speaking of badges, on my 89 Taurus L 4-cylinder, I put a badge on the side just in front of the door where the 5.0 was on mustangs back then. Mine said 7.5 liter. The sticker was a throwaway extra for a boat engine, when I worked at a marina.

 

My first car that I actually bought was a 1997 Taurus SHO. Don't ask me why but I always found the idea of a sleeper car sexy, and my role model as a kid had an '89 Sho that was downright fast even by today's standards. Heck the 1989/1990 SHO with the Yamhammer (Yamaha engine) was faster than the twice as expensive 540 and even the 1991 M5.

The 2nd gen SHO, '93-95, still offered a manual but was a tad slower because it put on some weight (3300 in 1989 but almost 3600 with auto in '95). Unfortunately the 1996-1999 V8 models were also 3500+ lbs, and only available with a slushbox. At the time I was living in NYC so I didn't mind, but performance took a huge hit. Even with 235-240hp the car's gearing kept it slower than any V6 honda accord or even the 190 hp manual SVT Contour.

The car's paint, and interior help up very well in the 80,000 miles I owned it, but rattles became frequent and front rotors always warped within 5,000 miles (never could correct). The cars also suffered from a catastrophic cam failure which affected at least 20% of all 3rd gen sho's. (www.v8sho.com) Ford still hasn't acknowledged a problem but based on my old NY SHO club was extremely prevalent.

In short the best features of the car was the amazing small displace V8 roar (3.4L and 7250 redline) which made the SHO the best sounding car this side of a 360 modena. Too bad it didn't move off the line with any authority or as good as it sounded. Just watch out, the car is quick from a rolling start and especially from a 40mph roll. (40-60mph is in the 3.0sec range!!). All in all, a very overpriced, porky sedan.