(December 29, 2012) DEARBORN, Mich. — The 2013 Ford Fusion — recently voted Green Car of the Year — just got greener as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency certified the new Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid at up to 108 MPGe, making it America’s most fuel-efficient sedan.
 
Fusion Energi is the Ford brand’s fifth electrified vehicle to launch in the past year and is expected to accelerate the company’s record hybrid sales pace, including its highest monthly hybrid sales month ever in November. Ford is seeing demand for fuel economy across its lineup as the brand ranks No. 1 in fuel economy customer satisfaction by J.D. Power and now beats Toyota for leading efficiency in every segment where both compete.
 
The EPA also certified Fusion Energi to deliver up to 92 MPGe highway and a combined 100 MPGe — figures that could potentially help save customers an estimated $6,850 in fuel costs compared with an average new car over the course of five years.
 
“The Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid is the exclamation point for Ford’s transformed lineup of fuel-efficiency leaders that now beats Toyota across the board,” said Raj Nair, group vice president, Global Product Development.
 
Adding to Fusion Energi’s value are its innovative technologies that are designed to help win over both novice and pro hybrid owners.
 
SmartGauge with EcoGuide, for example, provides in-vehicle customizable displays, including instantaneous fuel economy readings and coaching functions to help drivers understand and optimize their fuel efficiency.
 

Such technologies have helped get sales for Ford’s electrified vehicle lineup up and running. With more than 19,000 hybrid vehicle sales projected, the automaker expects total fourth-quarter hybrid sales to set an all-time record for a three-month period, with more than half of hybrid sales this year expected to come in the fourth quarter.
 
In fact, C-MAX became the fastest-selling hybrid ever at launch after 8,030 units were sold in October and November, the first two months C-MAX was on the market. The pace beat Toyota Camry Hybrid’s 7,300 sales in its first two full months of availability in May and June 2006.
 
“The response to C-MAX really shows the amount of pent-up demand from a specific market for C-segment hybrids,” says C.J. O’Donnell, marketing manager, Ford Electrified Vehicles. “Fusion Energi has a different audience in the midsize sedan market, but delivers many of the characteristics and technologies that make C-MAX Energi so great, which is why we’re anticipating a similar positive response.”
 
Fusion is designed with the driver’s sense of style in mind, delivering a midsize sedan that offers functional design elements that enhance its sleek exterior and promote fuel economy.