Wow, I just realised that was 40 years ago

That probably would have sold in larger numbers.😁 Technically, the RAV4 Adventure/Woodlands is a whole unchopped RAV4 with an Otter box. The Bronco Sport was made significantly shorter than the Escape (by over half a foot) to make it more off-road capable or at least look the part. This probably made it feel too small (at least by US standards) for some buyers, anything smaller than the traditional C-segment or compact vehicle is always called too small (even though traditional compacts used to be that small in the 2000s).

MCE in 4th year is same cadence as F150.  It’s a stunning design inside and out.

That's fair.   I wonder how that did in focus groups, though.  Did it do well, and people were like "oh I want to have that!", vs the focus groups for this thing that reportedly universally panned it?

It was probably a low-take trim on the outgoing model, but with entry pricing of the 2025 jumping $15,000 without it, the idea is more appealing to folks.  The 2025 base price for the SWB version was more than the base price of the 2024 LWB model Reserve.   The new Premiere trim will be starting at $91,995, so it'll be close to the pricing of the 2024 Reserve, which will be appealing to buyers.  

Lincoln Nautilus Refresh Expected In 2027    Rather, according to a new report from Automotive News, the Lincoln Nautilus is now scheduled to receive a mid-cycle fresh in 2027, a bit later than previously expected. It was back in October 2024 that Automotive News previously reported that the luxurious crossover would be receiving its next update in 2026, but with sales continuing to prove strong for the newer model, delaying that action a bit seems to make sense in this case.   https://fordauthority.com/2025/09/lincoln-nautilus-refresh-expected-in-2027/    

Agree, it is kind of ambiguos, just 1 year later, maybe they need to know their clients better and also watch the competition

The original North America Taurus was a pretty big leap design wise...

Oh to be a fly on the wall to see some of the thrown out designs (like this EV, or the Lincoln Rivian one, etc.).     I think it's a case of the "futuristic" looking product seems good on paper, but when it comes to people actually pulling the trigger, they're more likely to go with a more traditional design. To appeal to the broadest range of customers, I think you have to slowly push toward the futuristic designs, not jumping straight too them (i.e. Cybertruck).

Given that it's Ford, I'm sure 75% of the currently projected product tsunami will be cancelled before it gets here lol.     As was mentioned above, platforms don't need to be changed as often, but they definitely need visual changes.  If they give more thorough refreshes, you can get away with longer cycles in between full redesigns (even if just a body change, keeping the platform).  The problem lies when Ford doesn't do anything beyond changing a grille insert and adding a larger screen AND stretching out the cycle 2 more years.