A fellow poster on another forum (an Audi board) asked me what i thought about my SHO and thought I would share my review.
2011 Taurus SHO w/options
Platinum White
Current Mileage: 5,013
AWD Ecoboost 6
Lease Price Paid New: $41k
Here's what I hope is an unbiased review. I will save my reasons for leasing this vehicle to the end.
Design: 8.
Subjective of course. I really like the exterior with the only issue I have being the decision to use different upper and lower grill styles. The high belt line does create some blind spots and the view out the rear is poor. However, with a backup camera and blind spot warning system, these faults are negated for me. Compared to my FJ Cruiser, the visibility is fantastic. Exterior panel gap is okay at best. Having no fuel cap is a nice touch.
Interior: 7.
Drop that rating a couple of points if you hate fake carbon fiber, but I don't look at it like carbon fiber, instead just a nice metallic pattern. The instrument cluster and controls are both intuitive and easy to use with nice switchgear. The seats could use some more lateral support but are very comfortable with both heating and cooling functions. Rear seats are equally comfortable and heated as well. There is a folding armrest with cup holders which is nice but no ski pass through which is a big no no to me. The seats split fold down 50/50. The center console could be done better but it does provide 3 cup holders, a USB and auxiliary port plus a power port. The dash material is soft but some of the decorative bits n the door are hard plastic and too fake. The ambient lighting is also a bit cheesy.
Trunk: 9.
Love it. 20 cubic feet of dead body storage. 6 more than an A8. Only complaint is the lack of a uniform flat floor.
Electronics: 9.
The Ford Sync system has been flawless for me. iPhone integration was a breeze, handsfree dialing and voice command nav is terrific. Bluetooth streaming audio is cool. The nav/control screen is a bright LCD similar to the S4 I test drove but still has redundant buttons on the dash. Adaptive cruise control (great for long highway trips), blind Spot warning system, Collision warning system, backup camera and the other doo-dads are just fantastic. In addition to the backup camera and sensors, it has additional sensors that "look" horizontally up to five cars away to warn you if a car is coming as you back out (if you are between two large vehicles). The rain sensing wipers and auto dim on the high beams do not work well so I turned them off.
Transmission: 5.
Meh. And that's being generous. It has paddle shifters, but why bother, gear changes take far too long. Even in the regular drive mode when backing out of my driveway, the shift from reverse to drive takes a noticeable second or two to engage. WTF? Only happens in the morning when I back out. <shrugs>
AWD: 6.
Not bad. Not great. Comes in third behind my past Audi and Subaru. Front drive bias is really noticeable. But with the Blizzaks, I had no problem driving through 15" of unplowed snow. Just did not give me the sense of confidence of Quattro which is clearly a MUCH better system.
Driving. 8.
This is not a performance number. But an every day, daily driving, kid hauling, client hauling, home depot'ing, over the river and through the woods to grandmas house 6 hours away kind of rating. The car is very well suited to all of these things. Extremely quiet, solid ride. Smooth is a word that passengers frequently use. The cabin is very pleasant and even though the car weighs two tons (and feels it) it is very responsive and handles a variety of road conditions fine.
Performance. 7.
This car is quick. 365hp twin turbo will send this car to 60 in about 5.2 which is sleeper quick. Minimal badging will let you surprise quite few people at the light. However it is not as Jeremy Clarkson says "Proper Quick". You get the sense like a lot of American cars that they slapped a bigger engine in the Limited edition of the Taurus and were done. The brakes are weak, quick starts result in torque steer from the front drive bias, and as I mentioned the shifts are not great. However, there is torque EVERYWHERE. Regardless of rpm, you step on the gas and you surge ahead. Reminds me a little of my former c5 Z06 in that way. Oh and the sound of the exhaust? Turn down the radio so you can hear it. Weak. Overall the car really moves and is very settled at speed, but with the weight and the brakes I tend not to think of it as a canyon carver. I have the 911 turbo for that <evil grin>.
Overall Impression: 7.5
I am very happy with this car coming out of an FJ Cruiser. With the FJ, getting the kids out of the back with suicide doors was a pain. Poor gas mileage, poor visibility and no longer needed an offroad vehicle. The Taurus is roomy, understated, great for hauling kids and gear and averages 21mpg. It is great for long trips and is a pleasure to drive. I think the quality is the best its been in an American car in a long time, but it does not have that je ne sais quoi of a German sedan. Quite frankly I think the Limited version of the Taurus feels like a more complete package with the SHO being a bigger engine and bolt ons slapped into a limited. Not as purpose built as say an M3. I would have gotten the SHO but believe it or not, the residuals are such that leasing the SHO was cheaper.
So why not an Audi?
Three reasons. One, the closest dealership is an hour a way and service would be a pain on a new car (I am leasing this for my business which is why I went new). Two, nothing Audi has can match the feature set of the Ford at that price point. And AFAIK some of the features on the Taurus are not even offered on the Audi. The Ford is A8 Size/Features at A4 prices basically. Three, my business deals with a lot of non-profits and I wanted an understated non-blingy brand.
In Summary:
The American cars are getting much better. If you are looking for a large and understated AWD American sedan, you only have two choices - The Taurus and the Charger and I think the Taurus is the better looking and featured car. I think there is still a lot of room for improvement but this is a nice sleeper and I am happy.
All of this is just IMHO of course.
2011 Taurus SHO w/options
Platinum White
Current Mileage: 5,013
AWD Ecoboost 6
Lease Price Paid New: $41k
Here's what I hope is an unbiased review. I will save my reasons for leasing this vehicle to the end.
Design: 8.
Subjective of course. I really like the exterior with the only issue I have being the decision to use different upper and lower grill styles. The high belt line does create some blind spots and the view out the rear is poor. However, with a backup camera and blind spot warning system, these faults are negated for me. Compared to my FJ Cruiser, the visibility is fantastic. Exterior panel gap is okay at best. Having no fuel cap is a nice touch.
Interior: 7.
Drop that rating a couple of points if you hate fake carbon fiber, but I don't look at it like carbon fiber, instead just a nice metallic pattern. The instrument cluster and controls are both intuitive and easy to use with nice switchgear. The seats could use some more lateral support but are very comfortable with both heating and cooling functions. Rear seats are equally comfortable and heated as well. There is a folding armrest with cup holders which is nice but no ski pass through which is a big no no to me. The seats split fold down 50/50. The center console could be done better but it does provide 3 cup holders, a USB and auxiliary port plus a power port. The dash material is soft but some of the decorative bits n the door are hard plastic and too fake. The ambient lighting is also a bit cheesy.
Trunk: 9.
Love it. 20 cubic feet of dead body storage. 6 more than an A8. Only complaint is the lack of a uniform flat floor.
Electronics: 9.
The Ford Sync system has been flawless for me. iPhone integration was a breeze, handsfree dialing and voice command nav is terrific. Bluetooth streaming audio is cool. The nav/control screen is a bright LCD similar to the S4 I test drove but still has redundant buttons on the dash. Adaptive cruise control (great for long highway trips), blind Spot warning system, Collision warning system, backup camera and the other doo-dads are just fantastic. In addition to the backup camera and sensors, it has additional sensors that "look" horizontally up to five cars away to warn you if a car is coming as you back out (if you are between two large vehicles). The rain sensing wipers and auto dim on the high beams do not work well so I turned them off.
Transmission: 5.
Meh. And that's being generous. It has paddle shifters, but why bother, gear changes take far too long. Even in the regular drive mode when backing out of my driveway, the shift from reverse to drive takes a noticeable second or two to engage. WTF? Only happens in the morning when I back out. <shrugs>
AWD: 6.
Not bad. Not great. Comes in third behind my past Audi and Subaru. Front drive bias is really noticeable. But with the Blizzaks, I had no problem driving through 15" of unplowed snow. Just did not give me the sense of confidence of Quattro which is clearly a MUCH better system.
Driving. 8.
This is not a performance number. But an every day, daily driving, kid hauling, client hauling, home depot'ing, over the river and through the woods to grandmas house 6 hours away kind of rating. The car is very well suited to all of these things. Extremely quiet, solid ride. Smooth is a word that passengers frequently use. The cabin is very pleasant and even though the car weighs two tons (and feels it) it is very responsive and handles a variety of road conditions fine.
Performance. 7.
This car is quick. 365hp twin turbo will send this car to 60 in about 5.2 which is sleeper quick. Minimal badging will let you surprise quite few people at the light. However it is not as Jeremy Clarkson says "Proper Quick". You get the sense like a lot of American cars that they slapped a bigger engine in the Limited edition of the Taurus and were done. The brakes are weak, quick starts result in torque steer from the front drive bias, and as I mentioned the shifts are not great. However, there is torque EVERYWHERE. Regardless of rpm, you step on the gas and you surge ahead. Reminds me a little of my former c5 Z06 in that way. Oh and the sound of the exhaust? Turn down the radio so you can hear it. Weak. Overall the car really moves and is very settled at speed, but with the weight and the brakes I tend not to think of it as a canyon carver. I have the 911 turbo for that <evil grin>.
Overall Impression: 7.5
I am very happy with this car coming out of an FJ Cruiser. With the FJ, getting the kids out of the back with suicide doors was a pain. Poor gas mileage, poor visibility and no longer needed an offroad vehicle. The Taurus is roomy, understated, great for hauling kids and gear and averages 21mpg. It is great for long trips and is a pleasure to drive. I think the quality is the best its been in an American car in a long time, but it does not have that je ne sais quoi of a German sedan. Quite frankly I think the Limited version of the Taurus feels like a more complete package with the SHO being a bigger engine and bolt ons slapped into a limited. Not as purpose built as say an M3. I would have gotten the SHO but believe it or not, the residuals are such that leasing the SHO was cheaper.
So why not an Audi?
Three reasons. One, the closest dealership is an hour a way and service would be a pain on a new car (I am leasing this for my business which is why I went new). Two, nothing Audi has can match the feature set of the Ford at that price point. And AFAIK some of the features on the Taurus are not even offered on the Audi. The Ford is A8 Size/Features at A4 prices basically. Three, my business deals with a lot of non-profits and I wanted an understated non-blingy brand.
In Summary:
The American cars are getting much better. If you are looking for a large and understated AWD American sedan, you only have two choices - The Taurus and the Charger and I think the Taurus is the better looking and featured car. I think there is still a lot of room for improvement but this is a nice sleeper and I am happy.
All of this is just IMHO of course.
I suspect you were thinking that there's a way to deactivate rain sensing and default to timed intermittent settings. No such case.
