I’m thinking of buying a 98 Taurus wagon. V6, 87K on the meter. Anyone got a MPG estimate on this type vehicle, or any other comments. They’re asking $2900, which is well below NADA, even for low retail. I’m going to have it inspected by my local mech. shop tomorrow.
Earlier Taurus wagons had major transmission problems. I’d do some homework on that before buying this car.
The transmission problems are gone by 1998. I think 1994 or 1995 the major problems were fixed. I have a 97 Sable with about 230,000 Kms on it, 140,000 miles.
I just shared transmission woes with a coworker. He related the tale of the 98 Taurus he just got rid of. He bought it for $5,500 this past year with fairly low miles for its age. Shortly thereafter he put $1,200 worth of work into the rack and pinion. Three months later the transmission went. He unloaded it as-is rather than put another $3,000 into it.
I learned to drive in a Taurus. I realize they’re popular family sedans and make many people happy (or at least get them from point A to point B), but I’d never buy one.
We owned a 95 Taurus wagon for a couple of years. I would ride a bicycle with my children strapped to my back before owning another Taurus ever again. We were at the mechanic with this car on average once per month during the entire time we owned it. A few major things were wrong (battery kept dying, engine repeatedly vapor-locked during the summer months and caused unpredictable stalls, and finally, the transmission died, which is when we finally got rid of the car) but even more frustrating and annoying were all the minor problems, i.e. the windshield wipers defaulted to the “up” position when you turned them off unless you timed it just perfectly, the seat adjustment button broke while the seat was adjusted to a position from which I could not reach the gas pedal (thus necessitating a $100 repair), the air conditioning broke, the power window control quit working on the passenger side front window… I could go on and on.
That car was a piece of junk. Run far, run fast.
Many car repair shops, particularly non-chain locals, will inspect the vehicle for you and give you the low-down. It may cost $90 or so, but well worth it. They usually call it ‘used car inspections’ or some-such.
Heck, I just went through a used-car shopping experience (again) and found (again) not a single reasonably priced used car out there…so bought a new Toyota Corolla for less than many of the used cars out there with many miles.
My 94 Sable went through three transmissions. My 98 Windstar killed two.
60,000 miles seem to be just about the pre-programmed lifetime for a Ford trans-axle. Every one died at nearly perfect multiples of 60K.
My GF drives a taurus wagon with the big engine, the Duratec. It’s a 1999 model. That thing’ll move. It’s not the SHO engine from the sedans but a 24-valve one that went in the wagons. That trans-axle is doing fine.
Oh - and electrical problems seem pretty standard for Fords. Nothing fatal, just flashing roof lights, false door open indicators, etc.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved my '95 Taurus, but…
The brakes kept seizing, due to collapsed brake lines.
The head gasket blew (if you think the transmission was a weak spot, you should have seen the head gasket problems!)
A coolant leak required pulling the dash out to get to.
Ditto with an AC leak.
My serious recommendation…if you can budget $3K for repairs the first year, I’d go for it. If you’re hoping you can spend $2,900 and not have to put anymore into it for awhile, you’ll be disappointed.
Thanks for your comments, they helped me to decide on a 96 Jeep Cherokee instead, same price w/ a few more miles on it, but I like it better.
6 years ago my wife and I bought a 97 Taurus. The only problems have been a cam position sensor, alternator and broken wire to the starter. The car recieves regular maintenance including transmission service. We have put over 60,000 miles on it and it still runs and drives great. My wife did inform me last Saturday that something was wrong with the car and it would not start. I checked out the ignition system, it was fine. I hooked up a fuel pressure gauge and tried to start the car. Nothing. Hmmm. Added a couple gallons of gas and it started right up. She had been driving it for 2 days with the low fuel light on.
I love the jeep cherokees!
Be aware though, that they have a history of reliability problems themselves.