Leftlanenews: Taurus SHO

[SVT666]

First Drive: 2010 Ford Taurus SHO
06/23/2009, 12:22 PMBY MARK ELIAS


Lightning must strike every ten years or so in Dearborn since that was the last time we saw a Taurus SHO roll out of a Ford factory. The polarizing style of the jellybean-shaped Taurus was one that you either loved or hated, but by 1999, the car was merely a shadow of its former self.

With Yamaha-designed V6 engines underhood, the Taurus S-H-Os (Ess-aych-oh, not SHO as in ?really big show?) were the sleepers of the highway, able to blow off many imports and domestics without even breaking sweat. Various mishaps and missteps resulted in the model being pulled from production in 1999, mostly due to lack of interest and neglect.

After yesterday?s review of the 2010 Ford Taurus sedan, we thought we?d take an in-depth look at its high-po big brother.

Ten years later
Well, ten years is a long time to wait for a ?make good,? but Ford has finally come through with a revitalized SHO nameplate to adorn the new sixth-generation (counting the outgoing Five Hundred/Taurus model of 2009) Taurus that goes on sale later this summer. This time the SHO is a big car. Almost as big as a Crown Vic. (Taurus Police packages anyone?) But Ford executives claim that despite the fact this is a bigger, more comfortable Taurus, it is a car that will be more about its owner than anyone else. Call it a ?Me? car. Choosing to bring it to market at the same time as the introduction of the anything-but-plain-Jane Taurus is a bold move from a company that has been making a few of those this past year ? even if it no longer uses the marketing tag line.

Start with the already competent canvas of the base Taurus, itself a great car. Get rid of the 3.5-liter Duratec V6 and in its place insert a 3.5-liter Ecoboost twin-turbo mill putting out 365 horsepower and 350 lb-ft. of torque, which is 102 more ponies and 101 more lb-ft. of torque over the engine it replaces.

And this engine is good.

Because of the direct injection nature of the mill and the twin turbos, turbo lag is nearly eliminated, and although normal road sound is not that intrusive, an audio-tuned cone pointing towards the cockpit feeds aural excitement with a nice induction-based growl. But we did find this thing they call Ecoboost is a torquey little monster, a pleasant surprise considering that this new S-H-O is no girly-man lightweight. At nearly 4,400 lbs, there is a lot of mass for the side-mounted twin turbo to push and pull around with its all-wheel-drive system. Power comes on at around 1,500 rpm and utilizing a relatively flat torque band, it stays in the hunt until around 5,500 rpm. Still, it manages a somewhat respectable 17 mpg city / 25 mpg highway.

Pushing your buttons
That all-wheel-drive system is centered by a system from Sweden?s Haldex. The result of this setup is a sure-footed experience when power is supplied that kicks you back into your seat. Mated to a six-speed 6F55 SportShift automatic transmission, it enables you to drive the Taurus all day long as an automatic-transmission vehicle or gives you the choice to throw the gear selector into M-mode for some push-button gear rowing and rev-matching by way of the steering wheel-mounted paddles that more resemble charcoal-colored Chiclets than they do paddle levers. No matter. They shift extremely fast and smoothly. We found that the manual mode was truly more manual than we?ve seen in other high-performance paddle-equipped cars. Forget to shift while laying that size 11 on the loud pedal, and you?ll soon have the engine bumping up against the rev-limiter like some backmarker Indy car.

A sport-tuned suspension keeps the 19-inch tires firmly planted, but if size does matter, look at the SHO Performance Package, which features a set of 20-inchers. They were not available during our test ride, but we can tell you they also include performance brake pads, sport-tuned electronic power steering, AdvanceTrac stability control with a true off button and a 3:16:1 final drive ratio.

The ride through the hills surrounding Asheville, North Carolina, surprised us with how steady the car rocked the road. At first glance we were thinking a car this big will wallow like the bloody QE II ocean liner. Instead, what we saw and felt was a contender that wasn?t soft and bouncy or harsh and denture rattling like other cars in the marketplace. Speaking of competitors, this S-H-O slots up against the Acura TL, Cadillac CTS, Chrysler 300C, Volvo S80 and the soon-to-be-gone Pontiac G8 GT.

All business inside
The interior is business-like with aluminum-accented ?eyebrows? that are actually the dashboard facings. A tri-faced gauge binnacle houses the speedo, tach, fuel and temperature gauges and gives off a more retro-feel than anything else. A clean, sophisticated center stack houses the standard-for-SHO Ford Sync system while the optional navigation system or the head unit with LCD readout tells you when you have tuned Sirius Satellite Radio to Howard100. A grippy leather-wrapped steering wheel matches the similarly covered shift lever. For non-navigation-equipped cars, the Sync system can provide turn-by-turn directions downloaded to the car.

The leather seating with p-suedo suede inserts (made from the spun fiber of recycled soda bottles) offer grippiness for the gluteals during the times you want to exercise your biceps whipping wheel on various twisties to and from work. Front seats are ten-way power adjustable and when combined with the adjustable pedals allow for an infinite amount of driver comfort. The rear seat, which may just go unoccupied most of the time since this car, according to Ford, is all about me, can still accommodate three full-size passengers in the back. Not that you would ever carry them.

So, enough about me. What do you think about me?

Leftlane?s bottom line
With enough technology to make Bill Gates? eyes roll up into his head, the SHO will satisfy the geek in all of us. With all-wheel-drive standard, and weighing in at about 4,400 pounds, the SHO definitely won?t be chirping the wheels like a little sports car. But you will be rewarded with a great driving and riding experience that makes the daily commute to and from the office more than interesting.

[Onslaught]

17 mpg city / 25 mpg highway

Respectable?

[Catman]

17 mpg city / 25 mpg highway

Respectable?

4000lbs with 365hp?  Yeah, I'd say that's pretty decent.

[ifcar]

17 mpg city / 25 mpg highway

Respectable?

Considering that a V6 Malibu gets just 17/26, that's respectable.

[Vinsanity]

meh. There's no reason to get this over a Hyundai Genesis. Which gets the same mpg from a 375hp V8, btw.

[Catman]

meh. There's no reason to get this over a Hyundai Genesis. Which gets the same mpg from a 375hp V8, btw.

Is the Genesis AWD?

[TBR]

4000lbs with 365hp?  Yeah, I'd say that's pretty decent.

Decent, but not impressive.

[Catman]

Decent, but not impressive.

It's a 4000lb, AWD, 365HP sedan.  What are you guys expecting?

[TBR]

It's a 4000lb, AWD, 365HP sedan.  What are you guys expecting?

Like I said, it's respectable, but it doesn't blow me out of the water. Not when the Genesis V8  achieves the same results without two turbos and an intercooler.

[SVT666]

meh. There's no reason to get this over a Hyundai Genesis. Which gets the same mpg from a 375hp V8, btw.

I prefer the styling of the Taurus.

[Catman]

Like I said, it's respectable, but it doesn't blow me out of the water. Not when the Genesis V8  achieves the same results without two turbos and an intercooler.

It's not AWD either.

[Vinsanity]

Is the Genesis AWD?

You got me. The Taurus SHO has the $40,000 ginormously-sized AWD "sport" sedan market covered.

[Cookie Monster]

The Genesis is better looking, has a V8, lighter, cheaper and isn't a Ford.

I see no reason to buy this over a Genesis.

[Catman]

You got me. The Taurus SHO has the $40,000 ginormously-sized AWD "sport" sedan market covered.

I realize you don't like it for whatever reason but I'm sure many others will.  There's a lot of people that like large cars.  I'm wondering if the price will come down?

[Onslaught]

I'm sure it's nice. But no way in hell I'd ever pay that much for one.

[SVT666]

The Genesis is better looking, has a V8, lighter, cheaper and isn't a Ford.

I see no reason to buy this over a Genesis.

The Taurus is better looking, has turbozzzz, is not boring to drive, the same price (comparably equipped), and isn't a Hyundai.

[Catman]

The Taurus is better looking, has turbozzzz, is not boring to drive, the same price (comparably equipped), and isn't a Hyundai.

Don't forget AWD.

[2o6]

Isn't the Taurus a over the Genesis?

[ifcar]

is not boring to drive

You're driven both?

[TBR]

It's not AWD either.

So? AWD doesn't impact MPG that much.

Some numbers to back my point up:

BMW 535i: 17/26
BMW 535i xDrive: 17/25
Cadillac CTS: 18/27
Cadillac CTS AWD: 18/27

[TBR]

The Taurus is better looking, has turbozzzz, is not boring to drive, the same price (comparably equipped), and isn't a Hyundai.

Early reviews disagree.

How are turbos a plus when the Genesis is faster and gets the same gas mileage?

[Catman]

So? AWD doesn't impact MPG that much.

About 1 to 2 mpg.

[TBR]

About 1 to 2 mpg.

Maybe 1 mpg (see numbers in my edited, previous post).

I wouldn't give up the sound and throttle response of a V8 for 1 mpg. Not exactly the amazing results Ford promised Ecoboost would deliver (which was my point originally).

[Vinsanity]

I realize you don't like it for whatever reason but I'm sure many others will.  There's a lot of people that like large cars.  I'm wondering if the price will come down?

I like large cars myself, and I strongly prefer the Genesis. I just get the impression that Hyundai aimed higher and tried harder.

[Onslaught]

The Taurus is better looking, has turbozzzz, is not boring to drive, the same price (comparably equipped), and isn't a Hyundai.

No.
So? I'd rather have a V8.
You know? I've only been in one but not the other. I've not been overwhelmed with what I've seen from the Ford to this point.
You'll probably get the SHO for less later. None will pay that much for a Taurus. None with a brain anyway.
Can't have it all. But Ford's getting better so one day they could be as good as Hyundai.  

[CJ]

Plus, the Genesis is SMALLER!  The Taurus is a monstrous SEVEN INCHES longer than the Genesis.  The Taurus, while a fantastic vehicle, doesn't get my attention like the Genesis.

[Cookie Monster]

The Taurus is better looking, has turbozzzz, is not boring to drive, the same price (comparably equipped), and isn't a Hyundai.

Fine, looks is a matter of opinion, but who cares if it has "turbozzzz" when you have a V8 which is, more importantly, more powerful and faster?

And I think comparably equipped, a Genesis is still cheaper, and right now, Hyundai is better than Ford and you're kidding yourself if you believe otherwise.

[Catman]

Maybe 1 mpg (see numbers in my edited, previous post).

I wouldn't give up the sound and throttle response of a V8 for 1 mpg. Not exactly the amazing results Ford promised Ecoboost would deliver (which was my point originally).

Well, you might have a point there.  However, if you are in the snow belt and have a choice of an AWD over a RWD most people go with the AWD.  The G37 is a good example.  Go to an Infinit dealer around here and you'll be hard pressed to find a RWD G37 on the lot.  There might be a small, negligible penalty in mileage during normal conditions but when you're driving around all winter on slippery roads you will see a noticeable difference in fuel usage.

[TBR]

Fine, looks is a matter of opinion, but who cares if it has "turbozzzz" when you have a V8 which is, more importantly, more powerful and faster?

And I think comparably equipped, a Genesis is still cheaper, and right now, Hyundai is better than Ford and you're kidding yourself if you believe otherwise.

I believe otherwise...

Focus>Elantra
Fusion>Sonata
Taurus>Azera
Genesis>Taurus SHO
Mustang>Genesis
Escape>Tuscon
Edge>Sonata
Veracruz>Flex
Expedition>?
Explorer>?
F-150>?

[2o6]

Fine, looks is a matter of opinion, but who cares if it has "turbozzzz" when you have a V8 which is, more importantly, more powerful and faster?

And I think comparably equipped, a Genesis is still cheaper, and right now, Hyundai is better than Ford and you're kidding yourself if you believe otherwise.

Hyundai? Better than Ford? LOL.


It's like comparing a Camry to a Miata. Yes, the Camry is faster, but the Miata is much, much more fun.