Fords Failure 500 now renamed as Tarus and Sable

[LouDawg]

After participating in this thread for a few days, I've noticed a number of Five Hundred's and Montego's on the road...just today I've seen three. I started looking at them a little more closely.

Now, looks are almost *completely* subjective, but the design just seems kind of boring to me. I actually like the looks of my Accord much better than the 500, yet many people say the Accord looks boring. The hood and trunk on the Five Hundred seem to be too horizontal/flat to me. It makes it look too boxy. But hey, that's just me, and I'm sure it works well for others. I also noticed for the first time how "tall" the body sides are...kind of like the Chrysler 300's are.

But as I suspected, when I passed these cars, all of the drivers and passengers were 60+ years of age. Nothing wrong with that...I just think that was the biggest target demographic for this model. I think the "boxiness" and height of the vehicle appeal to older folks who remember the big cars from years gone by.

 

[HM12460]

i understand what you're saying loudawg, and you're right. however, i also owned a 1992 taurus back in the day and it also was a +_)(*&^%$#@! pos. i understood in 2000, that the new design was supposed to well above and beyond it's earlier model in quality, reliability. maybe the 2007 ford is better. i'm not spendind any of my money to find out. i find it hard to believe that ford is focused on quality like they want us to think. they never have been before. why now?? my .02 cents (and thats all its worth) is that ford is run by a bunch of babbling idiots and they build junk.

 

[Black Bart]

LouDawg
I'm one of those older ones and I like to think of it as being more practical.
When I was young I would not have been caught dead in a 4 door car they were not cool looking.
Now I will not buy anything but a 4 door.
I consider much more than just styling it must have headroom leg room I'm 6,2 275 and all my friends are older people with arthritis and not as flexible as when they were younger.
Today I parked along side a Ranger standard cab and thought about what a poster had said about lack of room and I looked a that truck and compared where the seats were in it compared to mine.
From the front of the truck to the back of the door would be the same on all models but on the standard cab the seat was about even with the door edge and very close to the back of the cab.
On my super cab my seat will go back well beyond what would be the back of the cab on a standard cab.
My Ranger is a 4 door super cab 4x4 with the 4.0 engine and ever option that was available and then I added several things that were not available.
My Ranger is 7 years old has 116000 miles on it and it still looks and drives like new.
No squeaks or rattles nothing replaced other than tires plugs things that would have needed replaced on anything with that mileage.
I own 7 vehicles and when we go to town shopping my wife will say lets take the Ranger, we both love that truck the only way I would ever part with it was if I was going to get another one just like it only with no miles.

 

[gedcruise]

My 81 year old mother drives a 2003 Accord, so I guess that makes it an old persons car?
We love Hondas, and have done more than a million miles in them since our first 1976 Civic 1500 CVCC, but other good cars exist.
If I were not wed to Honda, and if I needed a decently roomy sedan, the 500 would be a reasonable choice.
Sometimes, we let our personal preferences and prejudices preclude looking at alternatives.
Many people on this board have posted of their results with Fords, GM brands, as well as Chrysler products. Their are many alternatives out there. There is no one best car.

 

[LouDawg]

Quote:

---

My 81 year old mother drives a 2003 Accord, so I guess that makes it an old persons car?
We love Hondas, and have done more than a million miles in them since our first 1976 Civic 1500 CVCC, but other good cars exist.
If I were not wed to Honda, and if I needed a decently roomy sedan, the 500 would be a reasonable choice.
Sometimes, we let our personal preferences and prejudices preclude looking at alternatives.
Many people on this board have posted of their results with Fords, GM brands, as well as Chrysler products. Their are many alternatives out there. There is no one best car.

---

Are you serious? Just because I said that older people tend to drive the 500's doesn't mean that *only* old people drive it. Conversely, it doesn't mean *only* young people drive Accords. It was just an observation about tendencies, not an absolute edict. Heck, I've seen 20-somethings driving Buicks, but that doesn't make it the norm. It's called "anecdotal" vs. "statistical".

And I never said anything bad about the Five Hundred...just that I *personally* wasn't that crazy about the looks. Overall, I'm a fan of Ford and like their products. I wouldn't rule out a Five Hundred because I perceive to to be an old person's car or poor quality...I would rule it out simply because I don't much care of the looks, which are, as I've said over and over again, completely subjective.

 

[1sttruck]

We're on our third Taurus, a 2006, last of the line. We also had a 93, it died after 210k hard miles, and still have a 99. the 99 has a better engine at almost 120k miles than the 93 did, it's clean metal looking inside at the oil fill hole, but the transmission went at 100k miles as it evidently missed a recall for a transmission problem.

We bought them as we wanted a bench seat up front for seating six, something that no Japanese vehicle seems to offer so whatever else others think they do better is a moot point. We also only got 120k miles from our Civic, so we're thrilled about smaller 4 cyl engines, much less a three. Also, it was our 'vacation vehicle' for years, with a carrier on top on the back, full trunk, five to six in the car, something that I don't recall seeing with Accords or Camrys at campgrounds. It'll be the last though, as the 500 seems to about twice as expensive as the old Taurus.

It's an anti-status vehicle, which was fun during the last winter storm as some people actually stopped and stared, some with open mouths, when I had the kids out to practice driving in the snow and ice. We watched pickups and SUVs slide side and everywhichways on roads and in parking lots, while the Taurus tooled along (the studded Hakkas helped a bit :^).

 

[Volvohead]

Quote:

---

Our suppliers supply all the major auto makers. Who is the toughest to work with right now? Ford and Toyota.

---

I find that comment extremely interesting - most interesting one in this thread.

Not as to Ford, but as to Toyota, who had built a reputation for the best supplier relationships in the industry.

They may be discovering how lonely and hard it is once you reach the mountaintop.

While Ford may be getting better supplier quality, GM's seem to still be better assembled overall at the moment. FoMoCo has a lot of damage to undo; the heady days of "Quality is Job 1" were seriously eroded starting in the early '90s by beancounting and thoughtless engineering.

 

[LouDawg]

Quote:

---

Not as to Ford, but as to Toyota, who had built a reputation for the best supplier relationships in the industry.



While Ford may be getting better supplier quality, GM's seem to still be better assembled overall at the moment.

---

Volvohead, there is a difference between having the best supplier relationships and having the most demanding supplier quality requirements. In fact, one could reasonably argue that in certain situations, the two are somewhat exclusive.

As for GM's being better assembled overall at the moment, on what source(s) or statistics are you basing that claim?

 

[rjundi]

I think Ford made an excellent choice reusing the branding of Taurus. Most people not interested in cars know what a Taurus is and that is 99% of your marketing battle, name recognition.

A Taurus is an okay car for people not really interested in cars. The Ford 500(Taurus) fits the bill.

I have actually rented one (Ford 500) that was a no charge substitute for a non-available Ford Focus. I thought it was a decent enough car for people who don't care about them except a-b.

 

[Greggy_D]

Quote:

---

I thought it was a decent enough car for people who don't care about them except a-b.

---

For over $30,000 I expect more than that. As posted above, Ford really missed the mark by overpricing the 500 by $10,000.

 

[rjundi]

Domestic makers pricing vs reality is a large chasm of difference.

I believe local Ford dealers flyer shows them at a price of $22k.