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Ford Fusion
The American Ford Fusion
(code name CD338) is a midsize car based on
the Ford CD3 platform. The Fusion went on
sale in October 2005 as a 2006 model, and
is a replacement for the to be discontinued
Ford Taurus. It is manufactured at Ford's
Hermosillo, Mexico plant (Job 1 date of August
1, 2005). Companion versions entitled the
Mercury Milan (code name CD334) and the Lincoln
Zephyr (code name CD378) were launched at
the same time. At the 2005 Detroit Auto Show,
a hybrid version was announced for the 2008
model year. Ford's Fusion advertising campaign
is entitled Life in Drive.
The Fusion was originally
to be called the Ford Futura, but Ford lost
a trademark lawsuit to the Pep Boys auto parts
store, which has a line of tires under the
Futura brand. American trademark law generally
considers a name abandoned if the owner does
not use it for three calendar years, and the
long history of the name in the Ford line
did not impress the court. With
its launch, the Fusion debuted Ford's new
three-bar grille design, which is expected
to become the company's trademark look for
the rest of the decade. Production volume
is projected at 160,000-200,000 per year.
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