2010 Ford Taurus SHO: 'Back to the Future'

CHICAGO, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Ford Motor Co. didn't have a movie tie-in but its introduction of the new 2010 Ford Taurus SHO in Chicago Wednesday was right out of "Back to the Future."

The last Taurus SHO, short for Super High Output, was in dealer showrooms a decade ago and featured a smooth V6 engine from Yamaha and a manual transmission. The 2010 all-wheel drive sedan is powered by a twin-turbo charged V-6 generating 365 horsepower and 350 ft/lbs of torque mated to a six-speed paddle-shifter.

There's more power, more torque and at 25 mpg on the highway the EcoBoost engine is more fuel-efficient than the original V-8 Taurus SHO of a generation ago.

Jim Farley, Ford's group vice president of marketing and communications, calls it "understated stellar performance." He said the new Ford Taurus SHO, which comes with 19-inch or optional 20-inch Goodyear Eagle 1 performance tires, was a response to consumer demand.

Farley said a rebound in the used car market showed Ford there is consumer demand and credit available and that 40 percent of Ford's 2009 sales volume would be new products.

The SHO package, with a Sony sound system, turns the sedate 265-horsepower standard Taurus into an American-made sports sedan with decent mileage.

"We'll build to demand," Farley said at the 2009 Chicago Auto Show Media Preview. "I don't expect a huge change in our product." The handsomely restyled SHO will be available this summer at $37,995.

With overall January sales down 40 percent companywide from the same month a year ago, Ford also injected more excitement unveiling the 14th Harley-Davidson edition of its best-selling F-150 Series pickup.