Ford Five Hundred

I read about it in my local paper a couple weeks ago. The car doesn't really look like a Contour or a Taurus. It looks like a Five Hundred! The Five Hundred is much bigger than a Contour and a little bigger than a Taurus. The Five Hundred is about the same size as a Nissan Maxima. The Five Hundred will come with either FWD or optional AWD. The car itself will have the same 200 hp Duratec V6 engine as in the Taurus SES or SEL. However, the Five Hundred Duratec V6 engine will have a little more tourque than a Tuarus' 200 hp Duratec V6 engine. The Taurus' Duratec V6 engine only has 190 ft-lb tourque. The Five Hundred Duratec V6 engine has 200 ft-lb tourque. Here's a link on more info about the 2005 Ford Five Hundred.

~CyberWolf

You are kidding, right? I had the opportunity several weeks ago to drive a 2005 Mercury Montego, which is Mercury's up scale rendition of the Ford 500. There is nothing remotely similar to the Contour, in looks or size. The engine is a 200 HP version of the MV 3.0L found in the Lincoln LS. The AWD version has a real high torque CVT tranny that gives the car the feel of a V8. The FWD model has a six speed automatic that should easily get fuel mileage in the thirties. It is a large car, much bigger than the Taurus, with a huge trunk and rear and right front seats that can be folded flat. I would compare the car to the Lincoln LS, except it is not RWD but it does have the LS's 50/50 weight distribution which should eliminate some of the FWD handling faults. Both are tentatively set to begin production in late July 2004. Price are expected to be similar to the Taurus/Sable in FWD editions with a premium of around $700 for the AWD.

mike hunt

Jeff wrote:

looks a lot like the Contour.

Jeff wrote:

Bah. A very bland and boring looking car.

Ramps @ NAB: Tuesday April 20 6pm. "Firefly on Paradise" 3900 Paradise Rd. Las Vegas.

Well that's just very subjective so lets stick to the facts mam ..just the facts :)

Re: Ford Five Hundred Group: alt.autos.ford Date: Thu, Apr 15, 2004, 6:45am From: snipped-for-privacy@coolguitar.go (mossrite)

Well that's just very subjective so lets stick to the facts mam ..just the facts :)

lol..exactly my point looks are very subjective. Glad you qualified your posting with "personally I think..."

To me, it looks very similar to my contour. In additional, comparing the 500 and Mondeo on the web, they look very similar, including in the interior.

Jeff

To me, it looks like a contour. However, according to car and driver, it is based on the Volvo S60/S80 platform (P2 platform). Apparently, the platform is a Volvo platform, not the same platform as the mondeo (which was something like the CDW25).

According to CandD it will be about $20 to 30 k, depending on the trim and drivetrain.

jeff

It looks a lot like the Contour.

You are correct.... It's a S-80 detuned for Ford...

Jake

To my eye, it looks *very* much like my recently-donated 1991 Taurus L. Same rounded shape, same B (or is it a C) pillar, similar cutaway rear taillights. Talk about back to the future! Compare:

with

to see what I mean. {Jonathan}

Yes ..same four wheels, same steering wheel, same gasoline engine ..geesh!

I'll bet you can't tell the difference between an apple and a pear either. LOL

mike hunt

J>

...gas mileage in the thirties? Ford is publishing 19/24 mpg. Ford needs better fuel economy to get my money. Also, I like the Freestyle

--if it did not share it's name with a diabetic blood tester.

If you want mileage in the thirties you need to look at a small or mid size vehicle. No manufacture builds a full size vehicle that gets mileage in the thirties.

mike hunt

Higglity wrote:

Well, non-supercharged Buick Regals do. Low 30s but 30s nonetheless. Bigger and more comfortable than a Camry or Accord too. Oh, they're built by GM Canada.

A couple of years ago I had a 90 Buick Park Ave, full size car (well, the 'new' full size), front wheel drive, 3800 engine. On one very long trip (mild weather, windows up, no air conditioner on, just vents) I averaged between 32 and 34mpg at ~55mph, with the engine ticking over at about

1500rpm. On the return trip I cared far less about mileage and got about 24mpg @ ~75mph :)

I can't touch that mileage with my 97 Taurus 3.0l vulcan.

You should be able to get quite close, though. I get 30.2 mpg at 72 mph in our Vulcan Taurus Wagon(fully loaded), and rarely under 25 mpg overall. The low fuel light comes on at 450-455 miles for a pretty consistant 515 miles per tank around town, and I get just over 600 miles per tank at 72-74 mph.

The Grand Prix and its Generic Motors clones/stablemates with the

3.8/3800 have been EPA rated at 31 mpg highway for several years now... pretty admirable compared to the Taurus/Sable 28/27 Sedan/Wagon Rating with the 3.0.

The Duratec Five-Hundred would be hard pressed to reach the mpg figures of any of the above based on its size/weight/profile, especially w/ AWD.

Rob