Focus; Mustang; Taurus; Five Hundred; Crown Victoria.
That is, ranging in size.
Focus - a small and rather cheap car, a rather new brand-name.
Mustang - still a small car, a "compact" sedan, yet can be heavily modded to make a good racing car. Also, the brand-name is well known.
Taurus - a mid-sized sedan. It is a nice car, and is a bit luxurious for Israelis. It also has a very known brand-name.
Five Hundred - this is a large sedan, but is a very new brand and we still know nothing about it.
Crown Victoria - luxurious sedan, expensive, and just like its name: it's the crown; the cream of the crop.
Did I get that right? Because I see many "Ford Mondeo"s here, and I have no idea why the Ford Web site shows them not. Also, where is the deceased "Escort" in this range?
As for General Motors:
Chevrolet - bottom range. Pontiac - one level above. Oldsmobile - heck only knows! Buick - a nice range of rather respectable cars. Cadillac - the ultimate GM.
I live in a nation that's simply annihilating the middle class.
Today, the middle class needs to work harder to stay at the same place; I can't even afford a car! That is not a 2006 BMW 760Li High Security (individually made and shipped from Munich), I'm talking about a Mazda3, for US$13,000. Don't expect my parents to pay.
Oh, and having many interests does not hlp me anyhow on the resume. I don't specialise in anything, except the Hebrew tongue, which I will be unabble to study in Israel due to the fact that I will flee the army.
JH
P.S. Is this another one of my Despair Threads?
Posts: 2978 | Registered: Oct 2004
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quote: Each have their low to high end models and makes.
My father had about 8 cars between 1962 and 1987.
During the time of Planned Obsolescence, I know that the Pontiac and Oldsmobile were... ummm... what's it called? Something to do with labelling. Anyway, they were identical, just different names.
Chev was always "standard", with the Corvette as the exception; Buick was always a bit luxurious and elegant; Cadillac was always very robust and pricy.
JH
P.S. The price of a Honda Accord in Israel, is the price of a Cadillac STS in the US.
Posts: 2978 | Registered: Oct 2004
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posted
Is there a language in which "mondeo" = "my god"? Just curious. And it does look quite similar to a Taurus, though the final years of the escort may have been close. Maybe they tookd the leftover escorts and are selling them as mondeos.
I loved european car names for cars that are also sold in the US. I think the Nissan sentra was called a "bluebird". The Toyota Previa was called a "vannette". In Greece, anyway.
I'd actually call the Mustang a sports coupe. The Thunderbird is also a sports car, but different. In later years it became more and more like a luxury car, then they stopped the brand for a couple of years and brought it back with retro-sporty styling.
I always thought Pontiac was a sportier line. You've got the Grand Am and the Firebird. I guess the Bonneville is more of an Oldsmobile type car. Oldsmobile is gone? I'm sorry to hear that.
Posts: 2010 | Registered: Apr 2003
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posted
Considering the Ford Taurus has a chassis/engine designed by Volvo, I'm sure it's European counterpart would be very similar.
Posts: 4753 | Registered: May 2002
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posted
Rebadging is the term for when a manufacturer makes the same basic car under a number of different divisions (like Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable).
You had the sequence for Ford pretty well nailed.
The GM brands marketed to different niches in the American Market. For example, Chevrolet was the "everyman" car and considered "entry level" for people just starting out. Pontiac sought the reputation as a "muscle" car and set out to appeal to slightly richer clientel who could afford to spend more for performance. Oldsmobile and Buick were both kind of the middle-age to elderly crowd. Businessmen would buy a Buick or Olds, for example, to send a signal of dependability without extravagance. That's where Cadillac came in -- the top of the line!
Of course, GM also has the GMC (trucks & vans) line and the Hummer line (rediculous urban assault vehicles). They also own Opel, Saab, Volvo? (not sure about that one), and a few others.
More recent additions have been Saturn and Geo in the GM lineup. Saturn is REALLY what Chevy used to be -- entry level, great cars at a good price. GEO is all import models...rebadged, of course.
Hmm...what else. A Mazda 3 for $13,000 US is a bit steep. You're obviously paying import taxes, or we in the US are getting these cars under a subsidy...Not sure. By the way, Mazda is owned by Ford, as is Jaguar.
I've seen some great foreign market-only models from Ford and GM brands. Smaller, built for Europeans and the higher gas prices. Usually very peppy cars. We get only a few of these models over here. Rarely are they just different names for something we already have. The Mondeo is a good example. If I recall, it's totally different than any US Ford model.
The Escort was Ford's first attempt at a "World Car" one that would sell in the US and overseas. Did pretty well with that concept, it seems.
Let's see what else. Oh yeah, rear wheel drive is now available only in limited vehicles. Mustang, Corvette, maybe a few others, and things like pickup trucks, Jeeps and fullsize vans (but not minivans).
By the way, there are plenty of people in the US who can't afford ANY new car on the market today. Most of the people I know buy recent vintage used cars because the prices drop so dramatically after 2-3 years. It usually means you can get a good deal here because cars are lasting a lot longer than they used to during the days of planned obsolecence.
Does it work that way over there?
Can you import cars yourself without paying huge duties? that is, buy a car in the US and ship it home?
Posts: 22497 | Registered: Sep 2000
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