2005Explorer Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Everything is so depressing around here lately even though there seems to be a flicker of hope when it comes to Ford. I thought that I would remind people things were great at one time and this commercial captures that. Will Ford ever be able to advertise success like that again someday? They were a winner and it seems like after the 1996 Taurus things just started to go downhill. I have often wondered if the 2000 Taurus would have been the one that came in 1996 instead of the oval windowed beast if today things would be different. I wonder how much that one failure effected the whole mindset of the people running the company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Everything is so depressing around here lately even though there seems to be a flicker of hope when it comes to Ford. I thought that I would remind people things were great at one time and this commercial captures that. Will Ford ever be able to advertise success like that again someday? They were a winner and it seems like after the 1996 Taurus things just started to go downhill. I have often wondered if the 2000 Taurus would have been the one that came in 1996 instead of the oval windowed beast if today things would be different. I wonder how much that one failure effected the whole mindset of the people running the company. Well thanks, all that did was make me feel worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I too agree and have mentioned in the past that the 2000 Taurus, SHOULD have been the 1996. Although I dont think it would have improved much because the vehicle was always fleet dependent. Although really, the first Taurus was quite the game changing vehicle of it's time and will always be known for it's revolutionary styling that outdated everything else in it's class. And even with these commercials, as "old" as we might view it today, I find it ironic that back then, THESE vehicles were actually ahead of their pack in styling and were respected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danup Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 (edited) I always thought the 2000 Taurus was a boring car, an resignation to their relegation to the fleet market. The 1996 model took a while to grow on me, but now that it has I really like it--and anyway it wasn't the styling that killed the car. The 95 was already a fleet darling--fleet sales went up in the last few years to keep its sales crown--and the 96 car didn't have a real stripper model to bring prices down. By the time it did Ford was already decontenting the rest of the car. It was far from perfect--the rear end of the Sable is god-awful--but take a look at the 97 Camry. Heck, look at the 2007 Camry, which kind of apes its pre-refresh front fascia and continues to look older. The gen-3 Taurus was a leap forward, whether it was accepted by consumers and handled well by Ford or not. Edited November 1, 2007 by danup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
focus05 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Quality issues killed the Taurus long before the 1996 came out. Not that it had halted sales in the early-90s, but that quality problems had left a bad taste in many consumers mouths... mouths that have not eaten of the Ford fruit since. Quality is as important as design and features. Car buying is emotional up until you have to rationalize it. You might love the Fusion, but it is hard for most mid-size car buyers to justify it to their friends and families and thus rationalize it for themselves because of the perception Ford has - a perception born of cars like the late 80s and the mid-90s Tauruses. Now the ball is in Toyota's court. It's easy to justify a Camry right now - although quality problems are slowly hurting the Camry's perception in the marketplace. In ten years, the ball will probably be somewhere else, and then Toyota fans will wonder what ever happened to all that success they had back then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonas1022 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Let's not forget that Ford had it's own Taurus sales sabatoeur. The Explorer sole from the Taurus mightily! People moved from sedans to SUVs in a big way back in the 90s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Let's not forget that Ford had it's own Taurus sales sabatoeur. The Explorer sole from the Taurus mightily! People moved from sedans to SUVs in a big way back in the 90s. The Explorer was Ford's recognition that the market was shifting to SUV. In the late 1990s /early 2000s, between them Taurus/Sable and Explorer sold over 900,000/year. Ford seem to have lost their way with traditional sedans in the past few years, maybe a reflextion of confused infighting and platform rivalry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Ha...still no CV ad... :hysterical: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I always thought the 2000 Taurus was a boring car, an resignation to their relegation to the fleet market. The 1996 model took a while to grow on me, but now that it has I really like it--and anyway it wasn't the styling that killed the car. The 95 was already a fleet darling--fleet sales went up in the last few years to keep its sales crown--and the 96 car didn't have a real stripper model to bring prices down. By the time it did Ford was already decontenting the rest of the car. It was far from perfect--the rear end of the Sable is god-awful--but take a look at the 97 Camry. Heck, look at the 2007 Camry, which kind of apes its pre-refresh front fascia and continues to look older. The gen-3 Taurus was a leap forward, whether it was accepted by consumers and handled well by Ford or not. Looking at the 1996 Taurus and those styling cues are popular now especially the hood and flanks. I feel quality and perceptions of old and outdated technology (Japan been fresh and new even though dull and bland) were part of the reason it didn't do well. Of course Explorer had a lot to do with it as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2005Explorer Posted November 1, 2007 Author Share Posted November 1, 2007 Ha...still no CV ad... :hysterical: The CV was not featured in that ad because it was NOT one of the 5 of the top 10 selling vehicles in the country at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grbeck Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 The original Taurus was a ground-breaking car that looks fresh today. Park a 1986 Taurus beside a 1986 Olds Cutlass Ciera (the dominant mid-sized family sedan at that time) and a 1986 Chrysler LeBaron. The Taurus is so far ahead of the other two it's difficult to believe that they were all made in the same decade. Unfortunately, Ford was too slow to correct the faulty head gaskets that afflicted the 3.8 V-6 and the crappy automatic transmissions. The car needed a more modern drivetrain by 1990 at the latest. Ford pumped up sales with incentives and fleet sales, and between these sales practices and the mechanical troubles, the car's reputation was in the dumper even before the 1996 model debuted. Of course, by then Ford was focused on soaring Explorer sales. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 The original Taurus was a ground-breaking car that looks fresh today. Oh yeah. What a beauty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 (edited) Oh yeah. What a beauty. Yes....very fresh....I'll think I'll take the Charger beside it. Edited November 1, 2007 by suv_guy_19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grbeck Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Oh yeah. What a beauty. Compare it to what was on the market at that time. There is no comparison. And, yes, it is a good-looking car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grbeck Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Yes....very fresh....I'll think I'll take the Charger beside it. Let's see how well the Charger fares in 20 years... It's already starting to look somewhat dated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Compare it to what was on the market at that time. There is no comparison. And, yes, it is a good-looking car. I'm sorry, but by todays standards that is disgusting. A panther looks much better than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LincolnFan Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 When was the last time the Vic had an Ad? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 (edited) Let's see how well the Charger fares in 20 years... It's already starting to look somewhat dated. Not really. Its based on a design from a time past and still looks new. I don't see it as looking dated. Edited November 1, 2007 by suv_guy_19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 would be nice to have a photo of a Taurus that doesnt look like it is 20 years old to compare it to.. Anyone notice that the Orginial Taurus and the new Taurus look almost identical besides the 3 bar grill? Old New Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 would be nice to have a photo of a Taurus that doesnt look like it is 20 years old to compare it to.. Anyone notice that the Orginial Taurus and the new Taurus look almost identical besides the 3 bar grill? Old New Oh thank you for the caption, I couldn't have told the difference.... ...It looks the same in that they are both rounded 4 door sedans. Aside from that.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grbeck Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I'm sorry, but by todays standards that is disgusting. A panther looks much better than that. Different strokes for different folks...to me, the Panther cars are in desperate need of new styling. The only one that looks reasonably up-to-date is the Lincoln Town Car. Maybe Ford could borrow Plymouth's 1957 ad slogan and sell the Panthers under the "Suddenly, it's 1990" banner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suv_guy_19 Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Different strokes for different folks...to me, the Panther cars are in desperate need of new styling. The only one that looks reasonably up-to-date is the Lincoln Town Car. Maybe Ford could borrow Plymouth's 1957 ad slogan and sell the Panthers under the "Suddenly, it's 1990" banner. The TC is the best looking panther, your right, I was just saying that I think they look more up to day than a 20 year old taurus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grbeck Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Not really. Its based on a design from a time past and still looks new. I don't see it as looking dated. They look like 1948-54 stepdown Hudsons to me, with their low roofs, thick bodysides and narrow side windows. I'm not seeing much of any Charger (at least, the Chargers worth copying - the 1966-74 models) in the new one. But, as I said, different strokes for different folks. At least the Charger offers something different - if not necessarily better - in the looks department, and that keeps the automobile market interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 It's already starting to look somewhat dated. Just like the Mustang (and Challenger and Camaro). At least with the Charger, Dodge had the balls to actually design a car rather than regurgitate a 35 year old design and round off the corners. Of course, the Charger is butt ugly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P71_CrownVic Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Different strokes for different folks...to me, the Panther cars are in desperate need of new styling. The only one that looks reasonably up-to-date is the Lincoln Town Car. The Panthers are retro. It works for the Mustang... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.