The Morning Call and Mcall.com's view

After getting off to a late start – it wasn’t introduced until December – the aerodynamically shaped Ford Taurus really took off. Demand at times exceeded supplies and in the first six months of 1986 more than 100,000 units were sold, a big figure for a mid-sized car. And the reason for this is probably very simple: It looks more expensive than it actually is and buyers were quick to pick up on this.

But Ford Motor Co. wanted even a little more. In this case the import market. And why not? During the 1985 model year, mid-size imported cars with manual transmissions accounted for about 300,000 sales in the United States, according to Ward’s Report. So in April, Ford introduced the Taurus MT-5, a car with a five-speed manual transmission (actually transaxle since it is a front-wheel drive car), four-cylinder engine and a long list of standard equipment.

And surprise of surprises, the base price on the car is only a little more than $10,000, a figure, Ford claims, is a superior value over any comparably- equipped car in the five-speed category. Since the Taurus has a striking resemblance to the high-priced German sedans (the test car was mistaken by many people for a German car), the value even looks a little better.

To be fair though, it is doubtful if Ford copied any car for the Taurus design. The aerodynamic look began at Ford in early 1983 with the Thunderbird and was followed a few months later by the Tempo. The Taurus is even a bit beyond these two cars, there still is a strong family resemblance, and one still has to wonder.

In addition to the dollar value, there were two other surprises about the Taurus MT-5 – room and performance. Since it is a mid-size car I did expect it to be roomy, but it was even a little better than I thought. Not only is there plenty of room in front but in the back as well. Because it is a roomy mid- size car, I did have my doubts that a four-cylinder engine (especially one without a turbocharger) was going to supply enough power. Happily, it performed well, or let’s say a lot better than one would expect.

Returning to basics, the MT-5 sedan (it also is available in a station wagon) has a wheelbase of 106 inches, length of 188.4 inches, width of 70.7 inches, height of 54.3 inches and curb weight of 2,863 pounds. The test car was equipped with bucket seats and had room for five. However, there are models in the Taurus line that have front bench seats that increase capacity to six. The trunk has 17 cubic feet of cargo room. An unusual and practical feature here is a cargo tie-down net that secures items such as grocery bags and keeps them upright and in place.

The level of interior trim, again, looks like it belongs in a more expensive car. Instruments and controls are obviously laid-out for convenience. Ford claims there was extensive research in ergonomics – the engineering discipline concerned with arranging i nstruments and controls for convenient and effective use – to develop the instrument panel, controls and seats so they were efficient and ”user-friendly.” Everything was where you would expect to find it.

The MT-5 proved to be an easy car to drive. Assuming that one can operate a manual transmission. Many people are frightened by a manual transmission and probably for good reason. But as manuals go, the MT-5’s was one of the easier to use. The gears were well defined and the clutch had a lot of built-in forgiveness.

Handling was responsive and precise but not overly so. In other words, you didn’t have to think about it all the time and if you wanted to groove in and out of traffic or lay it on in the curves, there was more than enough suspension to handle it. The four-wheel independent suspension has MacPherson struts all around, gas-pressured shocks and fore and aft stabilizer bars. The test car also had the optional P205/65R15 tires, which no doubth lped things along.

Powering the MT-5, is a 2.5 li ter/150 cubic inch four-cylinder with overhead valves, electronic fuel injection and a high-swirl and fast-burn combustion chamber design. The engine is rated at 92 horsepower at 4,000 rpm and 132 foot pounds torque at 3,000 rpm. Now right up front this doesn’t sound like enough power to move the Taurus out of its own way. But surprisingly the MT-5 doesn’t have bad performance. To be sure, you’re not going to suffer from whiplash on a second to third shift or do you have to worry about smoking those front tires off when leaving the line. But you will be able to mix it up in traffic and run the expressways without worrying.

Some of the reasons for this are the excellent gearing on the five-speed manual and the relatively light weight of the car. Also, it has a big four- cylinder engine and does produce quite a bit of torque; torque is important when moving weight.

The engine/transmission combination proved to be impressive for fuel mileage. The test car averaged 22 miles per gallon for city driving and 32 mpg over the highways. Regular unleaded was used. The test car was equipped with the optional extended range fuel tank (18.6 gallons, the standard tank measures 16 gallons), which as one can see would give it quite a driving range.

Base price on the MT-5 sedan is $10,276 and includes as standard equipment reclining bucket seats and console, tachometer, dual electric remote control mirrors, tinted glass, digital clock, all-season tires, interval wipers, electronic stereo search radio, four-way adjustable front headrests, child- proof rear door locks, a secondary driver’s sun visor and the cargo tie- down net.

Full price on the test car, including a delivery charge of $426, came to $14,023 and, as one could expect, was loaded with options. They included air conditioning, $762; cast aluminum wheels, $390; six-way power driver’s seat, $237; tilt steering column, $115; diagnostic warning lights, $89; autolamp system, $73; P205/65R15 tires, $84; speed control, $115; rear window defroster, $145; upgraded radio, $127; power side windows, $282; dual illuminating visor mirrors, $104; premium sound system, $168; extended range fuel tank, $46, and lock group, $221.