is that the replacement for the taurus?

 

Yes, it's a much better car even though I liked the Taurus.

 

It's actually not really a Taurus replacement. The Taurus will still be manufactured in smaller numbers for fleet companies and such. They describe it as an entirely new line of car somewhere between the Focus and the Taurus. I really like this this car. It's good to see Ford is finally putting out an attractive car other than the Mustang. I'd really like to see it succeed because I think it's very nicely styled. I've driven the v-6 version on a Pre-delivery inspection and it moves pretty well. They're also planning to come out with a hybrid version within the next few years that may help it sell more.

Ford 500 was a mistake, Freestar was a mistake, Freestyle might do ok, but the Fusion is gonna rock. As always, Ford trucks will continue to dominate but they've got to lower costs, which they are working on now. I'd like to see Ford a real competitor with the imports and Fusion might do it.

 

but in terms of retail which you or i would buy it is replacing the taurus and a freestar is not a mistake it is a windstar with a freestar name on it same drivetrain same undercarriage everythingjust cosmetic changes ,but the freestyle and 5 hundred are busts for sure our dealer only sold 2 freestyle and 3 five hundreds(thats terrible)

 

Don't kid yourself thinking that Ford may actually take some sales back from imports with the Fusion. The Fusion itself is an import from mexico, along with the other 2 models of it. It may say Ford on the grill, but it's built in Mexico and is another way of Ford cutting American jobs for cheap labor over the border.

 

I should mention that the Fusion is based right off of the Mazda 6. Somehow, Ford made it look ugly. So test drive a Mazda 6 today.

 

the 500 is actually a pretty nice car, much better than the taurus. Lots more room, drives better and many more options available. The dealer I get my vehicles from sells them quite quickly, not as many as the fusion, but there in totally different classes also. The fusion is marketed towards the younger crowd.

 

I am glad to see the taurus go. I thought those were such ugly cars. I don't think I liked any of them. The SHO had power, but still looked ugly. I'm glad Ford finally came up with something around the size of an Accord. I agree that Mazda seems to have MUCH better looking cars than Ford.

 

Ok first of all, if you wanna consider where a vehicle is made as classifying it as an import, than many 1986 F150s would have to be such as they were built in canada. And my '98 Escort was built in hermisillo, mexico. Most car companies today whether domestic or import build different vehicles in different countires. I would go so far as to say that the majority of all ford vehicles are imported,just as most imports are likely built in the US than imported. Does that make ford an import? Of course the fusion will take back market share from the imports, the question is just how much. The fusion has already overtaken the accord in consumer quality and is just a few points behind toyota in a 1400 point quality survey. Look it up. If other ford models follow this example, "import quality" will be a thing of the past.