i think the media would fawn all over it if it were made in Japan...

could there possibly be an SVT version in the future? (hey, they did it for the contour!!)

 

They'll probably play with the smaller fusion (futura).

 

Over all I think the Five Hundred is a great new design for Ford. I think if someone seriously conciders the few cars in the Five Hundreds class, it won't even be a contest. The Five Hundred has the largest available trunk, even larger then the Crown Vics. It's able to hold eight full golf bags so that's pretty damn big. It has 17" wheels standard and 18" when you look at the Limited model. More rear leg room then anything in it's class. AWD available on Limited is always a plus. 2-row safety canopy with rollover sensor, and side impact airbags. Power memory adjustable pedals (Limited). Reverse sensing system (SEL, Limited). A large car interior package built to the proportions of a mid-sixe sedan. Elegant interior with luxury accents.

I sell Ford vehicles and have driven both the SEL and Limited and I feel this car will take off in due time. These are just my first impressions of the new Five Hundred.

 

My Tribute is AWD. We do get snow here, and I have a child, thus I want the safety that AWD will offer me. I am not one of those idiots who think AWD makes them invincible.

Thats why I said if I could keep my Tribute, a 6 would be fine without AWD. If I can only have 1 mommy-mobile, it has to have AWD.

As for the "it will only be worth $10,000 because it is a Ford" comment. Ford has already said the 500 will not be sold to rental fleets. This is the reason they are going to have such a high residual value. This is quite different from the Taurus, and the Malibu, which are rental car staples (now the Malibu more than ever as Ford is moving away from rental car sales).

Aparently the Dec issue of MT has a 4 vehicle test with the 300, 500, LaCrosse, and Avalon. The 300 came in first because they really like the way it looks. The 500 was in second place, which really surprised me after all the bitching that some mags have been doing about the looks and the 3.0. The LaCrosse was 3rd.......... not a very good showing for a brand new vehicle. The Avalon was last.............. which I thought was great !!!! However, in all fairness, the Avalon is the oldest design of the test.

 

The FiveHundred doesnt look bad, but when I first saw it, I thought it looked like an early 90's Taurus with major styling updates. Maybe its just the way the windows line up down the side of the car, but for some reason, it screams "old Taurus" to me.

I agree though, the Mazda 6 and the Pontiac G6 are the only two FWD sedans I would buy in this class today. They stand out so much in this very boring and bland segment.

 

I agree w/you SFire, when I saw the first one that came to my dealership on convoy I didn't think anything about it. I knew we were expecting a Five Hundred and all. I thought it was just another Taurus lol. Upon second glance I relized it was a Five Hundred. Of course that was from looking at it up in the air. When it got drove down and I got up close you could really tell the difference. Expecially on the inside. They really do have a clean look on the inside for a sedan type car.