1991 Ford Taurus Station Wagon review from North America
"Disappointed with dealership service"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
We have had major problems with the timing belt and the motor. The timing belt broke last year when my husband was out of town. We discovered that there had been a recall on the timing belt for that model year, but our Ford dealer said that they wouldn't honor the recall because our car was made in a non-recall factory (even though from our research there were timing belt problems from that factory).
Now we have just found out that our motor was damaged when the timing belt broke. Apparently there was a hairline crack in the motor that is now larger and causing problems. We will need to replace the motor because of a recall problem that Ford has refused to honor.
General comments?
I have found that Ford dealerships in general are not dependable. I purchased another vehicle from a local dealership new, and was told that they would take care of me. When I brought the vehicle in for service because there was an anti-freeze smell (still under warranty) and there was a musty odor coming from the air vents. I was told there was nothing wrong with it and to spray it out with Lysol. This was a problem that was present right from the beginning when I bought the car.
I decided to bring the car next time to a different dealership and asked them for a tune-up, and also to check it over. They found a hairline crack in the radiator (surprise, surprise) which was causing an antifreeze smell and musty odor. They offered to fix it for us for the tidy sum of $400. Of course, it was now off warranty. I took it to the local mechanic and they charged $100 for a weld job. It works fine. The musty odor and antifreeze smell are gone.
We purchased the Taurus from a third dealership. So far I have found three dealerships that I will not bring my vehicle to. Those are the only three in our general area. I am highly disappointed with Ford "Service".
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | No |
| First year of ownership | 2000 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2001 |
| Engine and transmission | 3.8 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 5/10 |
| Reliability marks | 5/10 |
| Comfort marks | 7/10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 2/10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 3/10 |
| Distance when acquired | 50000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 76000 miles |
| Previous car | AMC Eagle |
| Date of Entry | 2nd July, 2001 |

