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For Once and For All the CD4 Taurus is not Coming to the US

28K views 98 replies 19 participants last post by  Rick Astley 
#1 ·
#5 ·
If over the many years we have not not learned to pay attention to what Ford does NOT say, we will miss the intention of the message.

“The Taurus built and sold in China was introduced as an all-new flagship sedan for China, designed specifically to meet the needs of the Chinese consumers. At the moment, there are no plans to offer this vehicle elsewhere,” von Essen says.

What's missing here is 'exclusively' which Ford uses quite a bit when making clear distinction on product availability. Meaning that the current China market Taurus with the STANDARD rear executive seating, won't be coming to NA, but Ford won't leave that gaping hole in their NA lineup.

But most importantly is "At the moment,..." tells the story.

At Ford, 'At the moment' just means we have not announced the product yet. We just went though this with Ranger(and I kept having to reminds us over and again the same points), are we really going to bite again???

Looking at the pursuit sedans, the Explorer is selling more than Taurus, but the the Dodge Charger sedan with better rear seating room is gaining sales momentum. Each year the cramped rear space of the current Taurus makes it less and less desirable. Fusion Hybrid Pursuit has even less rear space so can't fill the Taurus's shoes.

How is the large car market doing in the US. Chrysler 300 sales have maintained or grown slightly over the past 4 years. Taurus sales have steadily dropped because of packaging problems that get exaggerated each year, with comparison with a midsize SUV.

Would a $27k New Taurus compete with a $44k New Continental? Not at all.

So just like this post, the article is filled with assumptions. But the FACT is that Ford has been very careful with their words, and still NEVER stated the New Taurus is not coming to NA.
 
#7 · (Edited)
If over the many years we have not not learned to pay attention to what Ford does NOT say, we will miss the intention of the message.

“The Taurus built and sold in China was introduced as an all-new flagship sedan for China, designed specifically to meet the needs of the Chinese consumers. At the moment, there are no plans to offer this vehicle elsewhere,” von Essen says.

What's missing here is 'exclusively' which Ford uses quite a bit when making clear distinction on product availability. Meaning that the current China market Taurus with the STANDARD rear executive seating, won't be coming to NA, but Ford won't leave that gaping hole in their NA lineup.
Interesting, do you recall if Ford used the word "exclusive" when they unveiled the Chinese Escort?

How is the large car market doing in the US. Chrysler 300 sales have maintained or grown slightly over the past 4 years. Taurus sales have steadily dropped because of packaging problems that get exaggerated each year, with comparison with a midsize SUV.
That's what I was wondering about too. Ford now has an all-new Taurus that fixes this problem of the current North American model... they just won't offer it in North America.
 
#6 ·
^ agree, Bloggin...mostly
Imho the ABB-NCT (unique-platform-NewChinaTaurus) will never leave its foreign supplychain for the U.S - it's a "mule", a deadend (not counting its "presumed distant cousin", the Conti);
and was never intended to cross any ocean.
a NNCT with cD6 architecture could see an American-Twin/Sibling with a BlueOval on it - dunno where it/they'll be built.
 
#8 · (Edited)
I was thinking that the CD4 Taurus would be a nice large car replacement for Australia,
since a lot of people working at FAP were previously on the Falcon projects...

I think a lot of my colleagues would be open to a nice TTV6, be that 2.7, 3.0 or 3.5,
the latter as an XR6 turbo replacement.....

I can see why Ford is riding D3 taurus into the ground, the lost sales simply add production space
for More Explorers. last Month Ford built over "30,000" Explorers and 5,500 "Taurus"
 
#9 ·
Shame I really like the Taurus name too
 
#12 ·
Outside of the Camry, Corolla, Accord, Civic, and Altima, the American public has no interest in mainstream sedans. I don't believe Ford should abandon the compact and intermediate class, but making the Fusion slightly larger just won't make any difference. For better or worse in North America, Ford is a truck manufacturer. I'm glad Ford will combine Focus and Fusion manufacturing at one plant.
 
#14 ·
1) Let's keep an eye on the fact that sales of sedans in the US are falling off the cliff.
2) I fully expect Ford to not bring the current gen AAC Taurus to the US -- maybe continue with the D4. I think this is the right move for Lincoln and makes sense given the car-market situation in the US
3) 100% agree with Bloggin -- Ford has a very disciplined communication about future products. You have to read between the lines. But I disagree that we will get a "version" of the AAC Taurus in the US .. I think they'll stick with the D4 for a few more years, or they just absorb a gap until US wakes up from the cheap-gas hallucination and reconsiders the sedan.
 
#15 · (Edited)
This seems the most likely as Ford is in no hurry to replace Explorer or Taurus

I pondered whether a slight increase in Fusion was warranted but given that the D4 Taurus is staying
for at least three or four years, Ford indeed sees no need to change anything from what's being offered.
As the big sedan sales continue to ebb away, that just makes more production space for Explorer (win-win).

I'm coming to the opinion that any cars that survive will have to change into better more versatile crossover
versions,but that's a discussion for another thread..
 
#24 ·
It just looks too bland to me.
I like the looks of the current one better, and honestly, the room is just fine.
I'd skip this and wait to make a new Taurus on a new platform. I can then be designed for the US market with bolder and more agressive/premium styling.
 
#26 · (Edited)
I did get word last week that Ford was planning a CD6 Taurus but they have been shelved with the platform and the poor sales of C/D sedans in the US market was partly to blame. Ford is growing very stingy with capital spending and is making some significant changes to prioritize key growth areas. It's presumed right now that Taurus has been dropped from the road map and Ford will either extend the life of D4 or produce new vehicles under CD4. But alarmingly they are restarting the clock on NG Explorer and making some new decisions on it's development. Essentially Ford wants to significantly overhaul it's North American car business and part of that is dismantling OneFord obligations which we've actually seen them speak on as they move back toward regionalization to improve profits and response times in US and China. So that reorganization is causing some delays among these products and their tight outlook is contributing to a more focused approach to products. Essentially there is quite a bit of internal debate going on similar to what happened around 2005.
 
#31 · (Edited)
There are other aspects of the Fullsize car market that we may not fully appreciate. How many are sold to fleet, rentals, or with large discounts? Remember Ford killed the Taurus before when they were selling far more of them than their replacements (Fusion/500) because they were unprofitable. You also have to look at the demographics of these cars which tells you were the future is going with them. And then there is the simple fact that large car and midsize sedan sales are in a persistent sales decline in which Ford can clearly observe where the customers are going. Does it make sense for Ford to invest in a shrinking segment when they know they are selling fewer of them every year for the foreseeable future and Ford is currently under-servicing other growth markets for which they need capacity for?

If Ford did launch a new Taurus now I think every investor would wonder what was wrong with them because even Mary Bara, a company with the bestselling large sedans in the country, is openly questioning the future of the Impala.

And since Ford chose not to release a new Taurus alongside Continental at a time when the full-size market was MUCH less sick, then I would say the ship has most definitely sailed on Taurus.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Or is this a case of Ranger revisited where Ford nixes a replacement Taurus in the hope
that it encourages those remaining large car buyers towards its other products?

Those that remain and want a large car are catered for with the current model
and its TTV6 performance offerings for as long as those buyers want it.
 
#33 ·
I think that's a false equivalency simply because the truck market is not as diverse as the car and SUV market. Midsize cars are getting bigger and Crossovers are filling up every possible gap in countless variations which are sucking away all of those customers. What room is left for full-size cars that isn't going to continue being squeezed in all directions? Is the midsize car just a full-size car now? Did the station wagon ever return? Trucks have not behaved the same way, at Ford trucks got bigger and more expensive which has opened up some space for the return of Ranger. Also remember that the new Ranger is in a different size class now. And even now the midsize truck is showing weakness this year as it appears to have crested a plateau and sales are in decline.
 
#34 ·
What I meant was that Ford saw those emerging trends, Ranger sales dwindled away as those buyers
went mostly Utilites or larger trucks. I simply see Ford doing similar with Taurus, not sign up to the
new model and simply let the market trends take hold and hasten any change occurring.

Let's not forget that mid sized car sales are slowing as well so perhaps the trend away from three box cars
is only getting quicker. It all points to Ford rethinking its next moves with the car side of the business,
should it engage all new platforms with significant changes or just keep life extending current offerings
until a clearer picture on declines is apparent.

Remembering that GM has just spent big on Cruze, Malibu and before them, Impala trying to
maintain as many retail sales as it can only to see mounting inventory and slowing sales.
Clearly, Ford is taking the shorter, easier path to the exit by not raging against change
with new product and strong incentives. Maybe that's better - spend resources on
more worthwhile sources of revenue.
 
#35 · (Edited)
I gotcha and indeed it's clear this industry can't keep a straight line so expecting a predictable product cadence is probably unreasonable, especially now. Ford is doing a pretty good job compensating for the carpocalypse and making adjustments, but Man would I love to know their strategy for dealing with it now. It seems that keeps evolving but I think we are heading for the most significant showroom shakeup in recent memory.
 
#36 ·
My sweet, tree hugging and misguided Millennial niece thinks automobiles are destroying our planet, and she wants to do what is right by buying a Tesla 3. She is convinced that Musk is our savior. When I suggest other vehicles that would not set her back so much and will get similar or better range, etc.....she gives me the same look my teenage daughter gives me when I suggest something other than an iphone, lol.

I too predict a serious shakeup in the industry, but not always for the most logical reasons.
 
#37 · (Edited)
I like Tesla for a completely different reason; power, silence and technology. Not using fuel is just a nice bonus but not essential to my car buying decision. I can only imagine how beautiful a Lincoln would drive with instant and silent electric torque.

Ford has spoken very openly about their future plans for electrification, utilities, and autonomous technology just so they get ahead of the conversation because there is skepticism about Ford's direction. But that also gives us clues to their product priorities which seem to be fairly ambitious, even admitting that they see electric sales overtaking ICE in the next 10-20 years.

I know it's not a popular idea but I also think Ford sees a future in which an increasing number of their customers are not at the retail level but in commercial, fleets and ride-sharing and they have been very innovative in this area by forming a lucrative business model around building fleet products. I know Ford is very concerned about car ownership dropping in their core profit markets so a strong presence in non-retail might be important to them.
 
#46 ·
The Taurus had an interesting take on the large sedan because of the command seating position and tallish ride, but that didn't really come with a large interior. For me the latest Taurus/MKS were actually too small compared to the Fusion/MKZ just because there is no front legroom and the roof was too low. The original 500/Montego were better packaged for their SUV floorpan but they looked like depression on 4-wheels.

The Fusion interior is relatively small for the segment and part of that is the dramatic roofline and the influence of the European Mondeo. My guess is that like most vehicles in this segment, Ford needs to separate Fusion from Mondeo and redevelop it for the US market. But considering the shrinking state of the midsize market that seems less likely. Ultimately I think they could sell more Fusions if they had more freedom to develop to local tastes and budgets, but that may not be something that interests Ford anymore.

Building and selling cars really isn't a bottomless pit, Ford doesn't have unending flexible production capacity that can be flipped on a dime for changing trends so they aren't obligated to satisfy every possible customer. They have to be very strategic since margins are so tight, especially at Ford.
 
#47 ·
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The Fusion interior is relatively small for the segment and part of that is the dramatic roofline and the influence of the European Mondeo. My guess is that like most vehicles in this segment, Ford needs to separate Fusion from Mondeo and redevelop it for the US market. But considering the shrinking state of the midsize market that seems less likely. Ultimately I think they could sell more Fusions if they had more freedom to develop to local tastes and budgets, but that may not be something that interests Ford anymore.
Ford USA had the lead on the current Fusion/Mondeo design, so don't be blaming the Mondeo for the current Fusion/Mondeo's design.

If you look at the previous Mondeo interior size you will see that Ford USA design team shrunk the interior big time of the current Fusion/Mondeo interior.

It is not pleasant always reading this blame Ford Europe for the weakness of the Ford USA product.

If you doubt what I say come on over and sit inside the previous Mondeo and current Mondeo.
 
#51 ·
Just some out loud thinking here...

The current Taurus has reportedly been extended to 2023. Now whether that is fleet/police only, we don't know. An update isn't out of the question, but very unlikely.

There are rumors that a new Lincoln will debut next decade that is supposed to slot above the Continental. What if that car is the Continental? No reason why the rumored coupe couldn't be a Continental coupe, either. This would give more breathing room between it and the MKZ. It also allows a new Taurus to enter the market and not take away Continental sales.
 
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