2008 Ford Taurus Review

PROS
Roomy Interior, Well-designed dashboard, Versitile cargo area

CONS Scant foot room in third-row seat, Too much body lean in turns

Reinvening the American icon Three years ago when Ford unveiled a completely new family sedan, decision makers at the Blue Oval brand ditched the Taurus name for Five Hundred and Freestyle. The Five Hundred was a four-door sedan and the Freestyle was a four-door wagon. Obviously, the "powers that be" within Ford felt that the Taurus name was too tired for vehicles as fresh as the Five Hundred and Freestyle.

Indeed, the Five Hundred and its wagon counterpart were great American cars in the traditional sense. They had a roomy interior, a comfortable ride, and a huge cargo area. Sadly, milquetoast reviews and an unexceptional engine doomed the new nameplates to lackluster sales.

Ford, desperate to get a stronger share of the upper midsize market, decided to reintroduce Five Hundred and Freestyle with a new name. Ironically, the moniker Ford executives chose was Taurus.

That made sound business sense. Believe it or not, there was a time when Taurus was the most-recognized name in the midsize market. For years, it outsold Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. In 1992, Taurus began a five-year run as the best selling car in America. Ironically, Ford was now banking on the reputation of the old Taurus nameplate to help spark sales of its new sedan and wagon.

Though familiar to fans of the Five Hundred and Freestyle in silhouette, the 2008 Taurus and Taurus X sport a new grille, tail-lamp treatment, and interior. Perhaps the biggest news for Taurus and Taurus X fans was the addition of a completely new and more powerful engine. Replacing a 203-horspower 3.0-liter V6 as the sole engine in both is a 260-horsepower 3.5-liter V6. According to Ford the new engine is 30 percent more powerful than the one it replaces.

Front- or all-wheel-drive models of Taurus and Taurus X are offered. All come with a six-speed automatic transmission. New features on Taurus X include one-touch, flip-and-fold second-row seats, second-row captain's chairs, power liftgate, and Ford Sync, a voice-activated control system for Bluetooth cell-phones and portable music players.

Taurus X comes in SEL, Eddie Bauer, and Limited trim. Front bucket seats and two-place second and third-row bench seats are standard. Optional is a three-place second-row bench or two captain's chairs. Antilock brakes, stability control, and front, front-side, and curtain-side airbags are standard on all models. The curtain airbags protect occupants in all three seating rows.

Taurus X is built in Ford's Torrance Avenue plant in Chicago, Illinois.

Get up and Go
Ford is right to claim that the new V6 is 30 percent more powerful than before. Where the Freestyle's engine felt underpowered and overworked, the Taurus X V6 provides ample power when pulling away from stoplights and in highway passing situations. Ford doesn't quote a 0 to 60 mph time, but Taurus X easily keeps up with traffic and doesn't struggle or feel sluggish when loaded with people or cargo.

For the most part, the six-speed automatic transmission shifts smoothly. There are times when the transmission bangs between ratios--especially when gently accelerating up hills. It's also a little slow to downshift when more passing power is needed. Both glitches are common maladies with other six-speed automatics.

The EPA rates the all-wheel-drive Taurus X at 15 mpg city and 22 mpg highway. Those numbers seem low, but that's because the X is a 2008 model and subject to the EPA's revised rating system that is supposed to be more realistic. It's likely that the typical commuter will average about 18 mpg. While that number isn't bad for a full-size crossover, it's about three mpg shy of the economy provided by the old engine--the price we pay for horsepower. Ford says that the new V6 will run fine on regular-grade gasoline.

On the Road
Ford gave Taurus X a compliant suspension and fairly large wheels and tires. This leads to a soft ride on rough roads, but one that isn't overly busy when rounding corners. The ride is especially nice when cruising on the highway, where the suspension does an excellent job of muting oscillating frequencies that are common on concrete roads.

Taurus X is a large vehicle and being so, you don’t expect it to be nimble. Still, the steering is direct and accurate and the brakes are plenty strong. That helps this crossover wagon acquit itself fairly well around town and on freeway on ramps. The softly sprung suspension allows a fair amount of body lean in fast turns and the tires are tuned for quietness rather than road holding.

Ford did an excellent job of quelling wind and road noise. Even at 70 mph casual conversation between the front and back seat is no problem. The engine isn't the smoothest when cruising and grows noisy in hard acceleration.

All in all, Taurus X rides like a big American car should. It smothers the bumps but doesn't pitch and bob all over the place on wavy roads. Sure, there's a fair amount of body lean in the turns, but it's never objectionable. The smooth ride quality makes a lot more sense, than some of the sport packages out there for large crossover wagons. Why in the world would you want a sporty handling but firm riding large wagon? It just doesn't make sense both from a practical and emotional standpoint.

Behind the Wheel Too many automakers place style over substance and form over functionality when designing a dashboard. Memo to all interior designers, "Study the interior of the Taurus X long and hard. It's clean, contemporary, and the controls are presented in a clear and direct manner."

Major kudos to Ford for getting the Taurus X dash right. Materials are what you'd expect in a family vehicle: sturdy, appealing, but not flashy. Gauges are directly in front of the steering wheel. Radio and climate controls are simple and placed high in the center stack. Optional navigation controls are straight forward. Sadly, there's no voice control unless you opt for Sync. The available rear-seat entertainment system has a very large screen and simple controls.

Front seats are chair-like and upright. Though the seat cushions are soft, they remain comfortable on long trips. Head and leg room are good--even for large adults. Visibility is excellent thanks to large outside mirrors and thin roof pillars.

The optional second-row bucket seats are similar to the fronts--upright and soft. They are adult sized, and if you push them all the way back, offer plenty of leg room. Head room is also generous, thanks to a kick up in the ceiling.

Third-row seats aren't quite adult-comfortable, but they are roomier and more comfortable than most in this segment. Perhaps the biggest problem is foot room. Third-row passengers have to sit with their legs positioned to the middle of the vehicle because of a floor pan hump that occupies the outboard foot wells. Getting into the rear seat is easy thanks to new easy-flip second-row seats.

Saying cargo room is generous is an understatement. There's ample room for a week's worth of groceries with the rear seats in place. There's also a deep well that keeps things from rolling around too much. Fold the rear seats and cargo space expands considerably. Those rear seats don't fold completely into the floor though and create a somewhat uneven load floor.

The power tailgate is a nice touch and opens tall enough for an adult to stand underneath it. Interior storage is good and there are lots of bins and cubbies to store small items.

Bottom Line
It seems like Ford went back to basics with Taurus X and created the modern-day successor to the full-size wagon of the Seventies. It's roomy, versatile, and smooth riding. The improvements that have been made for 2008, namely the more-powerful engine and spruced up interior, go a long way to helping it stay competitive in the crossover-utility class.

To the untrained eye, Taurus X' starting price of $26,000 seems a little high. Yet, compared to similar models from General Motors, Honda, and Toyota, Taurus X is a steal.