Re: 17

Ayite... 2009 Evo. 4.9 in the 0-60 and that car will SMOKE a Mustang in a slalom or any road course.

291 horsies out of a 2.0 liter 4 banger with a turbo. Single turbo.

Truth be told, a friend has a tweaked M3 (which he races) and he says the tweaked Mini Coopers are KILLING it on the road courses. No car can keep up in the corners.

Really? A Mini Cooper? Yeaup.

Yeah, those Coops are little go carts. They remind me of VW bugs. You never want to race one, because if you beat them everybody says "big deal, you beat a little Cooper". If you lose to one it "duuude you got your ass handed to you by a Cooper", lose lose all around.

The Evo power to wieght ratio is better than the Mustang plus AWD = game over. Whole different league. I'd take the Subaru WRX sti over the ****-su-bishi. They make more power and just a better car over all.

#18, 20, actually that depends on the dealer. I've seen some dealers of domestic makes offer upscale service. It costs the dealer, but it's a good way to build loyalty with customers. Besides, a decent wash and vacuum doesn't take all that long for a competent shop with even a modest amount of the right gear.

If the new Taurus is still built on the Volvo S-80 platform (like it was when it came out under the 500 name)and has similar features and quality, I will bet it is a very nice car.

I have the S80 Volvo with 6 cyl turbo that puts out 281hp(?) and it absolutely flies like a rocket and handles like a gem.

Unfortunately, I might have to give it up to my wife, whose lease on her SUV ends soon. Instead of paying the extra $2-$8k for the Volvo, I might take a good look at the Taurus, just for kicks...

Now, where the hell is FXDWG when I need him?

^ Robert,

... from what I've heard, it is one in the same as the Ford 500 - and my wife owns/drives the Ford 500 AWD and it handles like you would not believe ...

... and from our local dealer - the new Taurus is the old 500 ... they share the same parts/components/engine, etc ... except the new Taurus is a lot cheaper than the loaded Ford 500 was - out the door in 2005 we paid right at $28k for the 500 - loaded - leather - AWD - sunroof - 18" tires, etc ... she's got 105k on it so far and it still runs like a clock ...

The 2010 Taurus shares NOTHING of the 2008-9 model. They completely redesigned the car with rave reviews from all testers.

Oh yeah. That WRX sti is a screeeeeaaaaamer.

Subaru makes good cars, too.

from what I understand the right way to say it is the 500 was the old tauras.... dumb asses changed the name of their best selling car to be 200 better than chrysler