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Ford Five Hundred/Mercury Montego
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BUT, that's just a ME thing.
I'm hoping this time around the end results will be quite positive overall, than the V8 SHO senario.
It's called diversification!! It's not a bad thing at all - there's lots of companies that do it very well: GE, Honeywell, Raytheon, Daimler, et al. They all seem to follow the same philosophy: if you're not one of the top 3 players, you get out of that business.
They have done well so far with the V6 SHO's, and the I4's from Toyota. Their only issue (related to car engine) was the V8 SHO.
As for the 500/Montego/Freestyle.... That structure can't sustain a V8 powerplant unless there's major modification's to the frontal structure, firewall and suspension...hence (don't expect it). Plus the typical buyer that's being targeted for these vehicles won't be a weekend road racer with it anyways.
And if it's real V8 performance someone may want, they would want you to choose a Lincoln LS, Jag-Stype, Mustang, etc.
Maybe we get the next generation Falcon to compete with the 300C, ahem...
Ford should offer choices, and could make a handsome profit by so doing. Probably will, eventually. The question is how much business will Ford lose by not having wider engine choices available at launch. One size does not fit all...
Yes, surely if the 500 had a V8, it could also do as well as the 300C's Hemi, then again...for another $10K and then you ask yourself... Why go that route, when there's another alternative in the Ford line-up such as the Lincoln LS8.
The closest the 500 can compare with the 300 is with V6 engines, and from those price points... and that they are both large sedans, that's where the similarities end.
I'm more interested, sedan wise, in a Volvo S-80, or a Town Car, should they decide to put a blower in the A/C unit someday again and spruce up the interior a LOT.
It's true: The 500's 3.0L Duratec mated to a CVT will drag a 3.5L to a standstill. It's not about the rated HP. It's the transmission function.
Still, I'd bet that with all that mass being dragged around by a 3.0L, some customers are still going to perceive a lack of performance.
Ford NEEDS to get that larger V6 in this car as quickly as possible. Then again, should gas prices go up again and stay there...
But again, the car isn't aimed at the 300, so if someone is cross shopping them it'll be because it's a large sedan, and that's pretty much what they are looking for that both are similar in.
Anxious to see a Five hundred on the dirt someday.
The Five Hundred seems like a good compromise - higher seating position for those who like SUVs, but better handling for those who prefer passenger cars.
Interestingly, the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum don't LOOK tall. The Magnum looks extremely low...almost as though the roof has been chopped for the "custom car" look.
1) 500 is a little about 2 inches taller
2) 300 has a much longer wheelbase
3) 500 has a little wider stance (track)
i am the biggest Yamaha fan and almost as big of ford fan!!! my two favorite companies merging powers to form one car!!! Yamaha Ford V-8!!!
i have a big old Yamaha sticker on the back of my car ... which is a Ford explorer
now what does everybody know about this engine?
i work for yamaha golf cars and what i know about yamaha motor work is that they build strong, reliable, and efficient...golf courses only have to fill up their carts like 6 times a year...today at work i saw the first truly defective engine come out of a golf cart...first one in two years(except for that one)...Yamaha engines are bulletproof... i can't wait...
YAMAFORD!!!
Last time Yamaha did a V8 for Ford it was the 3.4L DOHC V8 found in the last Taurus SHO, and it wasn't very reliable and started giving owner's issues around 40K miles. Hopefully this time around, the issue won't be repeated.
It appears it may still happen. I sure hope not, but it may:
http://tinyurl.com/3989u
And as I mentioned earlier, this engine will make it to the S80 thereafter...
With AWD?
- Ray
Wondering what that 4.4L V8 will make for HP / TQ . . .
The other 3.0L in Ford's family is the Vulcan which is OHV old-tech design. Bulletproof, but antiquated. That itself makes 155HP and has been around for almost 2 decades.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
The foundation is the same, sometimes a bit altered.
The Vulcan 3.0 actually was quite an engine for it's time. I went from a Chevy Celebrity "iron Duke 4 cylinder to a 1990 Taurus Vulcan and it was like night and day performance-wise for both the engine and the car, and the Vulcan got much better mileage than that old POS Iron Duke.
As ANT14 says the 3.0 Duratech came along in 1996, and is a very sweet engine in the 2000 Taurus SES I drive now. I think it will do very well as a base engine in the 500 and will perform well with the new transmissions available despite the added weight the 500 will have.
Note the tweaks Mazda put into the Duratech didn't seem to do a lot for acceleration performance compared to Ford's version in the Taurus. Check back on my post 601 for what Consumer report measured.
Ford did not introduce the 3.8L V6 in the Taurus until 1988. 1988 was the first year that the 3.8L V6 had port fuel injection. Prior to then, it only used throttle body fuel injection.
I THINK fdcapt2 used manuals to mean the sales brochures!
And, oh, by the way.
It's been two weeks, several times!
I sure hope the release from embargo date is coming quickly, and that the union does NOT go on strike in Chicago....(about which I have found NO news).
I figure we should see a preview in the issue that is sent to subscribers in late July.
Manual version? I haven't seen any paperwork related to manuals in the future.