Intake silencer removal! Check out this big ol restriction on the intake!
I decided to remove the intake silencer for a big trip to Seattle and Oregon from Spokane because we had lots of weight and baggage in the vehicle and I wanted to make sure the car wouldn't struggle along the big hills on the freeways like it was on I-90's big hilly freeway past Cda. After removing the silencer, in very hot weather with a warmed up motor the car definitely had a bit more get up and go from stops, just seemed to breath better. Many people on the Taurus forum do this for more hp/torque.
Needing to press the throttle down further and further to keep and maintain speed will make any motor work harder and thus use more fuel, so this mod seems to make the motor more happy at higher loads and RPM's.