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The first-generation Ford Taurus is an automobile that was produced by Ford as the first of six generations of the Ford Taurus. Introduced in December 1985 as a 1986 model,〔 the front-wheel drive Taurus was a very influential design that is credited with saving Ford from bankruptcy,〔 bringing many innovations to the marketplace〔 and starting the trend towards aerodynamic design for the American automakers in the North American market.〔 Ford of Europe had launched the 1980s move to aerodynamic design for the company with the 1982 Ford Sierra. Development for the first-generation Taurus started in the early 1980s to replace the Ford LTD,〔 at the cost of billions of dollars, with a team led by vice president in charge of car development Lewis Veraldi dubbed "Team Taurus." Ford was suffering from a lackluster product line from the late 1970s to the early 1980s and then-chairman Philip Caldwell staked much of the finances and future of the company on Veraldi and his team's success, giving them unprecedented leeway in developing what would become the Taurus. The Taurus' development employed a strategy of teamwork and customer communication that would prove very influential for the automotive industry,〔 as it consolidated all of Ford's designers, engineers, and marketing staff into a group who worked on the car collectively.〔 The Taurus' development was initially kept very secret by Ford,〔 and not much was revealed about the final Taurus until it was unveiled in 1985.〔 After its release, the Taurus became a strong seller, as over 200,000 would be sold in the 1986 model year,〔 and over a million were sold by 1989.〔 This generation of Taurus garnered additional sales by its two variants: a Mercury version entitled the Sable, and a high-performance version entitled the SHO, and its engine and drivetrain would be used on the 1988 Lincoln Continental. This generation of Taurus continued with only minor changes until it was replaced in 1992 by the second-generation Ford Taurus. When production ended in 1991, more than 2,000,000 First-generation Tauruses had been sold.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 url = http://www.taurusclub.com/encyclopedia/Specs/Production.html ) 〕 ==Development and release== When Ford set out to develop the Taurus, they employed a strategy of teamwork that would prove revolutionary in the car development process. Previously, at both Ford and General Motors, interior and exterior designers worked separately with no input from each other or from engineers. As a result, the interiors and exteriors of many American cars seemed "mismatched."〔 Taurus development started in 1981, using a method similar to that Ford used when developing the Escort, in which engineers from all Ford branches worldwide worked together. Unlike the Escort, though, the Taurus was developed entirely by American engineers at Ford's headquarters.〔 The new engineering team was assembled by designer Jack Telnack, and was dubbed "Team Taurus".〔 The Taurus went through many revisions throughout its development. Original prototypes contained a full glass roof similar to that of the Subaru SVX, though it was deemed "too radical" and abandoned.〔 Applying lessons learned from the Edsel, customer input played an instrumental role in the Taurus' development, as many components including radios, steering wheels, seats, wheels, and entire suspension setups were selected by large numbers of average people though a series of surveys conducted by Ford.〔 In addition, Ford disassembled many competing cars such as the Toyota Camry, the Honda Accord, and the more luxurious BMW 5 Series〔The Taurus was not intended to compete with the BMW 5 Series. However, it was disassembled and examined in order to be able to emulate the seat and interior design predominant in many German cars at the time.〕 in order to examine their parts and components.〔 Ford premiered the Taurus in a resounding way. In mid-1985, Ford gathered executives and the press for the unveiling of the Taurus and Mercury Sable. The event took place at the MGM Studios Soundstage 85, where ''Gone with the Wind'' had been filmed.〔 The studio was decorated in a space theme, with stars on the walls, flying saucer decorations, and refreshments served in flying saucer shaped coolers.〔 For the unveiling, "space" music started playing, as projected stars floated around the room in dance floor fashion. The outlines of the cars glowed green through the curtain; as the curtain flew up, strobe lights flashed, highlighting the cars.〔 Many industry journalists, as well as executives at Ford and Chrysler, believed the Taurus was going to be a failure.〔 Chrysler executives believed customers would instead embrace their more conventional Dodge Dynasty and Chrysler New Yorker.〔 Executives at Ford knew producing the Taurus was a gamble, as they ran the risk of the car being so advanced it would turn off potential customers, as was the case with the Edsel. As a result, Ford continued to produce the LTD, which the Taurus was designed to replace in 1986.〔 If the Taurus failed, Ford would have to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.〔 The Taurus, however, ended up being a resounding success, selling over a million units in its first generation alone.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ford Taurus (first generation)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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