The Taurus is back!

[Edstock]

Sure am looking forward to the SHO version.

[RichardJensen]

"Perhaps the company is hoping some of that Taurus magic will return"

 

From an AOL blog.

 

Yeah. Because it was the NAME of the car that made it such a success. This idea of resorting to sympathetic magic as a justification of a business decision shows just what kind of lunacy pervades what passes for journalism these days. If, further, such belief in names and other good luck charms is to be found at the top of Ford Motor, I am not amused.

 

Even if this is a move that can be justified by market research, the means of making this decision does not fill me with confidence.

 

TheLemon has a sig that says something like "any publicity is good publicity"...

 

Apparently the fact that the Taurus is a household name is worth more than whatever that name stands for.

 

Shoot, by that logic, Ford should've renamed the Five Hundred the "Adolf Hitler", after all, it's a household name................

[NickF1011]

"Perhaps the company is hoping some of that Taurus magic will return"

 

From an AOL blog.

 

Yeah. Because it was the NAME of the car that made it such a success. This idea of resorting to sympathetic magic as a justification of a business decision shows just what kind of lunacy pervades what passes for journalism these days. If, further, such belief in names and other good luck charms is to be found at the top of Ford Motor, I am not amused.

 

Even if this is a move that can be justified by market research, the means of making this decision does not fill me with confidence.

 

TheLemon has a sig that says something like "any publicity is good publicity"...

 

Apparently the fact that the Taurus is a household name is worth more than whatever that name stands for.

 

Shoot, by that logic, Ford should've renamed the Five Hundred the "Adolf Hitler", after all, it's a household name................

 

It's the blogger referring to the "Taurus magic", not Ford Motor Company. I tried to talk my mom into checking out a Ford to replace her Avalon (which replaced a 93 Taurus) and suggested the Five Hundred. Her answer? "I don't like any Fords since they ruined the Taurus." I didn't really have an answer back. Now I could at least say "Well come check out the new Taurus." It's not about the magic. It's about getting the attention of previous buyers again. People KNEW Ford built the Taurus, for better or for worse, but they knew. People don't even know the Five Hundred exists.

 

Oh, I'd say it's safe to say I've come to agree with this decision throughout the course of the day.

Edited February 6, 2007 by NickF1011

[Captainp4]

The move might make us scratch our heads a little. But to the general population (not enthusiasts) its just the next gen Taurus. They'll likely have little to no clue that it shares anything with the 500 or even what the 500 was. And like others have said, it leaves the door open for a big rwd sedan with the 500 name embedded somehow (galaxy 500, maybe?). Or would it be better to keep the crown vic name? hmmm

[Hugh]

I would hope that IF the decison is made to change the name of the Five Hundred, that it is based on more then a simple whim.

 

Can anyone tell me how fast the rumored 4 door Mustang was shot down. It was less then 24 hours for sure. I am using that as a reference in case this is a rumor or hoax.

 

We'll see in a couple of days maybe.

[igor]

I would hope that IF the decison is made to change the name of the Five Hundred, that it is based on more then a simple whim.

 

Can anyone tell me how fast the rumored 4 door Mustang was shot down. It was less then 24 hours for sure. I am using that as a reference in case this is a rumor or hoax.

 

We'll see in a couple of days maybe.

1) well Ford's research apparently showed that over 50% of USA still had no idea that Ford Five Hundred existed ...

2) I believe it took about 48 hours to debunk the Mustang rumor (Ford did it itself)

BUT

3) this report states that the actual decision will be announced TOMORROW at the press day of Chicago auto show.

 

Igor

Edited February 6, 2007 by igor

[Captainp4]

Think of it as the replacement for the '06 Taurus. Its a HUGE improvement over that car (even if its only a slight improvement on the 500), I think thats what they're hoping people will see.

 

btw, how do I make it so threads I reply to show up in my subscriptions ??

[NickF1011]

Let's look at this long-term for a moment shall we?

 

The Five Hundred has been on the market for about 3 years now. The Taurus was on the market for 21 years. The Five Hundred name accounts for 1/7 the lifespan of the Taurus. With the new Taurus on the market for a couple of years, will ANYBODY even remember or CARE that the new Taurus had another name for 1/10 of its lifespan? Nobody will even notice! In a couple of years, the transition will be seemless, and people will forget that "Five Hundred" even ever existed. Instead, they'll just look back and say "Wow, that new Taurus sure is an improvement over that bubbly piece of crap from the 90's, isn't it?"

Edited February 6, 2007 by NickF1011

[Hugh]

The move might make us scratch our heads a little. But to the general population (not enthusiasts) its just the next gen Taurus. They'll likely have little to no clue that it shares anything with the 500 or even what the 500 was. And like others have said, it leaves the door open for a big rwd sedan with the 500 name embedded somehow (galaxy 500, maybe?). Or would it be better to keep the crown vic name? hmmm

IF this is a move to rename all the vehicles and restore some older ones to restablish the Ford brand, sure why not?

 

I don't believe that simply changing the names and do nothing for the vehicles is where they're going. I don't see this move as simply: "Right! The 'F' names suck! Lets change the names and all will be well." Just because the 2008 Focus and Five Hundred may not be to everyones tastes, there are improvements to them generally (Focus interior is nice, exterior...ehhh).

 

Simply put, the names have to have to be backed up by product.

[RichardJensen]

I don't think it is wise to separate the decision made from the means by which the decision was made. The end never justifies the means.

[Hugh]

1) well Ford's research apparently showed that over 50% of USA still had no idea that Ford Five Hundred existed ...

2) I believe it took about 48 hours to debunk the Mustang rumor (Ford did it itself)

BUT

3) this report states that the actual decision will be announced TOMORROW at the press day of Chicago auto show.

 

Igor

Granted;

 

I wonder what sites like www.myford500.com feel about this.

 

Thanks for the timeline Igor, I'll believe it when I tune in tomorrow.

[Captainp4]

I agree and the 500/taurus is a HUGE improvement over the '06 taurus they were just selling.

 

Ford has been pretty good with bringing names back and providing the product to back the name. (we'll just pretend the marauder didn't happen.. :ninja: )

 

 

edit: that response was to hugh - you guys post fast around here :lol:

 

and Nick, thats pretty much what I was trying to say.

Edited February 6, 2007 by Captainp4

[351cid]

Look what interest this has stirred on this message board.

[Hugh]

Let's look at this long-term for a moment shall we?

 

The Five Hundred has been on the market for about 3 years now. The Taurus was on the market for 21 years. The Five Hundred name accounts for 1/7 the lifespan of the Taurus. With the new Taurus on the market for a couple of years, will ANYBODY even remember or CARE that the new Taurus had another name for 1/10 of its lifespan? Nobody will even notice! In a couple of years, the transition will be seemless, and people will forget that "Five Hundred" even ever existed. Instead, they'll just look back and say "Wow, that new Taurus sure is an improvement over that bubbly piece of crap from the 90's, isn't it?"

I think it was introduced in 2004 as a 2005. By that rationale, You would hope people will say that.

[Hugh]

(;quote name='Captainp4' date='Feb 6 2007, 02:02 PM' post='140006']

I agree and the 500/taurus is a HUGE improvement over the '06 taurus they were just selling.

 

Ford has been pretty good with bringing names back and providing the product to back the name. (we'll just pretend the marauder didn't happen.. :ninja: )

edit: that response was to hugh - you guys post fast around here :lol:

 

and Nick, thats pretty much what I was trying to say.

[old_fairmont_wagon]

I see this for what it is, a desperate attempt to bridge a marketing gap for the 500. They absolutely and completely dropped the ball when they set forth on the marketing package that they had for the 500. Name recognition was not achieved and no consumer awareness ever developed. In choosing not to start the 500 as a Taurus and not affixing Taurus to the Fusion, they left a hole where repeat Taurus buyers were looking for another one, came to a dealership that didn't have anything on the lot called Taurus (or, a stripped down rental unit), and decided to walk away.

 

In the mean time, Ford did their absolute damndest to drive the Taurus name into the ground by 1) releasing an overly revolutional restyle in 96 that they didn't quickly go back and fix. 2) merely re-touched the front and rear fascia at the turn of the century and called it redone without making any other material improvements to the vehicle (which was quickly being passed by the competition) 3)Rednecked the image of the Taurus by FREAKING RACING THE STICKER PACKAGE IN NASCAR (one of the dumbest moves in history) 4) and then slowly idling the plant by just dumping the entire production on the fleet and rental market [granted, that revenue helped offset the shutdown costs of the line].

 

So, now, they've decided that they've utterly failed the 500 from a sales support standpoint after vaguely admitting that it was released with a less then spectacular drivetrain and styling. To fix that, instead of agressively marketing the updates to the 500 and reestablishing the product ID with the customers that never fully got with the program in the past, they're going to slap a nameplate that EVERYONE ON EARTH associates with a rental and fleet queen that's been abandoned and decontented over the last DECADE.

 

What they're hoping for is that the name recognition solves 1/2 of the marketing problem, which is getting people to hear about and know your product exists. That way, they can focus the marketing on educating the customer about how this new taurus is better than the old one, and better than its competition. Is this a BOLD move? Maybe, but it damned sure is a desperate one! I wish them lots of luck on this, because they are definitely going to need it.

[Hugh]

I don't think it is wise to separate the decision made from the means by which the decision was made. The end never justifies the means.

Sorry; I'm at work so I don't have my copy of "The Prince" on me.

 

I would like to know how the decision was made. As I earlier said, I am hoping it was more then mere whimsy/wishful thinking from the CEO.

[igor]

Granted;

 

I wonder what sites like www.myford500.com feel about this.

 

Thanks for the timeline Igor, I'll believe it when I tune in tomorrow.

http://www.myford500.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8343

 

:D

 

nothing nice

 

Igor

[NickF1011]

Is this a BOLD move? Maybe, but it damned sure is a desperate one! I wish them lots of luck on this, because they are definitely going to need it.

 

Desperate times call for desperate measures. At the very least, I don't see how renaming this vehicle Taurus could possibly HURT it any. Will it help? Maybe. Maybe not. But I can't see it making matters any worse. It's not like they're going to have hundreds of thousands of repeat buyers coming in asking "What happened to the Five Hundred I liked so much?"

[kyle]

I think the hardest thing for this is how to advertise the "new" Taurus and separating the 500 from the equation...

 

 

I agree completely....how do you advertise it. The new and improved Taurus, the updated Taurus or the improved 500 now called the taurus?

 

Long term it is a good idea. They need volume out of this vehicle and plant. No one even knows what a 500 is. Everyone knows what a taurus is....a Ford.

 

Now please with the next update of the mkx or whatever the zephyr turned into....they need to name some of these vehicles. Personally I do not want to see it become a zephyr, etc. They need something new.

[LSFan00]

The 500's sold/waiting-to-be-sold have gone out the door with the old engine, transmissions and will quickly depreciate into the cosmos of value-less 4-door Ford vehicles, once their nameplate too is retired.

 

I get the impression the whole time period of 1985-2012 in Ford Motor Company management will be nothing but a fascinating source of MBA-ter-paper material when it mercifully comes to an end.

 

50%-plus of Taurus sales will STILL be to fleets when the new mondeo comes over in 2011. I can't even fathom Taurus ever being a premium/sought-after name plate in this country. I think Edsel would have a better chance.

 

Take the blue blinders off for a few minutes, guys. Start planning who is the best CEO to replace Mulally and is capable of guiding the company through bankruptcy into a nice little niche player after selling off PAG-assets and eliminating pension/benefits/plant/debt obligations. I suppose the Ford Europe/Australia divisions could be parcelled out for cash also, and ultimately might become competitors in the US.

[silvrsvt]

I get the impression the whole time period of 1985-2012 in Ford Motor Company management will be nothing but a fascinating source of MBA-ter-paper material when it mercifully comes to an end.

 

50%-plus of Taurus sales will STILL be to fleets when the new mondeo comes over in 2011. I can't even fathom Taurus ever being a premium/sought-after name plate in this country. I think Edsel would have a better chance.

 

Take the blue blinders off for a few minutes, guys. Start planning who is the best CEO to replace Mulally and is capable of guiding the company through bankruptcy into a nice little niche player after selling off PAG-assets and eliminating pension/benefits/plant/debt obligations. I suppose the Ford Europe/Australia divisions could be parcelled out for cash also, and ultimately might become competitors in the US.

 

I wouldn't go that far, I think this is a good exerice for a Detroit automaker to fix a troubled name plate that they screwed up in the first place. The CamCord weren't all that when they came out 2-3 decades ago...just they never went from the best thing since sliced bread to a rental whore. Mondeo Platform is what the Fusion will be based on come 2011, unless its a extended wheelbase model.

[peterstern]

Nah call it the Escort...the 08 redesign has a hint of the 93-96 style Escort headlights now

 

Why not just aim STRAIGHT to the bottom and call it the Festiva or Fiesta... Seriously though.... Taurus is a much better name than "Five Hundred". As long as the name substitution is syncronized with a desperately needed restyle and the 3.5L V6, I think it will do wonders for the popularity of the model that is called Five Hundred at the moment.

 

Now what I'm really hoping for is a regular Taurus with the 260HP V6... and then a SHO model with a Direct Injection and high revving version of the same engine making at least 310HP and offer a manual tranny. Why at least 310HP? Because that's more than Toyota's newest 306HP DI V6 engine and Nissan's 300HP V6. If it doesn't have class leading HP/L, then it would merely be a half-assed attempt and not a real "SHO". Also, a manual tranny is necessary even if only 1% go for it because it gives it 'street cred'... something the Ford brand lacks in its models (except for the Mustang).

 

Also, rename the Freestyle to something like "Taurus Wagon", "Taurus Avant" or "Taurus XC". Have a SHO model of that as well. I remember reading many letters in Car and Driver and other publications wishing for an SHO wagon.

 

As for the Mecury version... they should have a performance model too... I suggest bringing back the FWD mod V8 that was used in the Continental. Or maybe use the V8 that Volvo uses. Update it, give it Direct Injection, make it so it has more or less the same power as the SHO, BUT delivers the power in a more relaxed way.

[NickF1011]

50%-plus of Taurus sales will STILL be to fleets when the new mondeo comes over in 2011. I can't even fathom Taurus ever being a premium/sought-after name plate in this country. I think Edsel would have a better chance.

 

What the heck does the Mondeo have to do with anything? The Mondeo is the size of the Fusion and offers nowhere near the room of the D3's. Any Mondeo derivitive we get in the US will be a replacement for the Fusion. Around 2010-11 would also be right about when the D3's would be due for a full-up redesign as well. It wouldn't really be a BAD thing for those two vehicles to compete with one another either. It's better to compete with yourself than to compete with somebody else. And if Ford can manage to limit fleet sales on the Five Hundred with its dismal sales, there's absolutely no reason to assume that they'd be forced to rely on fleet sales more in the future if retails sales increase due to the name change and refresh.

[peterstern]

http://www.myford500.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8343

 

:D

 

nothing nice

 

Igor

 

I went on their site, clicked on the link to give Ford feedback, and told Ford that ditching names like "Five Hundred", "Freestyle" and "Freestar" was an *EXCELLENT* idea.