Thanks for all the comments. Ride can be such a subjective thing. I really need to go drive the two instead of sitting here wishing, but alas, home alone again!
2010 MGM v. 2011 Taurus
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Originally Posted By: Nick R
I know me, and critic just don't get the "older is better" mentality. I would rather have a newer design, which has been overhauled by the "good" ford, versus something that has been relatively unchanged for what, 20 years?
I suppose it's just one of these 'whatever floats your boat' sort of things. I respect your opinion.
I had a '02 ES300, and I really liked that car. But I just hated working on it. Your oil changes and all that were relatively easy, but something like changing a serpentine belt was a job I despised. Changing something like the timing belt or spark plugs was even worse.
Thankfully, these are not the sort of things you replace on a regular basis. For someone who just drives the car and lets someone else take care of the 'dirty work', I can really see the appeal of that car. But for someone who does their own wrenching, it could turn out to be quite a challenge. OTOH my '01 Camry, with the 2.2L I4, is great to work on because of all the space under the hood (but changing the serpentine belt is still a nightmare, alongside replacing the thermostat!
).
Although modern cars have come a long way, I openly admit I am biased towards a FWD set up with a transversely mounted engine. That is part of the Panther platform's appeal to me - pop open the hood, look at a longitudinally mounted V8 that is relatively straightforward to work on. And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
But putting that a side, the Panther platform was/is a niche market product. Every car looks very much like the other these days - there was a brand new BMW 740i driving in front of me this evening and the rear lights made me think it was a Lexus LS460. But you can spot a Crown Victoria yards away. It's sad to see this platform go, because there's nothing that matches it. For some, this might be good news. But if you were to put the Taurus, Camry, Sonata and Accord side by side, where's the appeal of the 'American' Taurus?
I know me, and critic just don't get the "older is better" mentality. I would rather have a newer design, which has been overhauled by the "good" ford, versus something that has been relatively unchanged for what, 20 years?
I suppose it's just one of these 'whatever floats your boat' sort of things. I respect your opinion.
I had a '02 ES300, and I really liked that car. But I just hated working on it. Your oil changes and all that were relatively easy, but something like changing a serpentine belt was a job I despised. Changing something like the timing belt or spark plugs was even worse.
Thankfully, these are not the sort of things you replace on a regular basis. For someone who just drives the car and lets someone else take care of the 'dirty work', I can really see the appeal of that car. But for someone who does their own wrenching, it could turn out to be quite a challenge. OTOH my '01 Camry, with the 2.2L I4, is great to work on because of all the space under the hood (but changing the serpentine belt is still a nightmare, alongside replacing the thermostat!
Although modern cars have come a long way, I openly admit I am biased towards a FWD set up with a transversely mounted engine. That is part of the Panther platform's appeal to me - pop open the hood, look at a longitudinally mounted V8 that is relatively straightforward to work on. And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
But putting that a side, the Panther platform was/is a niche market product. Every car looks very much like the other these days - there was a brand new BMW 740i driving in front of me this evening and the rear lights made me think it was a Lexus LS460. But you can spot a Crown Victoria yards away. It's sad to see this platform go, because there's nothing that matches it. For some, this might be good news. But if you were to put the Taurus, Camry, Sonata and Accord side by side, where's the appeal of the 'American' Taurus?
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Originally Posted By: Spazdog
I honestly never in my life thought that I would say, "I really like the way that Taurus looks. That is a beautiful car."
But I do.
Ha! Same here. They really did a great job on the latest gen.
I honestly never in my life thought that I would say, "I really like the way that Taurus looks. That is a beautiful car."
But I do.
Ha! Same here. They really did a great job on the latest gen.
My advice is take each one for a real long test drive (half day) which is easy with a used vehicle. See what you like and dislike and go from there.
Mechanical's and perceived reliability mean nothing if your wife hates it or the seat is uncomfortable to you or her.
Mechanical's and perceived reliability mean nothing if your wife hates it or the seat is uncomfortable to you or her.
I've driven a number of the Panther cars, and they're nice, but I'd choose the newer technology every time. Given the choice of just the two vehicles here, I'd pick the new Taurus every time. Chassis dynamics just aren't there on the Panther cars (and this, coming from a guy who drives a CAMRY!); the unsprung weight of the rear axle is punishing to either ride quality or wheel control. In this case, Ford chose ride quality over tight wheel control and that manifests itself in handling oddities, especially over expansion joints and other mid-corner bumps. Something with much less unsprung weight will yield a more enjoyable drive.
Taurus -- unless you're over 80.
Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
I could have gotten a brand new 2011 CVPI for 26K bucks a few months ago [from a fleet dealer] but I did not have 26K bucks laying around...For 18K bucks I would have got it for sure providing I got a decent trade in...Not many cars can go to 200K miles with only regular maintenance and then only a sprinkling of maintenance till 300K miles or more.
BTW it seems law enforcement has kicked the Taurus Interceptor the curb in South Florida as every agency down here seems to be slowly changing over to Dodge Chargers...The supervisiors generally use Tahoes and Impalas.
I think the Taurus is a awesome car but maintenance wise I think the Panther would be better if you put on alot of hard miles...Just IMHO.
And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
I could have gotten a brand new 2011 CVPI for 26K bucks a few months ago [from a fleet dealer] but I did not have 26K bucks laying around...For 18K bucks I would have got it for sure providing I got a decent trade in...Not many cars can go to 200K miles with only regular maintenance and then only a sprinkling of maintenance till 300K miles or more.
BTW it seems law enforcement has kicked the Taurus Interceptor the curb in South Florida as every agency down here seems to be slowly changing over to Dodge Chargers...The supervisiors generally use Tahoes and Impalas.
I think the Taurus is a awesome car but maintenance wise I think the Panther would be better if you put on alot of hard miles...Just IMHO.
Originally Posted By: CROWNVIC4LIFE
Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
I could have gotten a brand new 2011 CVPI for 26K bucks a few months ago [from a fleet dealer] but I did not have 26K bucks laying around...For 18K bucks I would have got it for sure providing I got a decent trade in...Not many cars can go to 200K miles with only regular maintenance and then only a sprinkling of maintenance till 300K miles or more.
BTW it seems law enforcement has kicked the Taurus Interceptor the curb in South Florida as every agency down here seems to be slowly changing over to Dodge Chargers...The supervisiors generally use Tahoes and Impalas.
I think the Taurus is a awesome car but maintenance wise I think the Panther would be better if you put on alot of hard miles...Just IMHO.
I'm starting to hear bad things about the chargers, namely that they seem to fall apart after much too short a time, and that they are proving unreliable.
Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
And to think you can pick up a brand new '11 Crown Victoria (they're still available to the general public in the Persian Gulf) off the showroom floor for $18,000 makes it even more attractive. In fact, if I can get my finances sorted by summer, I might just bite the bullet.
I could have gotten a brand new 2011 CVPI for 26K bucks a few months ago [from a fleet dealer] but I did not have 26K bucks laying around...For 18K bucks I would have got it for sure providing I got a decent trade in...Not many cars can go to 200K miles with only regular maintenance and then only a sprinkling of maintenance till 300K miles or more.
BTW it seems law enforcement has kicked the Taurus Interceptor the curb in South Florida as every agency down here seems to be slowly changing over to Dodge Chargers...The supervisiors generally use Tahoes and Impalas.
I think the Taurus is a awesome car but maintenance wise I think the Panther would be better if you put on alot of hard miles...Just IMHO.
I'm starting to hear bad things about the chargers, namely that they seem to fall apart after much too short a time, and that they are proving unreliable.
Taurus
It is SAFER than the Panther cars, according to the IIHS tests here and IIHS tests on the Crown Victoria here.
The Taurus will get slightly better gas mileage, and will likely retain more value in the long term.
The Taurus has ALWAYS been a great car waiting to happen, and I think it finally has.
It is SAFER than the Panther cars, according to the IIHS tests here and IIHS tests on the Crown Victoria here.
The Taurus will get slightly better gas mileage, and will likely retain more value in the long term.
The Taurus has ALWAYS been a great car waiting to happen, and I think it finally has.
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I'm starting to hear bad things about the chargers, namely that they seem to fall apart after much too short a time, and that they are proving unreliable.
Really? Where are you hearing that? Has anyone seen the new police Taurus in the wild yet? I have only seen a lot of old Crown Vics and a smattering of newer Chargers.
I'm starting to hear bad things about the chargers, namely that they seem to fall apart after much too short a time, and that they are proving unreliable.
Really? Where are you hearing that? Has anyone seen the new police Taurus in the wild yet? I have only seen a lot of old Crown Vics and a smattering of newer Chargers.
There is no data or anecdotal evidence in my area to support any problems with Chargers.
The entire LX line up is actually quite robust with excellent durability. Local city boys have both V-6 and Hemi models and report tons o' fun. Like them way better than CV's
The entire LX line up is actually quite robust with excellent durability. Local city boys have both V-6 and Hemi models and report tons o' fun. Like them way better than CV's
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