New Car Review of the 2004 Ford Taurus Mid-Size Sedan

Description: Mid-Size Sedan
Base MSRP Range: $19,830-$23,625
Invoice Price Range: $18,375-$21,593

The popular family cars from Ford fit in the mid-size class and come in configurations of a four-door sedan and five-door station wagon. All Taurus issues for 2004 wear a new egg-crate grille up front and restyled fascia with fresh aerodynamic styling.

Trim levels encompass designations of LX, SE, SES and SEL, with SES stocking more standard equipment like an anti-lock brake system (ABS) and CD deck but top-end SEL with aluminum wheels and a six-disc CD changer.

Engines include Ford's 3.0-liter Vulcan V6, rated at 155 hp, and a dual-cam Duratec version good for 201 hp. An exceptional four-speed automatic transaxle, reworked with an enhanced torque converter this year, mates with either engine.