Transmission died 6 Months after purchasing the car in 2003. Repaired it in September 2004 (at a cost of $500) when my '85 Camry died, Then couldnt pick up speed past 45MPH, Then rattled and never stopped until I drove the car on another transmission setting, Then completely died in November 2004.
In October 2004, the car died on an busy intersection while paused, and had to be pushed by another truck with 20 seconds till the orange light, and my entire family was freaking out!
Then that mon th, I t died while going to a shopping center, and had to be left overnight, and came back to it's feeble life.
Driver seats did'nt move, until I fixed it.
Visor lights broke.
A/C never worked, even though it was installed.
Windows stopped workind in September 2004.
Doors are heavy.
The car was $700, But I had no idea about these horror stories, When I test drove it, I sensed it didn't pick up speed, but I regrettable bought it due to my kid's enthusiasm. I freaked out the first night when the lights wouldn power off.
The interior was extremely comfy (dark blue), but I always got hurt on the head while exiting due to the low frame, and got hurt entering due th the HEAVY door that swung on my feet.
My son misses it terribly though, only because it looked 'modern' next to our 1981,1982,1985 Toyotas.
A WORD OF ADVICE: NEVER BUY THESE, ESPECIALLY AT TEMPTING PRICES!!!
Gee, a $700 car that has problems? Who would have guessed that?
Don't expect to not have problems when you spend less for your car than most do on riding mowers.
You bought a 16 year old car... of course it is going to have problems, regardless of make or model. You knew the a/c didn't work when you bought it. Lesson: Don't let your kids pick out your cars!
It wouldn't go above 45 miles an hour after the transmission was replaced? Did the car accelerate alright from stops? If this was the case, I think you need to search for another mechanic. My mother owned 1989 Ford Taurus some time ago, and it was not acting right when we got it back from a mechanic during a valve cover gasket replacement. We took it back to the mechanic, and he said the valve body was bad in the transmission. He referred us to a transmission shop. When the car was at the transmission shop, my brother told his buddy who was a mechanic for many years what the car was doing. He figured it could be a bad vehicle speed sensor. My brother then drove the car from the transmission shop, to his buddys auto shop. His buddy diagnosed it, and bingo! The vehicle speed sensor was faulty! Problem solved. Our engine was a 3.0L V6.
Buy a 16 year old front wheel drive ford and you are gonna get stung. Buy a 16 year old GM and you might get your money's worth. Buy a 16 year old German car and you are going to have a strong drivetrain possibly surrounded by little gremlins. Buy a 16 year old Honda or Toyota with almost 200000 miles and you have a car that will probably go another 100000. This is a fact.
A 16 year old Ford may have a smooth sounding engine and a decent ride, but it is probably going to fall apart. My friends 60,000 mile 93 Taurus blew the tranny on a trip to Vegas from LA. A smooth sounding Honda won't blow up. A rough sounding Honda might.
Point is any car that is abused can fall apart quickly, but some cars, such as Fords, will <probably> fall apart either way. In spite of that, I did witness a '93 Taurus go over 150000 trouble free miles. But it was an FFV, and the FFVs and SHOs seem more reliable for some reason.
Good 1989 ForD owners out there.. I have a 1989 Taurus wagon with 134,600 miles on it. I HAVE to write in and say, it has had a few mechanical problems, but the most expensive has been the heater core. Other than that is indestructable. It's dependable and comfortable. I think it's ugly, but it just will NOT break! I sometimes wish it WOULD. I'm actually tired of LOOKING at it. But I cannot get rid of a perfectly good car. It just completed a 2,400 mile road trip with NO problems. Just put gas in it & go! I'm impressed! Just wish you guys had the same luck with yours. DangerDude.
Ditto on my reliable Ford 1989 Taurus Wagon. 160,000 miles and still running. Would I take it on vacation - no. For driving in and about town, and in emergency use it is fine. I also own Honda and now Hyundai. Hopefully they will return as good service as my old Taurus wagon. It's my version of a pick-up truck for hauling stuff around.
I have had a few problems with my wagon, but all in all, for the $500 I paid for it, it has been a good car. I just went over the 100,000 mile mark so I am not sure what will happen now, but I am not going to borrow problems with the car.
My biggest repair to date was after a wreck... I had to get a new fender, bumper and light assembly, but it still ran like a top after the wreck till it was fixed.
Also I had to replace the water pump and seals recently, but that was pretty minor. Hope other people do not have the luck you did, and I hope mine will continue to hold.
I am sorry you have had such a bad experience with your Ford, but I want to stress the fact that once a car is old enough to buy itself cigarettes (manufactured in 1986, reviewed in 2004 = 18 years,) it is essential to temper expectations.
I'm not sure why someone would look up a Taurus Station Wagon from the eighties in evaluating a new car purchase, but I think this review serves best as a cautionary tale for used car buyers (rather than an indication of Ford's reliability - as of 2009, the vehicle in question was built 23 years ago)
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