DTP Body Door Hang Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 I can hear the throngs of blue hairs and panther loyalists already howling. Freep Article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 I can hear the throngs of blue hairs and panther loyalists already howling. Freep Article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SysEng Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 :hysterical: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 (edited) be nice boys, he's new, probably didn't know about posts 3 months ago.....so open up another can of baby food, change the depends, stoke the walkers, charge up the di-fibulator, get back on My Space claiming you drive an Aston martin and are 18 on the beach and throw the guy a bone...preferably not one of yours that is de-calcifying..........oh,,, and let me add a stirpot....dammit too late.. Edited October 31, 2007 by Deanh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveler Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 (edited) Loyalists already knew it and the bluehairs moved on to Buick and Toyota a long time ago. Those unwilling to give up their dose of the Blue Oval moved onto the Five Hundred which died before they could. Edited October 31, 2007 by Traveler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deanh Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Loyalists already knew it and the bluehairs moved on to Buick and Toyota a long time ago. Those unwilling to give up their dose of the Blue Oval moved onto the Five Hundred which died before they could. great dependable car don't get me wrong...but having requests to leave plastic on seats for fear of "leakage" totally defined its market and how miniscule and narrow it had become....( I'm about to get chastised by loyalists with surgically implanted blinders I can feel it.....either that or smacked by a walking cane) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 Those unwilling to give up their dose of the Blue Oval moved onto the Five Hundred which died before they could. Best quote ever! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 (edited) I wonder when Taurus sales are expected to pick up? Or is that an inflamatory question? Edited October 31, 2007 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2005Explorer Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 What is the big deal. If you really want this car buy a Mercury Grand Marquis it is the same thing with slightly different styling. People keep ragging on Ford because Mercury doesn't have any exclusive products. Well now they have one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 What is the big deal. If you really want this car buy a Mercury Grand Marquis it is the same thing with slightly different styling. People keep ragging on Ford because Mercury doesn't have any exclusive products. Well now they have one. We still have them up here in Canada and pay Canadian prices and call it a "Collectors Tax". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admiral Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Huzzah, we won! Common sense prevails! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxman100 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 In the place of the Crown Victoria, Ford will continue to direct car customers to the Ford Taurus, Fusion and Focus, Pipas said. The large Taurus sedan is slightly smaller than the Crown Victoria, but offers similar cabin and cargo space. Sales show how successfull that strategy has been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark B. Morrow Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Mercury Grand Marquis-Florida's favorite car. Especially in white, so it matches the shoes and belt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 In the place of the Crown Victoria, Ford will continue to direct car customers to the Ford Taurus, Fusion and Focus, Pipas said. The large Taurus sedan is slightly smaller than the Crown Victoria, but offers similar cabin and cargo space. Sales show how successfull that strategy has been. Great idea Ford. Because the Fusion and Focus are clearly competitors of the CV. Taurus yes, Fusion, and Focus...no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LincolnFan Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Great idea Ford. Because the Fusion and Focus are clearly competitors of the CV. Taurus yes, Fusion, and Focus...no. With the current gas prices, the MPG ratings of the Fusion and the Focus may sway some Panther buyers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danup Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Great idea Ford. Because the Fusion and Focus are clearly competitors of the CV. Taurus yes, Fusion, and Focus...no. It says in the article that they're directing "car customers" in general to... the cars that still exist. They aren't specifically saying that when my grandpa walks in and asks for the Crown Vic by name that they're going to guide him over to the nice cherry-red Focus with built-in Sync for his Andrews Sisters mp3s, although given its place in the article it admittedly sounds that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveler Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 (edited) Mostly what's left now are loyalists and fleet buyers. Try convincing the nation's police fleet to move from Vic to Taurus. Won't happen. Try telling loyal Panther owners to trade in their Vic or Marquis for a Taurus or Sable. Again, not likely to happen. Those that want RWD will stay with RWD. With realistic mileage expectations not being that much of a difference (2-3 mpg), those who appreciate the Panther will stick with it for the attributes that only it possesses. Ford certainly had better not sit around and count on Panther customers buying into the D3. They've got to get out there and win conquest sales from Honda, Toyota, and GM. You're not going to convince that many Panther owners to move to FWD and a smaller car. A few will, but most won't. Edited November 1, 2007 by Traveler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchdevil Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Get me a Kleenex! It's a beautiful day to know that there will no longer be a sole beige Crown Victoria sitting to rot for months looking like a used car misplaced on a dealer lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxman100 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 It's like going into a restaurant to order a filet, and they try to sell you chopped steak for the same price because it has nicer garnishments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wescoent Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Mostly what's left now are loyalists and fleet buyers. Try convincing the nation's police fleet to move from Vic to Taurus. Won't happen. Try telling loyal Panther owners to trade in their Vic or Marquis for a Taurus or Sable. Again, not likely to happen. Those that want RWD will stay with RWD. With realistic mileage expectations not being that much of a difference (2-3 mpg), those who appreciate the Panther will stick with it for the attributes that only it possesses. Ford certainly had better not sit around and count on Panther customers buying into the D3. They've got to get out there and win conquest sales from Honda, Toyota, and GM. You're not going to convince that many Panther owners to move to FWD and a smaller car. A few will, but most won't. I wouldn't count out Panther buyer switching to D3 just yet. Keep in mind, that many retail CV, GM, and TC owners literally will own their car for 8 years or more before trading it in for a new one. That's one of their strengths... sheer durability and longevity. The only alternative at the time of their last purchase was either a Taurus, Sable, or Continental... none of which had the room or value of the CV/GM/TC. Ford's sales associates just need to point out the cavernous interior volume, the higher seat position, great gas mileage, and superb quality and unmatched safety ratings, and it shouldn't be unreasonable to expect a former Crown Vic or Grand Marquis owner to switch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveler Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 That's basically just marketing the Taurus to even a smaller segment of buyers. If the most the Taurus can achieve is winning over a handful of old people who buy Panthers, then the platform is doomed. Sitting around, pining away for the next 8 year old Panther to roll onto the lot will spell disaster for Taurus. Like I said, I think a lot of the senior citizens have moved on to other vehicles anyway. If Ford thinks that the Highway Patrols across the country or some of these diehard Panther buyers are going to wrap their arms around the Taurus, then there really wasn't any reason to change the name of the Five-Hundred in the first place. Taurus is a good car to win back the Accord, Camry and Avalon buyers, along with a few Buick or Chevy owners. That's about it. The Taurus can't deliver what the Vic can...right down to the driving dynamics. Its completely different, plus the Vic has a name that means longevity and durability. Its got good power, good handling, decent mileage...and those that look past the sheetmetal are not going to be so eager to roll the dice on the Taurus sizing up beside of the Vic. Like I said, some will but a lot won't make that trade. Those that want RWD are going to simply migrate to Pontiac or Chrysler and the rest will be hotly fought over by Buick, Chevy, Ford, Honda and Toyota with Ford being late to the game with a viable competitor in the FWD full size segment. Ford has to commit to either keeping the Panther or replacing it with an honest to goodness RWD V8 replacement, because Taurus isn't that replacement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 In the place of the Crown Victoria, Ford will continue to direct car customers to the Ford Taurus, Fusion and Focus, Pipas said. The large Taurus sedan is slightly smaller than the Crown Victoria, but offers similar cabin and cargo space. Sales show how successfull that strategy has been. It's not like Crown Victoria sales were through the roof when they were still selling them retail either, so the Taurus really wasn't left with a very big base of Ford customers to appeal to anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveler Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 (edited) Yeah, but Ford has had the Five-Hundred in place since '05. Counting the '08 Taurus (same platform), that's four model years to have a competitive retail product in the full size class. The car is struggling because people aren't interested for some reason. That's Ford's job to figure out why. Crown Vic's market is still successful because its buyers (mostly fleet) appreciate the attributes of the car. Its sales may be dwindling, but that's simply because of more competition in the market. Ford owned it for nearly a decade and many of those buyers have not given up on the Vic. They simply spread their business around. Individuals are not as willing to commit to a new Taurus, like a police department is willing to commit to a fleet of Vics. Its truly apples and oranges. The majority of the buying public has accepted that the Japanese companies steer the market and that the Honda and Toyota are superior to the domestics. Ford's advertising must counter that and get over the fact that Panther buyers still want the BOF cars. They certainly cannot depend on existing Panther owners to come to the Taurus' rescue. It is going to require $$$$ and an aggressive sales campaign to win back business. Edited November 1, 2007 by Traveler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bored of Pisteon Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I just hope Ford decides to keep that platform and bring back the "LTD" designation in the future. There is something about those three letters that keeps it aura, mystique and tradition about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Yeah, but Ford has had the Five-Hundred in place since '05. Counting the '08 Taurus (same platform), that's four model years to have a competitive retail product in the full size class. The car is struggling because people aren't interested for some reason. That's Ford's job to figure out why. Crown Vic's market is still successful because its buyers (mostly fleet) appreciate the attributes of the car. Its sales may be dwindling, but that's simply because of more competition in the market. Ford owned it for nearly a decade and many of those buyers have not given up on the Vic. They simply spread their business around. D3's have been around for 4 years and there has been 4 years of inept marketing and advertising to go along with it. Nobody I've spoken with even knows the Taurus is a new vehicle. That's most of the problem. The statistics offered show that the take rate on the D3's is considerably high IF people bother to test drive it. That tells me the product is pretty good, but nobody knows it's out there. And it's not like the Taurus is in a market all by itself either. It has to compete for marketshare just like the Panthers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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