Big car, small engine. The pairing might seem paradoxical, but Ford has made a habit of dropping its turbocharged, direct-injection 2.0-liter four-cylinder into its larger vehicles. The latest blue-oval big ’un to get a small EcoBoost is the beefy Taurus; this additional engine option, joining a naturally aspirated V-6 and the SHO’s EcoBoost V-6, appears as part of the sedan’s 2013 refresh. As for its other big-and-small combos, Ford has already ladled the 2.0-liter into the Explorer and Edge with mixed results.

Pay More for Less

We’ve found that Ford’s 240-hp EcoBoost four does an admirable job of motivating the Edge and redesigned-for-2013 Escape crossovers but is overburdened in the Explorer. The engine is the 2013 Fusion’s top-of-the-line motivator, and a higher-output version powers the new Focus ST. Regardless of which hood the 2.0-liter lives under, the engine is well mannered and smooth, with linear power delivery and little turbo lag.

The turbo four is paired exclusively with a six-speed automatic driving the front wheels. It’s available in any Taurus trim except the sporty, range-topping SHO model. As with the Edge and Explorer, the 2.0-liter EcoBoost four in the Taurus is a step-up, extra-cost engine. The promised return for its $995 price is improved fuel economy relative to the base V-6 engine. Both the city and highway EPA ratings are three better here, landing at 22/32 mpg. In our experience, it’s tougher to get close to EPA mileage estimates in turbocharged cars, so we’ll reserve final judgment until we can fully test this model.

Beefy Tostadas Can Accelerate, Too

Of all the big Fords to get the 2.0-liter EcoBoost four, we think the 2013 Taurus might be the most appropriate. It’s mostly a question of mass. The Taurus weighs a little less than an Edge when both are equipped with the engine. A 2.0-liter Explorer, on the other hand, weighs a good quarter-ton more than an Edge so equipped, tapping out the powertrain. Although down 48 hp on the Taurus’s base 3.5-liter V-6, the turbo four produces 16 additional lb-ft of torque, and its twist is available at a lower rpm. As a result, the 2.0-liter Taurus gets up and goes much like the front-wheel-drive V-6 sedan. The only indication that two cylinders are missing comes in the form of a faint resonance that enters the cabin at low revs in higher gears.

As befits its fuel-sipping mission, the four-cylinder Taurus’s six-speed automatic transmission dutifully grabs the highest possible gear as quickly as it can. There is a sport transmission mode that delays upshifts until the tach needle swings closer to redline, but it seems uncouth to drive a non-SHO Taurus this way. A fidgety shift-lever-mounted rocker switch allows drivers to summon an up- or downshift at their leisure. Unfortunately, no matter how furiously you twiddle this switch, the transmission takes a good two-count to execute on the command.

Dynamically, the four-pot car feels nearly the same as any other Taurus. Ford says the 2.0-liter-equipped version is roughly 55 pounds lighter than a comparable V-6 model; four-cylinder cars get slightly different front spring rates along with minor changes to the dampers to account for the lighter load. You don’t feel the weight difference, and the car still feels heavy because it is. At least the squishy suspension isolates passengers from all but the worst road imperfections. The electrically assisted steering is devoid of road feel, weighting up only off-center. An added bonus for all 2013 Taurus models is an upgraded brake master cylinder that firms up pedal feel and reduces its travel.

Pinching Pennies with a Few Extra Up Front

The 2013’s refreshed interior is classier, but the cheesy, fake gathered-leather insert on the door panels had us gritting our teeth. Made of molded plastic, it appears real from afar, but run a hand over it, and you’re greeted by prickly pseudo-stitching and physical confirmation that the Taurus is not a Lexus ES350. The latest version of MyFord Touch is present and accounted for, and although the interface is improved, the touch screen is still pretty difficult to operate once under way.

The highest praise we can bestow on the four-cylinder Taurus is that it drives almost exactly like the V-6 version. Considering that customers can spec any front-wheel-drive Taurus to the same levels with the turbo four or the regular V-6, the extra grand in cost and potentially fewer stops at the pump might be the only differences they’ll notice at all.

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