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Ford Five Hundred/Mercury Montego
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Comments
Any updates on the Montego for '06 ? I was so hoping to have a bunch of new things to be nuts about, like power tilt and scope wheel, upgraded sound system, power folding mirrors, power lumbar, cornering lights, nice 18" chrome wheels, Blue Tooth, VSA, turn signals on the mirrors, 280 horses, and so on. I think if these changes were implemented, there would be a massive charge to the dealers. And I know who would be one of them..... . I know the 280 horses are not going to happen, but some of the others could be done without too much trouble.
And very important: Stability control - (more important for marketing than safety, I think...)
Its people like you that try and get other people to think like you. The host is right, This is not the topic area to "predict" the downfall of Ford. In reality the "Five Hundred is a pretty decent car. I have a BMW 740i and the Five Hundred rides as well, is comfortable and has SUV seating. :mad:
Pros
-Acceleration
-Strong Brakes
-Smooth Ride
Cons
-Cramped Drivers foot well
-Body lean in turns
-No adjustable pedals, leather, or fog lamps avail for base model.
The SE FWD CVT is the best deal for the car considering they can be bought for aroung $19,000 in atlanta area. I cant see paying over 25-30k for the car when you can get a v6 atlima, accord, camry for that price although they dont have the same room as 500, but more powerful engines and will probably end up having better resal values.
Thank you Samnoe
quote FMC Amy MarenticMarentic also said the power of the Five Hundred's Duratec 30 V-6 engine is strong. Two new automatic transmissions, a CVT and 6-speed, make the 200-horsepower V-6 engine feel smooth and responsive.
"Our 0-60 miles per hour time of 7.45 seconds, as verified by an outside testing company, is even faster than the Chrysler 300 with a 250-horsepower engine. So we have nothing to be sorry about," said Marentic. "Plus, the Five Hundred gets up to 29 miles per gallon on the highway."
Its not an underpowered vehicle, its just not as quick as its competitors.
~alpha
If the 3975 lb AWD Limited will hit 60 mph in 8 seconds flat, then I find the result for the FWD Five Hundred weighing 200 lbs less to be credible at 7.45 seconds.
In addition, 7 to 9 seconds 0-60 is better than "adequate" for any family sedan. IMHO. Of course, I think the HP wars are escalating out of control. :P
I am not sure what I will do when the new 3.5L is available. I suspect I will trade, but not if it means I have to give up my CVT. I love that thing. It's a hoot to drive!
The car definitely does NOT like cold weather. I get much better mileage when the weather does not go below 40 degrees F.
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0505/15/D01-181639.htm
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7856251/site/newsweek/
The brochures imply that the only differences are cosmetic: LED taillights, waterfall grille, interior trim, and option packages.
Is anyone who has driven them both or who has access to service info able to comment on suspension, sound insulation, or any other differences?
(It is clear from the brochures that the Freestyle has a different rear suspension vs the 500.)
Thanks!
http://www.autoblog.com/
In some ways this is great news. The 3.5-liter Duratec engine is ready for the CD3 sedans next year. The 2007 versions of the Lincoln Zephyr, Mercury Milan and Ford Fusion will all have the 3.5 as optional engines.
Now here’s the bad news: If Ford continues with these dates, the D3 Chicago cars: Five Hundred, Montego and Freestlye will not see a boost in horsepower until the 2008 model year when the cars get a face lift.
Personally we feel the three vehicles are just about right for the 3.0-liter engine, but a higher-powered option would be welcomed. We just hoped it would happen before 2008.
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0505/16/0auto-182558.htm
Didn't find the engine noisy due to always running at high RPM, as some reviewers complain.
Didn't have trouble with acceleration getting on freeway, as most reviewers claim. (Test-drove a Lexus ES which hesitated. Test-drove a Cadillac CTS which was rather ponderous.)
The reviewers seem to copy each other and criticize or praise the same stuff. The "number of dead bodies in the trunk" gag, the supposedly tiny engine, the "dull exterior" refrain.
Saw this problem on reviews of many car makes and models.
However, the wood appliques on fancier models are tacky. The analog clock is nearly useless.
The Cadillac, did however, have better reception of hissy multipath FM stations -- maybe it has a diversity antenna.
same level of insulation as Montego...the SE version has less."
Thank you very much!
That makes sense. There is certainly nothing in the Montego brochure to imply that it has more quieting. (Whereas the Buick Ranier makes a big deal of the quieting -- other GM versions of the same truck do not talk about it.)
Yes, I forgot the HID headlights, guess that is an advantage.
1. Radio control on the steering wheel does a scan rather than jumping to the next preset. Why would anyone want to jump to the next screaming rock station rather than to their next selected preset station? Designed for rental cars?
2. Sunroof causes domelight/sunglass holder assembly to be mounted lower, therefore blocking the top of the rear view mirror. Not a problem on the rental 500 with no sunroof.
3. Lumbar adjustment was uncomfortable in any position.
They seem to be particularly proud of the lumbar feature. It is listed twice on the specs on the website
8-way power driver’s seat with manual lumbar
4-way power passenger’s seat
Audiophile Sound System with AM/FM stereo/6-disc in-dash CD changer with MP3 capability
Leather interior trim
Driver’s seat with power recline and manual lumbar
Driver’s seat with memory
Front passenger’s seat with manual lumbar
These three things are distinctly weird! What other weird things am I missing?
I certainly have not noticed any problems with the lumbar support.
The car comes with an FM radio? What's that for? Well, there was this thing that it didn't come with Sirius, but I had it installed and have lived happily ever after...
http://www.jdpower.com/news/releases/iqs2005069.asp
It is very difficult to find a sustained mass market for a large performance sedan at a price that anyone can afford.
I could possibly see a SVT or ST version of Fusion when it comes out, but more likely the performance freaks will be more attracted to Mustang and Focus and perhaps some entry level Mercurys and Lincolns on the Horizon.
In the past it has seemed many of the cars that rate towards the top have been those models that have at least 2-3 years (or sometimes much more like Buick Century/Regal) of stablized production under their belt so all the bugs are worked out.
Of course, this is just an initial quality survey and we will need a few years before the longer term numbers arrive from JDP and CR, but so far so good for 500.
~alpha
Alpha if the information in post 2610 is reliable/accurate MY2008 is still a good ways off and catch-up will be even more difficult..
If you want an "SVT" 500, look for a Lincoln sedan instead, debuting in 2 years...
Also...
The IQS also shows that even if the 500 and Mustang, are new products, it puts down the "Don't buy on the first year because of all the glitches" myth. GM did well having numerous vehicles show up on those segments, but unfortunately for them... you would hope that a vehicle that have been produced for 5+ years, already have most of the bugs worked out.
Next month we'll see another reliability survey, from JDPower.
I would consider a new Cadillac, but the entire Cadillac line lacks head room. I have tried the CTS, SRX, Seville and even Deville. No head room! Very frustrating.