2008 Ford Taurus X Review - Autoblog (2023)

Click on the Taurus X to see a high-resolution gallery of the latest Ford CUV

Before the Honda Accord and after the Toyota Camry topped the sales charts, the Ford Taurus was the best-selling car in the United States. In the final years of its life, the Taurus became the darling of daily rental fleets, with most of its still amazing sales going there rather than to retail customers like its competitors. That also meant, in part, that the Taurus' residual values ​​were the lowest in its class. As the Taurus era came to an end, Ford decided to take a clean break and split the previous sedan/estate lineup into three different vehicles with new names. Thus was born the smaller, more affordable Fusion sedan, the larger Five Hundred sedan and the Freestyle crossover station wagon. The latter two never made much of an impact on the market, mostly thanks to the bland design and underpowered engines.

Shortly after launch, it was known that the Five Hundred and Freestyle would be quickly redesigned with Ford's new three-bar grille and a larger engine. New CEO Alan shortly before his debut at the Chicago Auto Show in FebruaryMullalymade the decision to revive the Taurus nameplate for the revised models, and the Freestyle became the newTouro X. Just a week after production began at the Chicago plant, the serial number 70 Taurus X, a Limited AWD model featuring the new 3.5-liter V6 and six-speed automatic transmission, was handed over to Autoblog for a week's evaluation.

Discover what it's like to live with the Taurus X after the jump

The move from the Freestyle to the Taurus X involved more than just fitting a new grille and taillights, although that's the look that most passers-by will immediately notice. And watch what they did. People stopped to look at the big boxcar in the Whole Foods parking lot and asked what it was. The new chrome face completely changed the character of the Freestyle and gave it a little more. The Taurus X's angular overall appearance is more akin to a traditional station wagon than an SUV, which is fitting given that it's based on the earlier Volvo S80 platform. The Taurus I drove had the Titan Green paintwork stripped from the two-tone paintwork that was prevalent on the previous model to give it the SUV look popularized by the Subaru Outback. Two shades are still available, but in my eyes the single color is a prettier, more sophisticated look. The Saturn Outlook still looks more modern and sleek overall, but the Taurus is finally showing the face it should have had from day one.

Inside, the style is heirloom, but that's okay because the design is both attractive and functional. The plastic wood trim has been changed to simulate a different style of wood, but it's still plastic. If you're not using real tree parts, don't worry. There's plenty of storage throughout the interior, including deep, wide pockets on all four door panels with molded-in standard Ford cup holders. Cup holders on the door hold a pint of your favorite beverage. A decent compartment in the dash above the center stack can hold the usual assortment of electronic toys, including iPods, phones and other miscellaneous gear. A ceiling mounted console has a compartment suitable for window or garage door openers. The first and second rows have a center console with a deep bin that easily holds all kinds of cameras, DVDs, books, and other trash. The front console has air-conditioning vents for the second-row rear passengers in addition to the roof vents.

The standard seating configuration seats seven passengers in a two-three-two arrangement, although the test unit has the six-seat configuration with the console in the second row. Getting into the back row is relatively easy thanks to the one-touch flip-and-fold second-row seats. The raised rear roof allows for theater-style seating, with the third row raised to allow rear passengers to see ahead. The third row seatbacks are fairly short and more suited to young people, although headroom was ample for my 5'10" frame. The seats in the middle row offer a lot of space and can be reclined forwards and backwards.

The front seats proved comfortable for a shot from Ann Arbor to Muskegon to rescue our young camper, although like the Escape, the lower seat cushions were a bit too short to provide thigh support. Many vehicles, including the Taurus X, offer heated front seats. In the X, the second-row seats are also heated, and perforated center panels in the front two rows add some ventilation on hot days.

The interior of the Taurus X offers multiple configuration options, allowing drivers to take advantage of the CUV's middle name. The third row seats can individually fold forward to leave a deep trunk at the rear, or fold back into the trunk to create a flat cargo area for heavier loads. The backrests of the second row and front seats also move forward, allowing objects up to three meters long to be transported on one side and room for three people. Access to the cargo area is easy thanks to the remote controlled tailgate. Unlike Outlook, the tailgate always opens and closes with a double tap on the key button.

Our Taurus X came with every option except for the sunroof, including navigation system and family entertainment system in the rear seats. This last option includes a ceiling-mounted DVD player with a retractable screen and AUX inputs. Although the manual specifically states that the player is DVD-r/DVD-rwDiscs, the review unit couldn't read any of the half-dozen burned discs I tried, but it played all commercial discs with no problems. Despite the MPAA's aversion to consumer rights, it seems perfectly logical to back up a DVD on a road trip and leave the original at home, especially when the children in the background are the ones actually carrying the discs. The entertainment system has AUX inputs that allow you to connect a video iPod or game console and play it on screen. Given the problems playing burned discs, the $1,000 price might be better spent on a dual-screen portable DVD player and a pair of iPod Nanos for the kids. After all, the portable player usually plays pre-recorded discs and you can take it with you on the plane if necessary.

Driving the Taurus X was actually a more enjoyable experience than the Saturn Outlook we recently tried. It's amazing what a difference £800 makes on a vehicle. While the Taurus isn't nimble at 4,200 pounds, it certainly didn't have the Outlook's heavy feel. The Taurus is similar in length but narrower and not as tall as the GM crossover and definitely has more car-like ride and handling characteristics. When equipped with the towing package, the Taurus can tow 2,000 pounds compared to the Outlook's 3,500 and has a maximum seating capacity that's also one less.

The new 3.5 liter engine is a huge improvement over the old 3.0 liter engine in both the Taurus sedan and station wagon. It looks much stronger and never seems to fight. Stepping on the accelerator brings effortless acceleration, and pulling to pass triggers quick, smooth downshifts from the new six-speed replacing the discontinued CVT. This carryover was a joint effort between Ford and GM, and it also finds a home in GM's Lambda crossovers. Unlike the GM app, Ford doesn't offer a manual shift mode, but honestly it's not needed in a vehicle like this. Steering effort is well weighted but largely non-reactive. Accelerating onto freeway ramps showed slight but persistent understeer, but merging into traffic wasn't an issue.

The suspension does a good job of keeping Michigan roads in check without feeling muddy, a trait that unfortunately doesn't apply to the brake pedal most of the time. Under normal braking, the Taurus stops provide good deceleration, but the pedal feels spongy. Stepping on it at a red light usually gives you a sinking feeling. There were at least two exceptions to this in testing, when stepping on the brakes resulted in hard pedaling, which was pretty disconcerting. A few lane changes on gravel roads showed smooth and continuous operation of the stability control system. Unlike the Toyota Tundra, the Taurus system doesn't shake the steering wheel in your hands or make unnecessary noise, it just feels like a big hand guiding the vehicle where you want it to go.

Much of Ford's engineering effort on the 2008 Taurus and Taurus X has gone into NVH improvements with many fine tunings. The upper surfaces of the door mirrors were sculpted to reduce drag and wind noise, and the change worked. On the road, the Taurus X was pretty quiet - not exactly Lexus quiet, but a lot better than the Freestyle. Wind noise was almost non-existent and sounds from the engine bay were muffled and never felt strained. A full day round trip around Michigan proved to be an effortless run, with plenty of room for four to stretch out and nobody felt cramped or particularly moody by the end.

A week of mixed highway and city driving gave a fuel economy of 18.7mpg and the long highway drive brought that overall average to 19.3. The Taurus X is a good family truck for those who don't like minivans and don't need to do serious towing duties. If you need eight-body capacity or a heavier towing capacity, you'll need to look elsewhere, like the various Expedition or GM options. With options for the test vehicle, the final price is $37,682, although the base front-wheel drive SEL model starts at $26,615.

Alle Fotos ©2007 Sam Abuelsamid/ Weblogs, Inc.