The clarion call of "buy American" is seductive, but a company should be beholden to its customers and not its stockholders and executives.

Ford mortgaged the family china when they could and are making a tangible attempt at a turnaround. They make some good, dependable cars and trucks that are generally on par with their competitors or even class leading. The Fusion is a great car; the '09 is a steal for what you get. And what can I say? Despite the risk of crazy depreciation, I'm buying an FFH.

Go Ford!

 

The only worry for me is the depreciation of the 2010 FFH - but being that it is getting such wonderful rankings, I think that it may be the first Ford in a long time that stands a chance of competing with Honda and Toyota cars in the depreciation battle. Time will only tell.

 

Just wait until gas prices shoot up to $3-$4. Then the FFH will likely do pretty well when it comes to depreciation.

 

I hope so! I really liked that they were able to get 80 MPG in their challenge - granted, I don't know if I could drive nearly as efficiently...but the bar has been set.

 

I talked to the dealer (Bleakley Ford Atlanta) Tuesday when I picked up "Sparky" and they are not limited to two FFH's as long as they can verify retail customers. After June 30, when the open allocation runs out, the limit may be two for stock or retail orders???????

Mama got 46 MPG going through Roswell to the granddaughter's piano lesson. She may do better than I will at fuel economy - but she always said she does anyway.

 

Yes, that's what I read somewhere. The open allocation is through June; originally it was through March but thankfully, Ford's not looking a gift horse in the mouth. People should be able to order an FFH through any dealer and pending verification of some documents (drivers license and proof of insurance on an existing car), you can get prioritized ahead of dealer orders. I also read elsewhere that Ford had asked dealers not to sell for more than MSRP.

Placing an order should be easy money for a dealer, and the open allocation means there's no downside for them (it's not a car they would have otherwise gotten and the order means that the buyer's on the hook for at least the deposit). So you'd think it'd be no problem to get an FFH ordered. If anything, a dealer should be happy to give you a discount. But, some dealers are being scummy about it and not budging from MSRP or even asking for more.

Hey Red, how about a review?

 

Just out of curiousity...how much of a deposit did you leave to order your FFH? I have never had to pay a deposit before, but I would imagine given the circumstances that all dealers are asking for one. Just finalizing everything before we order ours from the dealer. It is very difficult deciding on a color. Not that there are that many options...

 

I put down a grand, but it seemed negotiable. Anything between $1k to $500 seems right. I also had a lot difficulty choosing the color from the few available. From the input I got, there seems a clear split. The ladies I asked preferred the ice blue, the gentlemen liked the sterling gray.

The thing to keep in mind with the deposit is that $1k is grand theft territory, so it'd be a little more trouble for them to screw you. On the other hand, dealerships are dropping dead these days.

Haven't seen any Fords go down yet, but I knew a guy who was getting warranty work on a car done. When he got a call to pick it up by next week, it wasn't because they were done, it was because they were closing up shop. Point is, a dealer might not tell you that they were taking a deposit on a car they weren't planning on being around to deliver.

 

Cue - if it is still true that Ford will build only 25,000 for the model year, after June they may be hard to get. They have been pushing back stock orders and fleet orders that will have to be filled. I think they are still planning to allocate the bulk of the remaining production to the "High Hybrid Penetration Markets". I agree with you that dealers should welcome all business thru June 30.

So much to learn about this vehicle - Sync, voice activation, Navigation system, information system, etc. I've been reading the manuals - it's like studying for the SAT's. Only complaint is no Homelink (????) and no memory seating/mirrors. Everything else is great - 46 MPG around town.

I'm bidding on visors with homelink on e-bay, so may fix that problem.

 

Not sure if you saw the interviews with their driving specialists for the 1,000 miles on a tank of gas challenge - but the tips were interesting.

http://www.thefordstory.com/

I don't think that anyone here could get 80 MPG though...and I still haven't seen any driving around yet in Atlanta - but I travel up and down I-75 and a tiny bit of I-285. Granted, I haven't seen any Honda Insights driving in this area yet either.