I did like the styling of the 4th gen Sable I thought it looked decently different from the 4th gen Taurus.  Front clip and rear were pretty different plus the different roof line and rear doors.  Front doors I think were the only things shared on the exterior.  Interiors were exactly the same sadly.  Sable could be had with some nice faux wood trim though I think some higher end Taurus could have the same in later years of the 4th gen.  Probably left over Sable parts.     A shame they never got heated seats as even an option or even steering wheel radio controls, would have helped keep the 4th gen competitive.  The Duratec was starting to lag on power compared to the competition during this time period too plus the Vulcan V6, while reliable, was kind of a boat anchor compared to Japanese 4 cylinders.  Would have been cool if the 3.4 V8 could have continued on with the cams being fixed and some more power added.   I was curious and I need to sit down one of these days and compare the brochures but I think 1 for 1 100% optioned out there is no exclusive feature the Sable offered over the Taurus.  The 2nd gen could have a digital cluster which I think was only available on the FFV Taurus but otherwise I think all first 4 generations had the same exact options just placed differently.  For instance 94-95 ABS was standard on the Sable LS but still optional on the Taurus LX.  5th gen did have projector headlights and LED tail lights that the Taurus didn't offer but I think that's it.  

Did some restoration of the rear window moldings today. The inner edge of those stainless steel moldings are painted with semi-gloss black paint. However, all four corners had areas where the paint was chipping off. After masking the entire window I sanded out those chips and resprayed those areas.     

Why are you bringing that up?  They haven't done that since 2010.  

Most of the Ford dealers where I live have changed hands in the past 5 years and they've all been downgrades. These dealer groups have the worst customer service. Also, it seems like the professional car salesman is going extinct. Last time I went to the dealer to look around the only "salesman" in the showroom was this overweight woman covered in tattoos and piercings who didn't seem to care at all about showing me a car and making a sale. They just hire anyone now. 

My dad bought nothing but Fords, and the closest we ever came to really bonding was over talking about Fords and looking at Fords and watching Fords in NASCAR.

I've loved Fords since the 70s mustangs and F100s.  I just prefer Ford styling and features like the door keypad, racing heritage and race cars, Raptors and Mustang performance vehicles.   I've owned 2 rangers, 2 fusions, 1 f150, 2 explorers, expedition, aviator, lincoln ls, edge, escape, mkx and nautilus.  Plus 3 Focuses for the kids.      My favorite Fords are the 70 mustang boss 302 in grabber blue with black stripes, 77 F100 Ranger XLT SWB red/black and any Ford GT.

So much for the entry level cars breed loyalty crowd.  Great vehicles breed not only loyalty but also conquests at all price points.

Ford tops the loyalty rankings:   https://fordauthority.com/2026/03/ford-loyalty-topped-all-other-mainstream-automakers-in-2025/?utm_source=fordauthority.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=ford-authority-daily-digest-for-march-2-2026&_bhlid=a4f216e9ec902c6379289507c456631be9719e3a   While there is plenty of ragging on Ford here in the Blue Oval Forums, most of us are Ford enthusiasts and bleed blue. Might be interesting if we tell some stories of why we are Ford loyalists.   For me, it is primarily two things. First, I greatly admired the company for not taking a government bailout during the great recession.  Second, I love the long Ford history and the enduring Ford family connection with the company that exists to this day.   My first car was a 1975 orange Pinto station wagon. It was my college car and wish I still had it. Lots of memories. After several more Fords,  I then foolishly strayed and tried some GM/Chrysler products but ultimately came back and have remained in the Ford camp. No plans to leave at this point and I'll still love the company even if they don't build a hybrid Ranger for me.

That’s about 12 hours/day charging on average with the level 2 charger he mainly uses. 

I can't tell what make most SUV's are, especially the foreign brands. I can tell most GM and Ford SUV's apart.