Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Ford Five Hundred/Mercury Montego
This discussion has been closed.
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
My bad!
GregC
http://www.edmunds.com/news/regularnews/articles/102969/article.h- tml?tid=edmunds.h..wkedmunds.headlines.1.*
The brochure for the Montego says the outside temperature display comes only on the Premium, not the Luxury (which, weirdly, is the base).
Is that true? Does anyone know? odd, if so, as it is on the Five Hundred!
The Taurus will stick around for awhile after the introduction of the Fusion...How long ? All depends on a few factors. My personal guess is 2 years, till new vehicle line is introduced in ATL. What exactly will occur with the ATL plant, is still being worked on.
None are physically on dealership lots at the moment.
Not many Tauruses on my lot at the moment, but there are a few 2005.
Mark
i guess ford needs to advertise more in that magazine.
Secondly they also didnt just say the interior materials were a dissapointment. It was "hit or miss". They liked the easy access to the buttons and controls on the Five Hundred and loved the interior space. They though the seat was great, but also thought that it still incorporated some plastics on the dashboard. Thats hardly saying they hated it. One other thing I'd like to point out is that this is the BASE stripper model SE. They didnt give them the Limited of SEL.
and no where did i read "hit and miss" about their appraisal of interior materials ("interior materials are a disappointment", "plastic looks bargain-basement"). they did say the interior was well laid out but that's something entirely different.
no, the article was not overly negative but it wasn't a ringing endorsement either. and there are times when a follow up more detailed road test contradicts what the preview road test said.
Tauri. Also convinced my sister to buy an 87 Sable, followed by a 92 Sable. A drive in my Sable, convinced my cousing to buy two 89 Tauri, followed by a 00 Taurus that he still has. It was the most awesome, and revolutionary car I had ever seen, and had absolutely everything right. Now, when I rent a Taurus, which I do pretty often, I can't believe how far apart they are from the 86, particularly in seats, ergonomics, style, and even ride. Seems like it all got decontented away over the years and unnecessarily IMO. I'm hoping to have a similar reaction to the new 500 that I had to the original Taurus.
To me, the Five Hundred and Montego really are the long-overdue updates of the Taurus and Sable. The three side windows design has been improved, the seating position is nicely elevated, the back seat and trunk are big enough to really use and to differentiate the cars from competitors, the structure is much stronger and safer, the interiors are nice and full of useful storage places, and the drivetrains are modern (even though it sure would be nice to have a V8). It all should have been done five or six years ago, but better late than never.
Spawning the new Fusion off the Mazda6 platform was just a last minute revelation when Ford noticed how well performing that platform was, and how the media was receiving it.
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3MKT/is_31-1_111/ai_10- 6307593/print
Stainless now...
http://www.suntimes.com/output/auto/car-news-car13.html
While Taurus may have slipped some to the ever increasing number of competitors, it is still a very good car, especially when you factor in the price, and is much underappreciated by those who do not drive it on a daily basis and write it off as a "rental car".
In any case, the 500, and coming in 2006 Fusion will bring Ford back to parity or perhaps surpass a lot of the competition.
With the increasing fragmentation of the marketplace with crossovers and more models from all manufacturers, it is doubtful any single model car will ever sell in the volumes that occured in the past, however.
However, I'm wondering if, like the Taurus, it will become a darling of the rental fleets. Most Chrysler 300s I see here are rentals, and the 500 may also become a rental workhorse. I would certainly rent a 500, but if I owned one I would be dismayed to see fleets of them at airports.
MPG
21/29 (3.0L FWD 6-speed)
19/26 (3.0L AWD CVT)
20/27 (3.0L FWD CVT)
Gear Ratios
CVT
Ratio Range 2.41:1 - 0.41:1
6-Speed Automatic
Gears 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th
4.15:1 2.37:1 1.56:1 1.16:1 0.86:1 0.69:1
1. 2005 Five Hundred Limited
VIN: 1FAFP25135G104845
X-Plan*:
Total MSRP:
$26,115.68(xplan)
$28,230.00(msrp)
http://media.ford.com/products/presskit_display.cfm?vehicle_id=10- 51&press_section_id=398&make_id=92
Mark
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/reviews/healey/2004-09-16-fre- estyle-five-hundred_x.htm
http://www.auto123.com/en/info/news/roadtest,view,Ford.spy?artid=- 29011
I personally think a beige gut would go better with red exterior...(or black as on limited)
Sticker is $28,800ish with a Roof and Leather as options. Traction control is std right now.
Hope to go for a ride as soon as it leaves prep.
The brake rotors are immense on this thing.
Mark
~alpha
Do you think 15 or 16 inch wheels would fit over those rotors?
I like the 500, and want one, but personaaly, I can't afford 17 or 18 inch high performace tires, and with only 200 horsepower, I really don't see where this car needs them anyway. Besides, I drive about 20,000 miles a year, and don't want to plunk down $1,000 a year on tires I wouldn't need if I had smaller wheels.
My guess is you will be able to keep tire cost to under $100 a wheel, unless you buy super high performance tires, which you will not need to do.
Thus, we are talking maybe at most $400 every two years in your situation, or only 20% of your "$1000 per year" exageration.
I drive 25,000 to 30,000 miles per year, and easily get over 40,000 miles out of each set of tires.
" When are the market numbers that are spoken of in terms of acceleration going to be released?"
You mean acceleration times, didn't those already come out, 7.4sec-8.4sec.
Bobby,
"I like the 500, and want one, but personaaly, I can't afford 17 or 18 inch high performace tires, and with only 200 horsepower, I really don't see where this car needs them anyway."
If these vehicle had smaller wheels, it would look sooooo ugly, because the porportions would look quite different having the wheel wells exposed so much.