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The AutoSpies might have done it again!
The “Ford Tech Conference” didn’t generate a lot of news, but right in the middle of it somebody decided to move a Ford engineering or styling mule around a little bit. A better photo along with context can be found here. To us, there’s something sad about the fact that America no longer seems to want a full-sized Ford… unless it’s wearing a truck badge.
43 Comments on “It Could Be The New Taurus…...”
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Hopefully Ford has learned their lesson.
Probably not…
They’ve gone from suck to blow.
If only I had a dime for every time someone tried to explain to me “how much potential the 3.5-L Ecoboost” had.
Even Hennessey doesn’t bother with them.
The Taurus and MKS should be available with an AWD BOSS engine for around $50,000/ $60,000 loaded respectively.
But ohhhhh no…
I doubt they can mount a massive v8 transversely in that platform, and the transaxle is already near the torque limit.
So how did they get the Yamaha based SHO engine to work without turning the frame into ‘Body On Mush’, or was it just the trans-axle that would fall out while breathing heavily at the end of a quarter mile?
The SHO V8 had less torque than today’s naturally aspirated six, let alone the EB 3.5 or any of today’s Ford eights. And it was quite the ingenious packaging feat to get it under the Taurus hood.
” The SHO V8 had less torque than today’s naturally aspirated six, let alone the EB 3.5 or any of today’s Ford eights. And it was quite the ingenious packaging feat to get it under the Taurus hood.”
The packaging of the 3.5 EB or the 4.6L 4V in the similar Continental required more ingenuity. The 3.4L Yamaha V8 was actually a reasonably small package for a V8 as it was based on the 60 degree Duratec 2.5L V6. They look big when the hood is popped because of the extensive intake manifold package, but once that’s removed, there’s plenty of room.
The 5.0 is about as big as the old 4.6 and that fit the old Taurus/continental chassis well enough. But trans stregnth will be an issue.
The interior of the new Taurus will just be an elbow-high center console that has holes carved into it for the driver and passengers.
+1
This is the only comment I’ve ever laughed at on TTAC. Well done.
And drink holders, TELL me there will drink holders, because I base my purchasing decisions on vehicles based on the number of holders that will accommodate a stock tank.
I don’t consider an American car Full Size if it doesn’t fit three across.
3 across the front or the back or both?
Both – bench seats rule, bucket seats are for Eurotrash.
This…even the K-Cars could seat three across front and back. Though I realize airbags have forever removed the middle seating in the front.
Man, Ford is sure trying hard to get this car right. It came out in it’s new, bloated form in 2008, redesigned 2 years later, then refreshed 3 years later, now a new one.
Think of how much money would be saved if Ford just did it right the first time.
Agreed. Taurus sales are down about 80% since 2002, and actually they were down 85% from 2002 to 2009.
It’s not that America doesn’t want the car, but rather Ford isn’t building the right car. A big car on the outside doesn’t mean it’s big on the inside; a Taurus is pretty small inside.
2000-2007 was the D186 platformed Taurus that is basically equivalent to the CD3/CD4 Fusion/Mondeo, Ford’s true midsized offerings.
The D3/D4 500/Taurus is a larger, more expensive vehicle, and carried the Taurus name from 2008 onward.
Really, you should be comparing Fusion sales now and Taurus sales in 2002. Taurus sales now are just more evidence of the full sized Sedan market’s tumble.
I have no idea what the sales figures are, nor what percentage of these go to fleets, but I think the Chrysler 300/Charger are certainly far more appealing that any Taurus in recent memory, and the refreshed Impala is, by most accounts, a decent car. I guess my point is, I think there’s still some life left in the full-size market for the right product.
I just looked it up, and was surprised that the Taurus (not counting Police Interceptor models) has actually outsold the 300 three of the last four years. The Charger handily outsells either of them.
There’s a market, sure — I think the question is, for how many models? The mainstream large sedan market in the US (excluding luxury and sports cars) is ten models with sales of about 50k last month. Midsize sedans are represented by fourteen models selling about 250k. (The Passat is categorized as a midsize by those metrics, accounting for about 8k a month.)
Given those numbers, I wouldn’t be surprised to see one manufacturer drop out of the segment at some point.
“the Taurus (not counting Police Interceptor models) has actually outsold the 300 three of the last four years. The Charger handily outsells either of them.
There’s a market, sure — I think the question is, for how many models?”
The Taurus has the advantage of being pursuit rated and sold to fleets, as the Charger is. The 300 does a greater percentage retail at higher avg transaction prices. It would be better to compare the 300 to the MKS and Taurus/Charger or all D3 cars to all LX sedans. Either way, the LX platform kills the D3 cars in sales. 166k LX/LD cars were sold last year (not including Challenger) while Ford moved only 95k D3s total.
As for life left in the full size market, there is plenty left. Only the sales will be absorbed by the ever bloating “midsize” cars. The Fusion and Taurus are a perfect example of how midsize sedans have grown so large they’ve rendered full-sizers irrelevant. Even “compacts” now are as large as midsize cars of a few generations ago. So we have to keep that in perspective.
It’s tough to compare the D186 Taurus sales to the D3 because the last half decade or so of the D186 were cranked out to fleets at bargain basement prices. Basically the same thing that has happened with the W Impala as compared to the Epsilon II version.
So is the Taurus and explorer.
“A big car on the outside doesn’t mean it’s big on the inside; a Taurus is pretty small inside.”
Taurus interior volume: 102.2 cubic’
Fusion interior volume 102.8 cubic’
The Taurus is smaller then the Fusion
Taurus was to move to a stretched Fusion platform like the MKS. From what I’ve seen there is nothing new on the horizon, and the project was shelved at least the sources I’ve spoken to have told. Only Explorer will be “new” for 2016.
Don’t forget there will be a Lincoln version of this thing as well. Besides my cubicle neighbor loves them.
I’m impressed Ford, or any other company, wastes money on “journalists” such as the Gawker guy. What a complete joke, just like that entire organization.
I read the article. The guy says he isn’t even into cars.
Shouldn’t have come.
I liked your original comment better.
I changed it in fears that his partner would find it and get infuriated with me.
But I’m glad you saw it! :)
I’ll be in for two if they come with that 1.3l Ecoboost turbo. Then I’ll put 2000lbs worth of lead in the trunk and pretend I’m driving a Fisker Karma.
+1. That’s the Comment of the Day.
There is a very attractive new Taurus one post bellow this one. The new Passat. Welcome to McVW, would you like fries with that American sized car?
Surprisingly, I would buy that Passat before any Taurus.
Let me guess: an extended wheelbase Fusion sort of like ATS-STS?
Ma and Pa Kettle are waiting with baited breath…
I’ll buy one if they can return it to the pre-raked stance of the 2005-2010 cars (or otherwise give me back my visibility), shave the 600 pounds off the current model to get it back to the weight of the 2005-2007 cars, and keep that 3.5L EB in there (or I suppose the first two so long as it has a V6 with over 3.0 L displacement…).
Check the link. The photo seems to show a rather tall greenhouse and more upright windshield. No telling what’s going on in back, but by the looks of the front end they won’t be describing it as slippery. OTOH, it’s under wraps and no telling what’s under that to throw people off.
I really like the Taurus and pushed my wife to consider one a few years ago. We ended up getting an Accord EXL for $23k but could have gotten a CPO SHO or SEL AWD for the same. Same size interior and bigger trunk than the Accord, didn’t realize how bad the console was until we tried the Honda. My right knee has all the room in the world.
So we have a somewhat louder car but more fuel efficient and moves along just fine for our needs (averages 32mpg while cruising at 85mph in Idaho and Utah). I just liked the brashness if the big bull in metallic black.
If that is in fact a future Ford product, I’m putting my chips on it being the next MKS, not the next Taurus. I have no inside info or anything, but it seems like a good bet that the new Taurus will share the corporate Ford face that has worked so well for the Fusion, not some completely new thing, whereas “completely new thing” is pretty much what Lincoln urgently needs…
I wonder if it will have a sliding box built into the door, at the trend these are going I doubt one will be able to fit fast food in through the window at drive thru’s.
Anyone know if this is still being built on the same old platform? If so, I predict continued fail…