The Blue Oval's latest offering is straight out of left-field. We acquaint ourselves with the future of family motoring.

It's unique, it's intelligent, and it's the first of its kind in this country. Meet the Ford Fusion, conceived to take urban drivers a step above the rest - literally. Ford calls the Fusion an Urban Activity Vehicle (UAV) but true to its name, it's actually a mixture between a hatchback, MPV and SUV - all rolled into one very distinctive shape.
The Fusion's design is what sets it apart from the monotony of everyday hatchbacks and saloons. Basically, the Fusion is a jacked-up version of the current Fiesta hatchback on sale in Europe (in fact, it's based on the same platform) but the styling is distinctly SUV. The high bonnet-line, prominent grille, beefy bumpers and large block-like headlamps give it the look of an off-roader, as do the pronounced wheelarches and a thick rubbing-strip across the lower body.
The rear quarter-glass and raked front windscreen are very MPV, however. The D-pillar, housing vertically-stacked tail-lights, is upright to liberate great headroom for the rear passengers. The tailgate drops down to bumper level, making the boot very accessible, as it has no load lip to haul heavy items over. From the rear, the beefy bumpers and flat tailgate make the Fusion appear a cross between an SUV and a hatchback.
The Fusion has the same wheelbase as the Ikon, but the similarities end there. Where the Ikon looks sharp and sleek, the Fusion is blunt and square. The Ikon is a conventional sedan, while the Fusion is a hatchback. Parked side-by-side, the Fusion looks far larger than the Ikon, and towers over its sibling. And it's this height, partly thanks to the large 15-inch rims, which makes it so practical for the cut-and-thrust of urban traffic. Standing taller than most cars, the Fusion has oodles of road presence, perfect for our 'might is right' driving. You're likely to be given a wide berth by unruly drivers who'd now hesitate before chopping across your bows.
The increased height has other practical advantages too. For one, the larger wheels and generous ground clearance will let you play hopscotch through the potholes in Mumbai's streets.
It comes with 195/60 R-15 tubeless tyres, and while we feel the tyre profile maybe too low to cushion the occupants from our roads, the Fusion's ground clearance of 195mm (15mm better than the Ikon) will tame even the largest speedbreakers.
The instant you slip behind the wheel, you know you're not sitting in an ordinary car. You don't have to climb into the Fusion like you would in an SUV, nor do you have to crouch down to get in like you would in a regular sedan or hatch. In the Fusion, the seat height is at the perfect level for you to simply slide in and out.
There's lot of glass area so there are no big blind spots, and you get a panoramic view out of the wide windscreen. Sitting high up gives you a sense of control and makes parking or manoeuvring through traffic a lot easier. Once you've stopped admiring the view, you can settle down inside and discover all the useful and intelligent bits and pieces Ford has packed into the interior. The dashboard is pretty clear and logically laid out. The military-style circular air-vents and ribbed storage box on top of the sharply chiselled dashboard are a reflection of the Fusion's rugged image. However, the dashboard plastics feel cheap with their shiny, hard texture and that's a shame since all the controls and switches have a nice, high-quality feel. Previous Ford owners will recognise some switchgear as typically Ford, like the rotary control for the electric power mirrors (only available on the high-end version) The power-window switches at the rear come from the Ikon.
Creating a taller car creates more legroom, and the higher roofline of the Fusion means two six-footers get business-class seats up front with no chafed knees or feet. It's easy to get comfortable in the driver's seat thanks to generous seat travel and a steering wheel, which is adjustable for height (but not reach). The seats are pretty supportive, and the squab has loads of under-thigh support.
The rear seat benefits from the tall roof as well. Passengers can sit higher up and more comfortably and not in the 'knees-up' position that most saloons with a low-roof line force you into. The flat centre section and generous width of the back seat makes sitting three abreast more comfortable than most other mid-size cars. The smart-looking, 'shingle-style' headrests are easy to adjust, and the rear passengers get treated to individual roof lights too.
But it's the versatility of the rear seat that is the real talking point of the Fusion. It comes with what Ford has dubbed a 40:20:40 split seat. There's a provision for a centre console (the '20' part of the split), a useful accessory that can be easily fitted by removing the centre squab. It's cleverly designed with a generous storage box and a couple of cup-holders, and it also doubles up as an armrest. The way the base of the rear seats folds upwards like a movie-theatre chair is another clever touch and allows you to pack tall items in the cabin which wouldn't otherwise fit in the boot. It's something we first saw in the Honda City in Thailand, but sadly the Indian-made City only comes with fixed rear seats.
The rear seats fold forward with a 60:40 split like most hatchbacks, but don't have a second fold. As a result the load floor isn't completely level, but thanks to the high roof you can still pack in a lot of luggage. The boot itself is not very deep but is pretty tall and hence big bags can be stored vertically. There is a useful tie-down net and other pockets to tuck away small items. In fact, Ford has tried to carve out storage space out of every nook and cranny in the Fusion. The front seat hasn't been spared either. The squab lifts out to reveal a very useful storage area where you can hide your valuables. Even if your car is broken into, it's unlikely the thief will look under the seat - unless he owns a Fusion or has read a copy of this magazine! The door pockets and glove box aren't really large, but there's a nice slot for your CDs below the single CD-changer, standard on the high-end model.
When we first reviewed the Fusion two years ago, we expected Ford to squeeze in two jump seats in the boot for small kids, but they haven't. It's something Ford did consider, but dropped for the idea for safety reasons. We also expected Ford to commonise the engine with the Ikon but it has surprised by us by giving the very same 1.6-litre, 16-valve, twin-cam Duratec engine that comes in the European Fusion. This all-aluminium engine develops 100bhp and has a 'drive-by-wire' throttle control. This does away with the traditional cables required to operate the throttle and improves response and driveability. The IB5 gearbox is similar to the Ikon's but in the Fusion the shift is cable-operated to improve feel and isolate the gear lever from engine vibrations.
What's unique to the Indian-spec Fusion is the air-conditioning system, specially developed for our hot and humid climate. The Fusion comes with a 'variable swash plate' or scroll-type air-con compressor. Ford claims this design optimises AC performance and vehicle driveability. A larger evaporator and a more efficient condenser have also been used to improve cooling.
In our brief drive around Ford's plant outside Chennai, the hot and sultry climate posed no problem for the air-con, despite the considerable glass area.
The Fusion's suspension is more elaborate than the Ikon's, and is tuned for heavy loads and Indian conditions. Up in front are conventional

MacPherson struts, mounted on a sub-frame for better support. The long-travel suspension uses dual-path top mounts for better isolation. The springs are offset to reduce friction and optimise damping.
The rear gets a twist-beam axle with decoupled dampers and springs. The springs sit under the floor and the dampers are pushed to the extremes, a space-saving design that doesn't intrude into the loading area. The twin-tube rear dampers are significant, more reliable and capable of ironing out a wide range of road inconsistencies. Ford has marginally softened the ride on the Indian Fusion, at the expense of high-speed handling. "We feel this is a better trade-off for Indian roads. Indian consumers always want a comfortable ride and rarely drive at high speeds," says Arvind Matthew, vice-president Ford India and in-charge of the Fusion programme.
The body structure is extremely stiff with 'tailored-blanks' or different gauge steels used to provide strength and rigidity without adding weight. Apart from providing a structurally safe shell, the rigidity should keep squeaks and rattles at bay.
A short stretch of road within Ford's premises made it difficult to judge how good the Fusion really is, but the smoothness of the powertrain was apparent. The engine felt significantly quieter than the Ikon's, and the gearshift, with its short, snappy throw, was a delight. The sharp steering needs only 2.8 turns lock-to-lock, and body roll is reasonably contained for such a high vehicle. Clearly, the Fusion's handling is not as sharp or flat as the Ikon's, and the higher centre of gravity means the limit of adhesion would arrive sooner.
As if to make up, the brakes were pretty good and feel more progressive than the Ikon's and ABS is optional.
Ford claims to have put the Fusion through a gruelling 240,000km durability simulation and subjected it to scorching temperatures in Rajasthan to validate the engine cooling and air-conditioner performance.
The Fusion goes on sale sometime in September, and will be targeted at a wide spectrum of buyers across segments. Ford hopes to pull in potential mid-size car as well as SUV buyers to create an all-new segment for this very versatile car. The plan is to initially launch the Fusion with the 1.6-litre petrol in two variants. The base model will come with basic power features like power steering and power windows, while the top-of-the-line model will be fully loaded with a CD-changer and alloys. Unfortunately, Ford won't be introducing the diesel version of the Fusion in a hurry; this has a Peugeot-developed 1.4-litre turbo diesel. This latest-generation common-rail engine develops 67bhp and meets Euro IV standards. Sources say that the diesel Fusion won't come until next year, a shame as the frugality of the diesel would have complemented the car's practicality.
The Fusion's success will finally depend on the price. Though Ford hasn't yet confirmed what the Fusion will be pegged at, we expect it to cost around Rs 50,000 more than the Ikon.
Ford wants to take on the Honda City and it will be an interesting battle to watch. Both cars look radically styled, both are aimed at the urban buyer. But in terms of sheer appropriateness for the Indian market, the Fusion with its blend of space, height, size and versatility, has the others beat hollow.

TALKING TO DAVID FRIEDMAN , MANAGING DIRECTOR, FORD INDIA
The Fusion is a new concept and a new body style. How do you think the market is going to react to it?
The market has seen SUVs, especially international-level SUVs. What you really have is a lot of the styling themes coming from the SUVs, so I think the style and size is unique and the overall impression of the vehicle is novel.
The activity vehicle attributes are clearer to the consumer today, who has greater knowledge of different types of vehicles.
I think a vehicle that has attributes of different types of vehicles is better understood.

Where will customers for the Fusion come from? Will the Fusion expand the market or grab customers from other segments?
I think a lot of it will be expansion. A number of customers who bought B-segment cars - and there's an enormous pool of them - are now back in the market, looking for their next car and moving up. This now provides another option for those moving up and the new Fusion is something entirely different from what they could have bought before.

There might be some overlap between prices of the 1.6 Ikon and Fusion. Do you think they may grab the other's sales?
People buy vehicles for their attributes and personal needs and the needs of the Ikon customer are completely different from those who are going to buy the Fusion. So, we see them as different vehicles for a different set of consumers. The Ikon scores on the driving experience and the styling. The Fusion is much more for multi-purpose use and is family-oriented. The set of customers that are going to buy these vehicles have different needs.

The Fusion is all about practicality. Don't you think a diesel-engined version is essential from the beginning?
This vehicle is primarily aimed at the urban markets, which are heavily petrol markets. As a launch edition for the vehicle, that's a sound one. We've always continually upgraded our vehicles. So in the future, as the vehicle gets upgraded, we will be looking at an upgrade in choice of powertrains, and a diesel is something to certainly consider for the future.

The Fusion is a fresh, unique concept. Do you think the main challenge would be in marketing it effectively?
The challenge of any new model is to introduce something special and especially one that's unique in the market.
When you introduce a new model, there's an education component to the introduction, so that people understand why it's special and why it's going to be uniquely suited to filling their needs.
So we are going to be clear how we introduce the Fusion, so that people understand the name, and understand the attributes that make it special and unique.

Caption:
Friedman: "The Fusion is a completely different type of car."

Factfile
Ford Fusion
How much?
Price Rs 6-6.5 lakh (est)
How big?
Length 4018mm
Width 1720mm
Height 1529mm
Kerb weight 1134kg
Wheelbase 2486mm
Engine
Layout 4-cyls in-line, 1596cc
Max power 100bhp
Max torque 14.9kgm
Specific output 62.65 bhp per litre
Power to weight 88.18 bhp per tonne
Installation Front, transverse, front-wheel drive
Bore/stroke 79 / 89.4mm
Valve gear 4 per cylinder, DOHC
Gearbox
Type 5-speed, manual
Suspension
Front IndependentMacPherson
Rear Semi-independent suspension with independent springs and shocks
Steering
Type Hydraulic power-assisted rack and pinion
Lock to lock 3.4 turns
Brakes & Wheels
Front 218mm ventilated disc
Rear 203mm drums
Tyres 195 / 60 R15
WHAT TO EXPECT
Roomy, practical and innovative: the ideal urban family car.

Captions:
A shape like no other, the Ford Fusion mates hatchback lines, MPV height and SUV-like body armour.

Chiselled, feature-packed cabin is well built; air-con is unique.

Two six-footers fit easily in front; under-seat storage is innovative.

Tall rear seat is roomy and flexible; note shingle-style headrests.

15-inch alloys on top model.

Euro-spec 1.6 Duratec engine makes 100bhp; rear styling shows Fiesta genes and SUV ambitions; deep tailgate makes loading boot easy.

Influence of height is clear, but handling is quite competent; suspension is deliberately softened for India; brakes are excellent.

Boot large but seats don't fold flat; cargo nets and hooks are great.

Boot not wide but usefully tall.

Seats flip movie theatre-style; rear seat armrest-console an extra.

Ikon looks smaller, has less impact when seen alongside the Fusion.