2010 Ford Fusion

2010 Ford Fusion SEL – Click above for high-res image gallery Last month at the LA Auto Show, Ford finally took the wraps off its refreshed 2010 Fusion and this week we returned to LA to actually drive it. For a car meant to compete in the heart of the highest volume segment in the U.S. market, Ford chose a rather surprising way to show it off. This is after all a segment long dominated by cars that typically have more in common with a Kenmore refrigerator than a Corvette. We kicked off the festivities with a mileage challenge through downtown Beverly Hills and Hollywood in the Fusion Hybrid, but then things got really interesting. The Toyota Camry and Honda Accord have seemingly been the top selling cars in America since they supplanted the Model T early in the last century. After a similar number of decades of soulless, unattractive and unreliable alternatives, U.S. automakers have been battling back in recent years with mixed success. Since the Fusion debuted in 2006, it has earned a reputation of being among the most fun to drive offerings in the segment, as well as having quality on par with the Japanese brands. For 2010, the crew in Dearborn have focused on enhancing what was already good and getting best in class in efficiency with more style. Read on to find out if they succeeded. %Gallery-39131% %Gallery-39132% Photos Copyright ©2008 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc. Our day of driving the Fusion started off with Ford shuttling us out to the parking lot at the Hollywood Park horse track for some stopping, starting, turning and reversing. Since the Camry is top seller in the mid-size segment, that's what Ford had on hand for our comparison testing. Three different events were set up on the tarmac at Hollywood Park meant to showcase the dynamic capabilities of the Fusion. Here at Autoblog central, which happens to be wherever we can pick up a wifi or EVDO connection, we are well aware that we don't necessarily represent the automotive mainstream. In fact, many would consider us the lunatic fringe of the automotive spectrum. We don't see cars as appliances but rather as tools to wield as we get from point A to point B via points X,Y,Z. We prefer to be engaged by our transportation. We like to hear the sound of tire tread wearing away as we aim for the apexes and feel the forces in our steering wheel as the wheels try to change direction of the car. Of course, we can't all afford to drive a Cadillac CTS-V, Dodge Viper and Ford GT everyday. That's why many of us have always taken a liking to cars like the Fusion that are attainable yet still provide some of those exciting characteristics we want in a car that can also haul the groceries and a child seat. We kicked off our evaluation of the Fusion and Camry on a short course with a slalom and an …
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