#2013FordFusion

Want a fuel-sipping, tree-hugging sedan with stunning good looks? Ford thinks they have the answer in the 2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid. Can jamming a gasoline/electric drivetrain behind Ford’s sexy grille continue the love affair the press has had with Ford’s world-car? More importantly, can this Ford hybrid live up to its EPA numbers? Let’s find out.

Chinese performance and graphic artist Liu Bolin is known as the invisible man. He has himself photographed after he’s dressed and painted himself to almost completely blend into the background. Besides any deeper philosophical implications about the state of man in his work, the photographs are visually arresting and wryly clever. Someone at Ford or their ad agency must also be clever because they got an inspired idea: hire Bolin to make the dramatically styled 2013 Ford Fusion stand out in consumers’ minds by painting the Fusion’s competitors into the background. I think it’s a brilliant concept, but then I’ve used the portmanteau Camcordata myself to describe the relatively indistinguishable cars in the midsize sedan market. Making the Fusion’s competitors literally blend into the background effectively gets the message across that the Fusion is different. Do you agree?

There’s been no shortage of Fusion coverage this week, but now we have the car itself. The verdict? In the metal, it almost looks more like a four-door Aston than the Rapide. And let’s not forget the October Surprise of a plug-in hybrid, which Ford sources at the show told me will be on dealer floors in 2012…

Some of the commenters took me to task for what seemed to be undue praise for the 2013 Ford Fusion. So, without prejudice, here is the 2013 Ford Fusion and Ford Fusion Energi.