2008 Ford Taurus X

With the standard middle row a 40/40 fold flat reclining bucket seat, this new Taurus X offers commodious room for six adults with stadium-style seating that places the standard third-row seat higher than the second row for enhanced visibility—or seven with an available 60/40 bench seat. Or it can haul 85.5 cu. ft. of cargo with second and third rows folded down flat, while its fold-flat front passenger seat can accommodate up to 10 feet of cargo. We especially like the option of the one-touch flip-and-fold middle-row seats that provide easy third-row access and the airliner-like foot room under the cross-car structure-mounted front seats.

Safety and Dynamics

Pointing proudly to five-star ratings in all four crash impact categories—driver frontal, front passenger frontal, front seat side and rear seat side—of federal NHTSA crash testing and "Top Safety Pick" from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), Ford says the '08 Taurus X is rated the safest seven-passenger crossover in America. Its standard AdvanceTrac electronic stability control can help drivers stay in control by sensing and helping to control skids, while standard dual-stage front, front-side and Safety Canopy side curtain air bags for all three rows help protect occupants should certain frontal or side impact collisions become unavoidable.


The new engine—essentially the same spirited 3.5-liter V-6 found in the new Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX and MKZ and increasing numbers of other new-generation Ford products—generates an eager 263 hp and 249 lb-ft of torque. Teamed with Ford's equally new six-speed automatic transmission, it provides 30 percent more power for a major boost in performance over the previous 3.0-liter/CVT combination without compromising fuel economy.


The available "intelligent" all-wheel drive, new for 2008, is less complex than the previous Freestyle's system and similar to that available in the Edge and MKX. It uses an active, on-demand electro-mechanical center coupler to distribute redistribute the precise amount of torque to all four wheels. It can also anticipate and counter wheel slip before it happens, for example to prevent the front wheels from spinning under hard acceleration.

Interior

This new Taurus X's standard content is impressive: AdvanceTrac stability control, four-wheel anti-lock brakes (ABS), six-way power driver's seat with manual lumbar, reclining 40/40 split second-row bucket seats, air conditioning, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shifter, power windows, locks and mirrors, remote keyless entry, fog lamps, roof rack, audio input jack and no fewer than four 12-volt outlets.