Just Curious

[Stampman67]

So I was wondering why the Taurus SHO? This is my first ever car and since all my recent trucks were F150's the only cars I really looked at were Ford cars. I test drove a loaded SHO and 2 weeks later it was in the driveway. I love the SHO but I did not really look at any other cars in this class. So my question is 2 parts, did you consider any other brands and why the Taurus?

 

[Crax]

Hey I'll bite. I test drove some Acuras when shopping but as I said in other posts I thought they weren't as good (!) as the SHO. At least for me interior tech was important and I thought the Ford was better. Also obviously the SHO is faster than the TSX or TL I was looking at.

Here's a concrete example, I asked the Acura salesman about the blind spot monitors, neither the TSX or TL have such a thing. He said "all that does is give you a little light in the mirror, that's it." Um yeah no $hit sherlock I knew that. Now having driven a SHO with BLIS for 9 months I can't imagine not having such a handy feature (i.e. you know EXACTLY when the lane next to you is clear). Don't get me started on the Acura ****-nav system either....

Uh so for about the same money I thought the SHO was a lot better car. I also considered a VW GTI but my wife (and everyone else I know) said VW break down too much to consider buying. And so here I am, proud SHO owner.

 

[mjhpadi]

Here's my 2 cents...When I first saw the new SHO I liked the look and loved the new twin turbo engine and all the goodies. I really wanted to get a GT500, but my wife said NO! I checked out the Taurus and it was the only car I considered. I came from driving an F-150 and a Lincoln Mark LT since 98. I liked having the trucks and was happy, but with bad knees, it was getting harder and harder to get in and out of a 4WD truck.
Only considered the Taurus, although the Mustangs kept calling me every time I was shopping. Never considered another brand other then a Ford product. My father and uncles were all Ford guys, so when I started driving nothing ever entered my thought process. I have owned other makes, but I keep coming back to Ford. I really think it is in my DNA and my respect for my father, hopefully I can pass the family tradition of love of Ford on to my son.

 

[freqz]

I grew up in a Ford family but I did drive a '97 A4 for 8 years (man I loved that car). I've considered pretty much everything from ~30k to ~60k and I'm 99% settled on the SHO. I test drove the BMW 3, 5, and Z4. The 3 was priced OK but is really a pretty small car. The 5 is great...for $55k lightly equipped and the specter of ginourmous mx bills down the way. The Z4 is awesome but just doesn't accommodate me with 2 small boys-- it's just not practical enough.

I like the MINI Countryman but I haven't driven one (Service would be an issue since I live 2 hours from the nearest dealer).

Hyundai? HAHAHAHA...No. Nissan/Toyota/Honda (and associated Lux brands)? Meh. Chevy? Never...I hate their interior finishes. Chrysler? Boring.

What about other Fomoco products? I'd love, love, love, love, love to have one of the new Mustangs but need something a little more restrained to keep up the professional image. F150? Got one and I'm keeping it. Explorer? They cost as much as a dang SHO and don't look to be near as much fun. Lincoln MKZ? Too small, didn't care for the seats. Lincoln MKS? Too soft on the exterior. Fusion? Just not my bag, I guess (If they put the 3.5 EB in there however...) Additionaly, I live in TX and won't ever have a black interior again if I don't have cooled seats-- the fusion only offers leather in black.

I have to consider the Partner Plan deal pricing I get through the company too. Where else can I get a full size, AWD, 365 hp sedan that gets 25 mpg on the highway for under $40k? Is the SHO perfect? No. I'd like a nicer interior but the Tuarus' is more that adequate. I'd like it to weigh less and have better brakes. I'd prefer a stick and RWD but just because I'm a little bit crazy like that.

 

[Stampman67]

Yea I promised myself I would never buy a new design auto let alone one with a new design motor but the SHO just had a great fun factor. Great car so far and tons of power. I did take a look at an SRT8 Challenger and a R/T Charger just for a few hours. I needed AWD with where I live and the Dodge was nothing to special. Never did look at Buick LaCrosse. I also never considered an Audi just because of the price tag.

 

[PonySHO]

My father worked for Ford so it's in my blood. I never even considered looking at another.

 

[wchain]

I have owned large cars all my life, Panthers (Crown Vics, Marauders, Towncars), W126 Mercedes, 7 Series BMWs (E38) etc. When the SHO came out, I was driving AWD Five Hundred for a daily driver. I had bought this hastily to replace a 22 year old Mercedes that had turned 300,000 miles and was starting to have transmission issues. I liked the D3 Chassis and the amount of room that the Five Hundred had, but the power was a little lacking.

I was actually shopping used 300C SRT8s, Base G8 GTs, and the 4.6L Genesis. I drove a few SRT8s and liked them, but the 12mpg was scaring me away for a daily driver. The G8 GT was nice, but I felt that the switchgear/interior stuff was not near as nice as the 300C or even my Five Hundred. The red lighting was not liked either. I shied away from the SHO because it was far above budget than anything else I had in mind, but once I drove it, I knew that was the one. I ordered in Oct 2009 and it showed up Feb 2010. Went into the shop 3 times, the third time I never got it back. Replaced with a 2011 SHO. No problems to date!