First Impressions: Ford Taurus SHO vs. Infiniti G37 6MT

These days, the consumer in the sports sedan market is spoiled for choice. There's pretty much always been the 3-series BMW (and before it the 2002 and the 1600), and there's always been a comparable Audi and Mercedes (at least since the 190E appeared on the scene in the mid eighties), but the field has never been as diverse as it is now.

Take, for example, these two seemingly unrelated sedans: the 2009 Infiniti G37 6MT sedan, and the 2010 Ford Taurus SHO EcoBoost.  On paper,  about all they have in common are four wheels with pneumatic tires and a sticker price hovering somewhere around $36,000.  Experiencing both back-to-back just proved exactly how different of a sports sedan your $35k and change will get you these days.

This was my first experience with the new Taurus (as well as my first experience with Ford's hype-tacular EcoBoost biturbo V6 engine), but not by far my first experience with FM-platform Nissans (having driven a 350Z Track and G35 6MT sedan.)  We'll start off with the SHO first, since it's the newer and fresher experience, rather than a evolved version of a known favorite.

The Taurus SHO is based on the Volvo-sourced D3 chassis, and it doesn't really do a whole lot to hide it's Volvo roots.  It's a large car, stretching 202" from stem to stern compared to the petite Infiniti's 187".  It shares some bits and pieces with the S80, and the general impression of the car isn't really "mainstream domestic sedan."  I still think it's an extremely attractive car in the flesh, and if the design isn't what you'd call "daring" (it's really just a lame interpretation of Ford of Europe's styling trends), at least it's subdued and attractive.  The front end is a success, all mean and sculpted with hawk-eyed xenon beams and nifty LED parking lights, and clever detailing everywhere.

The back end isn't quite as pleasing; looking sort of unfinished and blank, the high-butt trunk neverless could cover a whole pile of dead bodies.  It's huge in there.  18" wheels actually look a bit small in the SHO's chubby fenders - but hey, this is a 4,200-odd pound vehicle.  19's are optional with Ford's performance package for the car, if you really want 'em.

Inside, it's quite charming.  The console sits unusually high up giving a solid seperation between driver and passenger, making the seating quarters feel less like a car and more like a cockpit.  The center console slopes down steeply and houses a high-res LCD touchscreen.  It's an attractive and clean design, but boy is it littered with buttons!  Busy, busy, busy - like the Germans were before they realized it was annoying.

Now, I could go on for a day and a half about all the cool stuff the SHO has inside.  There's the Microsoft-powered SYNC setup, which I've heard is pretty cool (what, you think I fussed around with it?), there are heated/cooled/massaging seats that are leather and suede (but lacking in lateral support) to keep your keister comfy, there's a thundering Sony sound system...  But really, who cares?  Sports sedans are about performance, not the bells and whistles.  Did Ford lose the plot?

Now, as a self-professed fanboy of the SHO since it first broke cover, I hate to be the one to say this - but yeah, they did.  What the SHO is - and what Ford should sell it as - is a Taurus Limited EcoBoost.  The only real difference between a loaded AWD Taurus and an SHO is that engine.

Don't get me wrong, it's an epic engine.  A 3.5L DOHC 24v V6 with direct fuel injection and twin ball-bearing turbochargers, it cranks out 365 right-now horsepower and 350lb-ft of torque, seemingly at an instant.  There's no lag, no turbo whistle or diverter-valve chatter, no drama of the turbo variety of any kind.  Planting your foot at 15mph results in your head thwacking the headrest pretty hard, and it's just gone. But it's not really any fun; the low 6200rpm redline with a soft limiter means there's no point in winding it out, and the (mandatory) automatic transmission is about as much fun as drinking with a nun, even with fancy wheel-mounted paddle shifters.

Really though, the problem is that it feels like a Volvo.  Heavy understeer thanks to the D3 chassis' nose-heavy nature takes the fun out of hard cornerning, the Haldex AWD system doesn't react fast enough to throttle input, allowing the front wheels to slip before diverting torque to the rear, and you can feel every one of the SHO's 4200 or so pounds at every minute.  Some big cars start to feel small when you push them (I'm looking at you, 5-series) - this one just starts to feel bigger.  It's happiest being brake-torqued off a stoplight on it's way to a low-five second 0-60 time.  Corners?  Yeah, it can do them, but again - no fun.

It ends up being a disappointment, not in that it's a bad car - it's quiet as a church on Friday night, it's comfortable and has tons of toys, and you can spank Boxsters off the line with it - but because it doesn't live up to the expectations that it's badge burdens it with.  SHO used to mean a high-revving vocal Yamaha V6, a manual gearbox, and good value for money in the sports sedan arena.  This one just feels like a powerful Taurus.  Speaking of value for money, this SHO stickered out at just under $45,000 with all the pricey option boxes checked.  That's a whole lot of money, and at that price point you're looking at a 335i or a B8 S4 - which are far superior vehicles in pretty much every way.

Which dovetails us nicely into that G37 I was talking about earlier.  When you look at it on paper, it would seem the Infiniti would lag behind the badass Taurus in a lot of ways.  You'd expect the American Muscle sedan to offer visceral thrills that a Japanese luxo-sedan can't hope to offer.  You'd be completely wrong.

The G37 is a lot tighter of a fit, feeling more like a glove than a sweatshirt when you slide in.  It's not uncomfortable, but a bit more intimate.  Interior quality is roughly comparable (which says good things about Ford!) but the originality and beauty of the interior design is leagues above the blocky, button-littered SHO.  The exterior design is hardly worth mentioning; G37's are everywhere, you've seen a million of them, and it's an inoffensive modern Japanese design.  It's a bit more fluid and organic looking than Japan's wares used to be, but it doesn't have any of the drama and thuggish presence of the SHO.

And as a base model, equipment isn't lavish.  There are leather seats (not heated, cooled, or massaging!  God forbid!), a decent stereo, and...  well, not a lot worth mentioning.

But what the G37 does have that the SHO can never have, no matter what's stuck on it, is - at it's core - a correctly set up chassis.  The engine is facing north-to-south, driving the rear wheels.  It's also behind the front axle for equal weight distribution, and suspension is independent in all corners - like God intended.

It's a more basic, and basically right formula.  The G37 has a sense of balance and poise that the heavy, over-equipped SHO could never have.  It darts and weave like the 370Z it really is.  And then there's the engine.

Nissan's VQ isn't a complicated motor.  It's been around since the mid-90's when it first appeared in the US in the otherwise boring Maxima.  And, oddly enough, it's been on Ward's 10Best Engines list ever since then.  Coincidence?  No, because the VQ is, hands down, one of the best engines out there.  There's no fancy DI setup - port injection works fine, thanks - or cool low-inertia turbochargers, or really much other trickery.  Just a well-designed 3.7L 24v V6 that revs like it's hungry, breathing through twin variable-length intakes.  Power output is an impressive 328bhp, and while torque is lower at 268 lb-ft, you're not going to care.

The short throw six-speed gearbox allows less vibration through than previous G's, but it's still rifle-bolt precise and solid as a bank vault, and the clutch is a bit grabby but very positive.  And whoa, does this car move.  Remember, the G37 only has 3581 lbs of mass to haul around, about 700 less than the porky Taurus.  The needle flies around the tach, you snatch another gear, the V6 wails it's war cry, and you are hauling ass. Again, on paper it's not really at an advantage over the SHO off the line - but the visceral inner-ear appeal of the car is orders of magnitude greater than the SHO.

Of course, it gets more expensive as you pile on all the cool goodies, but everything does.  What's important is that the basic car has what it takes to be a world-leading sports sedan, and in today's slushbox-obsessed market, you can still get it with a slick manual trans.  Which car would I pick, if I magically had 40 grand or so to blow on a car?  The Infiniti, obviously.

But the truly great thing is that both exist.  What this article meant to show was that there's a car for everyone.  Not everyone's going to love the Infiniti's boomy engine, flinty ride, sharp clutch, and lack of standard equipment.  Not everyone's going to fall for the Taurus's crazy pricetag or Volvo bits, either.  They're not intended for the same buyer, so the opinion of fringe lunatics like myself are hardly relevant.  But the world is a better place with both of them here.