For the record -

I’ve worked for most major automakers in one form or another (interning, consulting, permanent employment, etc). The ONLY place I’ve seen this done was at a Chrysler facility.

Most others are pretty openly accepting of competitive vehicles. I drove a Toyota for years into Ford lots without so much as a…

According to UN conventions, China can’t exercise sovreignty over these man-made islands. In other words, legally, the USS Nimitz can come sailing right by this island, fly aircraft right over it, etc, and China can’t do anything about it - it isn’t territory for them to claim exclusion zones around.

We’ll see if the…

Actually what is arguably worse than a 10+ hour drive in one day with kids is doing 5+ one day with a toddler and ANY length of time the next. They don’t understand the second day might be short. I once did 11 hours one day and 2 the next. The kid was fine for the 11 hours, unbelievably. Then screamed nearly nonstop…

I’d agree... though at that distance, if you have kids, you’re probably going to want an overnight stay anyway. They can get nasty after being in a car 10+ hours. :)

It’s also possible that the lights are an option. The Ferrari example you give is a bit different - they had headlights from a production car in the test mule, then switched to a new design. Using the concept lights, something unlike anything Ford had in production, on the test mule and then dumbing them down for…

I know that I like to get out and move every few hours, so a short break is no big deal to me.

But if the trip is being forced into a 2 day stretch anyway, what is the harm in charging overnight? You’re either accepting that the EV is forcing you into an overnight stop and that’s the penalty right there, or if you…

You’re comparing a 4 year old MKZ with a new Fusion?

Well, they’re already going to have to use more than a single charge in a single day if they’re going 700 miles in two - this car doesn’t have a 350 mile range.

Realistically, 700 miles in one day is about the most people will put up with for a road trip (typically taking 10-11 hours thanks to breaks, more if you have…

As much as I appreciate a dead smurf, that interior made me nauseous

Shapes and proportions look very similar, but a lot less smurf leather.

They may not have... here’s a test mule caught with them...

It has also made the grills on the Lincolns look even more comically large than they are in real life - not that they’ve been small, but the difference is quite striking at times.

Most aren’t depreciating like that anymore - the MKZ, for example, loses roughly 30-35% over 2 years, but that’s off of MSRP, not actual sales price - so when you consider discounts from MSRP for new, you’re more in the 20%ish range drop.

Rumors were that it would be built in Flat Rock, which is setup for the Fusion platform already - if it was Chicago, I’d suspect the Taurus platform.

Going bankrupt isn’t a choice here, davedave.

You’re looking at a business where the medallion alone adds $4 -6 per hour to the cost of operating the taxi. They simply cannot be price competitive with services not saddled with those fees. If they try to match the price, their costs are higher than their revenues - and…

Prices have been given. MSRP for the 2016 is about $400 lower than the 2015. As they’re discounting the 2015s, though, that is the cheaper route for now.

I don’t see it as being as bad as the Acura beak. Yes, it is virtually identical in shape, but where Acura went horribly wrong was simply on proportions. See the ‘09 TL vs. the ‘09 TSX for example. Same shape and profile, but the TSX looks much, much better with the thinner profile beak. Not perfect, but a VAST…

Except in general, many of these companies can’t change their business model without bankruptcy. Medallion prices were so ludicrously high that they have massive debt obligations that prevent them from being cost and service competitive. Only through bankruptcy can they shed that obligation.

Except medallion prices in SF typically run $250,000. That’s a cost that yellow cab has to absorb and Uber/Lyft doesn’t. So consumers can actually still use yellow cab more than Uber or Lyft, but to compete on price and keep those customers, they have to price their product as if they don’t have a major additional…

The problem with this is that you can’t simply deregulate without traditional taxi companies still going bankrupt. Taxi companies in NYC were having to pay upwards of $1 million for a single medallion. That purchase was made with certain expectations for the market, and generally purchased under long term loans. When…