I bought an '06 Five-Hundred Limited AWD in August '07 (from the Ford
dealer I have bought several new cars from, including my '06 Mustang
GT). The dealer had leased it new to a customer who takes a 1 year
lease every year......the dealer provided full Carfax re****t and
history. Had 16,000 miles on it.....paid $18,400 before trade-in.
I was looking for a Five Hundred for the room......I wanted the AWD
despite rumors about the transmission.
It has exceeded all expectations: a really great, comfortable, roomy
car.......doesn't handle like a s****ts car around town (the wheelbase is
long for the size of the car) but is a real pleasure on the highway:
very stable and not affected by blast from passing trucks, etc. Just
great for vacations with that huge trunk and fold-down rear seat.
both the AWD and the CVT are supposed to reduce gas mileage........I
get 18-22 around town. Took a 3200 mile vacation and AVERAGED 25 mpg
gallon with up to 28 mpg on the highway (this on regular gas as
recommended......I tried mid-range and premium and it made no difference
in performance or mileage).
The AWD is amazing: completely "seamless": you never know it's
working, but in ice and snow this winter, it acted like the pavement was
dry, while other people were sliding all over.
The new Taurus still offers the AWD but I understand they have
replaced the CVT with a conventional automatic. The CVT was supposed to
be troublesome and "lethargic". I think that's mostly perception
because it is so smooth......if you want to go fast and put your foot
down it will fly. I believe the AWD and CVT are straight from Volvo:
hard to believe that Volvo would make anything fragile (they've owned
the CVT patents since they bought-out DAF many years ago). The Owners
Manual says the transmission/drive unit should be flushed and refilled
with the unique fluid every 30,000 miles. That will be a dealer-only
proposition and will be suitably overpriced, I'm sure, but I will have
it done on schedule to keep the warranty (36,000 miles) in effect and to
hopefully prolong the life of the unit if it is a weak link.
Great car - I have 3 friends with them (although not AWD) and they are
similarly pleased.
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