Focus – replace with Euro Focus

Fusion/Milan/Mkz – update less boring (Falcon XR6 Turbo?)

New Taurus/Sable – Replace with Mondeo and Mondeo wagon

Minivan? bring over S-Max

Escape/Mariner replace upcoming Kuga

Ranger – Replace with Euro Ranger

Mustang – Keep they can do some thing ok.

Bring over Ford Transit to compete with Dodge’s
Sprinter

Ford Flex Dont bother

Taurus X Please Kill

A few years later, nobody knows or cares about any of these cars. (1,551 Sables sold in September? On track to sell 18,000 a year? HAHAhhahaha.) They’re not necessarily bad cars. They just have no public profile or “brand” associated with them, and Ford is doing its best to keep things that way.

Explain to me again why it makes sense to sell a Taurus X AND a Montego AND a Flex AND an Edge AND a Lincoln MKX AND an Escape AND a Mountaineer AND an Explorer AND a Mariner… for God’s sake. Building and advertising five different vehicles, I dunno HOW many nameplates, to service essentially the same niche in the marketplace is public drunkenness masquerading as management. These people are insane.

Sable/Montego -> done better, well executed redo. However, I would have kept the Montego name, added a 350-horse V8 option, AWD, and euthanised the FiveHundred altogether, giving Mercury a stand-alone model, which it desparately needs.

FiveHundred-> Kill it, bring on the Mondeo or theother gems for Ford’s Australian contingency.

I know the new 500/Taurus is supposed to be decent but renaming back to Taurus was a dumb move. Relying on Americans brand loyalty only works if you have a brand that continues to be sought after. The Taurus name was retired for a reason, it was not doing well in the later years. And that is what people remember, the last Taurus they saw. Either in rental form or on the lots years ago.

Unfortunately I don’t think new marketing will fix this problem. They have now tainted the 500 image with the Taurus name. Ford needs to change the car exterior enough to make it look different than the 500/Taurus. Then come up with a new name and relaunch with a new marketing strategy. Pretend it a whole new car even though you don’t have to change the mechanics.

Ford needs to slap some lipstick on that pig and rename it something new. Then they will have a chance at mediocre sales. It will never beat the old Taurus sales numbers because consumers are more savvy and the market is flooded with decent competition.

Nope, nothing else new from waste like you.

“The Taurus name conjures up (images) in many young people’s minds of a rental car, a salesperson’s car, an old person’s car,” he said.

Notice how the article mentions “more stimulating ads.” Ford just can’t sell!

Blakkar:
The mechanical might be good but the car is just a very dull lump.
When I had a “new Taurus” tester, that’s about what I got out of it. It started. It moved. I checked my pulse.
Now, as a consumer, I test-drove the Freestlyle/Taurus X, and it was OK. Nothing more, nothing less. But they wanted $34K for it.

atourya:
“I don’t think it was a bad idea to switch it back to Taurus.”
The Five Hundred was one of three vehicles Ford used to replace the Taurus.

What the company SHOULD HAVE done was heep the original Taurus fresh, and out of rental fleets.

autonut: I think Fred Phelps is a latent homosexual. I’ve always been suspicious of people who dedicate a lot of their time toward thinking about what other’s do in their own bedrooms. As far as I’m concerned, unless it involves children, small animals or my wife, I don’t give a damn!

deutschetouring1337
That’s some davedevil-type shit, badmouthing NASCAR in the South. But Australian V8 Supercar racing is a much better sport.

The Taurus is a nice car, but Ford could have done extensively better. The interiors nice, but lackluster and fairly boring. Why can’t the American auto designers figure out that interiors need a good “figure”? Just look at the Camrys interior, the dashboard sweeps into the center, and all vents and major components are dictated by this shape… don’t have the vents and components dictate the shape!

And the styling… Nothing amazing here either. The Camry looks much more sophisticated, and I hate to say it but even more exciting!

I can’t believe I just mentioned Camry and exciting in the same sentence… but anyways!

What kind of name is the “Taurus X”? The Taurus X is actually a very handsome vehicle, especially the limited trim with chrome wheels. And what’s up with that “handlebar” on the dashboard? People can board the vehicle without it, or even so what about simple handles near the doorframe? I would consider most people who buy this vehicle are active in the first place; why make it look like the framing and internal supports are sticking out of the dash?

I’ve owned Ford all my life, and all their cars have been very good to me. But I’m sorry Ford, if you don’t begin to play “edgy”, and put in some serious competition like you have for many many years (Taurus, F-150, etc.) then I will, and have been loosing faith in you. The Edge looks amazing, it’s a wonderful vehicle. But they could have even done BETTER in the Edge; specifically the interior, which is nice but could have been more dramatic.

About the Flex, after 3 months of gotta-have sales, it’ll also tank and fail. It has a style and presence that looks appealing and good if sized somewhere between a Scion and an Escape, but as a full-size it will come off as boxy, fleshy, over-sized, and undesirable … not to mention old-fashioned as the 500/Taurus also is. Too bad because all that effort will be going down the crapper when Ford can’t afford to waste it.

The FLEX will likely do much better if handled like a proper family cruiser.

But If the Taurus brand is to succeed, the line needs to be treated like a serious product line and not a stopgap. Get back some of that slick styling that marked the line so well. Add some useful and enthusing performance and the Bull will have horns again.

I don’t think it was a bad idea to switch it back to Taurus… but they didn’t have the rest of the marketing plan intact. But hopefully that will change now that Ford has picked up a great mind from Toyota.

Ford Exec 2: ” I’ve got a great idea! I call it ‘Badge’. If we simply change the ‘Badge’ on the boring, slow, entirely unexciting 500/Montego/Freestyle to something that resonates we’ll move millions of them!”

Ford Exec 3: “I just heard that we’ve got a warehouse full of Taurus and Sable badges”

Ford Exec 1: “That’s it!”

Memo to Ford: It’s the car, stupid.

But seriously, This car is not appealing at all. It’s just too boring! The only derivative of this car that is any good, and It could well be very good, is the MKS. But this is lacks any pizazz, visual “oomph”, and just plain old cool. The mechanical might be good but the car is just a very dull lump. The Taurus was a very nice looking and cool looking car, even if the mechanicals sucked. This car is the opposite.

FORD do something about this! NOW!!!

“OMG its a conspiracy – Toyonda must be paying LLN to say bad things about their competition!!”