 2010 Ford Taurus. Click image to enlarge |
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2010 Ford Taurus
Asheville, North Carolina – Arriving in dealer showrooms a year earlier than originally planned, the 2010 Ford Taurus is expected this summer, starting at $29,999 for the base SE model (that’s a $1,000 price drop compared with the outgoing model). It’s been a somewhat circuitous route for the Taurus of late, a model that was discontinued in 2005, and replaced with the unsuccessful Five Hundred and Freestyle. Those vehicles were subsequently modified and renamed Taurus/Taurus X in 2008 with the Taurus X retiring shortly thereafter.
The 2010 Taurus is a considerable advancement over the previous model; a reinvention, if you will. It builds on the established Taurus platform (the D3 platform, originally the foundation for the Volvo S80/XC90, the next generation of which is the foundation for the Ford Flex and Lincoln MKX crossovers), but with improvements and enhancements including Ford’s new SR1 suspension, shared with the Lincoln MKS. Its role is now cast as Ford’s flagship large sedan (arguably the car the Five Hundred should have been in the first place).
Retired, replaced, rescued, revived and reinvented, this is an important car for Ford as it becomes more of a car company, and less dependant on large trucks and SUVs.
  2010 Ford Taurus. Click image to enlarge |
Available in SE, SEL, Limited and SHO versions, the 2010 Taurus is a fully realized and thoroughly commanding vehicle. The SE is a front-wheel drive (FWD) model, the SEL can be purchased in FWD ($32,999) or all-wheel drive (AWD) for $34,799. The $40,699 Limited and $48,199 SHO are AWD only.
The two main areas of discontent with the Five Hundred were power and styling. Ford addressed the issue of power when it revived the Taurus nameplate by fitting the car with its 3.5-litre Duratec V6 engine that makes 263-horsepower at 6,250 r.p.m. and 249 pound-feet of torque at 4,500 rpm. That engine also powers the 2010 Taurus, but is now mated to a six-speed automatic transmission with a manual mode that’s operated by steering-wheel mounted paddle shifters (SE trim isn’t equipped with the paddle shifters, however).
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at 6:28 am
Wow, just wow. Compared to the original 500, which I own, it’s in a whole different league. Anyone else think it looks like the Accord?
at 6:45 am
No does not remind of the Accord, which I find quite nasty looking.
This Taurus besides appearing quite huge in pictures looks very nice.
Interesting how different the dash design if equipped with Nav and without.
The only design element I do not like (in picture form) is that the dash is so in your face big, moreso from the passengers seat. From the drivers seat it looks like a nice cockpit.
Would be nice to some pics of the base with 17″ wheels and how the cloth seat material is.
On the FordCanada.ca build you Taurus site, the interior colour choices are still underwhelming.
Hope Ford N.A. continues this more premium type styling, up to date feature offerings through it car line up, eg: Fiesta and up.
I think its Ford N.A. time to stop being the cheaper choice or settle for brand.
And this Taurus seems a step in the right direction.
at 7:29 am
2008 ford taurus will it accept 20″ wheels
at 7:30 am
Would love to buy a ford ….I love the styling …BUT Its a pig ( the weight rivals the Queen Mary) AND the Taurus had a wonky transmission … which they NEVER re engineered to fix!! I’ll wait …sorry
at 7:49 am
Great job, Ford. Now, where’s the wagon that’s going to lure me away from an Audi, VW or Volvo?
Don’t give me none of that “crossover” nonsense.
at 7:50 am
what the ford company doing to repair breakdown of seating cushion on driver side seat. had same problem with other fords from 1998 on. own 3008 ford taurus limited awd loaded. ford dealership york ford saugus,ma 02153(USA) gave me this stupid advice wait till your 3 year 36 thoysand mile warranty is ready to expire then bring car in. YA RIGHT i went this road many times with ford, then when repair is not working they say SORRY your warranty has now expired.HELP
at 7:55 am
Looks really nice. Wouldn’t mind to drive one.
It’s a pig, off course it is, look at the car and the weight. It’s not a racing car. Stay focused.
at 8:11 am
I would love to drive one. This car looks big enough to get us out of our SUV.
at 8:17 am
Now if they were to build a wagon version, this would be a truly nice car. As is, it looks like a Passat will remain the sensible choice. As someone who loved the styling of the original Ford 500, I always resented the fact that they uglycized and crossoverized the wagon version. Ah well. Americans…
at 8:18 am
So they spent their time and energy designing and building a car with a small and shrinking audience!
A large and in-efficient car is Ford’s latest product when the trend is small, technology and hybrid.
Meanwhile Toyota just released its latest Prius which uses solar panels to cool itself while parked and is available with a system which allows the car to park itself!
It’s like the Flintstones competing with the Jetsons!
at 8:20 am
The Taurus and the Fusion are certainly reestablishing Ford as the Asian Fighter. I have NEVER been a Ford fan, but these offerings have so quickly changed my mind about Ford I’m convinced I’d buy one. You don’t know how significant of a personal statement that is for me. Now if Ford could just build a Focus that would compete. The present Focus doesn’t. Period. Ford needs a small car if they are going to stay in the game.
at 8:39 am
FWIW, one of the blogs tested it and got US 16mpg combined…
at 8:50 am
Shape: “Stoge” is right, from the side it reminds me of the Accord. The skinny/narrow front head lights remind me of Acura and the chrome bar stretching from one tail light to the other reminds me of Chrysler Siebring.
Shape aside, let’s talk business strategy. “Retired, replaced, rescued, revived and reinvented” is not very assuring to a prospective buyer. Every new car article talks about improvement over the previous version to describe the greatness of the new version. That is totally wrong way to look at a new car. That mentality has lead to the failure of the big-three; trying to build a better car than the previous generation car. The times require out-of-box thinking and effort should be spent on building a desirable car which is revolutionary and not evolutionary because when you hit rock bottom any evolution would be an improvement.
The way I look at it is when a buyer is looking to spend 30 – 50 grand what else is out there in that price range. I will head straight to the Hyundai dealership and buy a Genesis sedan! So did Ford change my opinion about buying American with this car? The answer is a profound NO.
at 9:20 am
I got an Accord vibe too, especially at the front which evokes the 1998-2002 Accord’s front fascia. Nothing bad though. The Taurus is a great car. All it needs is a good marketing scheme to go with it.
at 9:41 am
According to this article, the Toyota Avalon is a competitor?
Really? I’d say the more realistic comparison for an Avalon buyer might be a Lincoln. Or, in the case of this particular Taurus, maybe the Toyota Camry.
Anyway, this Taurus looks great. But given the spaciousness and generally attractive redesign of the less expensive Fusion, I wonder who exactly would buy this car, aside from police forces and taxi companies?
I also agree with an earlier poster: Ford needs to modernize and add some value to the Focus if it wants to stay in the game.
at 9:46 am
Front end has a bit of the Camry and a bit of an Acura look to it. The rear is original, but nothing really exciting.
It looks bloated for some reason. I read on a different site the 3.5 averaged 17MPG in real life. That’s more like a truck mileage.
Overall, it’s a much nicer design than the 09 model, but if I was shopping Ford, the Fusion might be a better value.
at 10:29 am
would like to see the push button start available on both the focus & fusion as well
at 12:35 pm
The weight of this bloated pig is not mentioned in this review but others have quoted 4368 pounds!!!!. No wonder the fuel economy is bad, ford has missed the mark again. No hope for the big, fat, overweight, three.
at 1:56 pm
This car is likely better than the Audi A4 or A6, competing in the luxo-cruiser category, but unfortunately, without the 4-interlocking rings, the Euro-snob isn’t going to cross-shop for this Ford.
I would be interested in a sporty sedan from Ford, to compete with the 3-series and G37’s out there. The sporty crowd seems more willing to cross-shop, and even the CTS is fair game.
at 9:34 pm
“Canadians are likely to be more interested in the upcoming Fiesta subcompact or the global-platform Focus than the new Taurus”
This is the article’s conclusion? Well, the Taurus is BIG, the Fiesta is…small. Ford will sell a lot more Fiestas, of course, as the average Canadian can’t afford the Taurus’ price and upkeep.
It’s not a matter of interest, but of means. I am realllllly interested in a BMW 330xi, except for the little detail of cost.
at 12:01 am
Very nice looking car! I love the new grill and also the stretched body. But, here are the potential problems: 1-The price is a bit too high, it should be 4-5K less, 2-The side windows are too small, many people wouldn’t like little windows, specially kids sitting in the back, 3-I am not sure, how good the rear visibily is!?
at 4:57 am
Talk about disguising an advertisement as a review for an automobile. A few days ago, all three Canadian Driver stories were about Ford vehicles and look to your right you we see nothing but Ford banner ads.
That being said, nice looking car, this Taurus, except for fugly ‘Lincolnesque’ rear end. The MKZ has one of the ugliest most tackies rear brake light treatments I have ever seen.
at 8:59 am
I kinda like it…now, would it buy it, probably not unless fuel prices come down to the 40cents/liter they used to be
Over being the tech geek, i wouldnt mind leasing something like this for 2-3 years.
at 9:44 am
PROS: Front styling, nice wheels, nice interior for Ford
CONS: Outward visibility,real life MPG (almost truck like at 17MPG), overweight, pricey.
at 11:24 am
$30k for a base model?! Who do they expect will buy this thing? As good as Ford has been lately I doubt many people would pass up a Camry or Accord for one of these – its not that much bigger for people not even to consider them IMO. The only people I see buying these are the 50+ crowd that seem to like the big sedans – the people they should be targeting are the 30 somethings that grew up with the original Taurus.
at 9:31 am
The Toyota Camry V6 has 268HP and gets 27MPG (US) combined and this gets 17MPG? Is Ford engineering going backwards? You would thing they would be able to design a better vehicle than this 4300+ pound behemoth. Sure it looks good but it isn’t competitive. The Fusion, if you are looking for a Ford, makes more sense unless you need a tank.
at 8:25 am
What might hurt the new Taurus success the most is simply the name Taurus. They were right to retire the name but not to bring it back.
at 9:28 pm
Expensive plus poor gas mileage = FAIL
Never mind that every car made with the ‘Taurus’ name has been a complete piece of crap. the smart thing to do would be to fire ALL the American designers and just build European and Australian cars in North America.
at 11:31 am
This car is destined to the rental fleets.
at 2:53 pm
Don’t know why Ford came out with the Fusion & Taurus so close together. Personally I’d pick the Fusion for it’s smaller size and price tag.