March 12th, 2010 by

The 2006 model year will end the heralded Taurus name and for this writer it is a bittersweet time as Ford retires what once the top selling vehicle in all of America.

When Ford introduced the Taurus together with its cousin the Mercury Sable in the mid 1980s the car represented a radical exit from the standard Yank automobile of the day. Reasonably huge, front wheel drive, and awfully aerodynamic, the Taurus quickly rose to the pinnacle of the American auto sales charts and was the top selling vehicle for several years in a row. A much delayed “reskinning” did not happen till 1996, some 10 years after the Taurus and Sable were first released. The new style, understood by some to be hideous, quickly cost Ford sales as newer and more modern Toyota Camrys and Honda Accords out gained the line. Slight changes in style incorporated with the 2000 model year took some of the sting off, but by then the Taurus was considered to be too old and outmatched by the competition.

I bought an all new 1994 Taurus and kept the car for 7 years, racking up 117,000 miles before deciding it was time to trade in the vehicle for something newer. I found the ride to be comfy, the inside room to be expansive, and I liked the overall style of the car. I was also one of the first folk to buy a Taurus in the then new Hunter Green color, an engaging deep green that was admired by many .

When 2001 rolled around, I elected to lease a Saturn L series instead of going with the Taurus. I needed something similar in size with the Taurus and at that point Saturn had a lease deal that might not be beat. In addition, I continue to wasn’t impressed with the Taurus which I felt had been out-engineered by other automobiles in its class. So, I took home the Saturn and donated my Taurus to the Kidney Foundation.

The 2005 model year represented the final year that Ford would offer the Taurus through dealers; for 2006 the Taurus is only available as a fleet automobile and it’s unvaried from the year before’s model. The slow selling Sable was mercifully put to rest one year earlier.

For Ford, concentrating on vans and SUVs meant neglecting much of their car line up, including the Taurus. Bigger and stronger SUVs, including the Expedition and Excursion, were introduced as America’s tastes continued to shift from passenger autos to SUVs. In addition, the ever popular F Series pick up vans went thru regular style and engineering changes each 4 years or so as did the Explorer, Ford’s midsized SUV.

Higher gas costs and changing tastes are once again impacting Fords’ line up. The beefy Excursion is gone and new vehicles including the Five hundred and Fusion are now part of the line up. These two new models represent a fresh change for Ford and a guarantee the attention once given to the Taurus would be given to the new models. For that, I am glad.

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