2005Explorer

I see the Chinese being VERY interested in Chrysler. It would give them a foot in the market much quicker then trying to establish their own brands. However, what would remain to be seen is US customers reaction to such a purchase. Would it throw the remaining loyal domestic auto buyers to GM and Ford or would they look the other way and purchase from a Chinese owned Chrysler Group?

I thought this was a funny quote by Mark Fields when asked about using vehicle names from Ford's past... Ford's Five Hundred will become Taurus for 2008, Freestyle Taurus X and the Mercury Montego Sable. So what of the Lincoln MKS slated to be assembled with those three at the company's Chicago plant? No change there, as the naming move is designed to spark a sales spurt for the other three. It also puts an end to the edict that all new Ford cars start with the letter "F" and new Mercurys with "M." "Names will no longer be hampered by those restraints," Fields said. As for going back in history for names, Fields said it is safe to assume Pinto isn't going to come back--ever. No need to even ask about Edsel. :lol:

Well the one thing good thing I will say about the 1996 Taurus is that the design still looks modern 10 years later. If you see a well kept '96-99 higher trim-level Taurus it still looks like it fits with the times. Sometimes I think the design just came too soon. It wasn't ugly like the Pacer or Aztec, it just was too "spacy" for people to stomach. If the 2000 Taurus would have been the one that came in 1996 it would have been a knock-out sucess at the time.

Why does it seem that Ford is fearful of of anything a bit radical after the 1996 Taurus? Granted that car went too far...I know they were trying to duplicate the markets reaction 10 years before that with the 1986 Taurus, but it just did not work. With regards to pickup design you could say that the 1997 F-150 was radical compard to any pickup before it and it went over well, so who knows?

Ya...that car looks HOT! I can't believe I just said that about a Taurus. With AWD and the right horsepower a car looking like that can go and hunt down 300C's and G8's. Ford should hire you as a stylist for a new SHO. You were able to take the Taurus and with minimal investment make it look sporty...however not "boy racer" like the G8. This kind of modification would be very possible...now with the right engine, tranny, and some suspension work...Ford could really have a performance sedan to draw people in just like the original SHO did. Good work! :happy feet:

Yeah...that is beautiful!!! :hyper: Ford are you here??? Look at this car...It is amazing what a little bit of restyle does to the Taurus design!

Hey I really like the look of your SHO. The X front end is not too gaudy...but works well to make it look different. Could I make one request??? Could you try and take the rear quarter window out just to see what we get??? Thanks!

You mean a key like this??? Ford has already done it on the Fusion/Milan. Hopefully they will pass this on to the other vehicles. It is a good idea.

Well you know Richard...you could help Ford out a little this summer and trade that 2000 Sable in on a brand new 2008 Sable! The new Sable is a really attractive car.

Well if you get a loaded up Camry, Accord then the Taurus should compete fine in pricing. I guess it is the Ford dealers job to direct the customer to the right car, either Fusion or Taurus depending on what they want to spend. I think it is a good idea to have some pricing difference between the two models. Remember what happened last time when Ford had the Contour and Taurus in the showroom. The Contour was so close to the Taurus in price that people almost always by default chose the Taurus.

and I am glad that Mulally made this decision... I know some don't like this decision...but I have a story from where I work that made me a believer in the name change. On Thursday afternoon we were having a teachers meeting. These are NOT automobile enthusiasts. One of the ladies was talking about a new Taurus coming out in some news report she read. Several then made comments that the Taurus was the only American car they would consider because they have either owned them before or knew people that did. I never said a word...just agreed that the new Taurus would be a great car. Several of our staff members ARE Taurus and Sable drivers. They seem to like their cars. Do you think this group was even aware of the Five-Hundred??? Our principal has a Five-Hundred...but sometimes she can't even remember what it is called if someone asks about her car!

Starship enterprise called...they want their control panels back.

You know...that grille would work GREAT on a new Taurus SHO! :D

What do those hood scoops do??? They look plugged. Rounded over roofline looks stolen off the Taurus! I am sure every family on the block just HAS to have 360HP. Is this car equipped with anything more then a V6 going to sell for the same price as the Taurus??? It's not like a 260HP V6 won't make the Taurus go fine for 95% of family car customers. What kind of fuel economy will this 360HP model get? You know Hemi's are not all the rage like they were a couple of years ago. I just don't see how the Taurus is even designed to compete with this car. If they are going to go against this then the would need something like the Interceptor. Although....HMMMM....an AWD Taurus SHO with a twin-turbo Duratec 3.7 might be a VERY interesting competitor with better MPG's and you don't even have to deal with the silly "boy racer" styling from Pontiac. :happy feet:

Well I guess it would depend on how the readers were selected and if they were given money to say good things about the Fusion. I don't think Ford would have done that however since that would be the marketing disaster of all time if it were to come out. My guess is that the Fusion honestly ended up winning the competition, but I am sure there were many of the 600 readers that preferred the Camry or Accord. It kind of goes back to the old "Pepsi Challenge." They never interviewed the people that liked Coke better and as long as more people picked Pepsi...even if it was only 51% they could say...Pepsi is the winner by the majority of people! Also the Fusion was equipped with AWD which I am sure made it handle better when driven hard in the different tests and especially wet pavement tests. Camry and Accord do not have that feature. So this might have created some bias towards the Ford in the handling tests.

Here is a video that talks all about the new cars including a sound bite from the new CEO. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqV6CwrtzJU Seeing them in action they do look a LOT nicer then the outgoing models.

Well look at what strategy they took with this car in 1986. It was marketed AS the 'perfect' family car. Really when you come to think of it...is there really a better car on the market right now for a family with a couple of kids? It's roomy...has features that families look for and is roomy. Who wants a family car that has a small trunk or a small back seat? What got Ford in trouble with this model is first...a generic name that no one can remember...and second...trying to pretend the car is something it is not. Will it work? I have no idea...but it sure is a heck of a lot better marketing for this car. They need to continue this theme. Everyone carries more and more crap with them on trips and vacations these days and SUV's have spoiled people...but with fuel prices again on the rise...I would think more families would be looking for a roomy, reliable, safe sedan that can haul a LOT of crap! Check out these commercials when the 1986 Taurus launched...oh and notice that "oh so cool" 1980's digital dash! Taurus Taurus Wagon Here is a nice video of the new 2008 models in action and talks all about them... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqV6CwrtzJU

and with that said...if you look way back in automotive history the midsized LTD and Marquis did prove to be much better sellers then the Granada and 4-door Cougar...with a facelift and a name change...so who knows this time? One thing we know for certain is the idea of a 4-door Cougar...or worse yet...a Cougar station wagon....will NEVER happen again! (now what did they say about a 4-door Mustang?) Oh...and marketing the new Taurus as the perfect "family car" is the way to go because when you consider the size, truck, safety, etc. it IS the perfect family car.

Lookie here....Taurus and Sable websites are already up... :D 2008 Taurus with a link to the new Taurus X. I like how they call it the "All New" Taurus. I guess compared to the Taurus that just went out of production it is all new. http://www.fordvehicles.com/cars/2008taurus/ and of course the new Sable http://www.mercuryvehicles.com/sable08/

Or even the all new Grand Prix. Looks like Pontiac is trying to go the same route that Ford did with the 500. I am still miffed why Buick dropped the LeSabre and came up with a car named Lucerne. When I think of Lucerne I think of Safeway dairy products.

I know these days it's all about competing with the Japanese brands, however Ford still needs to focus on competing with GM. I think there is a much better chance of getting a GM customer to look at a Ford product then a Toyota or Honda customer. If you take that into consideration then the re-naming makes sense. Fusion goes up against the Malibu and Taurus goes against the Impala. The Sable should be doing a direct attack on the LaCrosse and the Lucerne. Speaking of re-names...why exactly did Buick drop LeSabre?????? When you factor in the imports then Ford's branding scheme does get a little messier...we can assume that both the Taurus and the Fusion take on the Camry and Accord. I guess it depends on what size you want.

If you want to watch a few fun memories check out these links... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPW5WVfCKr0 I think this one was really nicely done... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7ed-Ijt3jc There are even more tributes made for the Taurus and Sable....I guess they are going to need to update their videos to include the Generation 5 model now. Now who here thinks there will be a Five-Hundred/Montego/Freestar tribute when those are gone???????

There is one thing Ford should do especially with the Taurus sedan and the Sable is offer a 6 passenger option. There are some people that would like a little extra room if you have to fit one more for a trip to the mall, etc.

Mulally gets praise for this move... http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article...70382&imw=Y

Very true statement! However they will also be in sticker shock if they try to replace with a Camry or Accord.