by "Shoop" (shoopdawoop993)
Published 09/16/2017 at 21:19
by "Shoop" (shoopdawoop993)
Published 09/16/2017 at 21:19
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STARS: 0
The Ford five hundred
"CB" (jrcb)
09/16/2017 at 21:22, STARS: 2
Ah yes, when Ford starting naming everything with an F. Well, except the SUVs, since those all started with E. Thank goodness they didn’t get their hands on the Mustang.
"Bman76 (hates WS6 hoods, is on his phone and has 4 burners now)" (bman76-4)
09/16/2017 at 21:24, STARS: 2
My parents bought one new in 2006 and sold it last summer. Very comfortable and roomy interior, the seats sat really high so you could move around a bunch. Gas mileage wasn’t great (25mpg) but overall wasn’t a bad car.
"Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom" (will-alib)
09/16/2017 at 21:26, STARS: 4
Yep, that was Ford’s ill-fated Taurus replacement. It lasted from 05-07 then was renamed Taurus (marketing, FTW!) and ultimately replaced by the 6th gen Taurus in 2010.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 21:55, STARS: 1
What?? How?!
This was one of Ford’s greatest follies.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 22:01, STARS: 1
The 500 is what happens when the marketing guys try calling the shots. The rename was a result of the ovoid Taurus and a serious loss of market share. The pipe smokers in marketing felt that the name Taurus was irreparably damaged and needed to be axed. Big mistake.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
09/16/2017 at 22:01, STARS: 2
And the 6th gen is still on the same platform as the 500.
"lone_liberal" (token-liberal)
09/16/2017 at 22:06, STARS: 1
Boring cars but very comfortable. My wife sat in one at a new car show and really liked it.
"Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom" (will-alib)
09/16/2017 at 22:18, STARS: 2
I think it was Mulally that wanted the Taurus name back. 500 was a decent car but SO damn bland...
"HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles" (hondasfordsvolvo)
09/16/2017 at 22:28, STARS: 0
Yup new engine and trans tho, the 3.0 got replaced by a 3.5, and the CVT was replaced by a 6 speed auto
"HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles" (hondasfordsvolvo)
09/16/2017 at 22:29, STARS: 0
Fustang
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 22:39, STARS: 1
I honestly think that’s the excuse they made up after the fact. I think some executive just got a huge hard-on over the idea that all the names of Ford cars needed to start with an F, and damn it it was going to be so. As I understand it, and this could be entirely false, renaming it the Taurus was one of the first things ordered by Alan Mullaly.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 22:40, STARS: 1
These are a perfect candidate for Meh Car Monday. Perfectly fine, but utterly forgettable.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 22:40, STARS: 1
You’re right, it was Mulally. The 500 was a great car, it should have been a Taurus from day 1. They threw away a lot of equity just by changing the name. It never really recovered.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 22:53, STARS: 1
I don’t think it was a hindsight thing. That ovoid Taurus was a brand killer. Only Ford faithfuls, fleets and cheapskates were buying them (there were piles of cash on the hood). They knew they screwed the brand.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 22:56, STARS: 2
Don’t get me wrong, I hated those ovoid Taurusi with a firey passion. I’m glad they’re mostly gone, although I have a coworker who has one, and I’m forced to look at it every day. I still think my theory is on point, based on nothing but wild ass conjecture!
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 22:56, STARS: 0
I still think the “F” naming thing was a bit of bunk too. What happens to the Mustang?
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 22:57, STARS: 0
The Mustang was untouchable.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 23:00, STARS: 1
They did work pretty hard on the letter F. I just don’t see anyone wielding that much power there. At some point someone was bound to point out that Fail also starts with the letter F.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 23:13, STARS: 1
Apparently the executive culture at Ford before Mullaly was pretty corrosive, so who knows.
"Shoop" (shoopdawoop993)
09/16/2017 at 23:22, STARS: 1
I think I just physically ignored it, also there aren’t that many around
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 23:23, STARS: 1
Toxic pretty much nails all Corporate culture to a tee.
Sorry. I get a little “excited” when it comes to 80s/90s auto manufacturer screw ups. A bunch of people that couldn’t see the forest.. Things haven’t really improved much over the years either.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 23:29, STARS: 1
No need to be sorry. There are so many to talk about! See the thread about the rusty Uplander yet? If not, check it out.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 23:30, STARS: 1
It wasn’t a hot seller. I just thought everyone knew.
The 2008 Taurus was basically the same car.
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 23:34, STARS: 1
I bit my tongue on the Uplander thread. I want to comment but.. Oh boy.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/16/2017 at 23:42, STARS: 0
Hell of a thing, ain’t it?
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/16/2017 at 23:47, STARS: 1
Yeah. On a 10 year old machine? It’s inexcusable.
"Brian McKay" (brianmckay)
09/17/2017 at 00:30, STARS: 0
Ford had wanted to name it Galaxie or Galaxy, but it couldn’t (PepBoys owns the trademark Galaxie?). So it fell back on the 500 part of “Galaxie 500,” and forced it into an “F” name.
‘Which car is yours, Marge?’
‘The Five Hundred.’
‘The what?’
‘The Five Hundred over there. The grey one.’
blandmobile with bland name
"Birddog" (maintmgt)
09/17/2017 at 00:46, STARS: 0
Futura. That’s where Pep Boys tripped Ford up. They could have used Fairlane, Falcon or Galaxie.
"Brian McKay" (brianmckay)
09/17/2017 at 01:16, STARS: 1
ohhhhhh ... Thanks
Should’ve used Falcon, as in Australia.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/17/2017 at 09:08, STARS: 0
Very much so. This ain’t the 70's.
"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
09/18/2017 at 13:45, STARS: 0
This was one of Ford’s greatest follies.
Indeed. Boring, slows, handles like a battleship, and seats that sit WAAAAAAY too tall. With the seat lowered all the way down I felt like I was sitting in a kitchen chair.