2010 Ford Taurus.

[GoCougs]

About the only negative I see is excessive chrome trim - just look at the contrast on the red example. Yikes. It hearkens back to the Town Cars of the '90s - especially the rear horizontal chrome piece connecting the tail lights.

[Atomic]

the car looks very substantial. the front has strong accord-like lines -- a good thing. the back mimics a car costing loads more than what one knows to be a ford "taurus". as i mentioned in another thread recently, this car will need to attract those looking to replace current midsize (and larger) fords, the ford crown victoria pedestrian model and the soon to be discontinued mercury sable and grand marquis. i doubt ford will win over many toyota, honda and nissan fans, but should steal the hearts of quentisential american manufacturing minded buyers -- chevy and buick owners, etc. i see a successful sedan here; if only we can get customers in cars again.

[Atomic]

the interior shown could use some chrome (taking a little from the yards of it found on the exterior, perhaps), a secondary color or more contrasting wood tones. i like the two tone interiors of the chevrolet malibu and saturn aura, for example.

[TBR]

The front is very nice (though the grill surround is fussy), but the profile is horrendous and the back is far too staid for the aggressive front end.

[Submariner]

Meh.

I mean, it looks great up until the B-pillar. After that, IMO it falls apart. The rear side window looks way too stretched and blocky compared to the front side window and the rear overhang is too long.

And the rear doesn't look like a Taurus at all. It just looks odd.

Overall though, much better than the current, especially the interior.

Agreed...it starts off with smooth lines, then gets all angular towards the rear as if two different teams took the front and rear of the car. 

[Submariner]

I disagree. It's a 4 door sedan with room in the rear for both people AND cargo.

But then again, I'm used to older cars that had overhang long enough to house a Civic. Even my E38 is longer than this Taurus in the rear...

Jesus that looks good.

Whereas your car had one design theme for the entire body, the Taurus seems to lack that continuity. 

[the Teuton]

That car was made when BMW still designed classic, stately automobiles.  It looks like that design school might be eeking its way back into their philosophy, but those 1990s BMWs were the coolest designs, imo.

[USA_Idol]

The front is very nice (though the grill surround is fussy), but the profile is horrendous and the back is far too staid for the aggressive front end.

That definitely shows that the 2010 Taurus is much "thicker" in its styling than the 2009 Taurus...

[omicron]

Like the Falcon, the Taurus' front 3/4 view is easily the best of the lot - it looks smart, modern and handsome. It's a fine effort by Ford indeed. Like the Falcon, too, the rear end doesn't quite work. I don't think the pronounced slope on the rear end works any better here than it does on the Mustang; the 427's more gentle slope would have suited the car better, I feel.

Of course, the stunning 427 is still one of Ford's most notable missed opportunities in recent times, with its exquisite proportions, elegant simplicity, and self-assured muscularity:

[Catman]

The front is very nice (though the grill surround is fussy), but the profile is horrendous and the back is far too staid for the aggressive front end.

Thanks for the comparison.  The new one is 100% better.

[ChrisV]

Thanks for the comparison.  The new one is 100% better.

Agreed. I also don't think that there's tooo much chrome on the new one (certainly less than there is on my car). I like the rear on the Taurus and to me, it does look like a coherent design.

[Atomic]

for your mainstream american family sedan, it is mighty decent. one might wonder if the much higher priced lincoln mks is really worth it in comparison.

[SVT666]

Of course, the stunning 427 is still one of Ford's most notable missed opportunities in recent times, with its exquisite proportions, elegant simplicity, and self-assured muscularity:

This Forty-Nine is far and away Ford's biggest missed oppurtunity:

[ifcar]

The 427 is actually a practical large sedan, and it doesn't share any styling cues with the reborn/rekilled Thunderbird.

[ChrisV]

The more I see it, the more I like it...

[TBR]

It just looks bloated and ill-proportioned to me.

[SVT666]

The more I see it, the more I like it...

Me too.  This is a really nice car.

[the Teuton]

The 427 is actually a practical large sedan, and it doesn't share any styling cues with the reborn/rekilled Thunderbird.

And it would be right where the 300C is right now if Ford made it.

I think it was a wise move they didn't.

[SVT666]

And it would be right where the 300C is right now if Ford made it.

I think it was a wise move they didn't.

That's a very good point.

[FIU Panther]

Meh, I'm not a fan. The front end looks really nice but then it falls apart towards the end. I agree that it looks like two different teams worked on each half.

[Tave]

And it would be right where the 300C is right now if Ford made it.

I think it was a wise move they didn't.

I think the 300 is the only reason Chrysler didn't collapse 5 years ago.

[the Teuton]

I think the 300 is the only reason Chrysler didn't collapse 5 years ago.

Absolutely not.

The 300C was a product of the DC merger.  Before Daimler took over, Chrysler was doing just fine.  The 1990s were extremely profitable for that company.

[ifcar]

And it would be right where the 300C is right now if Ford made it.

I think it was a wise move they didn't.

No, they'd be exactly where they are today with the exception of having had a popular instead of an unpopular full-size sedan over the last five years.

[Nethead]

I don't like the gas burners they jammed into the top and bottom of the grille. A single bar across the middle would look fine, but perhaps a little too Subaru.

Laconian:  Nice observation--and nice analogy.  The Nethead here was thinkin' cheese grater strips (always  handy if you're marooned in the desert with nothin' but cheese to grate, y' know?).

The car is just too busy in front--the Mondeo's nose didn't add glamour to the Mondeo and it doesn't add glamour to the Taurus, either...

Another case of designers with marginal comprehension of esthetics trying too hard.

The instruments are nice, although I like the Fusion Hybrid's instruments better.  The rest of the interior is okay, more or less--better than many but still wide of the mark.

The roofline is really good for a four-slammer, and would look even better if that rather attractive rear end had zero shitwad cladding and fewer creases.  Still, it's one of the nicer Ford rear ends (sorta damning with faint praise here...)--and I forgive the vastness of the thing because I know they have been gaining sales of some of their other models by offering cavernous trunkspace.  If it's a feature that sells, keep it...

When is Ford  EVER  gonna just  give up  on chubby, homely four-spoke steering wheels???  Two mid-level horizontal spokes and one vertical bottom spoke is all a steering wheel needs--chubby I could live with but dorky I could not! 

It ain't a car the Nethead here would buy, but I think thousands--maybe hundreds of thousands--probably will. 

Post Script:  Dodge is perilously close to destroying their rather weak line-up by slamming Dodge truck grilles on just about everydamnedthing, and Ford is gonna be in that same position if they don't stop this WRC grille shit.  It's  ugly, Ford.  Get over it!  The sooner the better.

[Tave]

Absolutely not.

The 300C was a product of the DC merger.  Before Daimler took over, Chrysler was doing just fine.  The 1990s were extremely profitable for that company.

The 300 is one of Chrysler's few successful (both critically and comercially) models in recent memory. If you have a problem with the DC merger, then that's another issue.

Ford and Chevy produced lackluster fullsizers over the past 5 years, and I guarantee you that they both wish they had a hit like the 300.

[SVT666]

Laconian:  Nice observation--and nice analogy.  The Nethead here was thinkin' cheese grater strips (always  handy if you're marooned in the desert with nothin' but cheese to grate, y' know?).

The car is just too busy in front--the Mondeo's nose didn't add glamour to the Mondeo and it doesn't add glamour to the Taurus, either...

Another case of designers with marginal comprehension of esthetics trying too hard.

The instruments are nice, although I like the Fusion Hybrid's instruments better.  The rest of the interior is okay, more or less--better than many but still wide of the mark.

The roofline is really good for a four-slammer, and would look even better if that rather attractive rear end had zero shitwad cladding and fewer creases.  Still, it's one of the nicer Ford rear ends (sorta damning with faint praise here...)--and I forgive the vastness of the thing because I know they have been gaining sales of some of their other models by offering cavernous trunkspace.  If it's a feature that sells, keep it...

When is Ford  EVER  gonna just  give up  on chubby, homely four-spoke steering wheels???  Two mid-level horizontal spokes and one vertical bottom spoke is all a steering wheel needs--chubby I could live with but dorky I could not! 

It ain't a car the Nethead here would buy, but I think thousands--maybe hundreds of thousands--probably will. 

Post Script:  Dodge is perilously close to destroying their rather weak line-up by slamming Dodge truck grilles on just about everydamnedthing, and Ford is gonna be in that same position if they don't stop this WRC grille shit.  It's  ugly, Ford.  Get over it!  The sooner the better.

I think Nethead has missed the net completely.

[Vinsanity]

If someone ever needed a good excuse to not buy a Camry, this would be one.

[SVT666]

If someone ever needed a good excuse to not buy a Camry, this would be one.

This is a full size car though.  The Fusion is the Camry's competition.

[Vinsanity]

This is a full size car though.  The Fusion is the Camry's competition.

Well this is a better excuse to not buy an Avalon, then

[Atomic]

The 300 is one of Chrysler's few successful (both critically and comercially) models in recent memory. If you have a problem with the DC merger, then that's another issue.

Ford and Chevy produced lackluster fullsizers over the past 5 years, and I guarantee you that they both wish they had a hit like the 300.

i certainly agree with you! the dodge charger has been a big success, too.