1997 Ford Taurus GL from North America - Comments

I have a '97 Ford Taurus GL. When I turn or do u-turns, the tires squeak like crazy. The car is always accelerating by itself. Especially when I'm not on the brakes, it just accelerates.

The engine on light has been on for 5 years or so. There's always a problem with it.

I advise only people looking for a first time car to get it, or else you'll be spending your money every time you get it inspected.

Ford - fix.or.repair.daily.

My inherited 97 Taurus GL 6.0 has had some of the same problems mentioned in previous comments.

The interior light caused battery to drain - finally just turned it off - hoping the lubricating of light sensor switch in driver's side door (suggested previously) will fix this 'door ajar' light issue that has plagued me since 2001.

My main problem now is the on again - off again check engine soon light... this is the first year (began about 2002) that the light is not going away (not even to get a clean emissions check.) The code gives reference to 3 possible problems.. all related in some way to the catalytic converter...O 2 sensor, or plugs, or??? (my husband has the printout with him).

The car also runs rough (has been for a few years) and has stalled on me while making turns in the past. Does anyone know if you can buy a 'junk yard' catalytic converter or O2 sensor? If that is even a good idea?

By the way, our little Taurus has almost 180,000 miles. (we're hoping it is not catalytic converter.. but a much less expensive part)

Thanks for any help.

My husband bought a 1997 Ford Taurus GL from a dealer in December 2007 for $5,000, they wanted $6,000. It only had 49,900 miles. We test drove it once and really needed a car. We have had problems since a few months after we bought it. After reading the comments on here, I've realized there must be a general problem with the 1997 Taurus.

The first problem was that after driving it in town for a while then putting it into park position, the RPMs would instantly jump to over 2. We had to shut it off quick for fear of blowing the engine. It would also jump while idling at red lights. Then the "door ajar" light was stuck on and the interior lights would not shut off, so we had to pull out all the fuses and put them back in to reset; once while it was dark out.

Since then, the check engine light came on resulting in the cam sensor being replaced, the passenger side door window dropped into the door when the plastic pieces broke (obviously the previous owner had an accident in the car and we did not think much of the minor dents on that side.) We could not afford to fix it so we had to prop up the glass with wood.

Finally, the transmission has had issues, but now will not shift into 3rd gear and his brother spent $300 to fix the solenoid which did not help at all. It currently has 102550 miles, as we had to drive 70miles a day to work and school for the first year.

I am so convinced that the 1997 Ford Taurus has problems that the dealership is not aware of. This car should never have been this bad with only 49900 miles.

I'm also upset that the blue book value of this car in excellent condition with the mileage of 49900, is only worth $2,570 when we paid $5,000. We were so ripped off.

PLEASE check carefully if considering buying a 1997 Ford Taurus.

"I'm also upset that the blue book value of this car in excellent condition with the mileage of 49900, is only worth $2,570 when we paid $5,000. We were so ripped off."

This is to be expected. American cars have HORRIBLE resale value.