(autoinsidenews) - Ford's new CEO Alan Mulally is a big fan of the discontinued Taurus, going as far as renting one during a to check it out. He has been a fan of the car for 20 years when he was researching Ford's production system for Boeing. The Taurus was Over the last decade, Ford neglected the Taurus (and most of its other cars) to focus on investing in all sorts of SUVs.
I haven't had time to do the deep dive on why we stopped investing in Taurus, but I'd like to, says Mulally…..the Ford Five Hundred should have been the new Taurus.
Over the 20 year lifespan of the Taurus, Ford has invested hundreds of millions of dollars building brand equity for the name, but abandoned it after damaging the name with a poor redesign, then lack of investment, and massive fleet sales, reports Trend.
When asked why Ford doesn't rename the Fusion or the Five Hundred Taurus, Ford Division's new marketing chief Barry Engle said, Stranger things have happened. I don't know why we invest hundreds of millions of dollars in a name over 20 years and then walk away from it, he added.
Dumping vehicle names is nothing new for automakers, there are literally hundreds of vehicle names that have been dropped. And Ford has done more than its share over the years, especially with its short-lived move to F' names.
While we have not always liked the car, we've always liked the Taurus name. Drop the Five Hundred name when it gets a full redesign, and give it the Taurus badge. And while you're at it, bring back the Falcon or Fairlane name on a new rear-wheel drive sedan.