Theyre getting old - to keep or trade???

[ZLsnowracer]

Hi all,  (if anyone is still around.?)

 

I have an 08 v6 fusion with 155k miles. I've had it for 3 years and surprisingly still love it. - long story short- its now my backups and I plan to use it for to keep miles on my new car down/wekender - do i keep it or sell it before it self destructs again?

 

a few months ago (just a week before my birthday) my fusion died on the way to work (30 miles each way) it spent 7 weeks with my mechanic (and $3K invested) he had me as a low priority knowing I have family cars to barrow. I finally told him to stop work, make it drivable and I drove it home (it had major exhaust leak - wouldn't idle and ran like crap) - I am very mechanically inclined but don't have a ton of free time due to working full time, commuting and doing my masters degree.

 

here is what my mechanic did:

replace PCM

Replace 6 coils - had an exploded coil

first time the exploding coil TSB wasn't followed properly and we think the pcm we got was bad. and we had to do it all over.

he also replaced all 3 cats and the flex pipe saying they were all bad.

when I took it back - the new catalytic converters were leaking so I returned them the originals  were slightly clogged, but not really that bad so I cleaned them up and put them back on

I then reset the PCM due to throttle body error codes (per fordtechmakuloco on youtube *shoutout* - thanks dude!)

 

it is now running great but occasionally throwing a cat efficiency code which from asking around I should be able to take care of with a cleaning - I'm not worried about that at this point.

 

during all of this I broke down and bought a '16 civic to enjoy the 40+ MPG I'm getting for my daily commute.

 

So here is my question - I am interested in keeping the fusion as a weekend car/toy and to keep the mileage off the civic - BUT with these fusions getting older what is everyone's thoughts  on keeping it, since the value is now next to nothing? even at high miles are they still pretty reliable? again I'm very mechanically inclined, I'm not worried about small maintenance stuff- just concerned about dumping thousands into it again just to keep it running. overall it is in good shape with almost no rust/rot

 

if i keep it ill want to have fun with it -it already has a steeda sway bar and it would most likely get a magniflow exhaust and performance springs/shocks at a minimum.

 

I'm very interested in the opinions of all my fellow high mileage hero's out there!!

[sirtanon]

155k miles is really child's play for the average Fusion, IMHO.  My 2010 has over 273,000 miles, and handles my daily commute of 110 miles round trip with ease.  Granted, your '08 with the v6 is a different beast than my '10 with the 2.5 L4 engine, but still close enough for comparison, I think.

 

The difference here is that you've got a much newer car that gets far better fuel economy than your Fusion, and your Fusion still has some issues.  I would imagine the V6 in the Fusion does have more pep in it than the Civic, but personally, I would be straightening out those converter issues before I did anything else with it.  Can you get that fixed without spending a ton of money on it?  If so, then I'd say it's worth keeping.

 

My Fusion has the occasional issue, but most of what I've had to do to it has been standard maintenance.  I had to have an exhaust valve replaced a little over 2 years (and 60,000 miles) ago, to the tune of about $1600, but aside from that, my expenses related to the car have been only a few hundred dollars in maintenance parts - strut kits, brake rotors and pads, filters, plugs - and fluids.  Now, I am starting to get an intermittent misfire on cylinder 2, but based on what is happening, and the fact that they're still the factory originals, I suspect I've got a failing injector on that cylinder.   I intend to replace the set within the coming weeks.

 

...when you get to the kinds of miles that this car has on it, most of the remaining maintenance/serviceable parts start to show their age.  I was shocked when I replaced my plugs back in early 2017, at 215,000 miles, that they were still the factory original plugs.  The front suspension is still the factory original struts and springs, too, and it's definitely due for replacement, which is why I purchased the strut kit.

 

If you do plan to keep the car, make sure you play close attention to the maintenance, and.. listen.. to it.   I get regular analysis done on the used motor oil that I drain from my engine, to track wear metals, etc.. If I see a noticeable change in the results, that tells me something is amiss and needs attention.  It another $25-30 per test, but IMHO worth it.  Your mileage may vary.

 

Bottom line, if you like the car, and the required service is something you're comfortable footing the bill for, then I'd say keep the car.  To me, it also really depends on how much you expect to drive it vs. the extra space it will take in your garage/driveway, as well as the added insurance expense.

[ZLsnowracer]

Thanks for the inputs! Good to hear about a 200k+ mile fusion. It's the first one I've heard of that's still going in the last year or so, and congrats that is quite the achievement!

 

The new catalytic converter and necessary hardware will probably run me about $400 or so, which isn't a big deal since I've been driving it and know it runs and have only one engine code which is pretty pinpointed. It's just going to kill an afternoon and I've got a business trip coming up so I was going wait until I get back. I'll be getting It back to inspectable condition even if I sell it at this point. And that is absolutely priority one!

 

I also appreciate the oil test recomendation. I just changed the oil last weekend and haven't disposed of the old stuff yet, so I'll have to do that as soon as I get back! Good idea!

 

Thanks for the response, its greatly appreciated!!

[Lyle]

I have a 2008 Fusion 3.0L V6 SEL and it now has 377000 Kms (234500 miles). It runs perfectly and has only required new brakes. I have used synthetic oil since new and the car does not use a drop of oil which is changed every 10,000 miles. We have two other Ford vehicles but the Fusion is our long distant vehicle because of the comfortable ride. This car will have a low trade in value, so we intend to drive it until it is completely miled out.

Lyle

[nanookvd]

I sold my 2009 Mercury Milan 2.3L to my son and now has 170k.  Loved the car so much, bought another 2009 used Mercury Milan 2.3L for my youngest son. 

 

They are mechanically strong vehicles, just keep up the maintenance.  Electrical is the weakest point.   

[MikeBeckner]

2010 SE 3.0 is my daily driver (though it’s been more like once a week since the pandemic).  She has 278K miles and runs like a champ! She’s  showing her age a bit cosmetically, but engine and drivetrain are solid. She also sat for 3 months (with a Ford-paid rental) while waiting for a replacement gas tank for one recall (active leak), another long stint waiting for a passenger airbag in another recall...I wonder how long it will take to get airbags for the recall announced yesterday?

 

 

[bbf2530]

11 hours ago, MikeBeckner said:

2010 SE 3.0 is my daily driver (though it’s been more like once a week since the pandemic).  She has 278K miles and runs like a champ! She’s  showing her age a bit cosmetically, but engine and drivetrain are solid. She also sat for 3 months (with a Ford-paid rental) while waiting for a replacement gas tank for one recall (active leak), another long stint waiting for a passenger airbag in another recall...I wonder how long it will take to get airbags for the recall announced yesterday?

 

 

 

Hi Mike. Airbags have been and are available for some time now. Not sure what the issue is with your Dealership. Then your Dealer would simply need to order it,  if they don't have it in stock.

 

Call the Service Department at your Dealership and tell them you need to make an appointment for the airbag recall. They will tell you what needs to be done from there. Or if you have a problem with them getting the necessary parts, try another Dealership.

 

Good luck.

[piratepress]

I'm rather new to the forum, just getting my 2010 Fusion Sport three months ago. I've always liked the Fusion and we even looked at getting a V6 model in 2006. Ultimately, we settled on a Freestyle since it had more room for our expanding family. Fast-forward almost 15 years later and I'm finally driving a V6 Fusion and it has exceeded my expectations. I went through my "Mid-Life Crisis" phase with a Ferrari and Corvette, but quite honestly, they were terrible, uncomfortable cars. My daily-driven Fusion is a much more "complete" car, offering a smooth ride, plenty of room, and is immensely more reliable and cheaper to maintain. If I continue to enjoy this Fusion, I'm looking to upgrade to a 2017 Sport in the next couple years.