Click above for gallery of more modern Taurus SHO renderings
Being an avid Super High Output fan, any news of a Taurus SHO return gets my imagination going. Should it be FWD, AWD, or RWD? V8-powered or have a twin-turbo V6 underhood? Should it be light and handle well or compensate for its mass with awesome amounts of power? I ask these questions to myself, but last Monday a group of 11 Chicago area SHO fanatics were asked those same questions by members of the Taurus program from Ford.
As told by Don Mallinson on V8Sho.com, the story goes that this band of brothers participated in a focus group and had their brains picked for an evening about what makes a SHO a SHO, and if the much missed name were to be resurrected, what should the car be like today? Mallinson is clear that he and the focus group participants did not see a prototype, sketches of a prototype, or anything else that would confirm development is well on its way. The experience was pretty much a one-way street of questions, but these 11 people may have influenced Ford's decision to bring back the SHO and, if so, in what way. Such an awesome responsibility, I probably couldn't handle it.
[Source: V8SHO.com via Jalopnik]
Your tax dollars at work, border guards hold up traffic to check out Challenger
From the Awesome Files: V6 Miata auto-x weapon
VW Rabbit gets a carrot from Consumer Reports
Is Hyundai targeting Texas for a new manufacturing plant?
Spy Shots: Opel Insignia five-door hatch caught
_thumbnail.jpg "Lamborghini Reventon unboxed in Las Vegas")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
LMBVette @ May 7th 2008 1:37PM
I dig the Mercury Marauder wheels and blacked out grille of the 'chop.
I hope they bring back the SHO, I was always a fan.
MemphisNET @ May 7th 2008 1:39PM
Agreed to the Marauder styling.
RWD, V8 or Turbo 6, 300HP min.
Tool @ May 7th 2008 2:15PM
Doing a Taurus SHO now would serve as a good halo car for Ford, but probably wouldn't result in a lot of sales.
There is always an audience who is into performance and it would probably enhance the Taurus brand. And considering that there is no real performance car in the Ford line-up other than the Mustang, doing a SHO would be a good move, especially if Ford could simply stuff a decent V8 into it and do it relatively inexpensively.
Frank @ May 7th 2008 8:13PM
+ 1, fo sho.
Sean Flanagan @ May 7th 2008 1:44PM
John,
I could hear your head exploding all the way over here in New Jersey.
Ligor @ May 7th 2008 1:48PM
that c-pillar is a styling killer for this car no matter what the rest looks like
those tail lights also need so me help
I say make it AWD with the 3.7L V6 and Turbos on it
Hank @ May 7th 2008 1:51PM
AWD NA v8 power, as it should be!
Jared @ May 7th 2008 1:51PM
Though I love the thought of a new SHO, I have a feeling that if it were done the way that it has been discussed with the current Taurus, it would most likely be unsuccesful. It would be like the latest GTO. Enthusiasts begged for a Holden for the American market, but it wasn't done right. The Taurus needs a different platform first, lighter and smaller. A Fusion SHO with a turbo 4 would be great. I would love to see a Fusion similar to the Mazdaspeed3.
Nick @ May 7th 2008 1:52PM
The former Taurus SHO was a midsized sedan. The current Taurus is larger than many ski boats. A high performance SHO makes about as much sense as a high performance SUV, Pick-up, or Semi-truck. There is a market, but a small one for people who don't understand basic physics (more weight = bad)
89sho @ May 7th 2008 2:01PM
The old Taurus was 2-tons and the new one is two tons. the new one just has more room and a larger fuel tank...
Yes it would be nice to have a focus with a Twin-Turbo V6 but not as practical!
simianspeedster @ May 7th 2008 2:33PM
"The old Taurus was 2-tons and the new one is two tons. the new one just has more room and a larger fuel tank..."
Flat wrong (and odd coming from a guy whose username is 89sho). The original SHO weighed between 3,300 and 3,500 lbs. 500+ lbs. is a BIG difference!
http://www.shotimes.com/php-bin/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0&sid=26
BTW, I think a new SHO would be a horrible idea for Ford given their current situation. They'd be better off importing the hottest edition of the Mondeo.
-SimianSpeedster
Jared @ May 7th 2008 3:17PM
I agree with Simian. Skip the SHO. Bring us the Modeo instead.
89sho @ May 7th 2008 1:55PM
I loved my 89' SHO and would love to have a 2010 SHO with ECO-Boost 3.5L twin-turbo's spinning up to 415-hp please...
Igor Holas @ May 7th 2008 4:21PM
350hp / 350ft/lbs
the 400+hp versions of the 3.5l v6 EB are reserved for RWD applicaitons - Ford does not have the transmissions to handle such power (and the D3 platform has problems handling such power as well)
the EcoBoost Taurus is all but confirmed .... the only question remains:
SHO Taurus
or
SVT Taurus
...
Igor
Ben @ May 7th 2008 1:55PM
On a completely different note, I would like to see this about the Ford RS coming to NA.
theo @ May 7th 2008 1:55PM
V8, RWD/AWD is the only way they could go, since the return of the SHO would have the G8 as a direct competitor. Anything else would be an also-ran.
White Goodman @ May 7th 2008 1:55PM
I think utilizing the Fusion as a base for an SHO version would be wiser than the Taurus. The new Taurus is just an absolutely massive car and it would just make way more sense to use the smaller and lighter Fusion for a performance car.
An AWD/RWD Fusion with direct injected V8 rumble and requisite suspension tweaks and a few subtle body tweaks (a la Audi S4) would be killer.
Perry @ May 7th 2008 4:04PM
Agree...kill the Taurus, upgrade the Fusion and make an SHO version , bring the Mondeo the Focus and Fiesta from Europe, rename the NA Focus to Escort and you have a great Ford car lineup.
naggs @ May 7th 2008 1:55PM
rwd is not going to happen, ford is not going to develop a rwd platform for one extremely limited model
it will only happen in front or awd.
i grew up with a silver gen two SHO and that thing was bad ass. the stand out charastic of the car in my mind was the power delivery. power built with rpm, the car seemed to want to go fast, like it was asking you to keep it in second a little longer before shifting.
i dont think ford has a powerplant in its current lineup that can deliver that experience.
Joe @ May 7th 2008 2:09PM
Good thing that the possible SHO is going to be based on the NEW Taurus platform, not the current Taurus, which is RWD. The NEW Taurus platform is completely NEW, and it has not been revealed whether it will be FWD, AWD, or RWD. However, if you look at the spy shots of the car, the high offset of the wheels (a la BMW) makes me thing RWD.
JR