http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060203/AUTO01/602030367

The Ford GT and the Lincoln LS are being killed and the Sport Trac Adrenaline is killed before it even hits the market. Job losses are only going to be about 300 because of this, but ford killing it's marque car is yet another sign that they are not in great shape.

2/3/2006 2:58:52 PM

That sucks the GT was hot

2/3/2006 4:19:36 PM

The article actually reads that they didn't plan to produce a 2007 model of the GT. That could be revisionist, but I choose to take them at their word. The LS was a nice car, but it had run essentially unchanged for its entire 7-year run (2000 to 2006 models). 7 years is a healthy run for any car, and the debut of the Zephyr was the death knell of the LS, despite the Zephyr being smaller and (unfortunately) FWD. The Sport Trac Adrenaline never needed to exist in the first place.

The driving force for all of these is that Ford is closing the Wixom, Michigan plant, where most Lincolns and some SUV's (and I guess the GT) were made. Lincoln production is being moved elsewhere and SUV sales have dropped. Obviously Ford isn't in good shape right now, but with plant closings being announced a while back, these casualties are more a part of the solution attempt rather than a sign of the problem itself.

[Edited on February 3, 2006 at 4:28 PM. Reason : s]

2/3/2006 4:27:40 PM

that article says that the Ford Sport Trac Adrenaline would have been the world's first performance truck.

even ford says:

Quote :

"Ford jolted the performance world with a shot of Adrenalin at the 2005 New York International Auto Show - the Ford Sport Trac Adrenalin teaser is the world's first high-performance sport-utility truck (SUT). "

but that's false.

there was the GM Syclone of yesteryear. [1991]

then the Ford SVT F-150 Lightning produced from 1993 till 2004.

and then the Dodge Ram SRT-10. [the world's fastest and most powerful truck]

and some new GM trucks have 350-400 hp.

the only difference is the Sport Trac is dual cab, while the others are single cab.

2/3/2006 5:29:39 PM

They are dropping the GT, and yet choose to continue with the shit that is MERCURY. Do we really need a brand comprised entirely of rebadged cars?

2/3/2006 5:43:23 PM

forgot to say, the Lincoln MKS Concept revealed at the NAIAS recently will be the new flagship Lincoln, likely replacing both the LS and the Town Car. it expresses Lincoln's new design language and naming system. the other one so far is the MKX suv, the replacement for the Aviator.

specs:

4.4 litre V8
315 hp
6 sp auto


















[Edited on February 3, 2006 at 6:18 PM. Reason : ]

2/3/2006 5:49:27 PM

I have mixed feelings about the MKS. I like the grille design, as it recalls the classic early 60's Continentals but isn't overtly retro. The overall shape of the car is nice. as are the front fender emblems/details. But, on the other hand, it's not particularly distinctive (shape seems to have similarities especially to the new Lexus IS and Infiniti M models).

Oh, and as I said on another message board:

"Acura called. They want their headlights back."

The LED adaptive thing is neat, but the shape of those headlights looks directly lifted off the TL/TSX.

[Edited on February 3, 2006 at 6:16 PM. Reason : modelsnotconcepts]

2/3/2006 6:14:46 PM

Quote :

"SUT"

is the key word cheif... they're talking about the suvs with the uselessly small truck beds.

FORD NEEDS A LIGHTNING THOUGH!

and they didn't really kill the gt then they killed the gr1 that was slated to come out in 2008 built on the gt's frame (sorta)

2/3/2006 6:38:05 PM

Those tailpipes are directly off an Acura TL too.

2/3/2006 8:17:18 PM

OMG THE LETTER 'O' LOOKS JUST LIKE THE NUMBER ZERO WTF?

2/3/2006 10:33:25 PM

that suede looking dashpad looks awesome.

2/3/2006 11:28:46 PM

the suede leather dash looks retarded. Actually, the whole inside looks stupid and the grille looks dumb. Not too bad otherwise.


Those short windows are undoubtedly useless, though.

[Edited on February 4, 2006 at 12:02 AM. Reason : sdf]

2/4/2006 12:00:01 AM

HOT STOCK TIP!

BUY FORD NOW!

2/4/2006 1:20:38 AM

That's very similar to a Porsche 944 steering wheel, not that that's a bad thing, as it is functional, but it's not exactly groundbreaking design either.

And a suede dash pad will hurt on resale after it's dried out/faded/cracked/ghetto looking.

Ford and GM need to think more long term with their cars. Currently they're producing interiors that looks like the Europeans, VW in particular, but are made of what feels like recycled tic-tac containers - very hard, brittle feeling plastics. Also, when you press a button on the radio or turn a dial for the A/C, the entire panel around it should not move or bend.

As an example of the correct way to do interiors look at Mercedes and Audi from the early-mid 90's - not exactly the most stylish place to sit even when new, but even today a lot of them look nearly unaffected by time. No warped dash panels, broken switches, faded lighting, so on... that's one facet of retaining resale value, and the public's perception of a brand's quality.

Instead of American car companies saying 'buy our car - it looks like an Acura/Lexus/VW but costs less' they should concentrate on making the cars not fall apart after 5 years regardless of the design... that will pay off in the long run in customer satisfaction and perceived quality.

2/4/2006 7:37:42 AM

yeah i do see the similarities between new GM interiors and VW/Audi products

2/4/2006 8:16:27 AM

Hopefully they fix the interior, but otherwise, it may be a sign of good things to come.

I also agree with the sentiment of dropping the GT. dumb idea.

2/4/2006 9:57:41 AM

I thought Ford had originally planned to make the GT a limited production run vehicle anyway...

2/4/2006 10:49:18 AM

i envy the few people who bought them. i bet the resale price of the existing newer model GTs will go up!

2/4/2006 11:21:21 AM

Quote :

"there was the GM Syclone of yesteryear. [1991] then the Ford SVT F-150 Lightning produced from 1993 till 2004. and then the Dodge Ram SRT-10. [the world's fastest and most powerful truck] and some new GM trucks have 350-400 hp. the only difference is the Sport Trac is dual cab, while the others are single cab."

You can get an SRT-10 in quad cab

2/4/2006 12:11:11 PM

Just to let ya know the Syclone was a pickup, the Typhoon was an SUV

2/4/2006 12:18:22 PM

Quote :

"I thought Ford had originally planned to make the GT a limited production run vehicle anyway..."

Yes, and they should be using the platform to make the Daytona and Cobra concepts come to production.

2/4/2006 12:55:07 PM

yep... the gr1 and cobra were next with that amazing v10... i just wanted ford to build that motor.

2/4/2006 1:27:12 PM

Quote :

"that article says that the Ford Sport Trac Adrenaline would have been the world's first performance truck. even ford says: Quote : "Ford jolted the performance world with a shot of Adrenalin at the 2005 New York International Auto Show - the Ford Sport Trac Adrenalin teaser is the world's first high-performance sport-utility truck (SUT). " but that's false. there was the GM Syclone of yesteryear. [1991] then the Ford SVT F-150 Lightning produced from 1993 till 2004. and then the Dodge Ram SRT-10. [the world's fastest and most powerful truck] and some new GM trucks have 350-400 hp. the only difference is the Sport Trac is dual cab, while the others are single cab."

syclone not a sut
ford svt f-150 lightnight not an sut
dodge ram srt-10 not an sut
gm trucks not sut's

conclusion "world's first high-performance sport-utility truck" is a true statement (as far as i can remember)

2/5/2006 10:24:17 AM

GMC Typhoon was the first

2/5/2006 11:04:00 AM

typhoon isnt a SUT

2/5/2006 1:23:59 PM

2/5/2006 1:27:05 PM

Don Knotts isn't the first person i would've picked to appear in that particular ad

2/5/2006 1:41:12 PM

Same here...but damn, I would own the truck.

2/5/2006 1:41:37 PM

well jonhguth gay daddy got offered the spot first, but turned it down

2/5/2006 1:43:53 PM

Quote :

"syclone not a sut ford svt f-150 lightnight not an sut dodge ram srt-10 not an sut gm trucks not sut's conclusion "world's first high-performance sport-utility truck" is a true statement (as far as i can remember)"

and what exactly is an SUT?

what's the difference between a [pickup] truck and a sport-utility truck?

if you look at pictures of the sport trac and the lightning and the ram srt10, they pretty much look identical.

as far as i see it, it is just the stupid naming system which seems to change every 10 years.

things we call SUVs now used to be called 'jeeps' 15 years ago. then someone thought up SUV.

as for trucks, first it was pickup, then pickup truck, then truck, and now the bloody SUT.

Quote :

"GMC Typhoon was the first"

no dude.

you mean GMC Syclone, not the Typhoon (see my post up in this thread).

Typhoon was an SUV, and the Syclone was a pickup truck.

2/5/2006 4:09:55 PM

So I'm not the only one who hates all this naming nonsense lately. First we had the SUV, and that was fine. But lately (i.e. within the past couple years) I've seen SUT, XUV, PUV, "Safety Utility Vehicle", and probably some other shit I'm forgetting. It's the "when is an SUV not an SUV?" question. I mean damn. [/rant]

[Edited on February 5, 2006 at 5:17 PM. Reason : s]

2/5/2006 5:16:43 PM

Goddammit, a truck is a truck is a truck.

I'll call anything else a goddam station wagon or a car.

All else is nonsense.

[/thread]

2/5/2006 10:43:34 PM

grapbmsdkfjkhjwe!

I love my LS
and my SN for pretty much everything has been danmangt40 since, oh... like 7th grade back when I was just nuts for the original MKI.....

wixom closing is a sad event.

the mks is looks great out-of-context for any brand but i really don't think its notable for anything other than just being the most authentic looking attempt by an american make to do a japanese car... I honestly thought it was a g35 for a sec the first time I saw it... and that is NOT lincoln. In case nobody noticed, the reason the tbird sucked is that it looked plain girly, not that a heavy american 2-seat sled was overall a terrible idea. Anyone remember the various awesome spinoffs of that s-type/LS/tbird platform? they were ALL winners.

I'll post a few as I find pics...
first ones to come to mind were the

Lincoln MK9

Ford Forty-nine (in black)

the later Ford forty-nine convertible with virtually the same roofline (in dark red)

and there was a Lincoln convertible hardtop that was very close to the production tbird but had the new MKX (nee aviator concept) 's grille and headlights.

pics coming, I gotta upload....
---------------------------

here they are.
lincoln mark 9
ford forty-nine coupe
ford forty-nine convertible
lincoln Mark X (not to be confused with the production MKX)













[Edited on February 6, 2006 at 1:48 AM. Reason : .]

2/6/2006 1:34:59 AM