Red sedan driving on a road with brick barriers. Visible grille…

[I and the Ental car. I exactly Er. which e been .5 of a hp Phil F cutting . and the Flock for pi to use :e best, ecause tenfThe eemed market ! Asians' -d lack . tchi'ng value, sizzle, ' g with ast. Starting With MazdaB hardware the sizzle came easy. That cars fourwheel multilink suspension. standard fourewheel disc brakes, and rigid chaSSis have always delighted us. Ford has further improved the rigidity by 10 percent in bending and torsion to equal the Camrys figures The Mazda6s Z Siliter fouricylinder and 3.071iter Duratec V6 powertrains havent prompted much criticism from us, and further tweaking of the VEis variable cams and intake manifold has upped the torque a skosh from l92 to 205 poundefeet. Icing on the cake V6 models come standard with a Six-speed automatic transmissioni not that we driving enthusiasts wouldn't be delighted if the Mazda6 ss V6/veespeede stick combo also were offered (fOuI-CYlLlT der Fustons get a chOice of fiveespeed stick or automatic) Alliwheel drive is coming in the fall of 2006 and the green crowd can look forward to a hybridepowered Fusion arriving sometime in calendareyear 2008. Adding roominess required more effort The MazdaES was designed to be a world car. Thats producteplannerespeak for borderline too big in Japan and Europe and slightly snug here in supersizeimei land. So Ford stretched the 6 s wheelbase 2,1 inches, added 1 3 niches of much needed shoulder Width. and stood its swoopy greenhouse up a bit. The rootline now affords O 7 inch more rear headroom and all the side glass was tilted outboard at the top for an airier. more open feeling. Rear legroom is up only a half inch relative to the MazdaBs and most dimenSions still measure smaller than those of an Accord or Camry but a high-offetheifloor seat, abundant foot-room under the front seats. and the openness afforded by excellent visibility conspire to give a convincrng illusion that this is a big back seat, comfy and supportive enough for longedistance travel. Standard tilt/telescope steering and seat, height adiustment mean that any driver can quickly tailor an ideal drivtng position, Refreshingly logical controls are within easy reach, and the fli finish. and build quality of the dash and door trim appear to meet or exceed the Honda standard, with the exception of a wavy passenger airbag cover (this may have been an early build issue) The trunk also expands to a useable. rectangular l5.8 cubic feet, With no intrusive hinges and standard 60/40 seatbacks that fall flat when their trunk- rnounted levers are pulled No one can comment on an allinew cars quality, reliability. and resale value alter a twoeday test drive, but Martens claims that the Hermoslo. Mexico, plant thatll build the Fusion (and its sisterships Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr) consistently ranks at the top of Fords internal quality ratings. His team also reckons that if 857plus percent of all FuSions sell to regular folks (rather than eets) as planned, the resale value should mirror that of the Five Hundred. That would put the value at 43 percent after three years. according to the Automotive Lease Guide protections. (By MOTOR TREND.COM OCTOBER 2005 65