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Motor Trend Review On the Taurus


mkizlvr

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I got the september edition of motor trend in the mail today. Overall it was a very positive review. its engine, cabin room, road noise, price, safety, better ride, and sync were praised! good to see that it is doing very well. there is also a review on the new xc70 and v70.

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It's made in Chicago. The wood mimicks exotic brazillian hardwoods, thanks to a Xerox copiers probably.

 

I did see an aftermarket kit to replace the wood to Carbon Fiber. I've never been a wood lover, I think it belongs outside, even my homes I build strictly with steel studs and trusses, but I believe it's the beige interior, that makes the wood just look yucky. The one in my LS with the black interior I can deal with, it actually looks good so It hasn't bothered me. There is one combination which looks good in my opinion, it's the lighter wood, looks like baby-poop, and looks food with black but even then, not enough for me to love it.

 

I'm sure we'll reach a point where granite or Corian will be used instead LOL

 

It's just like the Avacado, Orange kitchens of the 70's were the rage. In 30 years, people will be renovating our homes and think "Stainless steel appliances? How tacky, what were they thinking?"...

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Is there an option to get rid of that wood grain on the dash and replace it with CF or piano black parts?

 

I seriously wonder what the deal is with Fords and their interiors..the Fusion has soft-touch plastics, but no other ford product does...wtf?

 

That's not true! The 500/Montego and now the Taurus/Sable both have as much, if not more, soft-touch plastics than Fusion/Milan. The feel and texture of the door panels and dash remind me of my '95 Mystique, which also had a lot of soft surfaces! The Freestyle/Taurus X have a hard plastic dash.

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I own a Fusion.

My parents own a 500.

 

I would agree the 500 is relatively soft, but the plastic feels more like a hard pleather whereas the Fusion feels more like a soft plastic.

 

Fusion interior marginally softer than 500 interior, I would say.

Probably it's just more (or thicker strips of) soft foam under the surfaces of the Fusion compared to the 500.

Edited by Roadrunner
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I don't know if I would buy a car with wood trim. I would prefer an option where the wood could be replaced with the piano black trim from the Fusion, body color plastic, or even the brushed aluminum that my 1988 Thunderbird Sport has.

 

But anyway, congratulations Ford, this should be a hit!

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I don't know if I would buy a car with wood trim. I would prefer an option where the wood could be replaced with the piano black trim from the Fusion, body color plastic, or even the brushed aluminum that my 1988 Thunderbird Sport has.

 

But anyway, congratulations Ford, this should be a hit!

 

I don't have time to look right now, but isn't it metal instead of wood if you want...maybe I'm wrong..I think I am now...

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Are the people who are anti-wood actually in the market for this car? The people I picture in the market for this car are people in their 50s or older who grew up with cars from the vintage where wood was a luxurious statement. I personally love wood in a car if it is executed properly. Then again, you can't execute wood much better than Jaguar did in our XJs, so maybe I'm not really being fair. Nonetheless, I think the Taurus' interior is fantastic looking for a car of its price range ..

Edited by SVT_MAN
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Are the people who are anti-wood actually in the market for this car? The people I picture in the market for this car are people in their 50s or older who grew up with cars from the vintage where wood was a luxurious statement. I personally love wood in a car if it is executed properly. Then again, you can't execute wood much better than Jaguar did in our XJs, so maybe I'm not really being fair. Nonetheless, I think the Taurus' interior is fantastic looking for a car of its price range ..

true enough, but a no-wood options WOULD be a nice option .. especially if Ford wants to attract Camry buyers.

 

Igor

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Are the people who are anti-wood actually in the market for this car? The people I picture in the market for this car are people in their 50s or older who grew up with cars from the vintage where wood was a luxurious statement. I personally love wood in a car if it is executed properly. Then again, you can't execute wood much better than Jaguar did in our XJs, so maybe I'm not really being fair. Nonetheless, I think the Taurus' interior is fantastic looking for a car of its price range ..

 

 

I don't mind wood in a car, but it kinda looks tacky in the Taurus..and most other Ford products...

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true enough, but a no-wood options WOULD be a nice option .. especially if Ford wants to attract Camry buyers.

 

Igor

 

I agree it should be an option. Aren't they trying to court Avalon buyers though? However, the Avalon actually offers non-wood trim too. Not good:

 

photo_2.jpg

Edited by SVT_MAN
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^^The Avalon interior is an abomination ... except for the deep seated navi screen ..

 

BTW notice how Hyu was able to copy the design with much better result in the Azera and now upcoming Genesis? I rather have those than the Avalon :D

 

And yes - Ford wants the Avalon buyers, but also Camry Buyers *(After all the Avalon market is tiny) .. the Taurus can be had for the same price as V6 Camry with the same / better features and the same FE, but more space and safety ... it is a BETTER option at the same price as Camry (while Fusion is EQUIVALENT but CHEAPER than the Camry).

 

Igor

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I would say a large majority of cars, do have some sort of trim level or option where wood is present. As mentioned above, I believe Toyota and Hyundai have been using wood much less, but offering some silver trim instead. Granted, Aluminum or something like it is nice...I've seen Fords "Silver Spray" and it doesn't last for very long, specially on panels that get constantly touched.

 

And I see it this way, if an automaker uses wood, it's going to be critisized that it doesn't look real enough...EVEN when it's real, they say it's not convincing enough. I dont doubt some automakers like Toyota rather just avoid that issue, and instead use aluminum wannabe.

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Are the people who are anti-wood actually in the market for this car? The people I picture in the market for this car are people in their 50s or older who grew up with cars from the vintage where wood was a luxurious statement. I personally love wood in a car if it is executed properly. Then again, you can't execute wood much better than Jaguar did in our XJs, so maybe I'm not really being fair. Nonetheless, I think the Taurus' interior is fantastic looking for a car of its price range ..

 

I think there's nothing wrong with REAL wood in a car. Fake wood (in any car) is just tacky and cheap, no matter how good it looks.

 

I wonder how hard it would be to stick the carbon fiber trim from the Sable in the Taurus? I think that would be the tops.

 

And when is someone going to release a real metal grille to replace the plasticrome?

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And when is someone going to release a real metal grille to replace the plasticrome?

Whenever time-travel becomes cheap and affordable.

 

It's never going to be 1967 again. Friend has a '67 Sedan de Ville that was chopped into a convertible. It has a real metal grille made out of the cheapest powdered metal you could imagine with no end of sharp edges on the back side of it.

 

Plastichrome is here to stay.

 

And, really, even if it was real metal, it wouldn't be solid chrome. It would be chrome electroplated onto some other cheap metal.

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The Avalon is a land of ergonomic no-nos, beginning (but hardly ending) with the flip up cover over the stereo controls.

 

Note the wide separation between climate control buttons (either side of the stereo)

 

The controls all pointed skyward

 

Height/distance of controls from armrest and gear lever

 

And it's also ugly.

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Ford years Toyota and Lexi' ergonomics have taken a dive. Granted, the media never points this out. Any look at the dashboards of their Avalon+ cars, and you see a pleathora of scattered Chicklets all over the place, on many vehicles they are hidden behind panels. Sit in any Lexus, and start counting the buttons, and don't be surprised if you hit 50+, particulary the SUV's.

 

And again, the media hardly points this out, they are so enamoured just being in a Lexus, they forget the basics.

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The Avalon is a land of ergonomic no-nos, beginning (but hardly ending) with the flip up cover over the stereo controls.

 

Note the wide separation between climate control buttons (either side of the stereo)

 

The controls all pointed skyward

 

Height/distance of controls from armrest and gear lever

 

And it's also ugly.

 

 

Toyota calls it "The Pursuit of Perfection." Or should I say Lexus which is part of Toyota. Btw, to me Lexus models look more and more like Toyota models every year. More than a few times I have mistaken a new Camry for a Lexus model. They all have that same look now.

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  • 3 weeks later...

If you're talking about the big rectangular screen that has buttons along its side... HELLO...wake up!

 

It's the $2000 Navigation System and the screen is a touch-screen!

 

Gees, get with the times folks.

 

 

ABout the wood trim... I have PERSONALLY seen and driven the 08 Taurus and Sable... Mercury is going with the black and aluminum satin look for Sable, and to me, though Sable should be the dressier version... I prefer the wood trim on Taurus... it gives it a very rich and elegant look.

 

Since Camry and Avalon are too cheap and poorly made to even offer a wood option, that gives Taurus something that Toyoder doesn't... and a richer looking vehicle interior for a lot LESS money!

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