Ovaltine

I think the true viability of the segment will lie with the price of gas. If it ever approaches the $4.20+ range again, people will buy vehicles like this because they have *no* choice. So... it might not hurt Ford to have one in the stable, since high gas prices are only one terrorist attack away. -Ovaltine

Were you thinking of the Kia Rondo? The Sedona is still a LWB mini-van. Kia did sell a SWB version of the Sedona a year or so ago, but I think that may have been dropped. -Ovaltine

Yeah!!! To h-ll with those low-to-lower middle income families looking for decent transportation for their families! Ford doesn't need'em anyway! Only people needing loaded and large vehicles need visit the showroom! Besides, the C-Max would look EXTREMELY out of place in the "Hamptons" now, wouldn't it! :shades: What did Hank think about making low-priced, only-the-features-that-are-necessary autos for the "common man"? "I will build a car for the great multitude. It will be large enough for the family, but small enough for the individual to run and care for. It will be constructed of the best materials, by the best men to be hired, after the simplest designs that modern engineering can devise. But it will be low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one — and enjoy with his family the blessing of hours of pleasure in God's great open spaces. " - Henry Ford I personally LIKE it, and so does the co-worker I've discussed before that didn't care for the Flex that much. Being the mother of a one-year old, what was the first thing she spotted on the C-Max??? The SLIDER!!!! -Ovaltine

While re-reading my copy of Robert Lacey's "Ford: The Men and the Machine" last evening, I read the section about Ford's battle with the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers (ALAM) and George Selden. I'll let you read the details on what happened (see the link below), but the one thing I took from this chapter was that Ford's notoriety and reputation grew exponentially with the public during this struggle, due to his willingness to go against the grain of what the other manufacturers were doing. Much like today's situation, but obviously under slightly different circumstances. One difference I see though, based on the ad below that was taken out by the company, is that the Ford was willing to articulate the situation very directly and succinctly to the public at large. I wonder if Ford (today) shouldn't be a bit more brazen with their advertising, regarding the fact that they are the ONLY domestic manufacturer to not go bankrupt or take bailout money? Such an approach worked well for 'ole Hank! Selden/ALAM article: http://www.bpmlegal.com/wselden.html "Ford won applause for openly defying Selden and advertising his defiance in such a manner that Selden couldn't ignore the threat. (Ford was obviously itching to for a fight)." -Ovaltine

Ewwwwwwww. Now THAT'S something I didn't need to visualize just before dinner! -Ovaltine

It looks better than the Ridgeline or Element, but THOSE are a couple of VERY low bars to step over. I wonder what it is about Honda that keeps anyone with any style or design sense from ever joining their ranks, and changing the course there. Weird. -Ovaltine

I agree that the wrapover chrome trim needs to go. But I doubt that it will, since it looks pretty integrated into the body panels already. I'm also not a huge fan of the kick-up window treatment in the rear doors. I liken it to the Genesis coupe's odd rear quarter window design that's there just for the sake of being different. Regardless, I'll bet the new car is still a major improvement on the current model. -Ovaltine

Your response is an issue of semantics, Richard. 1. I started the thread, and in tradtional forum-speak, that implies that I at least own/owned the authorship of it. Thus the statement above of "my thread". 2. As far as the context of my numbers, here's the definition of the word: Context: the set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc. My original posting: "Parked next to a new Taurus today. Beautiful car. Nice fit and finish and appointments. The console in the center is REALLY tall, which might make people fee a bit claustrophobic. The sheer SIZE of this car though is the real story. I owned a 2-door '76 LTD back in H.S., and this car reminded me of that. Check out the specs comparison below! One very positive thing from all that mass is that the NHTSA and IIHS safety ratings on this thing should be through the roof!" How much more context to the numbers I posted (eventually correctly) would I need to provide to make a comparison between these two vehicles related to mass? As far as "...acting hurt and innocent", all I can say is that I'm willing to defend my arguments logically, as illustrated by this post. Interpret my responses with whatever emotional "filter" you like, but my postings stand on their own merits. If I were to use your standard(s) of judgement, I've noticed that *your* postings appear to be quite often very *defensive* by nature, even in cases like this where I originally didn't post anything overtly negative in any way. I'll drop this at this point, since I do think my comparative point was made. P.S. The '76 LTD trunk was about a cubic foot bigger than the 2010. The interesting thing I learned is that the 2010 Taurus trunk is actually *smaller* than the 2009 by about a cubic foot! That means that the 2009 Taurus had parity with the humongous trunk of the '76 LTD. That in and of itself was quite an engineering and packaging miracle! B) -Ovaltine

Wow... I go to lunch, come back in here to correct the posted numbers in *my* Ford Taurus thread (http://www.blueovalforums.com/forums/index...st&p=540036) , just to find that it's been locked? What's up with that? After parking next to a new Taurus today, I simply posted my opinion on it after a 3 minute walk around. I complimented the car in several ways, but happened to state that I think it is a *big* car, followed by an attempt to justify my opinion statistically. Why is *that* inflammatory enough to get a thread locked? The points I spoke positively about were the build quality and apparent occupant safety. If there is any negative connotation to my observation, I guess that it would be in the comparison of the similarities of a 21st century state-of-the-art vehicle's mass to a 1970's era automotive "tank" like the LTD. I still think my observations about the bulk of the car being "big" holds true when you realize that the new 2010 Taurus is: 93% as heavy as a 4000 lbs LTD 90% as long in overall length as the LTD 93% as long in the wheelbase as the LTD 96% as wide as the LTD and finally.... 112% as tall as the LTD (or in other words, 12% taller!) Fuel mileage of the Taurus vs. the LTD is about a 31% increase for the Taurus. This article ( http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...9082102315.html ) states that the author got 17 mpg city, while my '76 LTD with a 400cid got an even 13 mpg around town. A 31% mpg improvement for a similar class car shouldn't be sneezed at, BUT... I wonder if the combination of today's poor economy and green initiatives perhaps suggest that now isn't the time for a car this massive and inefficient (comparatively speaking, when compared to other 5+ passenger haulers). In any case, here are the correct stats: 1976 LTD http://wikicars.org/en/Ford_LTD Weight 3900-4400 lbs (I'm going with 4000, since it isn't a wagon) Length 223.9" Wheelbase 121" Width 79.5" Height 54.3" 2010 Taurus http://www.automobilemag.com/am/2010/ford/...us/compare.html Weight 3741.2 lbs Length 202.9" Wheelbase 112.9" Width 76.2" Height 60.7" BTW.... an aside to Nick.... Kia emblems have been *black* for about seven years or so... not red. :shades: -Ovaltine

Oops..... I see the jiggy numbers now. Let me re-surf those, and get them corrected. I had to cut-n-paste into another document and something got crossed due to them originally being in tables. Stay tuned.... -Ovaltine

Parked next to a new Taurus today. Beautiful car. Nice fit and finish and appointments. The console in the center is REALLY tall, which might make people fee a bit claustrophobic. The sheer SIZE of this car though is the real story. I owned a 2-door '76 LTD back in H.S., and this car reminded me of that. Check out the specs comparison below! One very positive thing from all that mass is that the NHTSA and IIHS safety ratings on this thing should be through the roof! -Ovaltine 1976 Ford LTD Weight 3900-4400 lbs Length 223.9" Wheelbase 223.9" Width 79.5" Height 54.3" Wheelbase 121" 2010 Ford Taurus Weight 3741.2 lbs Length 202.9" Wheelbase 223.9" Width 76.2" Height 60.7" Wheelbase 112.9"

1983 Ford Escort 1.6L "H.O." -- 80 hp, I believe due to the tube header on it that made it an "H.O.". Standard engines only made 69 hp!!! In its defense, it had a 5-speed, so I could rev it up pretty good. Plus it was a very light car. I enjoyed driving it for the most part. Around 50k miles though, the fuel pump had a weird habit of freaking out on long drives, and the engine would start losing power. After the problem was debugged and a new pump installed, that solved that problem. My biggest gripe with that motor was the lousy aluminum heads that would crack like clockwork at about 80k miles. The crank bearings would then go south about 20k+ miles after clouds of antifreeze came out of the tailpipe prior to replacing the head. Good times. >:-\ -Ovaltine

Quality, pricing, and warranty are the ingredients of "quadrupling sales". Something tells me that VW is going to be missing at least 1, if not 2 of these components in their "big" turnaround equation. -Ovaltine

That wouldn't be a bad thing, if it was a modern version of Lady Godiva! :lol: -Ovaltine

The name will HAVE to be changed this side of the pond.... for sure!!!! -Ovaltine

Pretty interesting factoid, regardless of the interpretation. Ford just needs to start gnawing away at GM's portion! -Ovaltine

Ever seen the movie "Idiocracy"? Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0yQunhOaU0 I cringe daily, as I witness people and events that are truly paving the way towards this "fictional" future. -Ovaltine Physician of the future: "Why come you got no tattoo?"

I think it is now a "cross over", due to the fact they've moved it over to a unitized body. I'd bet that it and the Hyundai Santa Fe may share a little DNA now. Isn't the Explorer scheduled for a move over to unitized construction in the next couple of years? -Ovaltine

Pretty sweet looking ride..... -Ovaltine

WTF?!?!? Speak english please! What is the actual problem you're railing against??? The above sounds and reads like Orwellian "double-speak". Is the problem the fact that the company actually wants its employees to work some overtime to build some vehicles? What is the 'transgression' that's the basis of your complaint? Did the company not first say "Simon Says...", or "Pretty please, with sugar on top?" C'mon..... WHO in their right minds at this point in time are going to complain and file petty grievances against the company for being asked to come and work at their jobs? Many factories across all of autodom are still shut down, or running at reduced output. Rejoice in the fact that someone WANTS you to drag you and your co-workers skinny (and fat) butts to the job site and be productive in exchange for what is still considered decent pay, especially in these trying times! Sheeesssshhhhh. -Ovaltine

For North America they need to lose the hood ornament and front grill insert. The logo in the steering wheel, etc. is unappealing to me. Come up with something better. Watch "Buick-y" side body creases. Too late to remove, but not a good direction to head. Pretty nice car overall though.... for a Hyundai!!! -Ovaltine

I wonder if any of Dr. Evil's frickin' laser technology or designs can be commandeered?!?!? -Ovaltine

Nice observation!!! :lol: -Ovaltine

People once lived like this too: At one point in the history of mankind, this guy would have been considered as "living large" because he HAD a cave! A cave wasn't a necessity for a prehistoric man's survival, but it sure made his life easier! At another point in time, mankind decided that he "wanted" a better home than a cave and figured out how to build huts and shacks. Again not a necessity, but a "want" that made their lives easier and more enjoyable. So with that stated, are YOU ready to turn your "want" (a modern house) in for a "necessity" like a hut or cave? Hmmmmmm? I didn't think so. -Ovaltine

This is from this past March (2009): Kia previews 2010 Amanti sedan with Seoul Motor Show concept According to a previously leaked document outlining Kia's future product plans, the new Amanti is set to make its world debut in August next year with sales expected in the following month. Incidentally, the underpinnings of the new car will also be shared with Hyundai's next-generation Azera (Grandeur), which is expected to be launched around the same time. http://www.motorauthority.com/spy-shots-ki...a-grandeur.html If they've switched it over to the RWD Genesis platform, that would be a major change from what's stated above, assuming that the next-gen Azera is staying FWD. -Ovaltine