This week the 2008 Ford Taurus will begin to appear in showrooms in the United States resurrecting, at least in name, a brand with 81 percent consumer recognition, a fact on which the troubled Ford Motor Company is counting.

There will be two versions of the new Taurus, a re-styling of the Ford Five Hundred that did not prove popular with buyers, and a crossover christened the Taurus X to replace the Freestyle.

The new sedan should open at around $23,245 with an upper MSRP range of $28,695. The Taurus X will start at approximately $27,365 and will also be available at the Eddie Bauer Series trim level.

Critics have pointed to one drawback in capitalizing on the Taurus name, however. By re-naming what is essentially the floundering Five Hundred, Ford will be offering a larger, more pricey car than the one buyers may be expecting.

In terms of its design, the reincarnated Taurus shares lines with the Edge and Fusion sedans. The intent is to make this Taurus a direct competitor for the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry.

Speaking with USA TODAY at the Chicago Auto Show back in February, Ford CEO Alan Mullaly said the company never should have abandoned the Taurus name for its line of family sedans.

"In hindsight," he said, "we would have just made the Five Hundred the new version of the Taurus. It's clear now that if I'd been here earlier we'd have just announced it as the newest model of the Taurus family."