Energized Posted March 11, 2013 at 02:32 AM Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2013 at 02:32 AM The factory makes changes to reflect the wheel/tire combo that goes on the vehicle. The factory changes the software calibration, suspension bushings and spring settings based on the tire/wheel size and weight that goes on the vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PlugMeIn Posted March 11, 2013 at 05:26 PM Report Share Posted March 11, 2013 at 05:26 PM Maybe. I find it odd that there are no wheel options for the energi. I would want to talked to a trained mechanic first. Unsprung weight can have a significant affect on performance, even if the speedometer is not affected. You will lose efficiency going to the 18s. There is also a significant jump in price for that tire size (the 18s) Due to the low volume of the Fusion Energi, I'm guessing that they can only make one wheel design without options. As someone else posted, these are special, light weight wheels. My dealer told me he could switch my wheels with any one they offer on the Fusion despite it not being an option. I just have to decide if I think it's worth it or not. They'll probably swap them off of something else on the lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meyersnole Posted March 11, 2013 at 06:33 PM Report Share Posted March 11, 2013 at 06:33 PM Another consideration that I thought of while discussing my car with a friend is that as you decrease the sidewall the capacity to carry load decreases. That battery has some significant weight to it. This came up in the conversation around I hope that the rear suspension will last due to all that extra weight. I bet that plays a role in the discussion. It would make sense why the Hybrid can still have different sized wheels while the energi is limited to 17s, as it has a much smaller battery. Still guessing though. Having the car, I do not hate the wheels at all -- they actually go kinda nice on the car. Given that I will barely be using the brakes, there should not be a lot of dust on them so hopefully they wont be a PITA to keep clean looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaggy314 Posted March 11, 2013 at 08:07 PM Report Share Posted March 11, 2013 at 08:07 PM (edited) IIRC the extra battery size is only 300 pounds more. So, 1 American adult male ;) in the back seat. Guessing a number for the extra weight of 4 wheels, MAYBE 40-50 pounds more if they're really that much heavier. There isn't enough room in the truck for a body on the Energi without a lot of mess. Dexter (Showtime) will be sticking with his Ford Escape for now... We'd have to pin down a Fusion product manager or lead or something to find out the real Ford reason. EDIT: battery weight 300 Edited February 28, 2014 at 08:13 PM by shaggy314 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter80 Posted March 11, 2013 at 08:52 PM Report Share Posted March 11, 2013 at 08:52 PM Meyersnole, can you verify the size of your tires? 225's or 235's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meyersnole Posted March 12, 2013 at 12:49 AM Report Share Posted March 12, 2013 at 12:49 AM Meyersnole, can you verify the size of your tires? 225's or 235's?P225/50/R17 Looking at the technical specs for the hybrid and energi, there is almost exactly 300 pounds difference between the cars. (3,615 vs 3,913 lbs) then add the additional unsprung weight (greater affect) and you have some numbers that you might be concerned with. It would be nice if they put out an explanation on why the choice is limited. Even if it is just this is a low production car and we don't want to do it. Just remember that if you change the specs and something fails that they can absolve themselves from the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter80 Posted March 12, 2013 at 01:29 AM Report Share Posted March 12, 2013 at 01:29 AM Ok, thanks for the confirmation. Strange that tirerack has it wrong. Yeah, I guess we'd need someone to weigh the wheel/tire combo. Ahem, hint hint, ahem. Lol. And then the same for the 18s and or 19s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yojroz Posted March 19, 2013 at 09:54 PM Report Share Posted March 19, 2013 at 09:54 PM I'm supposed to pick up my Energi tomorrow or Thursday. My dealer reiterated that I can switch out the wheels with another Fusion they have if I want. I understand that 19" might drastically effect everything, but still don't understand why 18" would be a problem when you can get those with a Hybrid. I'll have to decide when I see which ones they have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cricket36 Posted March 24, 2013 at 12:53 PM Report Share Posted March 24, 2013 at 12:53 PM FYI the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid comes standard with 18" wheels and 19" is an option so........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meyersnole Posted March 24, 2013 at 02:33 PM Report Share Posted March 24, 2013 at 02:33 PM The Lincoln might be the same frame, but it is not the same car. The suspension setup will be different, and the car will be designed around the 18s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yojroz Posted March 25, 2013 at 07:24 PM Report Share Posted March 25, 2013 at 07:24 PM When I picked up my car, the dealer stood by his agreement to change the wheels if I wanted to, but I decided not to. With no reasons or details why they aren't offered I didn't want to be the guinea pig in the group. meyersnole 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluggedin Posted March 25, 2013 at 08:08 PM Report Share Posted March 25, 2013 at 08:08 PM When I picked up my car, the dealer stood by his agreement to change the wheels if I wanted to, but I decided not to. With no reasons or details why they aren't offered I didn't want to be the guinea pig in the group.Kudos, I think that was a smart move on your part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yojroz Posted March 25, 2013 at 08:29 PM Report Share Posted March 25, 2013 at 08:29 PM Kudos, I think that was a smart move on your part.Funny though that on the power distribution screen it has a picture of your car with the 19" wheels on it. At least the SYNC programmer knew it would look better with those wheels on it :) shaggy314, TX NRG and bwheetley 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meyersnole Posted March 26, 2013 at 03:40 AM Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 at 03:40 AM When I picked up my car, the dealer stood by his agreement to change the wheels if I wanted to, but I decided not to. With no reasons or details why they aren't offered I didn't want to be the guinea pig in the group.Also agree that this is probably a smart move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluggedin Posted March 26, 2013 at 04:59 AM Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 at 04:59 AM Funny though that on the power distribution screen it has a picture of your car with the 19" wheels on it. At least the SYNC programmer knew it would look better with those wheels on it :)So true, but, if I change the wheels out on my car they are going to be the same size and very close in weight to the original wheel...just better looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roogle Posted March 26, 2013 at 05:12 PM Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 at 05:12 PM My dealer told me he could switch my wheels with any one they offer on the Fusion despite it not being an option. I just have to decide if I think it's worth it or not.Which dealer? I'm trying to buy a energi and want to have the rims switched, but getting resistance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yojroz Posted March 26, 2013 at 06:49 PM Report Share Posted March 26, 2013 at 06:49 PM Advantage Ford in Duarte. My only two rules were they had to be on a vehicle they had in stock, and they had to be on a car that the Energi's 17" wheels were an option. IE, it had to be either the 18" 5 spokes from the Hybrid or the 18" multi spokes from the Hybrid. They only had the 5 spokes in stock when I got mine so that was my only real option. I like the look but decided against it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rprobst Posted March 27, 2013 at 06:22 PM Report Share Posted March 27, 2013 at 06:22 PM Did you ask about the weight difference between the Energi wheels and the SE 5-spoke wheels? If the Energi wheels are lighter, that's a good reason not to make the switch. But otherwise, I might have done it, since the 5-spokes look so much better (IMO). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluggedin Posted March 27, 2013 at 06:36 PM Report Share Posted March 27, 2013 at 06:36 PM Did you ask about the weight difference between the Energi wheels and the SE 5-spoke wheels? If the Energi wheels are lighter, that's a good reason not to make the switch. But otherwise, I might have done it, since the 5-spokes look so much better (IMO).I don't know if this issue has been broached yet when considering larger wheels. I was just reading the owners manual, while looking for where the ambient lighting controls are, and ran across a note on page 67 that says modifying the vehicle ride height (eg, using much larger tires) may degrade the performance of the Automatic High Beam feature. There is a camera sensor centrally mounted behind the windshield of the vehicle that monitors conditions continuously to decide when to switch the high beams off and on. One more thing to consider. I never did find the ambient lighting controls though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaggy314 Posted March 28, 2013 at 04:18 AM Report Share Posted March 28, 2013 at 04:18 AM You mean this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFeeZixCzig https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj4oQ2CvALU Just ignore the crap about lights being in your cup holders, Ford dropped that from our Fusions... :-( Andre07 and FusionEnergi 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluggedin Posted March 28, 2013 at 01:29 PM Report Share Posted March 28, 2013 at 01:29 PM You mean this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFeeZixCzig https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj4oQ2CvALU Just ignore the crap about lights being in your cup holders, Ford dropped that from our Fusions... :-(Yeah that's it. I finally found the instructions on the very last page of the quick reference book that came with the car but not in the owner's manual. Set the lighting last night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roogle Posted March 28, 2013 at 08:32 PM Report Share Posted March 28, 2013 at 08:32 PM Advantage Ford in Duarte. My only two rules were they had to be on a vehicle they had in stock, and they had to be on a car that the Energi's 17" wheels were an option. IE, it had to be either the 18" 5 spokes from the Hybrid or the 18" multi spokes from the Hybrid. They only had the 5 spokes in stock when I got mine so that was my only real option. I like the look but decided against it.Can I get the name of the sales person you used please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DelS Posted May 1, 2013 at 07:11 AM Report Share Posted May 1, 2013 at 07:11 AM (edited) The larger wheels 19" wheels will be a necessity for me and I'll just go aftermarket. The 17" LRR wheels have very little grip at speed. And they counteract the coolness factor the tinted windows exude. Edited May 1, 2013 at 07:11 AM by DelS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaggy314 Posted May 1, 2013 at 05:35 PM Report Share Posted May 1, 2013 at 05:35 PM Keep in mind, that's the rub. The 17" Energi wheels are unique to the Energi, so there is no Fusion you can trade with... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulinPalmSprings Posted August 18, 2013 at 11:49 PM Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 at 11:49 PM I talked to Ford (their 800#) regarding wheels.. they, of course, said any modifications to the car they could not warranty the result. But they finally escalated it and I got the answer that the reason the 17"s were only offered is that the 17" tires they get are low rolling resistance - they don't have low rolling resistance tires available for the 18". I then when to the Ford dealer and talked to guy there, who said he probably thought is was a supply decision - only to have their suppliers supply the lower rolling resistance tires for 17" rims since they are only used on the Energi. That said, I ordered so take-off 18" 235 45R18's from Ebay from a Hybrid - Chrome. Since I mostly drive around town in all-electric mode it will be hard to see if there is any difference in Gas Mileage.. I'm keeping the original 17's for awhile just in case.... mmmhmmmm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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