Ford mixed a bold exterior styling with a sporty platform carried over from Mazda6, and the result was the 2006 Fusion, and then added a few updates for the 2008 model.
Despite the world financial crisis, Ford decided on pushing forward the mid-sized sedan, trying to edge its competitors who struggled to save their resources to face the tough times, and its strategy worked well. It didn’t want to be an American version of a Camry or an Accord but managed to give its customers a mid-size sedan that looked more upmarket and innovative.

The 2008 model featured a refreshed front end with thicker horizontal chromed slats over the grille. Its headlights swept-back on their upper side resembled its European brother that shared its Fusion name, even though that was a small hatchback. Its front bumper was different, depending on the trim level, and sported either a wide opening at the bottom with a chromed surrounding or a two-chromed slat grille.

Inside, Ford installed a choice of instrument clusters depending on the trim level. That was unusual for any carmaker in those times. It was available either with a four-dials layout inspired by the European Mondeo, three-dials arrangement, or a very modern design that sported the speedometer in the middle flanked on both sides by LCDs.

Since it shared its underpinnings with Mazda 6, the Fusion received a V-6 and an all-wheel-drive system, which came to complete the powertrain offer. The base version retained the inline-four unit from the 2006 model. It also came with a fuel-efficient hybrid version, which proved that it could run at a lower cost per mile than its core competitors, the Camry and the Accord.