1999 Ford Taurus SE review from North America

Before I bought it in 8/05:fuel pump, coolant sensor, seat belt assembly... within 22K..all under warranty.

At 45,696...Front and rear brakes... rotors and drums cut/resurfaced.

At 50,712...Front stabilizer links, THEN at 53,520...front struts/bearing plates. Premature if you ask me.

Purchased at 55K (8/05) and at 56,429...Front right wheel bearing. $200 plus. Premature if you ask me.

At 72,388...rear brakes again, drums cut/resurfaced.

At 72,885...new front rotors only, pads still had 80% left from 45,696.

And recently, for the first time, the biggest price tag yet... At 114,688...Front brakes and rotors; ball joints; and an alignment. $783.00.

General comments since I have owned it... low volume squeal when making left turns, intermittent clunking/clicking noise from motor when idling, water leak into the passenger side with heavy rain, never can get a full tank of gas unless you stand there and wait to top it off, general road noise... not a quiet riding car. Always have to re-tighten the radio antenna... gets loose from vibration. And if fuel level is low... the car might not start if it is resting facing up hill.

The way the transmission works, car always wants to just Go... therefore lots of high speed braking (especially downhill) which eventually warps the rotors from excessive heat build-up. Maybe this is why folks have premature problems with rack and pinion, control arms, ball joints, steering. One thing leads to another, and that all leads right back to FORD design.

The engine doesn't work against itself to help slow the car down. RPM's remain high. It's all braking. If I didn't brake going down a hill... the car would go 90 miles an hour all on it's own. And continue to do so after leveling out for at least a half a mile. Scary!!

Now at 115K...Other than basic maintenance, (i.e.-oil changes, filters, tires, spark plugs, coolant service, transmission service, new battery, serpentine belts, wiper blades) and after reading some of these reviews/comments...I have been one of the lucky ones it seems.

Haven't had any problems with rack and pinion, door ajar light, interior dome light, wind noise, wipers and all the small pain in the butt things that cost very little for the part, but a lot of money in labor.

And yes, the cruise control works eventually, but takes a few tries to get it working.

A/C works fine, but getting heat in the winter takes a little time and constant playing with the temperature control.