The historic battle in this segment between Ford and Toyota, which dates back nearly two decades, has been so fierce that when the Taurus edged the Camry for the U.S. sales crown one year, Ford’s public-relations department hired a marching band to trumpet that fact up and down Jefferson Avenue.

Our premise for this historic rematch was simple: If you’re a family of modest means, with about $25,000 to spend on some new everyday wheels, which car offers the best value?

With the all-new Fusion supplanting the Taurus for model year 2006 and the long-lived Camry (the reigning sales champ) getting a major redesign for 2007, one of the two rivals is about ready to strike up the band once again.

The ’06 Fusion starts at $17,795, including shipping. We tested a top-of-the-line Fusion SEL with lots of equipment and a sticker price of $25,650. The ’07 Camry is priced from $18,850. We drove a midrange Camry LE with a modest number of extras and a bottom line of $24,266.

Exterior

Bold. In your face. And very, very American. The Fusion boasts a distinctive exterior that Ford designers like to refer to as "go-Daddy" -- shorthand for hip and edgy. With its big chrome grille, flanked by wrapover headlamps, and other Ford family styling cues, Fusion has a brash and sporty personality that has struck a responsive chord with buyers since its debut last fall.

The redesigned Camry adopts precisely the opposite tack. In a dramatic stylistic departure from its bland predecessor, the 2007 model takes a huge step upmarket. Now, the Camry looks an awful lot like a little Lexus, not a garden-variety family schlepper, with a new elegance and sophistication that the Fusion lacks...

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SOURCE: Ford Motor Company