Author Topic: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO  (Read 9717 times)

mdsalemi

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New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« on: August 29, 2009, 14:49:20 »
Imagine my surprise, when in the pouring rain last night my wife's new car came home with her.  That would be the 2010 Taurus SHO.  We knew it was coming soon--having pried it loose from the Chicago assembly plant through a friend in manufacturing and process engineering, but didn't know it was coming yesterday.

Due to the inclement weather, we have not had much of a chance to give it a go, but go it does.  The twin turbo direct injection V6 makes 365 HP and 350 ft-lb of torque through AWD (heaven help us if it went through FWD only!).  It's a docile driver, unlike many high-performing cars--it showed no tendency for wild acceleration; wild acceleration is like the 5.0L V8 Mustang I drove once, and w/o intent squealed the tires and broke loose the rear axle when simply trying to accelerate.  We had several other SHO's in all three versions many years ago, so this one was anxiously anticipated.  I've come to find there are as many Taurus SHO clubs as there are Mercedes clubs, seemingly...

Very new to us is this manumatic paddle shifting transmission--for those who must control the shifting.  There's a spot on the tranmission shifter called M for manual, and then two paddles on the steering wheel.  Tranny is 6-speed.  Just for fun we'll have to shift it one day, if only to learn more about it.  The first SHO's we had were only manuals, as there was no automatic capable of handling the then large amount of torque in a FWD car.  The last SHO we had was an automatic.

And yes, my wife is the first kid on the block with one...
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
2024 Ford Mustang Mach Ex PEV

Peter van Es

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Re: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« Reply #1 on: August 29, 2009, 16:07:49 »
Congrats... now we expect a Top Gear Style video review.... ahhhh, no. Pagoda Style takes priority!

Peter
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Dash808

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Re: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« Reply #2 on: August 29, 2009, 21:00:14 »
Congrats Michael on your new twin turbo toy.  The Gen1 SHO's were pretty sporty for its time.  I'm glad Ford brought it back and made it right. 
Now if they would only follow through with the Gen3 F-150 Lightning...   
Chan Johnson
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Naj ✝︎

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Re: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« Reply #3 on: August 29, 2009, 23:01:45 »
SHO= ???

naj  :(
68 280SL

Dash808

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Chan Johnson
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Peter van Es

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Re: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« Reply #5 on: August 30, 2009, 09:12:04 »
"Seriously Hung Over"
"Seemingly Harmless Overdrive"
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mdsalemi

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Re: New Car Joins the 113: 2010 Taurus SHO
« Reply #6 on: August 31, 2009, 17:51:47 »
Well just put about 450 miles on it this weekend.  Docile, indeed, until you punch it.  My friend the Ford process engineer explains it this way: under normal driving conditions, there is no boost and you are not getting 365 HP nor all the torque.  Punch it however, and then the twin turbos kick in, and you have a very different animal.  And, the twin turbos are so you get the specified boost without lag--the boost comes quickly.

Neat new feature: the blind spot detector.  Works exceedingly well.  Useless feature: the paddle shifters; didn't take but one use to figure out that.  The tranny shifts better then a human ever will for most on-road (as opposed to on-track or competitive) conditions, but I guess it was added for those who must shift.  My wife says, w/o the clutch pedal, the "theater" is gone.

28+ MPG at 60; combined mileage for the trip about 26.5.  That's a mix of highway (80%)  at about 75 MPH, and some 55 MPH 2-lane.  At 60 mph its snoozing at about 1700 RPM.  The trunk is so big it has its own zip code.  SYNC works well as usual--our 3rd car with it.  NAV system much improved over the 2009 Ford models.  Standard sound system is by Sony.  Very good, but "not as good as the THX in my Lincoln" says she who must be obeyed.

Kind of funny that a stock small sedan (Camry, Accord, Fusion, et al) today come with more power than the SHO V1.  Don't know if the Lightning F150 will return but we all loved the days of the SVT (special vehicle team) that dreamed up things like the SHO, the Contour SVT, Mustang SVT, Lightning F150 etc.  Yes, the SVT was a team of real people in Dearborn, not just a nameplate on the back of a car or truck.

More later as we get used to it.  We'll only have it for a year.
« Last Edit: September 01, 2009, 13:59:53 by mdsalemi »
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
2024 Ford Mustang Mach Ex PEV