The Fusion splits cleanly into winners and losers depending on what's under the hood. The naturally aspirated 2.5L is a quarter-million-mile workhorse that owners genuinely love, and the hybrid drivetrain with its Aisin eCVT is equally bulletproof while delivering 40+ MPG in the city. But the 1.5L and 2.0L EcoBoost engines from 2013 through most of 2019 have a coolant intrusion defect that kills engines between 60k and 100k miles, not a rumor, a documented pattern across dozens of independent owners. Ford fixed it late in 2019, but those earlier turbo models are landmines unless the engine's already been replaced. If you're shopping used, check the engine code before you check the CarFax. Buy the 2.5L or hybrid and you'll understand why some owners hit 250k miles and post about it. Buy a pre-2020 turbo and you're gambling with a motor that has a known expiration date.
The Accord is what happens when a company that knows how to build engines decides comfort and space matter just as much as the drive, and mostly nails it. The 2017-2019 1.5T burns head gaskets between 60k and 100k miles, a $2,000-4,000 repair that's common enough to be a known hazard; skip those years or budget accordingly. If you want a roomy, efficient sedan that won't bore you on a back road and won't strand you at 150k miles, the 2.0T or hybrid models deliver, just know the latest generation traded the sharp looks of the 10th gen for something safer and blander.