First Drive: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL

This is solely my personal opinion, but I think Dan Edmunds needs to start thinking the Fusion, Accord, and Camry are all pretty much in the same class and the Taurus does not need to be compared against those 2.
The new Taurus looks promising on paper, and we shall see a couple years from now...

^in a couple years...

Do those gigantic rear window blocking rear headrest fold down or do I have to remove them like the ones in my current car?

Alman,

You are right. The Accord might be much bigger than it used to be, but it still is no comparison for the Taurus.

The Avalon, 300, and Genesis are the competition that springs to mind for me (there's a big buick too, but the name escapes me, Lacrosse?).

I have a neighbour with a new Camry and a Camry from the 90's. It always amazes me how much bigger the new one is when you see it parked next to the old one.

I'd like to see the new Taurus parked next to an original to get a good idea how much it's grown. The original was a roomy 5 passenger sedan and so is the new one, I'm not sure in this day and age how Ford can justify the size.

firstwagon: "I'm not sure in this day and age how Ford can justify the size."

The same way Toyota and Hyundai can.

Also the 3.5L Taurus gets the same mpg as the 3.0L Fusion. Considering the small price premium for the Taurus over the Fusion, it's a very tempting car.

brn

Not counting trucks, Toyota and Hyundais aren't this big. They could still be smaller though.

If the 3.5 gets the same mileage as the 3.0 that's because it's a more advanced engine and perhaps Ford should retire the 3.0.

I would definitely buy a Fusion over a Taurus. The Taurus might get you a little more space but it will always be harder to fit in the garage, tougher to fit in a parking spot and more of a pain to manuever in tight traffic.

I can accept the extra size if you get something you need in return like the huge interior of a minivan or the truck abilities of a SUV. I don't see what you get extra in a Taurus over what you get in a car the size of a Fusion.

This is not competition for the Camry or Accord. This is a large car- like the Avalon and 300.

In this car you get more legroom, more shoulder room and a larger trunk. You might even be able to fit 3 kids in the back comfortably. cant do that in a midsize car.

"The obvious question is how does it stack up against Japanese giants like the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry?"

Given its size and starting price, I don't think the Accord and Camry are direct competitors to the Taurus anymore. AS 1487 stated, this car is an Avalon/300 competitor.

Fords Fusion is competition for the midsize segment.

The Taurus's interior volume is kind of pathetic.
Why does such a large car have
58" shoulder width, and 42"/38" legroom, and only 102.2 cu ft passenger volume?

Aside from that, The Taurus is awesome. V6 Taurus for $25,000 MSRP? That's the same MSRP as V6 Camry/Altima/Accord. Except the latter 3 have significant discounts.

The Taurus should be an Avalon competitor, but it's so small inside...
I suppose the Taurus competes with the Nissan Maxima. Better design, better materials than the mainstreams. Also a couple thousand extra.