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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:44:50 AM EDT
[#1]
My favorite was the Pinkley Taurus.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:46:16 AM EDT
[#2]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I had a '98 Taurus that I bought new. It was fine for 100K miles but turned into a money pit after that. So, not much different than any other Ford product |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:48:11 AM EDT
[#3]
People forget that in the 80's and early 90's they were better than anything else in the market that would carry 4 adults in comfort. They were easy to sell as a new car - 1st and 2nd gen both. New Taurus sales literally paid my mortgage every month - everything else I sold was the rest of the bills and extras.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:50:52 AM EDT
[#4]
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:52:02 AM EDT
[#5]
I am assuming you're talking about one of these:
 Never owned one, always thought they were the worst looking cars ever made. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:52:19 AM EDT
[#6]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The Ford Taurus was quite advanced for its time, there's an excellent book about the birth and development. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0393318613?tag=arfcom00-20 One of my professors was on the design team, he had some interesting stories to tell about Management at Ford....which is why I drive Toyotas. Does the book say the taurus was their first car designed for women? |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:59:00 AM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryQuoted: People forget that in the 80's and early 90's they were better than anything else in the market that would carry 4 adults in comfort. They were easy to sell as a new car - 1st and 2nd gen both. New Taurus sales literally paid my mortgage every month - everything else I sold was the rest of the bills and extras. I'd take one of these over a Taurus all day every day:  |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:59:19 AM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I am assuming you're talking about one of these: http://images1.americanlisted.com/nlarge/1996-ford-taurus-gl_28390953.jpg Never owned one, always thought they were the worst looking cars ever made. That's 3rd gen, which made the sales absolutely drop. Customers mostly hated the style change. They were great to drive with the Duratec V6 though. Drove from Seattle to Spokane in just over 3 hours in one. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 11:59:35 AM EDT
[#9]
I had 4 new clitaurus's back to back as company cars back in my tech/sales days. Couldn't kill them, only issue I ever had was brake rotor warping.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:01:09 PM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I'd take one of these over a Taurus all day every day: https://images.ctfassets.net/buxxk7taiwc2/EOK3y7UM4RQuLFx0Hu5Rq/b0472e4da57b9d9ab267ef0945c78406/fully-loaded-federal-agent-aspirations-61k-mile-1989-ford-crown-victoria00O0O_c1WDceaovSMz_0xS0po_1200x900.jpg Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: People forget that in the 80's and early 90's they were better than anything else in the market that would carry 4 adults in comfort. They were easy to sell as a new car - 1st and 2nd gen both. New Taurus sales literally paid my mortgage every month - everything else I sold was the rest of the bills and extras. I'd take one of these over a Taurus all day every day: https://images.ctfassets.net/buxxk7taiwc2/EOK3y7UM4RQuLFx0Hu5Rq/b0472e4da57b9d9ab267ef0945c78406/fully-loaded-federal-agent-aspirations-61k-mile-1989-ford-crown-victoria00O0O_c1WDceaovSMz_0xS0po_1200x900.jpg Personally so would I, but that Crown Vic was 20 grand back then, vs 12,500 for a Taurus GL. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:04:17 PM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Drivers Ed had those POS. As did my school. They were pretty much forgettable vehicles. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:05:11 PM EDT
[#12]
All our Drivers Ed. vehicles were from the Ford dealership in '85, so yes, I learned to drive in a Taurus, an Escort, and an LTD, as well as the '70 Mustang Convertible I had already purchased and was sitting in my driveway waiting for me to turn 16.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:07:21 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Let's not forget the Ford Tempo, which was sized between the Escort and the Taurus. A room mate in college had the weird coupe version. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg/1200px-92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg https://cdn3.focus.bg/autodata/i/ford/tempo/tempo-coupe/medium/c00c56d75b62cd1be26239f25509f299.jpg A friend in high school had one of those. We built a ramp out of parking barricades and 2x8s then proceeded to jump it. It was headed to the scrapyard anyway. Landing sent the front shocks through the hood. 
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:13:14 PM EDT
[#14]
My mother bought hers in '96, and when she died it became mine.
I used it as a spare, and then my son used it. It had over 175K on it and I only replaced the radiator in it. We gave it to an older gentleman my son worked with, and he still has it. That was 5 years ago. With proper maintenance, almost any car will last. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:16:14 PM EDT
[#15]
I worked for a major car dealer in our town, somewhere on outskirts of eastern Europe. 1993-1995
He had a contact in Miami and they were flooding market with cheap ford Taurus and other american cars. Market and demand was so crazy, one gasoline king paid $52000 worth of gasoline for a brand new Chevy Astro van. Himself he was riding in white Lincoln Towncar like this one  and later on switched to BMW 750iL |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:27:47 PM EDT
[#16]
Quote HistoryQuoted: One of my professors was on the design team, he had some interesting stories to tell about Management at Ford....which is why I drive Toyotas. As noted in another thread, I learned to turn wrenches on 80's and 90's domestic cars. I tend to own and drive Japanese stuff as well. 
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:34:51 PM EDT
[#17]
Dad bought a Sable in 1986 with the V6 and 4-speed. It was our "nice car" for 10 years or more.
For a first year, we didn't have crazy problems with it. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:44:32 PM EDT
[#18]
Quoted: The Taurus and twin Sable sold millions. From 1999-2003 alone, it sold nearly 2 million. It sold so many that it was the best selling auto in the USA several times and held that record for many years. It was comfortable, reasonably powerful, and not very expensive. I'm leaving the SHO out of this discussion. I had one of the 2nd gen. The first gen and the second were quite rounded, but they weren't nearly as rounded as the 3rd gen. The 3rd had a remarkable resemblance to a used bar of soap. I bought one off my mil. First thing required was a transaxle repair. Years later, it blew a head gasket. That resulted in my first in-the-frame engine rebuild. I spend nearly an entire Christmas Break on my back in the garage on several layers of cardboard doing that. The exhaust system was problematic, too. I gave it to my daughter who was driving it when she married her first husband. Eventually it ended up in a grassy field and likely then to the scrapper. As for the millions of others, they had relatively short lives. They were popular fleet cars and were certainly better than the earlier MOPAR K-cars. I had a Sable.....maybe a 1994. It looked identical to this one save for the grill. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/333347/Taurus_1st_gen_jpeg-2129432.JPG Any early gen Taurus stories to share? They are not good for 16yr olds to try and fish tale down dirt roads 4 days after getting drivers license. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:45:40 PM EDT
[#19]
I had a 1989 Ford Taurus SHO - great car.
 The Taurus SHO is the fastest, most expensive Ford sedan | Revelations with Jason Cammisa | Ep. 08 |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:48:32 PM EDT
[#20]
My cousin inherited one of the little V8 ones from his mom.
Talked so much shit that that piece of shit was supposed to be fast. I soundly spanked the ever living shit out of it with my 4cyl. SpecV. From a dig,from a roll, gave him a head start,etc. Straight murdered each time. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:49:46 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Parents had Tempo, what a hunk of junk. Very uncomfortable seats and prone to stalling on acceleration, like when you were making a left turn at a busy intersection  Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Let's not forget the Ford Tempo, which was sized between the Escort and the Taurus. A room mate in college had the weird coupe version. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg/1200px-92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg https://cdn3.focus.bg/autodata/i/ford/tempo/tempo-coupe/medium/c00c56d75b62cd1be26239f25509f299.jpg A high school girlfriend's parents had one. They decided it was a good idea to drive it to Florida. It was a total POS. With the breakdowns and her dad stopping to check shit under the hood, it took us just over 24-hours to get to Destin from Kentucky. I couldn't sleep at all in the back seat. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:50:43 PM EDT
[#22]
I had an ‘89 SHO I bought in ‘90.
In many ways it was a decent car, but I promised myself I’d never own another WWD car, and I haven’t. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:51:15 PM EDT
[#23]
My mom had a 1st gen Sable. Nice car - until she stopped driving much. Then, the mice moved in and absolutely wrecked the damn thing to the point we had it towed to the junk yard.
Sad. She'd not had any mechanical issues that I know of - well, until then! Those fuckers ate and shit on everything!!! |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:52:51 PM EDT
[#24]
I'd DD an SHO
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Posted: 10/14/2021 12:56:31 PM EDT
[#25]
My first car was a 95 Taurus with the Vulcan 3.0L. I loved that car, it's how I learned how to work on cars. As a poor young kid I replaced the trans 3 times with junkyard trans. I beat the shit out of that poor car.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:00:16 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Lord you brought back some bad memories  Power steering hoses  Motor mounts And you haven't lived till you put a clutch in a SHO |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:00:50 PM EDT
[#27]
I had a '99 white Sable that I bought new - I called it 'The White Whale'. It had leather seats, climate control, and was more powerful than most of its contemporaries. For the first 80,000 miles it was pretty good, then the problems started. What I sold it after 10 years (and a little over 100k miles) it had transmission problems, a leaking A/C system, all 4 hubs had been replaced, and the brakes would sometimes stop working (mechanic couldn't find a problem). I was happy to get rid of it.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:07:18 PM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted: As noted in another thread, I learned to turn wrenches on 80's and 90's domestic cars. I tend to own and drive Japanese stuff as well. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: One of my professors was on the design team, he had some interesting stories to tell about Management at Ford....which is why I drive Toyotas. As noted in another thread, I learned to turn wrenches on 80's and 90's domestic cars. I tend to own and drive Japanese stuff as well. As someone noted in this thread, Ford sold a lot of these for Fleet Sales. My professors task was to try to determine a warranty problem with the fuel pump, specifically where the pump failed in a high heat condition. They were towing these back to the dealer in Las Vegas by the truckload. He looked at the paperwork from the Allen Park test laboratory and the walbro fuel pump........ never passed validation and always failed in a high heat condition. So a car company knowingly produced a car with a non validated fuel pump. That failed exactly as expected. Let's face it, every car company drops the ball sometimes....... but I'm only buying Toyotas from now on. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:08:06 PM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryQuoted: My favorite was the Pinkley Taurus. Pinkley Taurus was a Bob & Tom skit.  Bob & Tom Show - Her Pinkly Taurus |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:13:08 PM EDT
[#30]
Both my kids were brought home in a Taurus. An Airman that was tdy used one to get me to my base on September 11th. It forever holds a little space in my heart.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:14:07 PM EDT
[#31]
My grandpa bought one new in 1990. It had that God awful red interior ford used to put in their vehicles during that time.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:14:32 PM EDT
[#32]
I had a 95 Taurus as my first car. It was "Champagne" colored. Man, was that bench seat awesome as a teen boy with his first car!
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:22:04 PM EDT
[#33]
martini-butt had a white Taurus wagon, similar to this;
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:23:38 PM EDT
[#34]
Never owned one but went out with a broad a few times that had a wagon with a manual trans. Always thought about that being such an oddball combination.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:45:28 PM EDT
[#35]
I drove a Taurus MT5 a bit. 5 speed with a 2.3 four cylinder. It was sooo slow but it got pretty decent mileage.
I think they were only offered for a couple years in the '80s. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 1:58:49 PM EDT
[#36]
I had a 99 Taurus wagon. I called it The Egg.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:00:06 PM EDT
[#37]
I remember when they were new. Everyone here called them "jellybeans", not bars of soap. I do see the connection though.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:01:52 PM EDT
[#38]
Quoted: The Taurus and twin Sable sold millions. From 1999-2003 alone, it sold nearly 2 million. It sold so many that it was the best selling auto in the USA several times and held that record for many years. It was comfortable, reasonably powerful, and not very expensive. I'm leaving the SHO out of this discussion. I had one of the 2nd gen. The first gen and the second were quite rounded, but they weren't nearly as rounded as the 3rd gen. The 3rd had a remarkable resemblance to a used bar of soap. I bought one off my mil. First thing required was a transaxle repair. Years later, it blew a head gasket. That resulted in my first in-the-frame engine rebuild. I spend nearly an entire Christmas Break on my back in the garage on several layers of cardboard doing that. The exhaust system was problematic, too. I gave it to my daughter who was driving it when she married her first husband. Eventually it ended up in a grassy field and likely then to the scrapper. As for the millions of others, they had relatively short lives. They were popular fleet cars and were certainly better than the earlier MOPAR K-cars. I had a Sable.....maybe a 1994. It looked identical to this one save for the grill. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/333347/Taurus_1st_gen_jpeg-2129432.JPG Any early gen Taurus stories to share? I had a 1993 mercury sable that I drove for a couple years in the mid 2000s. It was a decent car and got me around with little issues. It was $1500 and never broke down. YMMV. Honestly, not a terrible car. Spacious and comfortable, not terribly slow. It wasn't great at anything, but not bad at anything either. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:05:42 PM EDT
[#39]
Had an '87 Sable wagon with the Yamaha V6 in it. Engine was the only good part of the car.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:14:15 PM EDT
[#40]
They were innumerable in rental fleets.
Remember one trade show in Dallas I got in one with a coworker driving. He asks me to hand him his sunglasses from the glove box. Nothing there. He's like "Fuck, damn valet stole my expensive sunglasses" Goes to complain when we get back to the hotel (Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek) Finds out they had given him the wrong white Taurus. Still don't know if that was better or worse. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:16:40 PM EDT
[#41]
I had a 2nd gen Taurus with the 3.8 liter v6. Transmission started going out, but then I got rear ended and the car was totalled.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:20:24 PM EDT
[#42]
Friend had a wagon in Highschool.
Glorious pile of shit that was. He drove like an old lady and was basically the most Ned Flanders non-exciting person you could imagine. That car was perfect for him. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:22:18 PM EDT
[#43]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Let's not forget the Ford Tempo, which was sized between the Escort and the Taurus. A room mate in college had the weird coupe version. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg/1200px-92-94_Ford_Tempo.jpg https://cdn3.focus.bg/autodata/i/ford/tempo/tempo-coupe/medium/c00c56d75b62cd1be26239f25509f299.jpg
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:23:25 PM EDT
[#44]
My first one was a 96 with the DOHC S engine. Ran like a scalded dog but had a perpetual check engine light that never went away no matter how much you worked on it. My 17 year old totaled it but walked away from the crash.
My second was a 2000 fleet car that lasted for about 250k before the transmission gave out. Third one was a 2001, also a fleet car, I got cheap because the seller thought the transmission was bad. Dropped the pan and changed the filter and it made it to almost 300k miles before the transmission gave out for good. They are roomy cars that are comfortable on the highway. Ideal for new teenage drivers because they are safe and insurance is relatively cheap. If you get one with the 3.0 V6 Vulcan engine they run a long time with little maintenance and they are easy to work on. One weak point is the excessive plumbing for the heater; pipes and hoses everywhere. Also they have a problem with electrolysis in the cooling system which degrades the coolant and rusts metal parts if you don't keep up with your coolant services. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one if I came across a good deal. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:30:06 PM EDT
[#45]
Worked at a Ford dealer in the late 1980s. Big...big sellers, had a SHO with a manual, damned thing had serious torque steer. Had a hard time selling the thing too.
My first ticket driving a big truck was given by a Ohio trooper driving a test Taurus. Ford stayed #1 with the 2nd gen by dumping them on the fleets. In addition to being ugly, when the fleets dumped them on the used market, they were much cheaper than someone who would've been still upside down on their payments. That did Ford no favors. |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:33:01 PM EDT
[#46]
No by the 1980's my parents had already been burned from owning poor quality American cars. It was Honda or Toyota only.
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:33:47 PM EDT
[#47]
Had me a white 95 SHO with the yamahammer…what’s motor…everything worked on that car…the brand new Audi I traded it in on…not so much
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:45:51 PM EDT
[#48]
Passed the Ford engineering HQ in 84. Parking lot was full of Audi's. Found out later they were use to develop the ride/handling balance for the Taurus. Couple of years later my aunt had gotten a very early 4 cylinder base. She told me to take it for a drive to see what I thought. Went down an undulating, tilt changing, uneven crowned country road. Cruised at 90 plus. It tracked as well as any German car I had ever driven. The motor was very hushed for an 80's 4. Even my uncle (other side of family) as a long time GM tech and owner was amazed. Of course it maybe had 2k miles at the time.
Several years later I had an SHO for a while. Felt rather crude. No real torque until over 4k rpms. Interior was starting to fall apart after 50k miles. Traded on a year old BMW 525 stick that I put over 100k on with no problems, until I foolishly sold it for a stupid reason..... |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 2:54:46 PM EDT
[#49]
Quote HistoryQuoted: close enough Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Lord you brought back some bad memories Power steering hoses Motor mounts And you haven't lived till you put a clutch in a SHO Da Fuq? 1st and 2nd Gen SHO's (and I mean 91 and earlier and 92-95 not that POS bloated golf club carrying turd that appeared in 96) with the 3.0 and MTX are probably one of the easiest FWD cars to replace the clutch in. put the brace between the shock towers to hold the powertrain, pull the airbox, drop the cats, subframe, the misc bolts and it comes right out the bottom. Waaaayyyyy more room than having to swap the ATX on the 3.2. Clutch time on a 3.0 MTX is the good time service time, adjust the valves, change the well seals, de-carbon the IMRC, change the timing belt and water pump...that's the job (timing belt and water pump) on a 3.0 SHO that kind of sucks. Granted I'm speaking from experience when they were "modern' cars, not $500.00 dollar trailer park, cousin banging trailer park hoopties that smell like weed, Marlboro reds and Keystone Light (as most of them sadly became after the 4th owners). |
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Posted: 10/14/2021 3:11:34 PM EDT
[#50]
Bunch of poors in here.
Had one of these as a DD/Beater that replaced a 91 Town Car beater with 300K miles on it. If you think the Taurus trans was weak, try putting it besides a 4.6.  |
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