I have read with interest the review by Rohit (very well written I think and very accurate) and also with some dismay the criticism of comparing the Ford Fusion hatchback to Getz and other vehicles. Others have done it before. Here is one: https://bsmotoring.com/2005/feb19_1.htm .
Having said that, we must accept that we are in a country where the choice of vehicles available in the domestic market is still greatly restricted. Thus we do not have a plethora of hatchbacks to compare the Fusion with so one has to find the closest match. If some of them are different in what they do or how much they cost, well that can’t be helped. It’s like comparing cricketing all rounders with other pure batsmen/bowlers or all rounders with differently stacked skill sets.
Yet again, it maybe like comparing apples and oranges (although I think its more like alphonsoes and langdaas) but sometime one has to do that when the question is not which apple to have but which fruit and why. :-)
I haven’t yet bought the Ford Fusion but am very likely to do so in the next couple of days and I have gone through a wide range of vehicles. Yes my needs were specific and it was difficult to find one vehicle that matched perfectly.
I am 56 and retiring (a bit) early to do things I love before my body packs up.
I have been a CEO for 21 years and have had company vehicles for most of my working career and two company vehicles for last 15 years. I had to decide what vehicles to buy as I prepare to retire. My first self owned vehicles in thirty years!!
I live in Mumbai with my wife and two Labradors who make up our family as my sons are settled in the US. I wanted to buy an SUV as my first vehicle because a) I have got bored of sedans and two because my wife is fed up of our cars smelling of dogs. So I thought I would buy an SUV in which we could travel as a family and get my wife a smaller car like the Swift in which our canine kids won’t be allowed. However my wife vetoed the SUV since she wanted a sedan as the first vehicle. Hence I made, my best ever decision in personal asset buying and got myself a black three liter Honda Accord. I am in love with it. However, it has compounded our problems for the second vehicle.
We originally thought we would have two vehicles one bigger and one smaller. One for long distance and one for city driving. One in which dogs would be allowed and one in which they wouldn’t. One, at least, that would not be a petrol guzzler. One at least that would be in the 5-8 lakh range.
Now we were stuck. My wife refuses to let the labs into the Accord. Smell is not the only issue. Not being a hatchback and rear seats not being foldable they would have to sit on the plush seats and were liable to damage them (so she claims).
So now we wanted a second vehicle that would be smaller than the Accord, have reasonable fuel consumption, be suitable for city driving AND accommodate the kids!!
Can you think of the vehicles that can do the job?
I would have loved the Swift but even with folded rear seats it would have been tight if we wanted to take any other luggage or a maid on a trip out of town.
I thought of the Innova in spite of its huge size because it would take the family AND had option of automatic transmission but it’s so ugly and I find the suspension extremely bad and long distance ride very uncomfortable. Besides the body is very fragile and Innovas will get dented if you slapped them hard enough like the Tata Indicas.
I looked at the Palio Adventure which looked decent enough from outside but as bad as any Bombay cab from inside.
I ruled out all Tata vehicles since I have used one once and blacklisted the company for good.
I could have (and still may) waited for the hatchback version of the Aveo but it may be delayed and the reviews in countries where it’s been launched are not great.
I even thought of going back to the original idea of buying an SUV and toyed with the Tucson but besides two expensive vehicles both of which would retire at the same time (I bought the Accord earlier this year) it would mean my wife really couldn’t call it "her" car even though she doesn’t drive herself.
So what did it leave me? Nothing. And then I recalled the Fusion.
I had first seen it when I was short listing for my ’first’ vehicle. I had gone to a Ford dealer to look at the Ford Mondeo (a terrific vehicle by the way) and saw the Fusion in the showroom. I thought then it was a lovely vehicle. Yesterday passing outside the Ford showroom in Thane, I remembered it and stopped. My wife and I went in and saw a white Ford Fusion and liked everything about it.
I am spoilt by the Accord but its has a very good pick up for a 1600cc. Ride is comfortable and it can accomodate my dogs and a maid and my wife likes it too !!
Now. I know my requirement was specific but can you believe the number of vehicles I rejected (Getz, Scorpio etc were some others) before deciding that Fusion hatchback might be it.
:-)
PS I have given average rating to dealer and reliability since I cant really comment on them yet but its a MUST under this format.