TO THE POINTWhat’s New? The 2006 Ford Fusion is an all-new mid-sized sedan based on the Mazda6 platform. Selling Points: Low price, terrific interior qualities, intriguing styling, solid road manners Deal Breakers: Standard features don’t measure up to some of its competitors, slightly under powered. Our Advice: Take a good and serious look, but be sure to compare with the Hyundai Sonata and others.
Inspired by the 2001 Ford 427 concept car, the Fusion sports a bold and attractive three-bar grille that is going to become the face of Ford in coming years, and adds strangely-angled trapezoidal headlights on either side. Front to rear, the sedan gets boring pretty quickly, culminating with a high and short rear decklid with just enough style to matter. Part form and function, the high decklid and compact suspension setup enable the Fusion to offer a spacious trunk with flat cargo space and a low liftover height.