2002 Ford Taurus SES Sport Package review from North America

Fuel sensor went at 46,000 km. Dealer installed new fuel pump and sensor under warranty.

Outer rear passenger side window molding came loose.

Rear tail light burnt out.

Other than those few things, car has been great.

I love this car, it is a blast to drive as one feels good enough in it to open up the sunroof, roll down the window, and go cruising.

Sport Package includes two tone cloth seats, leather wrapped steering wheel, pewter accents on dash and console, Mach audio with 6-disk CD changer, special aluminum rims, and Sport floor mats and badging on fenders, but good luck finding one as they are quite rare.

Very comfortable seats, interior is pleasing to the eyes with great fit and finish and nice touch points, I can drive in it for hours without cramping up.

The Duratec (201 hp, 200 Lbs.Ft. of torque) performs very well with great passing power and a high RPM power band. Very quiet and seemingly tame at an idle, but punch it down and it roars to life emitting a very nice exhaust note, the tires squeal (almost too easily) and it pulls hard up to about 60-70 Km/h, but picks up again at 80 km/h and continues to pull until it reaches it's governor ends the fun at about 170km/h. Pity.

I did notice, however, that it's performance is dampened greatly with more than one person in the vehicle.

It also handles very nicely, steering is quite predictable and responsive.

My only real problem with the car is that there was no horsepower boost with the Sport Package, and extra 20-30 hp would have made this car a real ground pounder. I guess that's what after market parts are for, but one might as well wait until the warranty is up.