Webmaster
02-07-2007, 10:23 AM
This project has to be a record for lack of thought and a symbol of why Ford is a failing entity. First we have high fuel costs, add to this a legacy of poorly made, uninspired vehicles, and the new leader of Ford gets the bright idea to re-name a current model, use an even bigger engine and hope to grab some of the glorious profits from the past.
The value of the original Taurus was result of an experiment to get all departments at Ford to work together. It created a synergy and, in turn produced a very good if unremarkable vehicle. Now they no longer let the departments work together, and take yet another big step towards insolvency.
From http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/automobiles/07ford.html
DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 6 — The Ford Taurus, the car credited with reinvigorating American automotive design two decades ago before falling into virtual irrelevance by the time it was retired last year, is coming back to life.
But not as the nameplate on a new car. Instead, the Ford Motor Company is expected to announce Wednesday that it will rechristen the slow-selling Ford Five Hundred sedan the Taurus later this year when a freshened version is introduced. Its cousin, the Mercury Montego, is expected to be renamed the Sable.
Ford stopped making the old Taurus and Sable about three months ago after a 20-year run. Late last year, Ford’s newly hired chief executive, Alan R. Mulally, publicly questioned the wisdom of abandoning such a venerable brand.
The value of the original Taurus was result of an experiment to get all departments at Ford to work together. It created a synergy and, in turn produced a very good if unremarkable vehicle. Now they no longer let the departments work together, and take yet another big step towards insolvency.
From http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/automobiles/07ford.html
DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 6 — The Ford Taurus, the car credited with reinvigorating American automotive design two decades ago before falling into virtual irrelevance by the time it was retired last year, is coming back to life.
But not as the nameplate on a new car. Instead, the Ford Motor Company is expected to announce Wednesday that it will rechristen the slow-selling Ford Five Hundred sedan the Taurus later this year when a freshened version is introduced. Its cousin, the Mercury Montego, is expected to be renamed the Sable.
Ford stopped making the old Taurus and Sable about three months ago after a 20-year run. Late last year, Ford’s newly hired chief executive, Alan R. Mulally, publicly questioned the wisdom of abandoning such a venerable brand.