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2015 MKS/Taurus mule spotted


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For me I hope they do change the 2015 SHO & don't use our engine. It would make ours more valuable & special. I still feel putting our engine in the taurus was a testing ground for the model that they really wanted it to work in & that was the F150. I as well see not almost none but none in STL except the 4 of us who make up the local club. I've talked to my dealer & they are good size & have sold no more than 3 per year. Hardly a ringing endorsement. My service mgr who is buds with my brother-in-law, moans to him all the time. Why didn't they make the SHO stand out more from rest of Taurus, loves everything I've done to mine. The SHO might not be #1 in every category, but when you look at the whole package personally not sure a better car has been built & this is from a tried & true MOPAR man.

mikev

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Guys, the 3.5 Ecoboost is arguably the finest engine that Ford builds - even superior to the 5.0 Coyote in many respects. With what Cadillac is doing, you can almost be assured that the next Lincoln MKS will have the 3.5 Ecoboost available. If it shares the same platform as the next generation Taurus, there would be no reason NOT to have a SHO with the 3.5 Eco. CAFE is important but it is not like the SHO sells in large enough numbers to drastically hurt the average. Chevy has the SS coming out this year with a 400+ HP V8. Ford needs the SHO to compete with that.

 

I can imagine a SHO that is lower and somewhat lighter than today's version with an upgraded 3.5 eco and an upgraded transmission. Of course, I could be entirely wrong.....

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I hope they don't downsize the Taurus platform but with EPA regs and more coming they may not have much choice...but if the Taurus gets downsized, it would seem that Ford really would not have a full size car in their stable. I do see a lot of Tauruses on the road, so I think it has better acceptance then the last version, but I don't see any SHO's in my area. But I don't know if I would really be excited about a smaller Taurus...I'm really partial to it now, think it fits nicely.

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I hope they don't downsize the Taurus platform

 

Some history here...the current platform that the Taurus is using is called the D3, which was originally a Volvo platform (P2), and one of the major reasons why Ford bought Volvo in 1999. The platform was used for the S80 and other cars from Volvo.

 

The platform itself has alot of quirks/issues...interior space issues (doesn't feel as spacious as it should...the 2013 Fusion has nearly identical interior room in a smaller package, not to mention the footwell area issues), high belt line from its CUV origins (look at how Volvo styling and how they were visually able to camouflage this with a double bend in the belt line area) that make it look "huge" when it shouldn't be that "big" and its heavy.

 

Moving it over to a modified CD4 platform makes alot of sense....development costs can be shared with the Fusion and the car can be shrunk down in size a bit but have a better/larger interior area and most importantly lose a couple hundred pounds that would allow better performance and MPGs.

 

Just as an example, the 2013 Fusion with AWD and 2L EB engine weighs in at 3,681lbs. A Taurus limited with the 3.5L with AWD weighs in at 4,196 lbs. If they can lose 200-300 lbs that would be a huge improvement over the current car.

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The next gen taurus will undoubtedly be on the fusion platform as they will be both running down the same manufacturing line. Now this doesn't mean there will be any size reduction, engineers design platforms to be flexible to cover a wide array of vehicles. Now that said the mustang changes in 2015 and will be running down the same line also so it very probable that is may even use the fusion platform. But with all that said I still say this spy shot is a fusion.

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The next gen taurus will undoubtedly be on the fusion platform as they will be both running down the same manufacturing line. Now this doesn't mean there will be any size reduction' date=' engineers design platforms to be flexible to cover a wide array of vehicles. Now that said the mustang changes in 2015 and will be running down the same line also so it very probable that is may even use the fusion platform. But with all that said I still say this spy shot is a fusion.[/quote']

 

It IS a fusion...with an extended trunk...they aren't going to show off what the next gen Taurus or MKS is going to look like till maybe a year-6 months before it hits the market.

 

The Mustang and Fusion lines are separate from one another...Fusion hasn't been even started to build at Flat Rock yet...it won't till year end at the earliest.

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I work at the flat rock plant, and you would be correct as they run down 2 separate lines out of the body shop. But I never seen 2 model cars run down same line in a body shop before. Even if the did share same platforms. While it can be done, we have never. But after body its all one line. We built 1 fusion yesterday and 3 today, but it will be probably be around september before we ramp up to full production and are thru with trial cars and pre production cars.

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Crash, Please understand that Scott13sho is a diehard Ford Enthusiast and knows more then most on this site pertaining to such information. He is amongst many that know more then we do in the plants about upcoming products and their product cycles. Like the 2015 Mustang, Is "supposed" to be on an evolved D2C platform (as you know in plant as S197).

 

And Scott, Crash knows FRAP. Trust in that mans word about the facility. Also note, Not a lot of people here are like "Us". I have to bite my lip every so often as to understand not everyone is into the future products and new upcoming stuff as it is on BON.

 

Now we can group hug, Circle jerk or what ever. Learning new stuff is always good!

 

Wildo

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Why didn't they make the SHO stand out more from rest of Taurus, loves everything I've done to mine. The SHO might not be #1 in every category, but when you look at the whole package personally not sure a better car has been built & this is from a tried & true MOPAR man.

mikev

 

Eh, it makes sense it doesn't stand out more. The SHO has a very different character than, say, a srt8 charger. The charger is loud and in your face in how it drives and looks. The sho doesn't drive like that, so why would its looks be anything but subtle?

 

Your grandma could drive a sho without realizing what it is. Not so with the charger. But that's part of what's great about our cars. Serene luxury car until you choose to not drive it as such.

 

All this said, I've had a lot of compliments on my car by people who have seen it up close, and especially by those who have ridden in it. "this is a Taurus?"

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I can definitely echo the "THAT is a Taurus?" sentiment. That is generally people's first response to my car. So many people think of the Taurus as being a bland, beige rent-a-car king.

 

That being said, I'm curious about what the next generation brings, but will be in my Taurus for quite a while.

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Eh, it makes sense it doesn't stand out more. The SHO has a very different character than, say, a srt8 charger. The charger is loud and in your face in how it drives and looks. The sho doesn't drive like that, so why would its looks be anything but subtle?

 

 

 

The SHO has always been about being a Sleeper or Q Ship since it came out in 1989. Thats one of the things I like about it...it doesn't call attention to itself on the road, but when you do notice it, your like is that a Taurus?

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The SHO has always been about being a Sleeper or Q Ship since it came out in 1989. Thats one of the things I like about it...it doesn't call attention to itself on the road' date=' but when you do notice it, your like is that a Taurus?[/quote']

 

I do note that the new PP rims kind of do call attention when the car is parked. I'll quote my father on this one, as this was what he said when he first saw the car -- "No white man designed those rims." :tape:

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One of the things I like most about my MKS is that it is probably even more of a sleeper than a SHO. At least a few people know what a SHO is. Most people just think an MKS is just an old man's car.

 

I recently went to lunch with a young guy from my company who drives a Corolla - he's not much of a car enthusiast. When he got in my car, he noted, "Wow, this is really nice...what kind of car is this?" I told him and he said nothing. The lights are metered here when you pull onto the freeway so there is a short distance to go from a standing start to freeway speed. I couldn't help myself when confronted with this opportunity so I used all the ecoboost + Livernois to accelerate onto the freeway. His response: HOLY F*CK! WHAT KIND OF CAR DID YOU SAY THIS IS? :evil:

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One of the things I like most about my MKS is that it is probably even more of a sleeper than a SHO. At least a few people know what a SHO is. Most people just think an MKS is just an old man's car.

 

I recently went to lunch with a young guy from my company who drives a Corolla - he's not much of a car enthusiast. When he got in my car, he noted, "Wow, this is really nice...what kind of car is this?" I told him and he said nothing. The lights are metered here when you pull onto the freeway so there is a short distance to go from a standing start to freeway speed. I couldn't help myself when confronted with this opportunity so I used all the ecoboost + Livernois to accelerate onto the freeway. His response: HOLY F*CK! WHAT KIND OF CAR DID YOU SAY THIS IS? :evil:

 

That's pretty funny!

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AM I the only one that noticed the Trailer hitch???

 

That's a lot of photos to be "Spy" shots.

 

 

I have a feeling it was an intentional leak...you don't get close ups of a stopped mule like that unless someone at Ford lets you.

 

Its like the Mustang mule photos shown on autoblog...I'm willing to bet that Jim Dunne got a call from someone at Ford and said, hey we got this Mule that doesn't show anything and we'll stick the S550 (project code for the new Mustang) car cover on it even though most of the real sheetmetal on the mule is of the current car testing new drivetrain components of the newer Mustang on in it.

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Hey guys' date=' Come to find out this car in the lead post is NOT the Taurus but the MKS Mule. http://www.carscoops.com/2013/04/scoop-lincoln-filmed-trying-out-2016.html[/quote']

 

 

Its a mule...the MKS and Taurus will still share the same platform...the sheetmetal on top doesn't mean anything since its just testing the drivetrain and whatever else they want to test before locking down the styling ;)

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