MKZ. People love that engine and it was one of wards 10 best engines in 2006 or 2007. Along with that the MKZ sales have been up 56% year-to-date.

oshkosh49

Actually, the 3.0L V6 that was in the Taurus 20 years ago was the Vulcan V6, not the newer Duratec V6. Two completely different V6 designs. The older Vulcan V6 was a two valve per cylinder, overhead valve, pushrod design. The newer Duratec 3.0L is an four valve per cylinder, double overhead cam design.

Yes, Ford made a couple mistakes with the Duratec V6.

First, they put the 203 HP version of this 3.0L into the Ford Five-Hundred (new Taurus) and the Mercury Montego (new Sable), which are larger cars than the Fusion/Milan. They had to correct that mistake by replacing the 3.0L with the 3.5L in the Taurus (old Five-Hundred) and the Sable (old Montego).

Second mistake, they did the same thing with Zephyr/MKZ. The Zephyr at least got the 221 HP version to begin with. But when you're competing against the Cadillac CTSs and Acura TLs of the world, it seemed like Ford didn't come fully loaded to the fight.

akirby

Just a note - the Zephyr wasn't even supposed to exist. It was rushed to market when the LS sales tanked and it was eventually killed. The MKZ that debuted for 2007 was the car that was originally planned. Of course the 3.5L should have been ready for the 2006 models anyway - it was at least 2 years behind. And Lincoln shouldn't have been in such a position with their car lineup. But they were so they had to make the best of it.

I don't think we'll see those mistakes with the current regime once they recover from all of the mistakes of the past.

mz6greyghost

Actually, the 3.0L V6 that was in the Taurus 20 years ago was the Vulcan V6, not the newer Duratec V6. Two completely different V6 designs. The older Vulcan V6 was a two valve per cylinder, overhead valve, pushrod design. The newer Duratec 3.0L is an four valve per cylinder, double overhead cam design.

That's correct. The DT was first introduced in 2.5L form in 1993, and was offered in the Contour. The Taurus didn't get the DT until 1996, when the 3.0L debuted, replacing the 3.8L V6. The 3.0L Vulcan V6 was still considered the "base" engine, with the DT as an "option".

oshkosh49

I had a 1991 Ford Probe LX with the 3.0L Vulcan V6 with a 5-speed manual. It was only rated at around 140 HP. (But I had a 1986 Ford Escort just before with an 86 HP 4 cylinder. So the Probe was very quick in comparison.) Then a few years later they came out with the 2.5L Duratec V6 for the Probe GT, rated at 165 HP. I don't recall which year it was that Ford increased the size of the 2.5L Duratec to 3.0L.

Today, I own a Silver Birch Clearcoat Metallic 2006 Milan Premier with the 3.0L V6, with the Medium Light Stone two-tone leather seats, and Wales Mahogany Wood Trim Package. Very happy and satisfied 22,000 miles so far. No mechanical issues at all. Zero, None. Totally reliable.

Then you read all the Toyota Camry reviews with the continuous auto transmission problems and you realize that reality hasn't caught up with the perception.

savetheland

I had ‘94 Taurus with Vulcan 3.0L V6. It is a ridiculous engine, even for ‘94 – less powerful than e.g. Toyota I4 in Camry from same model year, much less refined and consumes inappropriate amount of gas for what you get in return. 3.0L Duratec was a huge leap forward. I have it in my Sable. It is not as refined as other modern engines but is fuel efficient enough (I get 24 mpg on daily average) and it least you can drive fast. It lacks low end torque though and intake resonates unpleasantly at low rmps. There are also unpleasant vibrations at idle. Acceleration is not as good as in other cars. New version on Fusion/Milan does not have issues with idle vibration and engine sound a little bit more refined but still low end torque is not sufficient. In general this engine seems to be reliable but not fuel efficient by modern standards and low rpm torque is a real issue while driving in city.

Ford Focus with 2.3L Duratec feels like sports car compared with my Sable with 3.0L Duratec. Ford can replace 3.0L Duratec with I4 with turbo. It will make nose lighter also, takes less space under hood and easier to maintain.

keithm1

Yeah, I saw the verve, a nice looking car. Perhaps a little "supercharging" will help with the horse power issue while maintaing good fuel milage.

explorerx4

sel awd, color alloy. only had it for a few days.
it looked good on the lot, but looks great on the street.
getting a lot of looks from drivers of other mid sizers.
the awd doesn't seem to be as 'front drivey' as the focus,
which is good for me because i like rwd.
steering/handling is not as taut as the focus(zts), but pretty balanced.
compared to the focus i traded, the headlights are way better.
gas mileage won't be in the same league (duh!),
but i can't tell how it will shake out, yet.
i also have an explorer, but don't drive it often.
the fusion still seems big, compared to the focus i was used to driving.

mschmal

Typical "american car" shopper. "OH I don't want a 4 cylinder"

me: But the 2.3L I4 in the new Fusion uses modern technology to produce 160 hp which is 5 more hp than the V6 in your 94 Taurus.

Oh I know I don't want a 4 cylinder I had one back in the 80s and that car couldn't get out of its own way.

Mark

explorerx4

i wanted the awd. if a 4cyl was available with it, that would have been my first choice.

mschmal

Wasn't trying to pick on you for getting the 3.0L Duratec, I was just trying to explain why Ford stuck with the OHV 3.0L Vulcan V6 for so long.

I remember when I was 14yo reading a review about the new 1986 Ford Taurus in Popular Mechanics and they were gushing about the new Vulcan V6. Times change. Ford stuck with that engine for so long because it met the needs of the Taurus customer and was basically bullet proof.

Mark

keithm1

Sure..Go to any VIP(or other auto store)They should keep sun roof visors in stock(kind of generic fits all)I got one about 30in. wide. Definately does the trick abou t $25 or so.

keithm1

I just did a long survey for Ford(through a third party survey co.)It looks like they plan to drop in the 3.5 V6 in a limited high end sport package. The engine will be "detuned" a little..down to 250HP.With all wheel drive/sport package, i t should sell for about $30 or so fully loaded.

akirby

That appears to be the plan but not for the 09 model. It should be in the 2010 model which actually starts production in December and hits the streets next January.

explorerx4

i assume you are referring to opening the roof all the way back. in my last car and this one, i usually just use the tilt. opening the right rear window a bit creates a nice swirl.

brucelinc

Keith mentioned "detuning" it to around 250 HP. I haven't heard that and can't imagine why they would do it. If the D35 is only for a high end sport model, it would make more sense to give it DI and increase the power. What are you hearing?

akirby

Haven't heard anything about "detuning" either. It's the same engine/tranny that's in the FWD/AWD Edge and it handles the power just fine. And I think the tranny is also in the 270 hp 3.7L MKS. I don't see any reason to detune the engine other than to keep it from competing with the 3.5L MKZ (if the Z doesn't get the 3.7L). That would make sense for the old Ford but that doesn't sound like something Fields would do. Then again, I've been wrong before.

keithm1

The "thinly" veiled Ford survey was trying to gather info. as to how much to charge for a 250HP V-6 sport option. From the way it looks, if you load the car with all options(3.5V-6 inc.)the price will stay under 30K. With Chevy's nice(and it is)Malibu, Ford has to keep competitive price wise.Given Ford's quality VS Chevy I still plan to stick with Mercury. I'll test the new car car when it comes out(may even trade in a 2 year old Milan for the xtra power.

explorerx4

i never thought i would use the storage bin in the center of the dash, but it is pretty handy.
my last car had a clutch, so i like the dead pedal.
the heat seems to work really well, too. pretty high on my list.
back when i was in college in vermont, i drove a vw thing.
it had a gas heater, but that dropped the gas mileage.
i used to soak towels in water then put them around the windows.
they would freeze for a few months and keep the breeze out.

brucelinc

Well, there is certainly more to "sport" than just power. However, the 3.5 puts out 263 HP currently and I see no reason for it to have less in a Fusion ST or whatever they call the sport model. If they detuned it to 250 HP, would come up short compared to Accord, Altima, Malibu, or Camry V6s.

I would like to think that in the survey, they just pulled the 250 HP number out of the air. I think they are still looking at getting more power out of the 3.0 - something like 240 in some applications, if I recall. A 250 HP 3.5 doesn't make sense.

fulcrumb

I'm currently leasing an"06 Milan With the Duratec V6 I've been getting 22.4 mpg according to the trip computer, and I have not reset the mpg function for about 11k mi. Actually I'd be fine if they offered the 2.5l version thatI have in my '99 Cougar as an option. But overall, I like the car; just a few peeves. 1) The passenger-side airbag lid is discoloring vs. the rest of the dash (charcoal interior) 2)The clock has a slightly different font and lighting than the rest of the instruments- why, in an otherwise tasteful and nicely appointed interior slap that mail order looking clock in the dash? 3) the turn signal stalk is set at a wonky angle- needs to be dropped down about 30 degrees.
Nostalgia corner / concerning the hoary old Vulcan V6. i was selling Fords back in 1986. That 3.0l V6 was pretty advanced at that time. 140 net hp/160 ftlb torque, sequential multiport fi. Accord and Camry didn't offer V6's as I recall, and there was GM's 2.8l V6 and Chrysler was using a Mitsubishi-sourced 3.0l V6. The early Vulcans had an aggressive throttle tip-in- they'd really launch away from a stoplight.