<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/sedans/" rel="tag">Sedan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/ford/" rel="tag">Ford</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/reviews/" rel="tag">Reviews</a></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/gallery/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/#2"><img hspace="4" vspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/001_2010taurusselreview_opt.jpg" alt="" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong><small>2010 Ford Taurus SEL - Click above for high-res image gallery</small></strong></em></div>
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In 1985, when few models really stood out from the midsize pack, Ford created one of the most influential vehicles of the late 20th century: the Taurus. Radically styled and intelligently packaged, the Taurus won the hearts and minds of millions of car buyers, and for over a decade, it was a dominant force in the retail car market. Eventually, competition from the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord proved too much for Ford to handle, and the Blue Oval hung its game-changing sedan out to dry. Product development dollars were funneled to trucks and SUVs, and the Zodiac's bull died a pauper's death in 2007 after an achingly long stint as a tattered fleet Queen.<br />
<br />
When Alan Mulally took the helm of FoMoCo, the new CEO wondered why the recognizable - if tarnished - Taurus name had been abandoned. So a branding Band-Aid was affixed to the underperforming Five Hundred sedan and, unsurprisingly, consumers saw through the botched rebadging. The "new" Taurus was still the old Five Hundred; a dynamically challenged sedan whose biggest selling point was a really large trunk. In hindsight, the move may have been a way to revive the Taurus in the public's consciousness as Mulally and company went back to the drawing board to create a new world-class sedan capable of taking on the biggest names in the segment. The 2010 Ford Taurus is here... but does it have what it takes?<br />
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<div class="postgallery"><p><strong>Gallery: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/">Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL</a></strong></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/001_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/002_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/003_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/004_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/005_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a></div><br />
<em><strong><small>Photos copyright (C)2009 Chris Shunk / Weblogs, Inc.</small></strong></em><br /><p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL stays big, goes upscale</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/">Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL stays big, goes upscale</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblog</a> on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:57:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19177225/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>
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<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong><small>2010 Ford Taurus SEL - Click above for high-res image gallery</small></strong></em></div>
<br />
In 1985, when few models really stood out from the midsize pack, Ford created one of the most influential vehicles of the late 20th century: the Taurus. Radically styled and intelligently packaged, the Taurus won the hearts and minds of millions of car buyers, and for over a decade, it was a dominant force in the retail car market. Eventually, competition from the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord proved too much for Ford to handle, and the Blue Oval hung its game-changing sedan out to dry. Product development dollars were funneled to trucks and SUVs, and the Zodiac's bull died a pauper's death in 2007 after an achingly long stint as a tattered fleet Queen.<br />
<br />
When Alan Mulally took the helm of FoMoCo, the new CEO wondered why the recognizable - if tarnished - Taurus name had been abandoned. So a branding Band-Aid was affixed to the underperforming Five Hundred sedan and, unsurprisingly, consumers saw through the botched rebadging. The "new" Taurus was still the old Five Hundred; a dynamically challenged sedan whose biggest selling point was a really large trunk. In hindsight, the move may have been a way to revive the Taurus in the public's consciousness as Mulally and company went back to the drawing board to create a new world-class sedan capable of taking on the biggest names in the segment. The 2010 Ford Taurus is here... but does it have what it takes?<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="postgallery"><p><strong>Gallery: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/">Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL</a></strong></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/001_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/002_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/003_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/004_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel/low/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/09/005_2010taurusselreview_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a></div><br />
<em><strong><small>Photos copyright (C)2009 Chris Shunk / Weblogs, Inc.</small></strong></em><br /><p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL stays big, goes upscale</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/">Review: 2010 Ford Taurus SEL stays big, goes upscale</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblog</a> on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:57:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19177225/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2009/09/29/review-2010-ford-taurus-sel-stays-big-goes-upscale/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>
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