ZanatWork
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Posts posted by ZanatWork
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Did the GTD's official 'Ring time ever get published? I've been watching, but may have missed it....
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Agreed. That was a punk-a$$ comparison, with uneven sub-models competing.
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I think the EV issue will be complicated by resentment to legislated "choices", combined with the many reported issues of the new tech as vehicles and charging stations along the way.
I certainly feel a degree of that. -
16 hours ago, atomcat68 said:
My argument against Explorer is that when it was changed to a FWD based Volvo platform, there were no letter writing campaigns or hoards of angry people like when the Mustang was almost replaced like the Probe. Look at the passion Mustang awakens in people. There are strong opinions when customers feel the Mustang isn't being honored like Mustang II or Mach E.
When Explorer changed, it was a collective "meh", and the FWD one sold well. Bronco was absent from Ford's lineup for a long time.
Thunderbirds, Galaxies, Taurus and Fairlanes are instantly recognizable as Fords and are gone. All good cars, but no one really raged at that as much as when Ford almost made the Probe the Mustang.
The most powerful emotional responses are usually to F-150 and Mustang and the others do not have the same degree of fanaticism.
The Explorer was (is) often bought for capacity, and for the "sporty" optics vs a minivan or similar. The last of the RWD-based Explorers had kept its styling with too little evolution before the Volvo-bone ones debuted.
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4 hours ago, rmc523 said:
The article mentioned they were AI renders.
Hence, I referred to the render as such.
I think Lincoln could do a relatively easy half-measure, with boosts in power (particularly felt as smooth torque) and some GENTLE tweaking, to tighten but not frighten, as it were. Too many of the big-money sport versions seem to sacrifice ride and luxury feel to pursue some strange need for "rawness". Don't go that far, just offer a trim that gives a good return in feel/dynamics for the inevitable price bump.
If Lincoln really wanted to do a "Red Label" that would have a place fighting AMGs, Ms, etc...it'd almost be another division, with the focus on quiet luxury over the last decade. -
At least one of the renders is pretty awful.
The concept is fine, I love all kinds of fast Fords...but the lux/sport market is thick and the competitors are both very capable and established. If they wanted to run against AMGs and Ms, that starts early in the platform engineering stages. -
Seattle's had massive crime issues, coupled with many of their police leaving after certain optics trends in recent years. Citing "lack of respect from city leadership" as a leading reason to seek work elsewhere, they've relegated Seattle's police to less than half of what it reportedly needs to be.
Hence, I don't like venturing in from my 'burb much. I may leave this area altogether soon, as the whole coast's "leadership" is horrific. -
Just in case someone has knowledge...the parking and what-not plus my admitted disinterest in most things EV make it a tough sell. That said, if the GTD is there...it, and various high-dollar exotica that always are displayed at these events might be worth a ticket.
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I always liked the 1995-2001 versions, because I knew the previous one had the ancient front end underneath.
I'm waiting to see the new grille in person, but I get the reason for the change: they want to differentiate from recent Explorers, which have been sadly known for being recall queens and mid-pack (at best) pretenders. -
...just, no.
I knew what this would be, I knew the basic specs and reality from the trends...
...but the Mach-E is a sibling to "Real" Mustangs. As someone who owned and loved 70's Capris (and still contemplates finding an 80s RS to build)...I wish they'd have done something more in the spirit of the original, at least to start with.
This is just another battery-powered blob with a classic nameplate, and it'll be too close in price/spec to make it over here with the Mach E already in showrooms.-
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On 6/26/2024 at 12:13 PM, Andrew L said:
Man you would piss off some folks I know in a few classic car groups I am in. For the record I agree with you but when ever someone asks about upgrading the old drum brakes for discs they come out of the woodwork screaming "the car wasn't designed for discs and you won't get better performance and should just stick with drums!!!!!!" 🙄😄
I understand their thinking, but all one has to do is look at the aftermarket catalogs for 1st-gen Mustangs...and you can get packages with rack steering, disc brakes, and subframe stiffeners. It's not cheap and it is work, but you end up with a classic-looking Mustang that goes, steers, and stops better and more reliably. The chassis stiffening, in particular, makes a big difference.
Again, I'd never do it to anything truly "collectible", but if you find that project car that's already going to take a bunch of work and is much more about fun than investment potential...why not?
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This is...interesting.
I'm big on the "restomod" approach, because I'm not all that sentimental about things like point ignitions, drum brakes, or terrible turbo lag. So, when I look at an old Ford/Mercury as a project, I think in terms of replacing old steering gears with a modern rack and pinion, etc. For this reason, I'd never start with a "holy grail", a collector vehicle...but I understand the companies that build the "body in white" "continuation" Mustangs with Coyote engines, rack steering, disc brakes, etc.
In this case...wow...the RS200 is one of my Holy Grail Fords, one that blew my mind as a teenager at its debut and has haunted by dreams since. I have to admit, I've thought about finding a wrecked one and putting a modern Ecoboost engine with modern reliability and much less lag in it. I never had the budget or donor vehicle to undertake the project, but it's kind of validating to see someone else taking the same ball and running.... -
If Ford wants to expand the Mustang line to include the long-rumored sports sedan, and also wants to lighten the cars to help performance and economy, maybe there's one more real update before the inevitable EV takeover....
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On 3/21/2024 at 7:46 AM, akirby said:
Have you been in a platinum or King Ranch F150?That gets into twitchy territory for me, TBH, the same way that I don't know if I could ever drop money on a brand new Range Rover or similar; I take my trucks/SUVs into actual dirt and that means I'd be better off buying an FX4 and the full Weathertech package.
I've never quite understood the point of "rugged luxury" vehicles. Tracking mud into delicate carpets and smearing goop on those massaging seat controls must make the detailer swoon. -
I'm seeing/hearing about a lot of customers that tried EVs, and went right back. They weren't impressed, and I can't blame them. I've seen far more articles regarding range disappointment and inconsistent charging experiences than not.
Mandated changes, especially ones that cherry-pick the science involved, always make me rebellious. When it involves cars, the thought of just updating a couple of good 1971 Fords/Mercuries to more modern brakes/ignition/etc gets increasingly tempting. -
As a Gen-Xer who was in the parts/service industry forever, this reminds me of the early emissions years.
Some of you may remember opening the hoods on the late-70s, early-80s nightmares, with miles of incomprehensible vacuum lines and rotting cannisters...extra valves and solenoids...vapor locking and a great deal of stuff that would mysteriously get "blocked" or simply taken offline by shadetree DIYers that got tired of crap that both choked their cars and broke regularly.
I don't miss those days one bit.
Now, I look around in traffic, and read auto news sites, and I see the Tesla wannabes (any electric car that the maker quit styling with the job half done) looking like impersonal blobs...while more stories come out about the fragile/failing business cases, how other approaches could have worked better/faster...
...and I can't help but remember opening a great big hood on an LTD II and knowing that somewhere, under all the hoses, cannisters, and valves, was a perfectly mediocre 351M.-
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I agree with politicization, to a degree, because the vehicle ARE being mandated along the granola coast and in increasing numbers of countries...before the tech is really a full-on replacement for ICE.
I am definitely among those that wonder why I'd ever take orders from "representatives" that supposedly work for...us...?
That said, with inconsistent charging stations, various tech gremlins, and the other (slow charging, expense, etc) issues that plague even fully-functional examples, I'm certainly not sold, yet.-
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Honestly...I'm a little disappointed. I know that Ford is shoveling most of the R&D money into EV efforts right now (even if not battery assembly pay, apparently), but the 2.3 and 2.7 have been at their respective outputs forever. Some "bumps" seem overdue, which would also have been cause for more positive bullet points.
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I'd love a "Dark Horse Shooting Brake", especially if I could have a manual and awd. For guitar nerds like me, always hauling music gear around, it'd be perfect.
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I can't like the nose. I hate the current trend of overly-busy front ends on trucks...they'll always look like contrived hipster "faux macho" crap to me. Yes, I prefer the bull nose, or even the mid-00's simpler front ends. I have a former police 2008 Expedition, and it's got a handsome, uncluttered face compared to that mess.
I just don't get the need to mess up a vehicle whose entire marketable lineage is about utility, work, dependability.... -
There's a lot of differences, including gross vs. net hp ratings (knock something like a third off gross for net), greater modern chassis rigidity that makes the car respond better...although all the safety innovations make them weigh more. Throw in the tires, the brakes, the ignition and fuel systems, etc etc etc.
It all does make a great case for doing a serious restomod based on one of those "body in white" shells. Have your '69 fastback, only brand new, with a Coyote, Brembos, rack and pinion.... -
If they actually combine the V8, AWD, and a manual transmission, I'm in trouble...because I live in an area with regularly slimy roads.
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I don't think it's a 5.0. It's missing the fender badges, the air dam, the tires look pretty skinny...so, I think it's a GL or an LX with a donor hood. Still a handsome car, though.
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I'm curious if it'll get done. I live in the PNW, with slimy roads much of the time. A Mustang with optional AWD wouldn't be the sacrilege to me that it is to others.
Ford’s X account is ‘hacked’ as auto giant rushes to delete tweets and drivers demand answers
in Ford Motor Company Discussion Forum
Posted
Ol' Henry's infamous antisemitism is maybe my least favorite part of the company's history, especially in how it tied to some terrible tie-ins with the German Jackboot club in the 1930's-40's.
Then again, nothing prepared me for having 1930's Germany rhetoric shouted by Gen Z college students over here...with a pro-terror twist.