I own a Ford Fusion Hybrid and it's pretty much like a less expensive luxury sedan. I know there are people that think the grill on the front is ugly but I think it looks pretty sharp. A standard Ford Fusion beats a Camry and Accord in mpg, and the quality of the 2010 Fusion is really sharp. That and its resell value is on par with an Accord or Camry. Also the newer Camry models don't use as high a quality parts on the interior like good leather seats, and a flimsy looking dashboard, but their older models are definitely sturdy as hell. And the Accord's back looks like it has love handles. That's all personal choice though. I think Ford has caught up with foreign cars but they're still trying shake that reputation of building shoddy cars. Mazda has improved in quality as well and Ford owns a good chunk of that company as well. There goes my endorsement for Ford.
If you believe JD Power, their 2009 VDS survey actually ranks Mazda reeeeeeeally low, among the worst as a matter of fact, in terms of reliability. Only Isuzu, Land Rover, Volkswagen, and Suzuki rank lower.