Well, I got through 4 1/2 months of daily-driver duty, but I'm hoping to keep it parked for the next few months - the underside is so clean I hate to subject it to winter here. My plan had been to winter in the 14 Focus ST, a "sacrificial anode" that developed rocker rust, a particularly New England malaise that has claimed so many of my high-performance Fords. Unfortunately my wife didn't buy my logic, and it was her car - poof went that plan.
I've exercised most functions with no surprises, and remain pretty happy with the car. I undoubtedly put too much work into finding the right one, but am glad I did.
In general, it's well thought out and executed - very few niggles to report, and most are pretty small, like the trunk opening lol. I knew that, and that was fine until the hatchback went away...
The car is heavy, I knew that too. The one I test-drove (which sunk the hook) felt lighter on its feet, probably aided by a tune and fresher dampers. Not as light as the Fusion Sport, but I find the interior and dash so much nicer. As I once put it, 5 year ago me would have preferred the FuSpo, but 5 year from now me will definitely prefer this.
That, and the high options have added a lot. While I do find the adaptive aspect of the LED headlights distracting, they are better than the base ones. I will like that, until I need to replace one. Not quite as good as the FoST (ST3 package, about the best headlights I've had), as they cut off below the tree canopy, but glad to have them. The Revel Ultima is a true audiophile system, with good input it's a match or better than my home system for imaging (but not volume). For a revealing listen, my go-to demo is Steve Vai's Anthology, disc 2, Essence - but keep the volume ~10-12 until you know your sub can do it. Subharmonics approach danger level.
Not a fan of auto high-beams, I try to "never let them see your brights" - but there was one time I screwed up and figured out later I blinded someone. Not a fan of the massage seats, which were unavoidable. Seat bottom gets hard fairly quickly compared to non-massage, and oddly makes me aware of my wallet - strange considering the Recaros in the FoST did neither despite being a very firm heavily bolstered seat. Also, I find the glass to be of lesser quality than I am used to from Ford - more like GM - wavy in multiple places. I did verify all the glass was original before buying.
I do have worries about the power trunk, it works fine but snow/ice will be concerning. Also finding Sirius reception is not as good as the FoST, probably from being much lower on a somewhat lower car. I do not know and will never understand why they pla Ed their satellite(s) far enough south to be borderline unusable in Massachusetts.
Big fan of the heated steering wheel, I put it on for maybe 2 minutes and I can see if it is on or off. My current winter ride is my wife's prior BMW 228 (a Mini Clubman in BMW trim), and that heated wheel is too hot too quickly, have to cycle it many times until cabin heats up and no visual so I turn on/off extra times to get the dash message and know the status. Reminds me of her long gone A6, nice feature gone awry. More likely made for use with gloves, which oddly the console buttons do not work while wearing - even though they have a tactile click. Ford/Lincoln? Not a problem.
So far I have updated Sync and changed engine, transmission and brake fluids. Drivetrain is next. Was hesitating on these as I researched beyond the owners' manual, over concerns on friction modifier. Deep down I know that clutches need it. Thought the PTU had one, but it's a helical diff - the driveshaft turns all the time. The RDU has a clutch at its input, and for Driver's Package (or 19/20 3.0AWD) it does want Ford XL19 friction modifier for Torque Vectoring diffs. Got that tip from a racing bud who also happens to be a Ford Master Tech, and owns a '19 3.0AWD. Seems he's switched from a CTS-V.
FWIW that diff is a GKN Twinster, and the vectoring action is managed with hydraulically controlled clutches, but those are sealed off from the 80w90 oil. And to save anyone else from following my search path, GKN 100% refers to OEM instructions. I don't know why our manuals don't list the modifier but I'm pretty sure it's of use for that clutch in the pinion.
As for my specific example, I am tickled by the condition. Black with excellent paint, only one door ding and a mild scrape on one rocker plastic, which I will try to replace. Wanted to get it PPF'ed and Fluid-Filmed, but did not manage to get it done this year. There is a ghost stain on each front seat, faint but shows up in bright sun. Driver's seat heater is a little slow, slower than the passenger side. I've not yet been bothered enough to get the IR pyrometer out to check backs/bottoms to compare.
I have had a couple spurious messages that clear themselves, hill holder not available, all-wheel-drive restored, maybe another one or two over my 5k miles so far. And I have found the touch-lock is only reliable on driver's door in summer, but works better in cold weather.
Gotta run as I've rambled too much for one sitting LOL.
- Jeff
