S. Muralidhar

The new Fusion has had more changes inside than outside. Built for a purpose and loaded with very practical features, it could be a compelling option for most small car buyers. It may not, however, enthuse the overly mileage and value-conscious buyers.

Most small cars are bought for their practicality, fuel efficiency and the promise of low maintenance costs in the long run. Despite the higher price tags, the same logic or `thereabouts' applies to premium hatches as well. Cars in this segment probably sell more by word-of-mouth than on spectacularly insightful advertising. Yes, a carefully-cultivated image for the manufacturer, brand ambassadors and catchy product advertising can sway the buyer's fancy to some extent, but these can only supplement a marketing strategy that focuses more on showroom-level interaction with customers.

That is why it makes sense for advertising to focus on soft, emotional issues such as romance, street-smartness, family and togetherness. Not-so-highbrow advertising with an element of fun, which does not concentrate on explaining the car's features and make tall claims, actually works.

By that yardstick, the original advertising campaign for the Ford Fusion was destined to draw scepticism among potential customers. The `Anything Karega' campaign for the original Fusion was anything but catchy. And though it managed to project the car's youthful image, it barely provided the `food for thought' needed to explain the premium pricing. Simply put, the ad was neither self-explanatory about the product's features, nor did it strike an emotional chord.

Ford has now launched a new version of the Fusion and, thankfully, it does not come with the earlier high price tag and the not-so-effective advertisement. Instead, the new Fusion has got a facelift, a few thousands have been lopped off its tag and its marketing effort is supported by a new `no nonsense' ad.

The new `No Nonsense Car' ad should be able to get across the message much better, even as it brings with it an element of humour to the campaign.

Ford had an issue with the first avatar of the Fusion. Pricing was impossibly high for the car and was comparable or close to premium sedans available in the market then. Standalone, the Fusion was a good product, with many, if not all, good attributes. But in the intensely value-conscious Indian market, it got slotted along with other two boxes and hatches, and naturally the argument in favour of the Fusion just wasn't convincing.

One of the issues, of course, was indigenisation of parts, which would have helped bring down prices of the Fusion. This time around a large portion of the credit for the fall in prices will go to a higher degree of localisation.

The new ad for the Fusion, could well be the one that finally gets the car's positive points across. Built for a purpose and loaded with very practical features that make it the apt product not just in India, but for many markets worldwide, the Fusion could be a compelling option for most small car buyers. Of course, you can't take away its premium pricing (still higher than most other hatches) and relatively lower fuel efficiency continuing to get a thumbs-down from overly mileage and value-conscious buyers.

The new Fusion has had more changes inside than outside. For the exteriors, the renewal package includes a new square-shaped bonnet grille that gives it the looks of a series of suction cups. The headlamps now sport a combination clear-lens type finish with an orange tinted glass strip for the top portion, which houses the turn indicator lamps. The oversized front bumper features broad, inverted L-shaped rub strips for protection against nicks and dents. Rub strips have also been put on all doors panels for added protection.

Inside, Ford has tried to improve the premium feel by incorporating a contemporary dual-tone colour theme. The top portion of the dashboard now comes in a grainy, soft-feel plastic that sports an Iris Grey tone. The rest of the interior body and dashboard panels are now offered in an avocado-colour theme, giving the interiors a roomier, airy feel.

Quality of plastics used feels better and the non-reflecting type; self-designed top panel of the dashboard is a highlight of the new Fusion. But the swirl design could be prone to accumulating dust and relatively more difficult to clean. Other additions include a flip-top storage box capping the centre console and just below the windscreen, an open storage area just above the glove box, which features a ribbed base for holding objects such as a cell phone and new seat upholstery and door trim fabric that matches the dual-tone avacado colour theme.

Signature Fusion features such as the circular air-conditioning vents, the short-throw gear stick with bellow-shaped rubber cover, the shingle-style headrests for the rear seats and the tall seating position all remain. As also the turn indicator stalk positioned to the left steering column and the bonnet release button located just below the front passenger side dashboard panel.

The Fusion's was always a peppy, rev-happy engine in its class. The 1.6-litre, four-cylinder, DOHC engine is a light, all aluminium alloy unit that was and continues to be great fun to drive. The engine spits out a peak power of 101PS at 6,500 rpm and maximum torque of 146 Nm at 3,400 rpm.

Except for a lull in its acceleration in the first two gear slots and in the lower engine rpm levels, once past the 2,000rpm-level, the slightly raucous engine can delight the enthusiast in you, egging you on to push it to its limits.

Some of the other features that the new Fusion comes loaded with are power windows, a programmable remote key for operating doors, tilt adjustable power steering, approach lights/parking headlamps that come on with remote unlocking, a battery saver feature that switches off courtesy lamps after ten minutes and map-lights after 30 minutes in case they are unintentionally left on, a smart wiper mechanism which makes the rear wiper come on automatically if the reverse gear is engaged while the front wiper is on, headlamps-on warning (in case you forget to switch them off while removing the key) and a distance-to-empty indicator, that gives a read-out of the approximate distance that you can cover with the amount of fuel in the tank.

The new Fusion's price has been reduced compared to the earlier version. At Rs 5.7 lakh (ex-showroom), the Fusion can be good option for buyers focused more on performance and engineering.

But for the larger section of hatch buyers who nit-pick about fuel efficiency and running costs, and still view the Fusion as just another two-box car to consider, this Ford, despite the lower price tag, will still seem to be an expensive proposition.

Pictures by Bijoy Ghosh

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