Sable -- Mercury's Ford Taurus

Ford Motor Company introduced its mid-size aerodynamically-influenced Taurus for the 1986 model year. Also introduced was its Mercury version -- the Sable.

Neither car seems unusual nowadays, but when they first appeared they seemed startling to many people, me included.  That was because most cars then on American streets and roads had crisp, angular, "three-box" styling.  The more rounded Tauruses and Sables seemed a bit odd, out-of-place in comparison.

This post compares first-generation Taurus and Sable styling.  Although both cars used most of the same body components, the Sable at the time struck me as being noticeably more "extreme" than the Taurus.  As for why that seemed so, read the captions of the images below.

Gallery

1986 Ford Taurus, front quarter view.

Front quarter view of a 1986 Mercury Sable.  At a quick glance, the Sable appears to have a four-window passenger greenhouse, whereas the Taurus is clearly a six-window design.  Rear door cutlines are the same.

Taurus side view.

Side view of a Sable, source unknown.  The underlying passenger compartment greenhouse structure can be seen here, and it is the same as that of the Taurus.  Differences include the lack of a high fender character line on the Sable and its slightly more rounded trunk profile.

Taurus rear quarter view.

Although the Sable is a six-window design, it was often hard to notice that, as will be demonstrated by a photo farther below.

Frontal design was simple.  Those vertical air intakes are reminders of the vertical grille bars Mercury used during the brand's 1950s heyday.

If memory serves, the area between the headlights could be illuminated.  Vertical elements are there too.

Rear quarter view via Wikimedia.  The aft pillars are not covered by sheet metal as on Tauruses.  Instead, they are covered by side window and backlight window glass.  The overall effect of streamlining, the translucent front panel and the smooth, all-round passenger greenhouse glass provided a distinctly different, more futuristic appearance than the Taurus'.