GS69

All New 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid to Get 47-48 City MPG

The all-new, entirely redesigned 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid sedan may be rated by the EPA as high as 47 or 48 mpg on the city cycle, according to reports on a website that follows Ford news.

The redesigned Ford Fusion sedan will be largely identical to the next Ford Mondeo sedan for Europe under the "1 Ford" plan that entails selling the same models worldwide.

But sales of the hybrid model will likely be highest in North America, where this year's model is rated at 41 mpg city, 36 mpg highway, for a combined rating of 39 mpg.

European buyers will be offered the choice of a turbocharged clean-diesel engine, which North American buyers won't. Instead, the highest gas mileage will come from the hybrid sedan.

The redesigned Fusion Hybrid will almost surely use a new, more compact lithium-ion battery pack, as Ford joins Honda and other hybrid makers in starting the switch from the older, bulkier nickel-metal-hydride battery packs to newer lithium cells.

Ford hopes that the new Fusion will sell as much as 50% more than its predecessor, adding another U.S. model to the battle against the perennial top 2 in midsize sedans, the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.

The company is continuing to refine its hybrid-electric drive system, which first debuted in late 2004 on the Ford Escape Hybrid crossover. That model may now be replaced entirely with the Ford C-Max Hybrid and Energi (plug-in hybrid) models.

Ford said last week it plans to sell the C-Max only in hybrid and plug-in hybrid models, and had canceled plans to sell a 7-seat gasoline version of the small minivan.

The new Fusion, which will start production in January, is likely to be sold as a 2013 model, though Ford hasn't officially provided any details on the car.

An all-new version of the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid, which shares much of its understructure with the Fusion Hybrid, is likely to be delayed until the 2013 model year for additional work to distinguish its styling from that of the Fusion, according to the website.

SLegacy99

But can they produce enough to meet demand?

Hopefully, if this is as good as they claim, a 2.0L ecoboosted hybrid could do well in a vehicle like the Edge, Taurus, and the like....though it may be costly.

lamar411

Does anyone have sales number for the Fusion Hybrid? And Ford has really worked off the stigma, i wouldnt mind owning one of those.

spwolf

around 2k per month i think... if they got some high numbers like 48-49MPG, then they would also certainly get more than 50% rise in sales.

jadu

iTrader: (42)

I wouldnt mind having one as well. The next gen looks really promising. Will this next gen share the same chassis as the mazda6? mazda ****ed up

E6BAV8R

I've personally seen 37.X in my 2006 IS 250 (with 79,XXX miles) on the highway, and I think it looks 50x better than that Fusion.

jadu

iTrader: (42)

lol your comparing apples and bananas. 37mpg is damn good on the 2.5v6 but not achievable in stop and go city driving

SLegacy99

5,099 as of April.

Sulu

I am not sure if a turbocharged engine would work well in a hybrid vehicle that has a continuously-variable transmission (CVT), like the Fusion Hybrid has. A CVT keeps engine rpm constant. That constant engine rpm could be below the range where the turbocharger has any real effect OR it could keep the engine rpm at the range where the turbocharger produces boost. If engine rpm stays below the turbocharger's boost zone, it would just be added weight, so why add the turbocharger then? If engine rpm stays in the turbocharger's boost zone, that would cancel out the fuel efficiency of the hybrid system.

The efficiency of a turbocharged car compared to a larger-displacement engine is that the extra boost from the turbo comes in only if you purposely increase engine rpm into the turbo's boost zone (adding power for quick acceleration) but then back off once you have reached your desired speed (and the transmission shifts up, decreasing engine rpm back into the economical zone). If you always drive lightly (and never get into the turbo's boost zone), you don't need a turbo. If you always drive with a heavy foot (in a lower gear and keep the turbo in its boost zone) you are consuming a lot of fuel (and putting a lot of constant stress on the engine).

The next-gen Fusion is supposed to share a platform with the next-gen Ford Mondeo. I don't know what platform the next-gen Mazda6 will ride on, but now that Ford no longer controls Mazda, the Mazda6 may no longer share a platform with Ford.

IS350jet

Today's turbos can reach full boost at speeds as low as 2000 RPM. Most new turbocharged cars begin to spool just off idle. I don't thing it's a concern.

SLegacy99

This.

Years ago, Subaru had a turbo hybrid concept.

spwolf

it doesnt make sense to add turbo to hybrid because it is too expensive.

but what he was saying is that efficiency comes when turbo is not spooling, which is correct... if you were to drive turbo engine at full boost all the time, it would be less efficient than similar V6.

IS350jet

Well, the objective of a turbo hybrid would be to decrease engine size further still, without drastically decreasing
power output. Imagine a 1.2 L turbo that achieved the same power output as a NA 1.6 or 1.8. It would ultimately
be more fuel efficient and for a hybrid, that makes all the sense in the world.

Sulu

The promise of a turbocharged car (like a politician's promise) is that it CAN provide both the power for quick acceleration of the larger displacement engine AND the low fuel consumption (high fuel efficiency) of the smaller displacement engine. It does this by balancing high rpm, full boost power and torque with low rpm, no (or at least minimal) boost fuel efficiency. But it can only do this if the driver AND the car can balance occasional high-rpm, high-power runs with low-rpm cruising.

If the driver always drives with a heavy foot, keeping revs constantly high, there will be no high fuel efficiency.

If the car's weight always keeps revs high to move around all that weight (the engine is under-sized for the car), there will be no high fuel efficiency.

You can only downsize a car's engine so much before it becomes LESS efficient than a larger engine in the same car. The Prius is a prime example. The last-gen Prius used a 1.5-litre engine and the current-gen Prius uses a larger 1.8-litre engine, yet it is more fuel efficient. The last-gen Prius' engine was under-sized, so it had to work harder (at higher rpm) than the current-gen's engine. Adding a turbocharger to that 1.5-litre engine would not have helped; the low-rpm power would still have been too little for the car, so it would constantly be driving at higher rpm, under turbo boost, which would have caused it to use MORE fuel than the non-turbocharged 1.5 and 1.8-litre engines, and be less efficient.

If the car's transmission always keeps revs high enough to engage full turbo boost (as a car with a CVT might do), there will be no high fuel efficiency.

Ford's hybrid system (just like Toyota's hybrid system) uses a CVT. A CVT keeps engine rpm constant, never revving it really high and never allowing it to go very low. That may not mate well with a turbocharged engine that relies on BOTH high rpm power AND low rpm cruising to balance out power with efficiency.

Another hybrid system, one that simply sandwiches an electric motor between the gasoline engine and the normal stepped transmission, may benefit from a turbocharger. These types of hybrid systems, used by Honda, VW/Audi/Porsche and Hyundai/Kia (and probably the type used in Subaru's hybrid concept) likely would do alright with a turbocharged engine; the stepped transmission (with a number of different and distinct gear ratios) would allow for both high-rpm, high-boost runs with low-rpm cruising.

The 1.2-litre turbocharged engine MAY provide the same power (at high rpm and full boost) as the larger non-aspirated 1.6 or 1.8-litre engine, but running at low rpm and no (or minimal) boost it is still a small, low-powered (compared to the 1.6 or 1.8-litre engines) engine. If that low rpm power is not enough to pull the car around, the engine will have to run at higher rpm (and higher boost), meaning no fuel savings (and also putting greater stress on the engine having to run at high rpm all the time). The car with an under-sized/under-powered gasoline engine can only be helped by a larger engine, not a turbocharged engine.

GS69

Hybrid Sedan Comparison Test:
Camry Hybrid vs. Accord Hybrid vs. Fusion Hybrid vs. Jetta Hybrid

Hybrid Sedan Comparison Test: Toyota Camry vs Honda Accord vs Ford Fusion vs Volkswagen Jetta - YouTube

Tell someone you drive a hybrid and they will most likely assume there's a Toyota Prius parked out in your driveway. Generally, it's a safe assumption, as nearly 55 percent of the total hybrids sold in 2011 were Toyota Priuses.

Things are changing quickly, however, as an influx of new hybrid models from other manufacturers has cut deeply into the dominance of the Prius. In fact, more hybrids were sold in 2013 than ever before, showing that car shoppers are increasingly looking at hybrids as viable alternatives to more traditional vehicles.

Nowhere is this increased selection more evident than in the midsize sedan segment where hybrid versions are now available for some of the top selling models. With that in mind, we gathered up 4 hybrid sedans and set out to find how they compare and how much they'll really cost you.

To find out how they stack up, we subjected each hybrid sedan to 735 miles of fuel economy testing, with 3 different driving "loops" that simulated driving on suburban roads, rural highway and high-speed interstates. We also put them through our usual round of instrumented testing to get a complete picture of how these cars perform in the real world.

The Original: 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid XLE
The Camry Hybrid established the blueprint for hybrid family sedans, bringing Toyota's fuel-saving gasoline-electric technology to the best-selling car segment in the United States. What was once revolutionary is now quite familiar, but let's briefly recap the basics.

What makes this Camry a hybrid is the presence of both a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine and an electric motor powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack located in the trunk. An electronically controlled continuously variable transmission acts as traffic cop dictating how much power is doled out by each source. They can work alone, or in most instances, concurrently. The battery is replenished by the engine and by recouping energy normally lost under braking.

The 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid has a base price of $26,950 and includes keyless ignition/entry, dual-zone automatic climate control, Bluetooth phone and audio, and an iPod interface. Stepping up to the XLE adds alloy wheels, heated front seats, a power driver seat and a leather-wrapped wheel, while our $35,170 test car came fully loaded (as all the cars save the Fusion were) with a sunroof, leather, navigation system, a larger touchscreen, a JBL stereo, a rearview camera and a blind-spot warning system.

Curiously, however, the XLE also comes with slightly lower EPA fuel economy estimates of 40 mpg combined (40 city/38 highway) versus 41 combined (43/39) for the LE. As we've previously documented, though, mpg is not the best way to calculate fuel economy. Instead, "gallons per 100 miles" is a more accurate method, as it more directly tells you how much it'll cost to fill up your car. The Camry Hybrid XLE is estimated by the EPA to burn 2.5 gallons per 100 miles in combined driving.

The Camry tested is a 2013 model, but there are no significant changes for 2014.

The Pretty 1: 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid SE

Whereas the original Fusion Hybrid was a wallflower in terms of styling and sales performance, the new version is a knock-out. It looks fantastic and car shoppers have taken notice, with sales nearing (or even surpassing) the Camry Hybrid every month in 2013.

The Fusion's hybrid system operates in much the same way as the Camry's by combining a gas engine with a single electric motor. In the Fusion, the gas engine is a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder while the electric motor is powered by a space-efficient lithium-ion battery pack.

A base 2014 Ford Fusion Hybrid starts at $26,995 and includes roughly the same equipment as the most basic Camry Hybrid. The SE trim and a slew of packages are available for maximum flexibility while the other cars here are largely pre-packaged when it comes to options. Our loaded SE offered everything our Camry did in addition to driver memory settings, adaptive cruise control, an automated parking system and a lane-departure warning system. There is a higher Titanium trim available, but it's really just a loaded SE with slight visual differences and a Sony stereo.

The EPA estimates the Fusion Hybrid should return a very easy-to-remember 47 mpg combined (47 city/47 highway) which equates to burning 2.1 gallons per 100 miles.

For 2014, the Fusion is mechanically unchanged, but package content is altered and a few new features are available like ventilated front seats.

The New Kid in Town: 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid Touring
The 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid recently beat the 2013 Volkswagen Passat TDI in another comparison test of fuel-efficient family sedans. As we wrote then, "if fuel economy is the main priority of your next vehicle it's hard to do better?[it] is as impressive as a fuel-saving sedan as it is as a family sedan." Let's see how it does head-to-head with its hybrid competitors.

The Accord Hybrid deviates from the hybrid setups used in the Camry and Fusion. In the Accord there are 2 electric motors. 1 acts as a generator for the battery and various accessories, while the other powers the wheels in most driving situations. The 2.0-liter 4-cylinder gas engine is mostly on hand to replenish the lithium-ion battery pack, but can directly drive the wheels when necessary — say, during a full-throttle launch or at freeway speeds when good-old gasoline power is more efficient. Yes, it's complicated.

Less so is the way Honda packages together content for the Accord Hybrid. For $29,945, the base Hybrid trim gets you roughly the same equipment as the Camry XLE, albeit with a standard rearview camera and the Accord's LaneWatch blind-spot camera. The EX-L adds on a sunroof, leather, heated seats, satellite radio, a touchscreen display and forward-collision and lane-departure warning systems. Our range-topping $35,695 Touring model added LED headlights, adaptive cruise control and navigation (the only way to get this popular option).

The EPA estimates the Accord Hybrid should return 47 mpg combined (50 city/45 highway) or the equivalent of burning 2.1 gallons per 100 miles.

The Welterweight: 2014 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid SEL Premium

"But wait!" you're no doubt saying. "The Volkswagen Jetta is a compact car, the others are midsize! They don't compete at all."

A valid point, perhaps, given the non-hybrid's rock-bottom base price and significantly smaller exterior dimensions. However, the Jetta is not as small on the inside as the outside suggests, with a comparatively sized trunk and backseat legroom that trails the others by mere tenths of an inch. The other metric is price, as a similarly equipped Jetta Hybrid is only about $2,000 less than the others.

The Jetta Hybrid also differs from the others in its hybrid technology. It, too, has a lithium-ion battery in the trunk, but features a 7-speed, dual-clutch automated manual transmission with an electric motor sandwiched in between it and a turbocharged 1.4-liter 4-cylinder. It's wholly different in design, but similar in that it can operate using either of its power sources or a combination of them both.

The cheapest, $26,015 base 2014 VW Jetta Hybrid is by special order only, so instead consider the $28,080 SE to be the point of entry. The Jetta SE is mostly on par with the base Fusion and Camry, but gets 6-way power seats (the others are 8-way), satellite radio and leatherette upholstery. Our SEL Premium stickered at $32,265, which included a Fender audio system, rearview camera and bi-xenon headlights. Advanced safety features like lane departure warning and radar cruise control are not available on the Jetta.

The EPA estimates for the Jetta are 45 mpg combined (42 city/48 highway) or 2.2 gallons per 100 miles for the Jetta Hybrid.

PHP Code:

      Ford Fusion Hybrid     Honda Accord Hybrid     Toyota Camry Hybrid     Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid
Price as Tested:     $35,010     $35,695     $35,170     $32,265
EPA Fuel Economy (Combined/City/Highway):     47/47/47     47/50/45     40/40/38     45/42/48
Suburban Driving Test (MPG):     52.9     55.4     47.3     47.3
Suburban Driving Test (Gallons p/100 miles):     1.89     1.81     2.11     2.11
Rural Highway Test (MPG):     41.2     40.6     36.8     39.9
Rural Highway Test (Gallons p/100 miles):     2.43     2.46     2.71     2.5
Interstate Test (MPG):     44.0     46.4     42.2     47.7
Interstate Test (Gallons /100 miles):     2.27     2.16     2.37     2.1
Overall Test (MPG):     43.4     43.9     39.6     43.0
Overall Test (G p/100 miles):     2.3     2.18     2.55     2.32
Overall Test (Cost):     $58.20     $57.35     $63.65     $62.32 


4th Place: 2014 Toyota Camry Hybrid
Even if we ignored fuel economy, the Toyota Camry Hybrid would easily fall below the Fusion and Accord when rating family sedans. Though nearly as quick (0-60 mph in 7.6 seconds) as the Accord, the Camry Hybrid is the least responsive and least enjoyable to drive. The steering is oddly heavy and exhibits an annoying reluctance to return to center. The regenerative brakes also make all sorts of odd noises.

The backseat offers space on par with the Ford and Honda, but the front seat doesn't adjust low enough for taller drivers. The cabin also suffers from cheaper-looking plastics, while the trunk is less useful than the Fusion's.

When fuel economy is taken into consideration, however, the Camry Hybrid manages to fall even further behind. It was the least efficient car in every driving situation and the most expensive to fill up, even though the Jetta requires premium fuel. The fact the Camry was the only hybrid here to meet its EPA combined estimate of 40 mpg is at least a moral victory.

If you were to drive 12,000 miles per year and matched our fuel economy, the Camry would cost you an extra $103 per year to fill up than the Accord Hybrid. That's hardly breaking the bank, but why pay extra at the pump when there are 2 superior family sedans with similar prices and more available equipment that cost roughly the same?

3rd Place: 2014 Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid
The Jetta Hybrid's turbocharged engine is ultimately its best asset and biggest detriment. Electric motors inherently provide a wealth of low-end power that push you into the back of your seat, and since turbocharged engines do as well, the Jetta constantly provides a neat 1-2 punch of torque. This not only makes it feel quick around town and confident during freeway passing, but the engine often sounds and feels less strained than the others. Its torque also helped it achieve the best fuel economy (47.7 mpg) on a hilly section of Interstate 15 between Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Bernardino, California.

Unfortunately, its turbocharged engine comes with the penalty of requiring 91 octane gas. Though the Jetta burned a mere 0.02 gallon more fuel than the Fusion Hybrid over the course of the test, it cost $4.12 more to fill up. Again, not the biggest of margins, but the Jetta lands in 3rd for other reasons.

True, its backseat and trunk give up little in terms of space, and it is $2,000 less than the others when similarly equipped. However, it feels like it should be cheaper still. The Jetta is significantly less substantial and refined, with an interior that, while well equipped, looks and feels Spartan. VW replaces the standard Jetta's hard, overly reflective plastic dash top with a soft-touch unit in the hybrid, but other materials pale in comparison to those in the Ford and Honda. The tiny infotainment touchscreen and its integrated rearview camera also drew complaints.

On the upside, the Jetta feels less hybridlike to drive and even sporty at times thanks to its peppy drivetrain, responsive brake feel and best-in-test stopping distance (117 feet from 60 mph). It also has smaller exterior dimensions and a quick-shifting 7-speed automated manual transmission (though the latter does cause the car to annoyingly roll back on hills). In this way, the Jetta at least offers unique characteristics the Camry does not.

2nd Place: 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid
It was clear from early on that this test was going to come down to the Accord versus the Fusion. The regular, non-hybrid versions are 2 of our top recommended family sedans and the hybrid models boasted the highest EPA estimates. Our 1st test, the suburban driving route, widened the gap with the Camry and Jetta even further.

When we filled up the Accord after 102 miles of mundane driving around Orange County, California, our calculations showed a wildly impressive 55.4 mpg. That was by far the best of the bunch, and it would come in 2nd on both highway segments. Overall, the Accord Hybrid was the cheapest to fill up, burning 2.18 gallons per 100 miles and costing $57.35. Yet, since most hybrids spend their lives commuting around suburbia, you may notice even greater long-term cost savings over the Camry and Jetta.

The Accord Hybrid boasts more than fuel economy, however. Its steering is direct and communicative, just like a regular Accord, instilling confidence whether we were driving amongst strip malls in Orange County or through volcanic peaks near Death Valley. The ride is also commendable, offering a substantially better blend of comfort and control than the Camry.

2 editors preferred the seats in the Accord to the Fusion's, with the backseat in the Accord feeling the most spacious. We also ranked its unique electronics interface the best of the bunch, though its combination of touchscreen, physical buttons and a multi-purpose **** still has some ergonomic foibles. We should also point out the Touring model's incredibly bright LED headlights, which trailed only the Luxor pyramid as brightest lights in Vegas.

Those attributes are very much intrinsic to every Accord, though. There are reasons the Accord Hybrid falls just a bit short. The main 1 is the engine, which loudly drones as it fights to replenish the battery under hard acceleration or when chugging uphill. Around town, the engine noise and your speed disconcertingly don't rise in step as you'd expect, pairing with a numb throttle pedal that offers unrelated engine vibration rather than feedback.

Furthermore, the trunk is also the least versatile and getting navigation requires the selection of the more expensive Touring trim. We still think the Accord Hybrid is as impressive as a fuel-saving sedan as it is as a family sedan, but it's outdone by the Fusion.

1st Place: 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid
As each editor climbed out of the Honda and into the Ford, it was a common refrain that the Fusion is much quieter, more comfortable and even more responsive from behind the wheel. Importantly, it draws less attention to the fact that it's a hybrid, doing without the Accord's excessive engine droning and the Camry's abundance of electric whirring noises. The fact that the Fusion is by far the best-looking and most involving to drive is icing on the cake.

Like the Accord, the Fusion topped the mighty half-century mark in the suburban driving segment at 52.9 mpg. It was also the most efficient on the rural highway route, returning 41.2 mpg, and a very respectable 3rd on the high-speed interstate leg at 44 mpg.

Now, the Accord was indeed cheaper to fill up overall, but the difference was a minuscule 0.5 mpg or 0.12 gallon per 100 miles of driving. That's a difference of 85 cents for the test or about $14 over the course of a typical year. As all things were essentially equal on that front, other attributes became the determining factor.

Among them was the Fusion's useful trunk layout. Though its numerical capacity in cubic-feet is actually less than the Accord and Camry (12.0 versus 12.3 and 13.0, respectively), there is more usable space. The battery chews up the lower quarter of the trunk's forward half, creating a shelf that a suitcase or other items can still sit atop. More importantly, though, the design allows for the 60/40-split rear seat to fold down.

The Jetta's does a similar trick but its shelf is bigger and the pass-through smaller; the 2nd-best Camry provides the equivalent of a mailbox slot; the Accord an impenetrable wall. In this way, like the driving experience, the hybrid Fusion seems like less of a trade-off.

The cruise control was another best-in-test, fastidiously keeping speed both up and down hill. Less impressive is the Fusion's MyFord Touch electronics interface, but we've grown accustomed to it over time and preferred it to the Camry and Jetta's interfaces. In other words, we could live with it.

Which is a pretty good way to sum up the Ford Fusion Hybrid: for those who are new to hybrids, it'll be easy to live with. It feels the most like a normal car, while delivering the fuel economy you'd expect from a hybrid.

More to MPG Than Meets the Eye?or Wallet
Beyond our rankings, this test revealed other telling conclusions. 1st, only the Camry managed to meet its EPA fuel economy overall, while only the Jetta Hybrid managed to meet its EPA highway number.

Should hybrid owners be outraged or dismayed by this discrepancy? Not at all, because as this test's data shows and as we wrote in greater detail before, the differences in mpg of ultra-efficient cars like hybrids translate into minuscule monetary differences.

Therefore, it's important for car shoppers to note the "gallons per 100 miles" figure now found on every car's window sticker, and keep in mind that there's a lot more to consider when buying a hybrid family sedan than simply a number followed by the letters M-P-G.