Comments: 1-15, 16-30, 31-45, 46-51
All engine mounts needed replacing shortly after purchase.
Electrical system problems: Floor lights stay on after the doors are closed because the car thinks that there is a door ajar for some reason.
Camshaft position sensor had to be replaced.
Transmission has been replaced twice. I was smart enough to buy a warranty, and good thing, the transmission needs replacing again!
Oxygen sensor was replacing.
Cradle mount needed replacing shortly after car's purchase.
Rack and pinion and power steering pump broke at about 100,000 miles.
Water pump went at 140,000 miles.
Pulley seized on the car, and caused the serpentine belt to be thrown overheating my coolant reservoir and blowing the top off it.
I have more repairs that need to be made. The only reason that the above repairs were performed is that we still owe quite a bit of money on the car. We try not to drive it unless we have to, this would be my advice if you have accidentally purchased a 1997 Ford Taurus. Either sell it quickly or buy another car to drive in it's place, because chances are more likely than not that you will shortly have to perform some fairly major repairs.
After reading your review, I think you must be my twin! I have had all those parts go on my 1997 Ford Taurus Wagon. It has now done 144,000 miles. We are on our fourth transmission, second fuel pump and I cannot recall how many serpentine belts we have had to replace due to pulley failures. Although by far the best experience to date was when the front wheel fell off due to a seized wheel bearing. Luckily I was only going 30 mph at the time. The car has had all scheduled maintenance performed. These cars are absolute junk we warn anyone and everyone any chance we get;stay away from a Taurus.
Twins? How about triplets. Exact same problems My transmission housing even cracked open because the gears beat it up from the inside.
We are also having transmission problems with our 1997 Ford Taurus. I think the transmisson wil need to be replaced very soon.
I have a 1997 Ford Taurus G with only 83,000 miles on it.
Replaced the power steering pump twice. Replaced the auto transmission at 70,000 for $2000. Unfortunately, it didn't completely fix the trans problem, because the trans still act up when going to 2nd gear. It likes to leak engine oil, trans fluid, and coolant. Oh, I forgot.. The coolant expansion tank cracked at 50,000 miles, needed a new coolant expansion tank. The CV boot failed at 40,000 miles.. cost to repair, $400. I replaced the radiatior at 60,000 miles, but the engine still runs hot.
The Ford dealer said it is normal for the 3.0 Vulcan engine to run hot. I brought a 2003 Pontiac Sunfire to substitute for this Taurus, because I was sick and tired of making my mechanic rich... I spent over $5000 in repairs (with my own money since I didn't buy a warranty... although the warranty offered by the dealer at $1500 seemed cheap now).
So far, the 2003 Pontiac Sunfire had no problems at 40,000 miles... The Pontiac is so much more reliable than the 1997 Taurus, it is ridiculous...
I also have a 1993 Ford Explorer and it didn't rack up $5000 worth of repairs like my lemon 1997 Taurus.
Stay away from Ford Taurus, unless you want to contribute to your mechanic's retirement stock account.
Ford.
The Taurus is a good car however, the 96 and 97 models were just terrible. The 24-valve (duratec) has better performance, gas mileage, and reliability. Unfortunately they are rare and 99% + 12 of a 1/4 of all Tauruses from 96-99 have the stupid 12-valve Vulcan engines. The models with the Vulcans have the most reported problems, plus they have poor gas-mileage and make too much noise. I brought a 97' (GL) with the Vulcan and have went through a reservoir tank and of course a transaxle. The transaxle problem resulted from Ford's poor decision to use the Mazda 626's transaxle for the entry level Taurus and Sable. Big mistake.
Have owned cars for 25 years, but this was the first time purchasing Ford vehicles.
Own a
I have a 1997 Ford Taurus GL 166K miles. I have a small problem with my car; it starts when you turn on the key everything works fine, but it won't go into gear neither backwards of forward. What could be the problem in this case???
Nashville, TN.
I was at the light in my 97 taurus gl and when the light finally turned green my car would not go at all.
I have had similar problems with my 1997 Ford Taurus also. The interior lights that won't shut off. A transmission that slips occasionally. A broken coil spring. A seized pulley for the serpentine belt. A pinhole in the coolant overflow.
I am having a serious problem with a 1997 Taurus GL, it was doing fine when we bought it with 49,000 miles on it. It now has 70,000 miles on it. We have gone through 2 batteries in a year. We had to replace the starter, and now the service engine soon light came on. and if you take off from a stop, my get the RPM's to about 2 grand, the car starts jerking, and then the engine will just rev like the transmission is going out. I am trying to talk my sister into selling her car before the transmission goes out.
I have a 97 Ford Taurus G L, it is at 88,000 miles, one previous owner before me. I am having Transmission problems, seeking a reasonable estimate, I suddenly have about 19 mpg city driving, and moisture contamination in all the fluids.
I have maintained the car with perfect timing, yet everything seems to be going wrong all at once.
I love my car, but am seeking some answers. Finding this site has helped tremendously.
The interior light staying on is an easy fix. Look at the little button on the door jam that the door pushes in to shut the light off. These switches are notorious for being sticky. Squirt a little WD40 into the switch and work it back and forth a few times. This was passed onto me from another posting and it solved the problem for me. An easy cheap fix!
With regard to the interior lights staying on, the switch on a '97 Taurus is inside the door above the latch. To lubricate it, shoot some WD-40 inside the latch "up" toward the door handle. Then slam the door several times. Doing this a couple times a year prevents future problems.
Contrary To the comments I have read, my 1997 Ford Taurus GL was a gem. I had no major problems with it and it was a joy to ride in. The only problem I had was condensation fogging up the windows. No matter how much I wiped them or put on the fan, the windows were a mess.
I say was because I recently had an accident and it would cost too much to fix. I only had 60,000 miles on it and it recently had its 60000 mile checkup. I had no problems with my "gem" except what I mentioned.
An add-on to my last comment about my 60000 mile "gem".
The frame around each window lost the luster of its black color. It peeled. A friend in the automotive industry tried to paint the frames back to the original color, but it peeled as well down to its metal. As the car ran very well, I gave up trying to preserve the frames other than waxing them and hoping for the best.