Any questions why the US auto industry is in trouble???

[d0nut]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070206/ap_on_bi_ge/ford_taurus_revived



Yeah, we'll engineer new emblems instead of making a car that people want to buy....


I'm amazed they didn't try changing the name to "Cameri" to trick people into buying it......

[88Nightmare]

hmmm....

[GRAMPS SS]

it's still a five hundred.....talk about miss leading

[hrsp]

there in big trouble

[Arigmaster]

I agree with ya Sean, These automakers think that the consumers are a bunch of sheep or drones that will let them determine what will appeal to us rather than using any imagination what so ever.

Yea, we'll just slap a familiar name on some piece of crap and throw a little extra trim on it to polish that turd up!

DCX did the same damn thing with the Charger last year...

Al

[Karps TA]

I don't know. Car mfgs turn away from names and go to number and letter disignations and people *****. Car mfgs go back to trusted names and people *****.

The fact is that Ford sold a crap load of Ford Taurus's. They filled rental fleets with them. Businesses leased them as company cars. It was a name the avg consumer trusted as a decent car for the money. Obviously Ford has done alot of market testing and found that nobody knew what a 500 was, but knew what a Taurus was. So it only makes sense to go back to that name.

And consumers are a bunch of sheep. If they weren't Toyota Camry wouldn't be one of the best selling cars. There's absolutely nothing special about a Camry besides the fact that the media loves to get on their knees and give the car a verbal hand job because it's a Toyota. It's a very mediocre, unexciting car to drive that lacks any kind of style.

[88Nightmare]

/\ well said

[Al]

When it comes to the Taurus, just think of robocop back in the day. The Taurus was futureistic and special. It just isn't anymore.

Ford needs to get rid of that 'air recirculates only when AC is on.' Ford also needs to use Honda engines like GM uses Toyota engines. That will solve the fuel economy blues.

[animal]

Ford also needs to use Honda engines like GM uses Toyota engines. That will solve the fuel economy blues.

:rolleyes:

Maybe honda could start using some ford engines... you know, to solve the underpowered blues. :devil

[TPI Maliblu]

:rolleyes:

Maybe honda could start using some ford engines... you know, to solve the underpowered blues. :devil

Amen.

[70challenger452]

:rolleyes:

Maybe honda could start using some ford engines... you know, to solve the underpowered blues. :devil

I wouldn't want that to happen, then who could I beat up on with my truck

[RanJer]

http://www.autoblog.com/category/crossovers-cuvs/

theyre changing the name of the freestyle also... calling it the Taurus X.

theyre really banking on that name...

[d0nut]

Hmmn... Gremlin X.......Pacer X........Matador X........Taurus X!


Tying things in with Microsoft should help also!




http://www.autoblog.com/category/crossovers-cuvs/

theyre changing the name of the freestyle also... calling it the Taurus X.

theyre really banking on that name...

[Al]

:rolleyes:

Maybe honda could start using some ford engines... you know, to solve the underpowered blues. :devil

Do you think that if Ford's were better on gas, they would sell better? Well, GM has toyota/nissan, Dodge has Benz/Mitsu, all that is really left for Ford is Honda.

Stop thinking "full throttle," you have the concept all wrong. In the economy car segment, the Fords are completely outgunned along with almost all other segments.

Hondas make good power. Mabey not a mid-90s civic DX or the new Fit, but the new civic makes 140 hp and gets near 40 mpg. Can Ford do that? NO! If they build an engine which makes 140 hp, the car will get about 32 mpg. If you want 40 mpg, you get 100 hp or less. The Focus is a good example of this.

Another example: The Accord EX with the V6 will out accelerate the Ford Fusion V6 and still gets better mileage. Think of it as the best of both worlds, and Honda wins (again).

Lets talk Toyota: Tundra vs F150. The Toyota Tunda 5.7 vs Ford F150 5.4; same fuel economy, but the Tundra has an extra 80 hp! <==there it is! More power, w/o a loss in economy!

^ Does any of this spell underpowered? I havn't even gone into Acura yet...mabey I will

Did you hear that the NSX is getting a 5.0 L v10?!? 500 hp and All wheel drive! Lacking power my ass! Don't forget about the other Acuras too. They have lots of power.

Displacement = power, Done Deal. But honda/acura knows how to get more hp out of the same displacement. So if Honda builds a bigger engine, they should know how to get more power out an engine than Ford would. On the contrary, if Ford learns how to build better heads, they can get more power out of their engines w/o sacrificing economy.

The Issue At Hand, As I See It:
Ford needs a better valve system, it is a major key to better fuel economy. The mustang has a variable valve timing system, but it is nothing special or very effective.

Some of you might be thinking "does Al want to see mustangs with fart cans and wings and neons and type-r stickers and h-emblems on the valve covers!?!" No, I'm just talking about variable valve timing and the effect on fuel economy. Everrything else is just nonsense.

What I implied with my earlier post is that Ford needs to build better heads. Yeah, you can port it to flow like Hillary Clinton's larynx if you want more power, but that does nothing, if not make general driving characteristics WORSE.

Picture this as a real-life application:
The mustang gets some sort of vtec-like head. The engine gets a boost in power and produces hp for its displacement like Honda did with its early vtec system, but with a much larger engine. For a 4.6L Mustang, 400 hp is not a far-fetched idea and it will be able to go farther on a gallon of gas too. That's a Win/Win situation.

If you want to hear somthing very surprizing, the patent on vtec will run out soon. So it could be free soon.