2010 Ford Taurus

Ford Motor Co.'s success with its sixth-generation Taurus lies not in the quality of the vehicle--it may prove to be the best sedan the company has ever produced--but in the company's ability to convince customers that this is a Taurus.

When the Taurus was unveiled in 1985 as an '86 model, it was a sensation stylistically and set the mark for American full-size sedans for a couple of decades. Ford sold 200,000 of the aerodynamically styled four-doors the first year, and the Taurus name was forever burned into the car-buying public's consciousness.

More than 7 million Tauruses have been sold since then, and 4 million remain on the road. Growing families bought them and then handed them down to new drivers. The cars were passed along to college students. Salespeople rolled up hundreds of thousands of miles on their Tauruses and then bought new ones. They became the car du jour at car-rental agencies.

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