I read somewhere that the new Fusion hybrid will run about $8000+ more than the conventional version that will be right on the showroom floor beside it.

The Prius does so well partially because there is no conventional comparision. When I'm buying a car.... See one for $17000 and the other for $25000... In this economy? with gas having finally dropped to $2 per gallon probably for the duration of this economy? People aren't likely to buy a car in the first place, let alone drop nearly 1/3 more for one.

The Prius benefits because there is no way to see you are plunking down $8000 more etc. If there was a conventional Prius, I'm not convinced it would have been as much of a success.

I'm sorry. I love the idea, wish it the best, think its a great car. But I'm pretty sure its not going to sell well, unfortunately--Ford needs it.

 

The base package Fusion starts at $20,000, while the Fusion Hybrid is coming at $28,000. But, as Ford points out, the comparable Fusion package starts at $25,000, which means the full tax credit (if you get it) will make the price differential disappear. Of course, that's only until the end of March, when the tax credit gets cut in half.

But then, Ford isn't trying to compete (not really) against the Prius. It's trying to compete against the Camry. Toyota sold 46,000 Camry Hybrids last year. Cut the sales numbers in half to account for the car market right now. That means Ford's sales goal of 25,000 Fusion and Milan Hybrids is just about right.

Keep in mind the Fusion hybrid gets a little better then the Camry Hybrid in fuel economy, although it is priced at $1,000 more.

The joker in the deck is going to be the Insight. Is the Insight going to draw away many of the customers who might consider the Fusion and Camry Hybrid? Or will it just compete with Prius customers?

Mind you, I could be blowing hot air here, but there seems to be an argument for the Fusion Hybrid.

 

Pay the extra money in the price of the car today,

OR

Pay the same exact amount of extra money little by little in the extra gas you will be burning...

Either way, you are going to eventually pay the same amount of money..

One way helps the enviroment and reduces our dependancy on foreign oil.
The other way just makes the short sighted, now now now person feel better.

 

well said....

 

I don't disagree, I have an FEH myself. Problem is, in a recession I think more people will be thinking of their pocketbooks RIGHT NOW rather than in the future.

My brother works for Ford. My wife and I own two. I'm hoping for the best, but I fear the worst.

 

At this point, for the most part, the ONLY people that are buying cars are mostly those that have to. Most of those are not going to pony up the extra cash for the hybrid given the current economic mess.

Just my .02, not meant to be interpreted as an absolute)

 

The Honda Civic had this same issue. People were comparing the base civic to the hybrid which is a joke of a comparison. It's more tied to the EX than the base.

 

Well, I for one am of those people who *had* to think about the state on my pocket book right now... Don't get me wrong, I believe Hybrid's (or EV's) are the way to go, but when our 08 FEH was written off in an accident after 8 months, we could not justify, (or afford) to lay out an additional 7 to 10K for a comparable 09 FEH replacement. Ford had increased the base price of the FEH by $4K from 08 to 09, then to get the same options, we would have been forced to take additional options that added the rest of the diff. (a $1200 moonroof we didn't want was one).

When we finally walked into the showroom to by the replacement not only could we get a similarly equipped all gas version for about $7500K less than the FEH, we also saved an additional $7500 on financing. 0% for the Gas model, 6.9% for the Hybrid. $15,000 savings at Christmas time is a big incentive to go with the Gas model. also $15K is a LOT of gas... a rough calculation gave me a break even time of nearly 10 years...

Now that all being said....I am still looking at a Hybrid (or EV if available) for the next vehicle to replace the Sonata, in a couple of years.. maybe even the FFH. We will just plan it right and have the money, and who knows maybe the car companies will make the financing charges more equitable by then too.