Taurus

Vehicle: 2013 Ford Taurus SHO
Price as tested: CDN$56895

Performance: When Taurus SHO returned for 2010, the single biggest issue was power. One reason is down to its curb weight, which still haven’t changed much 4338lb. The single biggest changes is the addition of Ford’s delighful Ecoboost twin-turbo V6. With 365 staillion and 350 lb/ft of torque, its able to move the SHO with authority. Along with having twin turbo, it also comes with advanced techs from variable valve timing, electronic throttle and a host of updates which make SHO more pleasurable to drive. The result is an SHO which finally worthy of its “Super High Ouput” designation, as it doesn’t have any turbo lags when both turbos spool up. All have done with a silky smooth manners, well worthy of a luxury sports sedan title. Combined with a nice engine note with Ford Ecoboost’s superb refinement, it makes SHO a refined driving experience. The 6-speed maumatic comes along for the ride with the SHO, which combined nicely done gear ratios. Finally, Ford has figured out how to make paddle shifters override after two years. Horray for such an improvement.

Handling: No one has ever doubt SHO’s sleeper like driving dynamics. The latest SHO contines that tradition, as it combines AWD with latest in technology which is called Torque Vectoring. Torque Vectoring is able to deliver the torque to the wheel with most grip, which means less steering input when turn into a corner. Less steering input = sharper and quicker turn-in = less understeer. Then add alongside a proactive AWD which provide the right distribution of power at the right time. The desired result is a SHO which handles like a diggin despite of its curb weight. Whenever those two active safety items can’t saved your ugly heads, there is always a state-of-the-art ESC waiting in the wings to save your nuts. The bottom line? Taurus SHO is as much fun-to-drive as any sports sedans out there. The steering provides nice feel and feedback, without feeling twitches. There are minimal body rolls and understeer only surfaced when pushed really crazily into a corner.

Brakes: With large 4-wheel discs and standard ABS, SHO has provided nice enough stopping prowess given its weight. The stopping distance is short, while pedal always feels nicely modulated. The pedal always feels crisp and refined, while ABS only acts up at the right time certainly wrap up the whole package.

Interior: The cabin of the SHO has been very well-made. Along with nice soft-touch materials on the dashboard and door panels, most controls are user-friendly and initutive. Ford has finally fixed the annoying glitches with MyFordTouch with more user-friendly interface. The automatic climate control is both initutive and effective. Driving position is easily find with telescope and tilt column, when mated with those comfy multi-adjustable leather sports seats which haul you in the rigth places.

Both rear head and legroom are aplentry, the same goes for the luggage space. Latter offers low liftover with narrow side sills. Best of all, the hinges are nicely boxed in with nice carpeting to justify its premium.

Conclusion: The SHO solves an age old dliemma. If you want a family sedan which is able to seat 4 persons comfortably but need to have some driving fun, this Taurus SHO is your ticket. The improved powertrain has enough guts, while its new Torque Vectoring adds sharp handling and active safety to the mix. What seals the deal for me is the styling, which finally has a sense of character instead of pure blandness of old. Its an SHO that is finally able to run with the top dogs.

Competitions:
Acura TL SH-AWD
Audi A4
BMW 3-Series
Dodge Charger
Mercedes C-Class
Infiniti G37

OVERALL VERDICT FOR 2013 Ford Taurus SHO
=====================================
Performance: 4/5
Handling and ride/fun-to-drive: 4/5
Interior/ergonomics/user-friendliness: 4/5
Fit-and-finish/build quality: 4/5
Cargo/accessibility/layout: 4/5
Value-for-money: 4/5

Overall rating: 4/5

Vehicle: 2010 Ford Taurus SHO
Price as tested: CDN$49729

Performance: After a 9 year hitaus, Ford’s performance Taurus is back. The subject to this edition of test drive, Ford’s all-new Taurus, the SHO version.

Unlike the original SHO, which was motivated by the Yamaha-tuned engine. The new “Super High Output” is powered by Ford’s long-awaited Ecoboost V6 engine. What makes the Ecoboost engine series so special is that it has twin turbochargers with direct fuel injection, while based on Ford’s 3.5 liter DOHC 24-valve V6 structure that share with the base Taurus. While twin-turbocharged technology is nothing new but it certainly help Ford gets much better engine performance, and best of all, improved fuel economy across the board. In SHO’s case, this Ecoboost has 365 ponies and 350 lb/ft of torque at driver’s disposal. It all have done without the annoying turbo lag one associates with twin-turbo, we we have experienced in BMW 3-Series and Z4 with similar technology. Both turbos spool up quickly and efficiently without any hestiation. While the mid and upper range are equally eager when pushed through the responsive throttle. Regarding the throttle, its all responsive but doesn’t have the lag or overly abrupt response usually associated with electric throttle. Without a good gearbox, the Ecoboost technology would be a waste. In SHO’s case, it got a 6-speed manumatic with paddle shifters. The low gears are short enough to provide peppy acceleration on the traffic light, it also helped eliminate the annoying turbo lag through smart gearing. On the other hand, the top gears are tall enough for relax cruising. The paddle shifters are designed to encouarge the change’em yourselves when thrashing out for a sports sedan like SHO. Unfortunately, the paddle shifter’s up and downshift patterns aren’t exactly logical nor initutive. Push forward for upshift and pull down for downshift are far from being initutive. While you still can change the gears yourselves on the paddle shifters, it still lacks the driving fun with a proper manual gearbox as its ancestor did. If Ford was willing to engineered a proper 6-speed manual with this Ecoboost engine, it would make the SHO an even sweeter car. That set, the engine and gearbox work as a perfect harmony to move SHO’s 4368lb of American leather-lined luxury.

Handling: With the new Taurus based on Ford’s large car platform, or the one that shares with Volvo’s S80 and V70. It doesn’t come as a surprise it has an excellent foundation to begin with. The chassis itself is strong and stiff without any flex and rattles, that means it can give the suspension components a great place to hang its hats. The Haldex is another benefit from this chassis sharing. Because of this chassis sharing, that has explained why the new SHO weights in at 4368 lb. However, the weight doesn’t unsettle the balance of this SHO. It handles like what it supposed to be, like a real sports sedan. While its rather large, its driving experience doesn’t feel as cumbersome as its weight suggested to be. At least doesn’t drive as huge as its chassis silibings do. It feels nimble and light-on-its-feet when pushed through the corners. Yes, you still can find some safe understeer and body rolls, although latter is very well-controlled. The entire car feels solid and very well-planted thanks to the Euro-influenced chassis and suspension calibrations. It has the sort of European feel that infused into all of recent Ford’s products lately. The suspension is compliant and supple, without the loose feel one used to feel in its predecessors. It handles all the rough pavements and patholes with ease. The steering provides excellent feel and feedback, with good precision and responsiveness. What makes the SHO different from other lowly Taurus is the available of “Sport” mode in the electronic stability control. What it does is to offer a higher thresold for enthuisastic drivers to push the SHO’s tail a bit until the stability control steps in. The electronic stability control has also worked as an secondary cushion behind the AWD. It only steps in until the AWD has reached its limitation. It all works very nicely as a package. In fact, the new Taurus SHO is so good. It has reminded me of the 2000 Audi S4 with 2.7L Biturbo and AWD. Both with similar powertrain configuration but Audi comes with a proactive Torsen system while Ford uses a reactive Haldex one.

Brakes: Of the entire dynamic package, the brake pedal is the only area that let the whole SHO down. While the stopping distance is more than acceptable, its pedal feels dead whenever driver wants to haul its over 4000 lb curb weight to a complete stop. The brake pedal and modulation have a rather numb and darty feel when we hit the anchor. Even though its fade-free and ABS steps in at the right time, Ford engineers have to get back to drawing board to get the brake feel right. What a pity.

Interior: Ford interiors have come a long way in recent years, the new Taurus is no exception. Not only does the interior design no longer feels blend and lifeless, it has a sense of style. The instrumentation gauges are clear and analog. Both the Sony sound system and automatic climate control have placed at a very user-friendly location, with stereo above the climate control. Those leather sports seats provide excellent thigh and back support when cornering. Not to mention the dashboard and door panels are finished in high-quality plastic materials. The level of fit-and-finish has to be Ford’s best effort ever.

The back has decent headroom but legroom is at a premium, consider the overall length of the Taurus.

Except for the high liftover and narrow opening, the trunk of the new Taurus is pretty good. It all begins with fold-down rear seats, which allow large item to stow inside. Combined with uninstrusive trunk hinges, you can a very well-rounded package.

Conclusion: If 2009 is the “Year of Ford”, then the new Taurus truly represents how far Ford has come lately. The SHO just has taken the new Taurus into the next level. As it provides decent amount of power and economy, through the use of the advanced Ecoboost technology. It handles relatively well with a nice interior to boot. The styling comes with a bit of a character without the boredomness with Ford of yesteryears. Best of all, it comes with a performance package that one has to pay a lot more for European counterparts.

OVERALL VERDICT FOR 2010 Ford Taurus SHO
=====================================
Performance: 4.5/5
Handling and ride/fun-to-drive: 4.5/5
Interior/ergonomics/user-friendliness: 4.5/5
Fit-and-finish/build quality: 4.5/5
Cargo/accessibility/layout: 4/5
Value-for-money: 4/5

Overall rating: 4.5/5

Vehicle: 2008 Ford Taurus Limited FWD
Price as tested: CDN$38049

Performance: The new Taurus is basically a facelifted FiveHundred. Power, or lack of, was one of our major complaints when FiveHundred first introduced 2 years ago. With the reintroduction of the Taurus nameplate, the FiveHundred finally receives the powerplant that it desperately needed in day 1. Underneath the Taurus remains Ford’s bulletproof Duratec engine series. This 3.5 liter DOHC 24-valves with Ford’s variable valve timing or iVCT, provide a delightful 263 horses and an useful 249 lb/ft of torque. Drop the anchor and Taurus really moves, unlike its forebear, FiveHundred, which was simply a dog. This motor is also surprisingly refined and quiet, which it should be, consider Taurus’s status of life as a comfortable highway cruiser. However, don’t expect much as it will run breathlessly through high rpm range. The 6-speed automatic is a willing partner to this Duratec powertrain. It has quick and smooth up and downshifts. When you really need to push the transmission to downshift when merging on to a freeway off-ramp, it won’t set you any complaints with the fuzzy logic program.

Handling: Given the Taurus is based on a modified version of Volvo’s large car platform, which underpins vehicle like an S80 premium sedan. Its no doubt it has a stiff and sound foundation. Unlike its predecessor, this chassis doesn’t detect any chassis flex and rattles. As you would expect from a Taurus, dynamics isn’t its highest priority when Ford developed the vehicle. The same goes for its latest iteration. Both the suspension and springs are soft. When pushed into a corner, there are plenty of body rolls and understeer. Steering continues to feel lifeness and dead. The ride comfort has improved a lot over over FiveHundred its based on. The suspension finally received enough damping to absorb expansion joints and rough pavements decently. Combine all this with a cushion ride quality. If you drive like all Taurus’s intended target audience, you shouldn’t notice the torque steer gone through the steering when pushed off-the-line. With 263 hp goes through the front wheel, its a better choice to stick with Haldex AWD when one accelerates aggressively of the traffic light. This torque steer is more obvious during the summer rain happened recently in Vancouver.

Brakes: With 4-wheel discs and standard ABS, Taurus performs decently even under pouring rain. The brake pedal is easy to modulate and ABS only kicks in when necessary.

Interior: In our Limited model, Taurus is completely loaded with all the luxury features. Dual zone climate control, leather seating surface, white-faced gauges and plastic wood trim. While the interior is comfortable and comes with lots of kits, we found some of the interior details lacking. The white faced gauge just looked out of place with the plastic wood trim. The center analog clock is a tacky touch to the interior. The plastic wood trim’s color and quality are an insult to anything made by plastic. Speaking of plastic, there are plenty of hard plastic thoroughout the dashboard.

There are plenty of head and legrooms for back-seat passengers.

With the fold down rear seats and uninstrusive trunk hinges, Taurus’s cargo area can swallow basically anything else one can think of.

Conclusion: Even if the new Taurus isn’t as revolutionary as its forebear, its certainly the best Taurus ever made. It got plenty of space, loads of luxury and safety features; along with a decent powertrain and handles acceptably. It won’t get your heart pumping but will get the job done properly.

OVERALL VERDICT FOR 2008 FORD TAURUS
================================
Performance: 4/5
Handling and ride/fun-to-drive: 2/5
Interior/ergonomics/user-friendliness: 4/5
Fit-and-finish/build quality: 3/5
Cargo/accessibility/layout: 3/5
Value-for-money: 3/5

Overall rating: 3.25/5