As you all know, I’ve been teetering at the edge of a new car purchase for quite a few months. This search was hastened as the Mazda suffered from two pretty intense accidents, the first with a deer, the second with a jeep.
This put me in a tough spot. The accident with the Jeep totaled the Mazda. So I needed a new car ASAP. Thankfully, I had already done some research and had decided upon the 2012 Ford Fusion SEL.
Why the Fusion?
The Fusion provides a middle of the road choice. With this car I can feel confident that I’m not overdoing it, but still afford some of the options that enhance driving pleasure. This is a car that could provide me some comfort without breaking the bank for performance that I wouldn’t utilize to its fullest potential.
Sure, it doesn’t have the flare of a BMW or Acura TL… let’s not forget that roommate Nick had even deemed the Fusion as Vanilla… But the price tag is much easier to take. Plus, since my company is a member of the X-plan, negotiating was cake. The end price for the SEL ended up hovering around 26k. Negotiations took all of 20 minutes and got me about $3,200 off the sticker price.
Basics:
2.5L 175HP I4 FWD
~33 MPG

A few of the luxuries:
Leather interior
Microsoft SYNC
Heated seats
Power everything
Moonroof
Surprisingly enjoyable ambient lighting
Passanger temp controls

My general thoughts: So far so good. The car drives well. It’s comfortable and as a mid-size, much more spacious than I’m used to.
You may have noticed it’s not a standard. I decided to bail on that criteria after realizing that the only manual options were bare-bones. No options, no luxuries.
Microsoft SYNC is ridiculous. The car will connect to my iPhone via bluetooth – nothing special about that. But more than just phone, SYNC can play my music collection via bluetooth as well… or Pandora if I want to stream that. It’s pretty snazzy.
It has a 17 gallon gas tank. Holy Moly this is convenient. When leisurely highway driving is in the mix this equates to 600 miles without needing to fill up.

I love the interior and the shape of the car. I’m not a huge fan of the faux spoiler – seems unnecessary. But that’s not a big deal for me.
Complaints? The visibility stinks. I opted not to spend the extra $1000 for the ‘driver vision’ package. This included a back-up camera and Blind Spot indicators. In retrospect, this would be nice. I’m pretty sure someone could put a picnic bench behind the car and it’d be impossible to see it while in reverse.
Special thanks to all those people who provided recommendations as to what I should purchase. I took everything into consideration and really appreciate the time you donated to the cause. Thanks!!