The Detroit News decided to pit the new Ford Fusion against the new Toyota Camry to see which was the better car and deal.
The full results are here, I will give a brief summary.
Our premise for this historic rematch was simple: If you're a family of modest means, with about $25,000 to spend on some new everyday wheels, which car offers the best value?
With the all-new Fusion supplanting the Taurus for model year 2006 and the long-lived Camry (the reigning sales champ) getting a major redesign for 2007, one of the two rivals is about ready to strike up the band once again.
The '06 Fusion starts at $17,795, including shipping. We tested a top-of-the-line Fusion SEL with lots of equipment and a sticker price of $25,650. The '07 Camry is priced from $18,850. We drove a midrange Camry LE with a modest number of extras and a bottom line of $24,266.
So they are comparing a top of the line Fusion for $25K and a mid-line, with little options Camry for $24K
Exterior Winner: Tie
Interior Winner: Fusion
Ride & Handling Winner: Fusion
Powertrain Winner: Fusion
Safety Winner: Camry
Overall Winner: Fusion
Considering the $1,384 price difference between our two test vehicles, the Fusion SLE seemed to offer so much more than the Camry LE, in terms of engine size and performance, as well as creature comforts and -- most surprising of all -- assembly quality.
I have said it many times and have heard it from other people many times, Toyota is getting to big for it's britches. The bigger they get the more they lack in style, design and quality.
Posted by Quality Weenie at May 3, 2006 07:21 AM | TrackBack