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Dearborn, Mich. — In a segment increasingly populated with humdrum basic transportation, the 2006 Ford Fusion is a mid-size sedan designed for people who flat-out love to drive.
With a choice of two smooth-revving engines, automatic or manual transaxles, four-wheel independent suspension and enthusiast-oriented brakes and steering, Fusion delivers the kind of acceleration, braking, ride and handling traditionally associated with pricier segments.
"Fusion does what you want it to do," says Kerry Baldori, Fusion vehicle engineering manager. "It's light and nimble, with responsive steering, yet it always feels planted."
STIFF CHASSIS DELIVERS BETTER RIDE AND HANDLING
As with any great driver's car, satisfying ride and confident handling are rooted in a stiff chassis with well-designed suspensions. To that end, Fusion engineers improved upon the already outstanding CD3 base architecture making it 12.7 percent more torsionally rigid.
Among the many benefits of a taut chassis is that it allows the vehicle to respond more precisely to inputs. Computer-aided engineering was used to test every phase of Fusion's design to ensure tight body-shell tolerances and class-leading rigidity.
Taking advantage of its stout structure, Fusion employs fully independent suspension systems front and rear. In front is a short- and long-arm design. In back is a clever multi-link design that works like a double wishbone arrangement by limiting lateral forces on the springs for more composure. Fusion uses the pioneering rear suspension introduced on the award-winning Ford Focus as a starting point for this system.
The mutual harmony and balance of the Fusion's ride and handling carry right over to its braking and steering.
ENGINES TUNED FOR PERFORMANCE, ECONOMY AND EMISSIONS
The soul of any driver's car is its engine, and Fusion offers a choice of Ford's 2.3-liter Duratec 23 I-4 or 3.0-liter Duratec 30 V-6.
The Duratec 23 I-4 delivers 160 horsepower and 150 foot-pound of torque. Durable and efficient, this 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine is expected to earn a highway fuel-economy rating in the low 30s, paired with either a five-speed manual or automatic transaxle. The manual transmission offers a driver a higher degree of involvement—and fun—via the interplay of throttle clutch and gears.
What's more, the Duratec 23 I-4 will be certified as a Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle in California. It will be the Ford brand's third PZEV application, after the Focus PZEV and Escape Hybrid.
For even more power, there's the 210-horsepower Duratec 30 V-6, which is paired with an advanced six-speed automatic transaxle. The 3.0-liter's 200 foot-pound of torque helps it achieve class-leading acceleration during passing at freeway speeds. It's expected to be about a second faster than cars in its competitive set from 55-75 mph, and it records 0-60 mph times in less than 8.5 seconds.
The I-4 employs a direct-acting mechanical bucket tappet valvetrain, while the V-6 engine uses a hydraulic lash adjusted roller-finger follower valvetrain. Both engines feature 150,000-mile tune-up intervals, utilizing coil-on-plug ignition. And the electronic throttle control works with both automatic transaxles to deliver smooth gear changes by adjusting throttle plate movement to tailor torque to the timing of each shift.
The top two gears of each of the three transmissions available in the 2006 Fusion have overdrive ratios. These ratios of less than 1:1 allow engine speeds to be lower—and thus more fuel efficient—during cruising.
The six-speed automatic of the Duratec 30 allows the engine to turn at or near its point of peak efficiency no matter what gear is being used.
Of further benefit is the fact that the greater number of gears leads to enhanced performance. During acceleration, the engine remains closer to its peak power level. And drive smoothness is enhanced as the change in engine rpm is reduced for each gear transition.
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