Telnack was deeply involved with Ford's use of wind tunnel testing of production body shapes in response to government mandated fuel economy standards. As best I can tell, all the designs initiated while he was in charge were more rounded than previous Ford designs that were angular, "three box" affairs.
Images below are either factory-sourced or are of cars listed for sale. The same bodies were used by more than one brand, but only two such examples are shown below.
This is the first American aerodynamic production design by Telnack's team. For some odd reason I perhaps unfairly likened it to a Dutch wooden shoe when it first appeared.
This design seemed too soft when most other cars were angular, though it appears conventional by today's standards. I always thought it needed more angular window framing to provide some relief from the softness.
The Lincoln version of the Thunderbird body.
This design might have saved the Ford Motor Company which was in serious financial trouble when it was announced. Like the Tempo, it seemed strange to many eyes, but it had enough appeal to sell well. A few years later, most American cars received aerodynamic shaping and the Taurus had become conventional.
Now Telnack's style is becoming more clear. Note the sloped hood profile. Also comparatively (for the times) large-radius sheep metal curves.
This new Lincoln design was rather boxy, but featured enough rounding to hint at aerodynamics.
Here we find a low hoodlike creating a wedge appearance with most of the rounding towards the rear.
Introduced to America for the 1995 model year, called the Mondeo in Europe, this was a Ford attempt to design and market a "world car" -- well, a car for both the European and North American markets. While Mondeos sold well in Europe, Contours didn't sell well in America. At the time, I thought the styling was soft and uninteresting. The weak point might be the design abaft of the B-pillar.
Ford's luxury model. Again, the low hoodline, this time with a compatible grille design with little relationship to more traditional Lincoln grilles as seen on the Town Car above. And of course plenty of rounded surfaces.
This design fared comparatively poorly in the marketplace. I rather liked it, especially the sculpting on the hood and front end. The oval backlight window design was a poor choice. The instrument panel was another problem area, its main defect being an oval-framed cluster of switches at the center of the dashboard.
The Mercury using the same basic body as the Lincoln Continental shown above. Another example of the mature Telnack-look.
I bought a 1997 Taurus wagon used in 2000 and loved it. As you point out, the instrument panel design was not well received and within 2 years had been modified into a more conventional look. I actually found the oval control panel quite pleasing and not at all confusing. And it was an excellent road car, too, with adequate power and good handling. I drove it for about 7 years and then sold it to a neighbor whose teen-age girls happily drove it all through their college years, dubbing it "Boris the Taurus."
ReplyDeleteFor me in 3rd gen Taurus oval back window fits to the overall oval design styling.. Also the oval switches cluster in the dash is good, especially with the automatic AC (as I have in my car) Only the vents on the passenger side are stupid - it looks like they didn't know what to do with them.
ReplyDeleteThe (actual) second gen Tauri showed what a mistake it is to take some shape, in this case the Ford oval, and put it all over the car. Even the wagon had ovalish rear and rear side windows. The NPR car guys said the same thing I thought: they looked smaller than they were. Also like a guppy or something in front. I think the first year sold less than the previous Taurus which was at the end of its late stage facelift period.
ReplyDeleteThe Mondeo was another interesting story. They designed different front and rear styling from the Euro version, then quickly switched to the Euro rear and I think the Mercury version rear window. That quick facelift would make a good topic for a post. Another one: the two generations back Honda Civic. It got an inside and out facelift and many engineering changes after being out about 18 months. Both cases an emergency save when they got bad reviews and I guess sales.
The original Taurus wagon (a traditional Ford specialty) had a particularly cool rear design. The second (real) gen wagon was an oval shapes mess back there. I don't think they ever spent the money to fix it.
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ReplyDeleteSecond gen? everywhere another facelift its described as another generation so we talking about 3rd one.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.ford-taurus.org/taurusinfo/Basic.php