The Ford Taurus once held the title of “America’s favorite car” for five consecutive years — beating out the likes of the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord — but the current model is now languishing on dealers’ lots and has little to do with the spirit of the original 1986 car — including an SHO performance model. But an all-new Taurus is slated to bow for the 2010 model year — “the one [Ford] should have made originally”, according to Ford CEO Alan Mullaly — and it looks like the SHO trim level could be part of the equation.
According to a post of V8SHO.com, Ford recently conducted a focus group in the Chicago area with SHO enthusiast to discuss what a modern day SHO should be. While no drawings or prototypes were shown, Ford spent over two hours picking the brains of those who know the performance Taurus the best.
While the focus group seemed to pretty much be a one-way conversation, the group laid out what makes a SHO a SHO. The overall consensus was that an all-new SHO would need to be stealthy but still pack some serious performance. More emphasis was placed on handling than straight-liner performance, although a supercharged 5.4L V8 was thrown into the discussion. However, most agreed that a turbocharged V6 putting out between 280 and 300 horsepower would probably provide enough gusto.
Drivetrain was also discussed, with the majority of the enthusiasts putting in their votes for rear or all-wheel drive, but there was also a small faction for front-wheel drive if it would save on cost. As expected, most of the enthusiasts said a new SHO should offer a manual transmission, but a very well-sorted automatic with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters also seemed to please the group.
While the focus group proves that Ford is at least considering a SHO variant of the next Taurus, it’s still a far cry from a production guarantee. But with some of the ideas that were flying around, it sounds like the next-generation SHO would be a great car. Here’s to hoping.
