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Ford Five Hundred/Mercury Montego
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Comments
The improved efficiencies of new engines is amazing. I took a test drive today in an Avalon, the Japanese Buick. 0 to 60 mph time is 6-something seconds, and the mpg is decent. I just wonder how much more mpg one might get if the acceleration, however nice, didn't match, and better, the muscle cars of the 70s.
Furthermore, subcompacts and compact sedans have gotten a lot heavier than they used to be in the 70's and 80's, due to chassis stiffening, added safety equipment, and the fact that what used to be considered optional is now often standard equipment. Look at the huge weight difference between the VW Rabbit and the last couple generations of the Golf.
When we received our Mass registration renewal in Jan '06, it came with an offer to test drive any Ford and get a $100.00 Gift card. I did drive a V6 Fusion but was not impressed, especially the cheap hard plastic inside trim.
Since I did not make a copy of the offer coupon I do not have the phone number or website to check the status of the offer. Anyone out there have the info ?
Thanks
Thanks.
I got a $50 gift card test drive offer in January direct from Ford for test driving a Fusion. Just got the card last week. The toll free customer service number in my offer to check the status is 866-261-3596. I don't know if this number will work for your offer, but it is worth a try.
I disagree with your Fusion appraisal, by the way. I thought the interior was just fine. Every vehicle's interior is filled with plastic, some hard, some soft, some wood trim, some fake metal trim. Hard plastics in areas you rarely touch don't bother me a bit. In fact they stand up better to wear and tear in the long run anyways.
Second, I should had mentioned I was comparing the 2006 Fusion to my 2005 Camry. The most disappoint aspect of the vehicle was where it was built, Mexico. The engine was from the U.S. and the six-speed automatic was from Japan. I'd like to know where the General Manager of a Ford factory in Michigan would allow the Fusion to be parked if owned by an employee. He makes Ford employees who drive "foreign" cars park far away from the entrance to the plant..
I certainly see what you are saying, but you won't get universal agreement, that, say, for instance Volvo is American. If you can't get consensus, there isn't any...and that was my point.
Origin - Oakville Canada
Seats - Canada
Engine - Windsor Canada
Wiring Harnesses - Mexico
Fuel Injection - Germany
Battery - Oh My, USA
American Car? Not in my book.
American company produces American cars.
Japanese company produces Japanese cars.
Korean company produces Korean cars.
And that's ALL there is to it.
Granted, it's basically a Volvo design. But Ford bought Volvo, right?
Let's say the Russians stole American plans for a satellite, then built it and launched it. Would it be an American or Russian satellite? It would clearly be Russian . . even if based on an American design.
I guess it doesn't really matter. Except that if Volvo had built the Five Hundred, it would've cost too much, and I wouldn't have bought it. :surprise:
I play with them a bit on rental cars, but the novelty wears off after a few hours.
Ditto, only in my case it wears off after a few minutes...
After having driven stick-shifts for well over 10 years, I'm glad to have converted to automatics. Just give me a torquey engine, and one has to nit-pick to tell the difference in performance.
Automatics don't convey the engine brake power as well as a stick anyway, so those paddles wouldn't help much around corners either. And given that good automatics don't upshift nor downshift around corners, I don't see in such novelty anything but a marketing gimmick.
But that's only me...
I drove a friend's RX-8 with the manumatic and the paddles on the wheel. Its hardly responsive and you can't modulate gear engagement.
Whats the point?
Mark.
For 2007 Ford drops the SE trim. The SEL will lose some of its standard equipment (basically everything that came on an SEL but not on an SE). This equipment will be packaged in a SEL luxuary package.
CVT goes away for the FWD but Ford my be using the new 6F in the 500.
Mark.
I don't like the wood-grain, either, but it grows on you. If you simply can't stand it, you can order (third-party) other options to replace it with.
The automatic lamps are nice. They come on automatically when it gets dark outside.
Don't forget about the ride height. One of the reasons I find the Five Hundred so comfortable is that I don't have to "step down" into the car. Instead, I just slide over into the seat.
Every situation has its drawbacks. One of the main reasons the 500 looks so dumpy compared to the Audi A6 is the way the higher ride height was incorporated into the design. Another is the clumsy way that the rear window and trunk were integrated. Could have been done so much better. Hoepfully future iterations will add that missing grace, so it will go from dull to "understated."
I prefer the looks of the Montego, especially the rear, but from the spy photos, the 2008 versions of all three of the Ford cars, and the fact that they will have the new 265 HP 250 Ft. Lbs. 3.5 V6 and new Ford-GM 6-speed automatic may make them worth the wait (all of the rumors on the internet indicate that they will be out very early in 2007).
I was very disappointed when I finally realized that the lack of a telescoping steering column just simply made it impossible for me to sit comfortably in the Five Hundred or Montego (the Freestyle is better, as the center console is narrower). The weak engine is a nuisance, especially because of the amount of noise it makes trying to move the vehicle and the price of loaded versions of these vehicles.
The Malibu Maxx was cheap during the "employee pricing" event - I paid $24,000 for one with every option, including XM radio, the rear skylight, a sun roof, and the rear DVD player. The rear seat room is fantastic, and the split rear seats recline and slide back and forth. It has automatic climate control, but just one zone, a flaw most evident when the sun is on just one side of the car. It is really too small for our needs, but the low price made it a good stop-gap car until the 2008 Fords or something else comes along. The fuel mileage is indeed excellent. In addition to saving money, making fewer fuels tops is a nice convenience. The 3.5 V6 and the old four speed automatic work well together, and the power is good. I drive enough that it will be time to either trade or keep it by the time the 2008 Fords come out. The main problem for me has been the lack of front seat comfort - the foam is thin and the springs weak, plus the forward and backward adjustment is mixed with the up and down adjustment (slide the seat forward the the seat rises up, slide it back and the seat lowers, probably because they were cheap and used three seat motors instead of four). You might also consider the Saab 9-3, Pontiac G6 and Saturn Aura, as they are the same car underneath.
The 2006 Chevrolet Impala also is worth considering, and it has a large trunk, clever folding rear seats, and three engine choices (3.5, 3.9, and 5.3). If I had to buy a new car today, I would buy an Impala. The Buick La Crosse and Pontiac Grand Prix are the same car underneath.
BTW- In this months issue of Motor Trend, they had a 3 way comparison of the Montego AWD, 300 3.5 v6, and Lucerne w/ 3.8.
The Montego was quicker than the Lucerne 0-60, 45-65, and qtr mile. The biggest difference was the 40-60 times were the Montego was about .7 seconds quicker and nearly matched the 300 despite being the heaviest car in the test by 200lbs.
As for the Impala, it is a nice car, but if you want rear seat room and truck space, it's not in the same league as the 500. My wife had a choice of an 06 GP, Impala, and 500. We looked at all 3 and rear seat accommodation IMO are terrible in the GP and tight in the Impala, I surely wouldn't want to sit back there very long.
One thing I don't like about Azera is the center between the driver and passenger where the gear shift is there is too much space. Looks stupid to me. They couldn't use that space for something?
Actually if I wanted a Hyundai, I'd chose the Sonata. A bit smaller but better crash test ratings, not to mention a lower MSRP! The Sonata also can come with a 4 cyl engine. Love those rising gas prices! Only thing Azera has is more power. Am I missing something? :surprise:
I love how people who know nothing about the car business chime in where their stupid coments.
First, at Ford, all models are basically balance out...that menas no more orders are accepted.
The only inventory at my lot that we have any appreciable quanty of ie more then 10 are trucks. Explorers, Mountaineers, F-150s and Super Duties.
Only the Super-Duties are in 07 production this month. And they are building all diesel until July.
I can never have to many Super Duty Diesels.
I have 3 Focus
4 Fusions
4 Milans
1 Zephyr
like 8 Five Hundereds
about 6 Montegos
1 Freestyle
8 Escapes
4 Mariners
about 6 Mustangs
I work at a big dealership we did 70+ new Fords in April which was in the to 20 for our region.
Mark.
I've seen some pretty awful vinyl applied to just about every sedan sold above the subcompact class. Some of these look so bad it hurts, but others are at least good for a laugh.
I can't imagine how a fake roof covering is going to jazz up a Montego. How about putting some $$ into better wheels, or a tasteful rear spoiler? (I saw one a well-intgrated one on a 500, and it actually improved the line of the rear end.)
Mark.
I've come to understand that compact cars, even with decent crash scores, can't compare with a larger car in a collision. There are too many large SUVs out there and even more unsafe drivers. Being I have a 3 year old, everyone driving on highways 55 mph, but who does 55 today, I don't know why people would be a little more careful about the car they choose. Even on city streets not many drive speed limits. Can't say I do but knowing that, I want a car with perfect crash scores.
Can't afford SUV prices, wouldn't if I could. Just think that unless I drove in Maine and needed a 4x4 I would, but I don't. Cars depreciate and I think it's unnecessary.
108 cubic feet of passenger space, 21 cubic foot trunk, a folding front passenger seat(how much more room could you need), perfect crash scores, and an MSRP starting at 22,230 is exactly what I'm looking for! It's a luxury car at bargain prices! Being that the Montego starts at 24,430 and IS the same car, why buy the Montego? A Toyota Avalon did impress me until I compared prices!
A lot of people would say Ford has a bad rep but I've owned a 95 Taurus and I haven't had frequent or major problems. I know it's not the fastest car out there but I'm not a street racer, especially with a three year old in the back.
I'm curious though about other owners and potential buyers on their age. Is most buyers over 50? Over 40?
The Accord, Camry, and Avalon all come standard with side curtain airbags.
I understand Ford will make side curtain airbags standard in more of its passenger cars next year, and the industry has adopted a voluntary phase in of side curtain airbags over the next few years.
This is not completely true in all cases. In the IIHS side impact test the VW Jetta clearly did better than the 500, as did the Audi A3 (note that IIHS classifies cars by weight so these are in their "midsize" category, despite being comapacts). For side impact test the results are directly comparable among all sizes and weights of vehicles.
In frontal impact test the results are not directly comparable for different weight cars. But these two compacts are heavy, but they do still weigh about 400 pounds less than a 500 and the 500 did do better in the IIHS frontal tests.
The Jetta and the A3 have stability control either standard or readily available as a cheap option. This safety feature is not available on the 500.
Nothing wrong with the 500, it seems to be a very safe vehicle and is certainly spacious. I just disagree with your blanket statement, implying that all compact cars are unsafe.