AOL Autos snags ride in 2010 Taurus SHO with Ford's only female dynamics engineer
by Damon Lavrinc on Apr 30th 2009 at 8:01PM 
2010 Ford Taurus SHO gets air - Click above for a high-res image gallery
Our lucky compatriots at AOL Autos had the chance to get some passenger-seat time in the all-new 2010 Ford Taurus SHO, along with a glimpse into the inner-workings of FoMoCo's engineering team. The story centers around Ford's only female Vehicle Dynamics Development Engineer, Christina "Crissy" Rodriguez, who's "equal parts engineer, race driver and vehicle psychologist." During her 12-year stint at Ford, Rodriguez has been instrumental in the development of a number of vehicles and has spent the last eight years tuning the chassis that underpins the new Taurus, along with its platform siblings, the Lincoln MKS and Ford Flex.
The final third of the article gets into the performance and dynamics of the SHO, where Rodriguez takes AOL Auto's Rex Roy for a spin around Ford's Dearborn proving grounds. While its not a comprehensive review of the hottest Taurus in over a decade, Roy reports that the six-speed automatic shifts smoothly and quickly, forward momentum is electric, the sonorous sounds from the engine are top-notch and, most telling, "the faster Rodriguez drove, the smaller the Taurus seemed to get..." Sounds like a winning combination so far, and you can read the full "First Ride" here.
Gallery: First Ride: 2010 Ford Taurus SHO
[Source: AOL Autos | Image Source: Ford, Rex Roy]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
Aloysius Vampa 8:07PM (4/30/2009)
Holy ground clearance Batman!
(I realize what's happening in the picture; however, it's still funny.)
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gerrrg 8:15PM (4/30/2009)
+1
Don't leave me high, don't leave me dry.
Pengwin 1:42AM (5/01/2009)
yeah...i think it would still seem high if that wasnt an action shot
Rob 3:38AM (5/01/2009)
Holy NO MANUAL TRANSMISSION batman.
This car= fail.
Automatics are LAME.
PJ 7:38AM (5/01/2009)
Sounds harsh, but he's right.
Full-size cars with mandatory slushboxes, 4,000 lbs of curb weight, and FWD-biased AWD are just not that much fun to drive. Even when they're very fast.
Think budget (though, at $40K, not *too* budget) Audi A6 Quattro.
Aloysius Vampa 7:50AM (5/01/2009)
The AOL Autos article mentions that the SHO has more rear wheel bias in its AWD tuning.
Len_A 7:59AM (5/01/2009)
Tell you naysayers what - this car will sell plenty. Not every car buyer out there is a "purist" like you think you are.
C.W. 8:14AM (5/01/2009)
len A is right...
just watch. they will sell every SHO they build... and it wont be incentive driven...
market research and customer input have helped build this car. it will do just fine.
Tomac 9:38AM (5/01/2009)
Sure they'll sell it even if a slushbox is the only tranny offered. This is America, where no one seems to enjoy manuals. I personally don't want another automatic car (ever), but I may be able to talk my wife into the SHO. She's skeptical about Fords, but if I'm forced to drive her car once in a while, it may as well be a bit sporty. She's reluctant to learn to drive a manual-transmission car anyway.
I for one "think" I'm a purist (@ Len_A) and have been for decades. It's not power I crave, but driving involvement. I've never found that in an automatic transmission, and the selectable automatics are a pathetic substitute for a clutch pedal. If you like to ride, get a slushbox. If you like to drive, nothing but a manual will do.
Harley Cook 12:12PM (5/01/2009)
Maybe she can't drive a manual transmission! LMAO!
another_one 2:08PM (5/01/2009)
I love manuals... there are three SHO's where I work.
All the guys who won them are huge SHO fans... so I think they will sell as well...
Rob 3:13PM (5/01/2009)
WAHHHHH mark me down fanbois, but you know I'm right. This car with ONLY an automatic is boring. I'd rather drive a base model 1995 Neon 5spd. It'd be much more fun than this overweight automatic transmissioned pig.
PS: Original SHO > this fat thing designed for lazy fat people
Seminole 8:13PM (4/30/2009)
I see they decided to nix the "command seating" position from the last Taurus in favor of "command ride-height" in the new one.
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Tom N. 8:14PM (4/30/2009)
You just had to pick that picture didn't you.
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KeatMP 10:12PM (4/30/2009)
+1
Why the picture making it look like a 4x4. If it was 6 inches off the gound instead of about half an inch id be all for it.
Why not this one?
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/first-ride-2010-ford-taurus-sho/1528994/
I guess it's not a big deal though haha.
Mike 10:10AM (5/01/2009)
Picture was probably picked more to show that she didn't spin him around the parking lot like an old lady. There's plenty of static pictures that easily detail the real ride height.
RITmusic2k 12:19PM (5/01/2009)
That's obviously a picture of the Taurus X SHO.
Ken 8:15PM (4/30/2009)
Is it just me or is that car really tall? I realize the camera is placed at a low height and there are some shots where the car is getting some "air" but the overall look of the car would be much better if it weren't so darn tall.
Before you know it, we'll all be stuck with sedans with the ride height of a Toyota Venza.. (ugh) thanks to side impacts from full ton pickup drivers not paying attention.
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kcdk99 8:54PM (4/30/2009)
I think it just looks tall cuz Ms. Rodriguez is short, LOL. Mad props to her, she made it into 33.3% of the photos in the gallery! Not bad for a Ford.
James 2:43AM (5/01/2009)
Is it just me, or does the new Taurus look almost the size of a Crown Victoria?
Why are cars getting so huge?! I can't believe this is supposed to be a "mid-sized" sedan; it looks the size of a yacht.