Used 2019 Ford Taurus SEL for sale 

The 2019 Ford Taurus comes in four trim levels: SE, SEL, Limited, and SHO. The SHO trim has been covered by us separately.  The base trim packs in very few features and that is how it is priced below thirty grand. The higher trims are better equipped and they also offer AWD as an option. The Limited trim happens to be the most luxurious trim with leather upholstery, power-adjustable seats, heating and ventilation function, full suit of safety features, etc.

Trim to Choose

Suggesting a trim is very easy for the Ford Taurus and we think the SEL is well stacked against the bare-bones base trim. The SEL trim offers few nifty features like rear parking sensors, dual-zone climate control, and puddle lamps which the SE trim misses to provide.

The Ford Taurus under its hood gets a 3.5L V6 that puts out 288 horsepower and 254 pound-feet of torque which is channeled through a 6-speed automatic. Front-wheel drive is standard, while all-wheel drive is optional. The power delivery from the big V6 feels smooth and refined and with the peak torque coming at as low as 4000 rpm the Taurus is very quick to pick pace and doesn't feel underpowered at all. But take the Taurus to the highway and the V6 quickly gets out of breath due to its heftier curb weight.

As for the rivals, the Chevrolet Impala is the most powerful making 305 hp and 264 lb-ft of torque from its 3.6L V6. While the Kia Cadenza powered by a 3.3L V6 churns out the highest 290 lb-ft of torque.  Except for the Impala, all the other sedans offer an automatic gearbox as standard.

Acceleration

The Ford Taurus picks up the pace like a maniac till the 60 mph mark but above that, the old guy quickly runs out of its breath. The Ford Taurus with the twin-turbo 3.5L V6 manages to do a brisk 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds with the quarter-mile coming in 13.7 seconds. But if you compare the other trims of Taurus which put a sluggish figure north of six seconds the car is eons slower than the competition.

AS for the rivals the Chrysler 300 is the fastest with 0-60 mph coming in 5.8 seconds while the Kia Cadenza is the slowest doing 0-60 mph in 6.8 seconds. The Chevrolet Impala is the slowest in covering the quarter-mile and takes around 14.8 seconds to do the same.

Ride and Handling

The ride quality of the Ford Taurus is like that of a boat. Sitting in the car will give you a floaty feeling. While this setup does ensure the bumps and undulations are absorbed without the fuss but the handling of the car goes for a toss here. Being a sedan it is expected to handle well and take corners with ease. But this is not the case with the Ford Taurus and you have to drop your pace to make a trouble-free turn. 

Braking

The braking performance of the Ford Taurus is excellent. There's plenty of grip from the tires and the brakes provide suitable stopping power and responses for comfortable daily drivability. The brake pedal does feel spongy, but it's smooth and consistent enough to easily modulate.

While we don’t have a 60-0 mph stopping distance for the 2019 Ford Taurus still we are confident that it will be at par with its competitors.

The 2019 Ford Taurus is a hefty vehicle powered by a big V6 so the fuel economy figures are bound to be below par in the segment. The Ford Taurus has an EPA estimated gas mileage of 18 mpg in the city, 26 mpg on the highway, and 21 mpg combined. The Taurus packs in a 19-gallon fuel tank and a decent range of 494 miles is expected from it to return on the highway from a full tank of gas.

Taurus’ hefty curb weight makes it the least fuel-efficient of all and has the least range among all either be it in the city or on highways.

With 203 inches of length from bumper to bumper, the 2019 Ford Taurus would appear to be roomy at first glance. But don’t let the outer length fool you as the longer length does not translate into a roomier interior. The seats of the Taurus are wide and supportive. The base trim offers fabric-trimmed seats while the higher trim gets leather-trimmed seats along with heating and ventilation functionality. The cabin of the Taurus is oddly designed and the center console fouls with your knees. Rear-seat passengers have a surprisingly low headroom thanks to the coupe-like sloping roof. The 38.1-inches of legroom at the rear doesn't help either. The other thing which we found to be irritating was the poor rear visibility as the sloping roof comes in the field of view.

The seats of the Ford Taurus are sufficiently cushioned and supportive but the fly in the ointment is the overall space inside the cabin, which is neither adequate nor better than any of its rivals.

Infotainment

The standard infotainment system of the Ford Taurus is a SYNC infotainment system that does not include smartphone connectivity via Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. The  4.2” LCD screen and AM/FM stereo, a single CD player, and a six-speaker sound system are also a part of the standard features list.

You get two USB charging ports upfront and the higher trims offer SiriusXM connectivity with a six-month trial.

• Ford's SYNC 3 infotainment
• Bluetooth
• Apple CarPlay
• Android Auto

Interior Features

Key highlights of the interior features include:

• 4.2-inch touchscreen display
• Six-way powered front seats
• Automatic climate control
• Heated and ventilated front seats (available)
• Heated rear seats (available)

Cargo Capacity

The Ford Taurus has a gargantuan boot and offers a class-leading cargo capacity of 20.1 cubic feet behind the rear seats. If more room is required for larger or oddly shaped cargo items, the rear seats can be folded down in a 60/40 split. This is more than what the Impala offers at 18.8 cubes and much more than what the Chrysler 300 provides at 16.5 cubic feet.

For gargantuan space and added utility, the Taurus' backseat can be folded down which liberates even more storage space.

If you look at the sheer length and size of the 2019 Ford Taurus it is equivalent to some big SUVs. The 2019 Ford Taurus has a typical boxy sedan looks and that is obvious as it is based on a decade-old platform. The front end is basic and you get a set of halogen projector-beam headlights with LED parking lamps and heated side-view mirrors. The side profile is plain and simple while the rear has a raised boot. The overall design is neutral and the optional 20-inch alloy wheels do look dapper on the Taurus sedan. 

Exterior Dimensions

The Ford Taurus sedan has dimensions typical to that of a large sedan. Compared to the Chevrolet Impala, it measures only 1.6 inches longer in overall length at 202.9 inches, 1.8 inches taller at 60.7 inches, and 4.3 inches wider at 77.3 inches. It carries a wheelbase spanning 112.9 inches, which is 1.2 inches longer than the Impala. With curb weights ranging from 3,917 pounds in the FWD SE to 4,327 lbs in the AWD SHO, the Taurus is on average around 200 lbs heavier than the Impala with its base model weighing in at 3,682 lbs and its top-spec model in at 3,812 lbs

The 5.1 inches of ground clearance in the Ford Taurus is second best behind Kia Cadenza’s 5.9 inches in this comparison. But either be it normal city driving or those big bad bumps neither would prove to be a task for a daily driver.

Exterior Features

Key highlights of the exterior features include:

• Front Windshield includes Sun Visor Strip
• Fully Automatic Projector Beam Halogen Auto High-Beam Headlamps w/Delay-Off
• Speed Sensitive Rain Detecting Variable Intermittent Wipers
• Chrome Power Heated Side Mirrors with Driver Auto Dimming and Manual Folding
• Trunk Rear Cargo Access
• LED Brakelights

There are other features like a different size and design alloy wheels as per the Variant chosen.

The aging Ford Taurus lacks the modern crash-avoidance tech and that does make it feel left out among the modern sedan. The NHTSA gave the 2019 model Ford Taurus a top overall safety rating of five stars out of five. The IIHS gave the Taurus a rating of 'Good' in five out of six parameters while it scored an 'Average' rating in the driver-side small overlap front test. 

Some of the safety features include

• Six standard airbags
• SOS crash alert system
• Tire pressure monitoring system
• Electronic stability control
• Curve control,
• Torque vectoring control

Ford Taurus vs Kia Cadenza

The Kia Cadenza is, by all means, a better performer than the old Taurus. The Cadenza looks good, offers a decent set of features, and a powerful engine compared to the Taurus. That said, the Taurus is let down by its interiors. At the same price point, choosing between these cars depends on what you want. If you want performance, the Ford is a good choice, but for everything else, it's the Cadenza.

Ford Taurus vs Chevrolet Impala

One of the Taurus' biggest rivals in the full-size sedan segment is the Chevrolet Impala, but while the Ford offers two big V6 engine choices, the Impala offers much less power from either a four-cylinder engine or a V6. It's more comfortable inside, and more spacious, too than the Taurus' which gets oddly high set seats and awkward ergonomics. Despite lacking the biggest trunk or the most powerful engines, the Impala is better in most other aspects.

Ford Taurus vs Chrysler 300

The 2019 Chrysler 300 is another large car based on the Dodge Charger that beats the Ford Taurus in almost every comparison. The 300 offers high-quality cabin materials, roomy seats, and lots of standard features. The Chrysler has a powerful V8 engine shared from the Charger under its hood. Neither of the vehicle is particularly engaging to drive, but the 300 is more fuel-efficient than the Taurus. So again the choice depends on the user’s need here.

Being around for nearly ten years and seeing no changes has made the Ford Taurus go into oblivion. The outdated Taurus has no wow factor and the modern-day rivals have caught up with the slow grandpa. The Taurus doesn't offer engaging performance, isn't engaging to drive, has a sub-par fuel economy, and the cabin feels cramped even after it being such a big car. If one decides to purchase a Taurus, the only real benefits would be the in-cabin storage and a gargantuan trunk. These two things aren't enough for the customers to even look at it as an option.