Victoria Vs Taurus: May The Best Mileage Win

By Author: Peter Jones
Total Articles: 231
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A little over a month ago Rick bought a previously owned ‘05 Taurus SE, and with the exception of a couple of Costco parking lot door-dings, it's immaculate. He bought the car because he liked the black with charcoal interior, and the factory V-6 Ford Taurus engine had a mileage rating of 19 City and 28 Highway.

Ever since Rick started his new job at Disney Studios he's been commuting over 90 miles a day from Santa Clarita to Burbank, and when he factored everything in, the Taurus seemed like the perfect choice. Good looking car, clean inside and out, costs a heck of a lot less to fill up than his Ford pickup, and now he has plenty of room for the wife and kids on week ends. Plus, the car's original owner had kept up regular service on the "Ford Taurus engine" and the price was right. A smart-buy bargain in anyone's book.

If there was a drawback it would be the Ford Taurus engines had a lack of power in some situations. Rick is what some people might consider to be an aggressive driver because he doesn't like to sit behind anyone that has ...
... no clue about driving with the flow of traffic. The way he looks at it, we're all trying to make it to work on time, preferably today, and anyone who doesn't get that should stay home between the hours of 7 AM to 9 AM.

So, after a few weeks in the Taurus, Rick found he wasn't getting anywhere near the advertised 28 MPG on the highway. In fact, the mileage was below the 19 MPG he was supposed to get on the street. But this was not the fault of the car or the Fort Taurus engine in any way. Rick finally did some basic power-to-weight ratio calcs and concluded the Taurus wasn't suited for his style of driving.

Since the wife was happy with the idea of a sedan instead of a pick up truck, Rick was left with two choices. Change his style of driving, or look for a sedan with more power. Rick has always been a Ford guy, so that narrowed the search quite a bit. Then he found a great deal on the car that would wind up being the perfect choice. He had heard good things about the "Ford Crown Victoria Engine" and until he actually drove this 2006 Crown Vic, he had no idea what he'd been missing.

Here was car that, for the most part, had a consumer base with an average age of 60 plus years. For some reason retired people loved the Crown Victoria 4-door and since this age group is not known to frequent the local hang outs on Friday night, the "Ford Crown Victoria Engine" has inadvertently remained a well kept secret. Rick had found a sleeper and he was so happy he almost gave the Taurus away so he could make room for his new set of wheels.

In the next two weeks Rick noticed he was driving past gas stations that were once regular stops on his commute.

About: The "Ford Crown Victoria Engine" was ample power for the weight of the larger 4-door and he was actually growing fond of the shiny Silver paint and midnight blue interior, to his own surprise. Rick calls it his 747 luxury liner, and he claims he'll never part with the car.