Therefore, LOL!!! I knew it was too good to be true when they dropped the name plate; however, the Five Hundred name plate was a dumb idea from the beginning. They just proved me correct on two counts. 1. they wouldn't abandon the Taurus nameplate for good, and 2. the Five Hundred had Taurus written all over it because it basically was just an updated Taurus. A new platform & tranny but the same marketing, similar styling (or lack there of), & same old engine. Now how much longer do you think it will be before they rename the Fusion the "Tempo." The failure of these cars is not in the naming (though it certainly isn't helping), it's the fact that they are not offering a competitive line-up.

The updates to the Five Hundred/Taurus might finally make it somewhat competitive. They are going to lose the 3.0 Duracrap (I've waited over ten years to see it go) and go with a larger 3.5L Duracrap called the Cyclone (hopefully they've gotten rid of the reliability issues in this version. There is a rumor they might offer a "Yamaha" V8 again, I just hope it won't be related to that awful Duratech based one from the 96-99 SHO. That had problems. A V8 would be a good idea as long as it is both reliable and affordable. The styling copies that chrome grille from the Fusion. I think they need to come up with something original.

I don't think anyone remembers when the Taurus was a car that people desired, when it didn't look like a catfish. It is remembered as being a senior citizen car, a fleet car, and/or a Grandma mobile, which the Five Hundred has done an excellent job of being just as appealing to the same audience minus the sales of the Taurus.