1993 Ford Taurus SHO from North America - Comments

I have replaced the alternator 2 times.

I have replaced the starter 3 times.

I replaced the radiator at 60K miles.

The passenger side front power window frame broke and had to be replaced- it is still very slow to raise/lower.

I have replaced the oxygen sensors 2 times since owning the car.

I have replaced the AC compressor 2 times, the 2nd time with a total lock up of the compressor which also broke my drive belt and idler pulley.

The Mass Air Flow sensor was replaced at 70K miles

The brake calipers tend to stick and no one can diagnose the problem, resulting in rapid brake wear.

This car is very comfortable on long trips- 800 miles in one day without discomfort. There is some road and wind noise issues, but the stereo can drown those out.

Service from Ford dealers has been atrocious and parts very hard to find. One dealer actually did not recognize the Yamaha V6 as a factory option. I found a small independent shop in town that has more knowledge of the car and more readily available parts than either major Ford dealership.

Performance is still great at 104K miles- I am reluctant to go all-out at stoplights in order to spare the transaxle, but highway performance is excellent.

I have had no problems with my transaxle, which is a departure from many SHO owners with automatics.

Fuel economy is poor even with all components working properly-not what it should be according to all Ford specs and other SHO owners.

I have had similar problems with a 94 Taurus 3.8L, 6 cylinders with about 70k miles. Especially the brake calipers and break wear. Mine also had a squeak for about two years that the mechanics never quite figured out until recently. I have also replaced the starter. Recently the car overheats as you go uphill despite replacing the thermostat and the A/C stops working after about 15 minutes...and the transmission is grabbing severely during shift down.

Moral: Don't hang onto these cars past 50k miles.

Great website.

-Rob-

I own a 91 MTX Taurus SHO which has the 3.0L Yamaha D.O.H.C 24V V-6, from what I read you have a 3.2L which means you drive the taurus ATX, which has the automatic transmission, not the 5-speed Manual, and a different engine, which has less power for a larger block for some reason. I have had no trouble at all with my SHO, I've owned it for a while, the a/c compressor needs replaced, but just squeals every now and then for about 5 seconds, that's it. It's the best car I've ever owned, so if you consider getting another SHO, don't get the automatic ATX SHO, get the MTX SHO, if you can't drive a manual transmission, get it anyway, it only takes one day to learn, my first car was a Mercury Capri XR2 turbo convertible with a 1.6L and 5-speed, I learned to drive it when I was 15, if I can, anyone can, sho's are awesome.

The SHO is a great car that Ford knows nothing about! Go to SHOtimes.com It's like most things, the more you know the cheaper it will be! They are cheap to medium priced cars and can be a lot of fun.

If you do believe that you may have a bad ac compressor, get it repaired immediately!!! I thought that I would wait for that "next paycheck" and now have gone from a $600 estimated repair to a $1,450. repair L.

My 1996 SHO (3.4, 8cyl) has been fun to drive when I have been able to keep it out of the garage. I have replaced the suspension, radiator, reservoir and hoses, and now the ac compressor. I'm also told by Pro Tech Automotive (Gaithersburg, MD) that I must have my cams welded or I will end up dead on the road. We are looking at about another $1,200.

I will really miss driving the car once I can sell it, but I will NOT miss the costly repairs.

I'm sorry to hear some of you have had so many problems with your SHO's. Although it sounds like most have to do with accessories, and possibly prior lack of maintenance (not pointing the finger at you), I hope it doesn't dampen your spirits too much about the car. I just recently read about the bad case-hardening on the V8 cams and hope Ford steps up to the plate on it. In light of the current move toward ethical corporate and individual behavior, we can only hope.

I recently bought my first SHO. I've wanted one for over ten years and finally made the move in Feb. It's a '92 mtx with 112,000 miles on it. I'm really having a lot of fun driving this car... in fact it was hard to stop smiling for the first few thousand miles. I bought it from the original owner in Seattle who used it as his main transportation when he lived here in Washington, and when he lived in California as well. Generally speaking it's a sweet ride. I've owned a number of new cars, both Fords and Hondas, but none can hold a candle to this car for snappy acceleration, road holding... especially for freeway driving, passing and changing lanes. What fun.

With regard to reliability, I haven't had any problems, though I know I will as this is a borderline exotic, so maintenance is essential. I haven't exactly babied the car, but I haven't beat it either. It hasn't broken (yet), nor has it complained much at all. I'd like to stiffen up the body and suspension parts, as Ford could have given the car a little more substance in order to withstand the twisting and torque, but that will all come in time and as I can afford it. I'm not sure if it had the 60,000 mile done on it (I have only learned about the importance of that since I bought the car), so next week it goes into my garage for a week or two to get all the goodies, and I learn from OJT some details about the car's inner workings. I recently sat down and added up the cost of all the aftermarket performance do-dads and handling whifferdils I want to add to the car, and I came up with a figure in the neighborhood of $12K!...which would be almost six times what I paid for the car. Personally I think it would be money well invested. Looks like I have a new hobby. And I do believe this is one of those machines that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Thanks.

John Lewis

Arlington, WA

johnstratarrow@msn.com.

REGARDING RADIATOR REPLACEMENT: I recently had to replace my radiator on my 1992 Taurus SHO MTX. In my opinion it is NOT a good idea to re-use that funky "slide in" bolt on the driver's side of the radiator that slots into the plastic tank. Instead of using that, remove it completely and drill a hole in the upper machined lip of the radiator (no coolant flows through it). Drill a matching hole into the frame of the car. You can use a "Ty-Wrap" normally used to bind wires to hold the radiator in place by running it through both holes. That stupid slide in bolt is what caused the radiator leak in the first place. It caused fatigue of the plastic tank.