Ford Taurus SHO History 1989 - 1999

1989 marked the first year of the Taurus SHO.  Utilizing a left over engine from a recently cancelled project, the SHO was born and opened up the door for affordable sport sedans.  The SHO included features found on much more expensive cars such as ABS, Keyless Entry, a JBL Audio system, and more.  It's closest performance comparison at the time was the BMW 528i which came in at a pricetag tens of thousands more than the SHO.  It wouldn't be until the mid-90's that other companies really started catching onto the market that Ford helped create in the 80's with the Super High Output (SHO) Taurus.

The video below is an original commercial promoting the 1989 Taurus SHO.
 

Generation I 1989 - 1991

The 1989 - 1991 SHOs were the most "european" in design and featured 16"  alloy rims, plastic body cladding, and of course the powerful 220 horsepower V6 to differentiate them from the standard run of the mill Taurus.  A 5 speed manual transmission removed any doubt that this was just another family sedan.

Generation II 1992 - 1995

1992 brought a facelift to the entire Taurus lineup giving the SHO it's own unique front facade which was carried over until the vehicle was retired in 1999.  For 1993 Ford added a 4 speed automatic transmission and a 2/10ths of a liter more displacement to compensate for power loses generally accompanied with automatic transmissions.  This body style was used until 1996 when the 3rd generation Taurus was introduced.

Generation III 1996 - 1999

1996 brought an entirely new Taurus and an entirely new SHO.  For the first time Ford designed an engine specifically for this car, this time a small displacement V8.  Wanting to keep luxury on par with performance Ford added a special sport tuned suspension with firmness sensors, an improved ignition system found in very few vehicles at the time, and large brakes, a welcome improvement on the SHO.

   1989 - 1995 3.0 V6 SHO Engine          1996 - 1999 3.4 V8 SHO Engine