Blake Noble

So far during this year's Detriot Auto Show, many of the automaker's media embargos have been broken early -- the Dodge Dart, the new Mercedes SL, and the Cadillac ATS all were put up for public viewing on the internet hours before they were officially meant to be. The new 2013 Ford Fusion was another car that fell victim to having its media embargo broken by Uncle Internet, but luckily the two pictures that leaked out earlier today weren't of the best quality and still left you wanting to see more. If you were wondering how the rear and interior of the new Fusion would turn out, well, here's some good news: Ford's embargo broke about an hour or two ago and now we can bring you a full gallery of nice resolution images of Ford's new Camcord fighting mid-sized sedan. And man, oh man ... has Ford really come out swinging this time on this one. If we've learned anything about how a mid-sized sedan should be designed from recent debuts, such as the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu and 2011 Kia Optima, it's that cars of this class do not have to be dull as dishwater and this new Fusion is no exception. Any possible styling connections to the outgoing Fusion have been thrown out the door and the new car instead draws it's inspiration heavily from the current Kinetic design European Ford Mondeo and the Ford Evos concept car. The end result definitely makes for one boldly-designed sedan. The new Fusion can be ordered in S, SE, and Titanium trim levels and, as with the other competing cars in its class, will offer a range of four-cylinder engines. Base cars will have a naturally-aspirated 2.5L four (175 hp, 175 lb.-ft. of torque) standard and the upgrade from that engine will be a turbo 1.6L EcoBoost four (179 hp, 172 lb.-ft. of torque) good for 26 mpg city and 37 mpg highway. The range-topping motor will be a 2.0L EcoBoost four (237 hp, and 250 lb.-ft. of torque). As for transmissions, a six-speed automatic or manual will be offered. You also have the option of all-wheel drive on top-end, 2.0L-equipped cars as well. That isn't all, though. The Hybrid model, of course, returns with the new car. Good for 47 mpg in the city and 44 mpg on the highway, the new Fusion Hybrid uses a 2.0L four-cylinder engine along with an electric motor good for 180 horses. If the Hybrid wasn't efficient enough, Ford also will build an Energi (read: plug-in hybrid) variant of the Fusion that will be good for 100 MPGe. Aside from being one of the most efficient cars in its class, the new Fusion will be packed full of tech goodies. MyFordTouch, Ford's in-house infotainment system, will obviously be an offered item and Sync is standard on all models. The new Fusion is certainly one of the most impressive mid-sized sedans set to hit the market and will most definitely keep the competition (especially Toyota) wringing their hands for a while. Production is set to start this month in Mexico and will expand to Flat Rock, Michigan. Sales will begin here in the North American market this fall, while overseas buyers in Europe will see the Fusion show up on their shores to replace the Mondeo next year. Browse through the gallery here: View full article

Have you seen any improvement since this post, blu? While those rims do resemble the old IROC 5-spokes, they were more or less modeled after the old "Icon" and "Ecco" rims from the XJ Cherokee: XJ Cherokee "Icon" 16" alloy rim: XJ Cherokee "Ecco" 15" alloy rim: MK Patriot 17" alloy rim: Additionally, the "Icon" and "Ecco" rims may possibly mount up to a Patriot, provided they provide ample clearance for the disc brakes. I know people mount the MK 17" rims up to XJs all day long without any problems. What really looks sweet on MKs and XJs alike are the Wrangler Rubicon "Moab" 16" or 17" rims: Jeep upgraded the rims on their Patriot Extreme concept to a set of Moabs (they had to install a 2" lift to fit the meater rubber):

Like Camino, I don't consider any music I enjoy a guilty pleasure. Here's one of my favorite driving songs, no guilt involved. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/FJfMWP6qNKM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Shift, sir, it's good to see you again and I hope you stick around. There's never been a better time to return to the site (seriously).