1998 Ford Taurus SE from North America - Comments

Oh my god my 98 ford taurus does the same thing when turning corners. Why would it do that? I have the same question. My taurus is now sitting due to the tranny problem for I am scared it is going to quit on me. My friend also had a 98 and replaced his tranny. I was told twice not to buy this car and did so anyways what a bad move. Never again will I buy a Ford.

I bought a 1998 Ford Taurus SE with 24 Valve Motor August 22 2004 with 105,000 miles. Looked good with regular oil changes. Shortly there after the dome light and floor light would not go off, sometimes. Took them out. Then the door locks do not always lock when you start to drive, or 10 miles down the road they will. But now something really scary is happening. The car sometimes goes nuts! It is like the car is going to stall, then it is like you floor it. When I put it in neutral the tach will shoot up to 3500 rpm, then drop to 750. Does not matter if AC is on or off, fast or slow, or even stopped. My 95 Thunderbird purchased new only had front rotor problems and a rebuilt tranny at 150,000, now it has 264,000. I thought the Taurus would last like the T-Bird, guessed wrong. Anyone with info about the electrical, computer, tach, problem please post answer. Seems like a good car other wise, fast and comfortable. Would not buy another Taurus. Thank you.

I've had a 95 civic for three years before I got in a wreck and the car was totaled, and never had any problems. just the usual brakes and tune up. my friend has a 98 Taurus Se that he's selling cheap because the transmission went out. I was thinking of buying it, but I'm afraid of getting an American car. everyone I know that owns one have had problems unless they buy it new then it last about a year or two. the Taurus's exterior and interior is in excellent condition, but I don't know if it's worth buying. it might end-up costing more on the long run. he will let me have it for $1300. what do you guys think I should do?

I've had all the problems with my transmission that everyone else had. my car would also squawk the tires when turning and shift hard. I was told it was the torque converter and I had the Transmission replaced, thank god for the Extended Warranty. My tranny went out at 49,000 miles. I just got it back two weeks ago and its still screwed up. Piece of junk car. I think we need to report this car to the government, it's an obvious lemon.

I have a 98 Taurus Se with 105,000 miles on it and it is the biggest piece of junk there is. I had to replace tranny as well. Have not had dome light problems yet, but my check engine light stays on all the time and never goes off unless I pull power from the battery. Today while driving to work it started to cut out on the freeway and I again need to bring it to the mechanic to have it looked at. I will never buy another FORD again. This car is a serious lemon and the government should investigate.

Check engine light... Try to clean or buy a new pvc valve.

"might have to get your computer cleared".

Dome light replace the multifuntion switch "$71.00 +labor :- (".

Try lubeing your door latch with white lithum greese/WD40 first and see if that will work "as I've seen on many sites it has worked. "just did it to my car".

In third gear "automatic" tranny jumps til I go about 10 mph faster.

I have a 1988 ford crown victoria and that thing does'nt want to die!

BUY OLDER CARS!!! lol cheaper to work on too.

Just got my 98 Ford Taurus back from the shop today after my second transmission was put in. Now there telling me the back bearings are going out. Figures. By the way, if your check engine light is on, most likely the transmission pump has gone out to start. Replace that first when the light comes on. That's what is causing your tranny to die. Will never buy another one. Never had a problem with a ford before. Have a 90 Ranger, 170,000 miles and wouldn't get rid of it. That truck won't die. Has never let me down. Wish the Taurus was that way. Better luck next time, I Hope!

I have a 98 Ford Taurus SE 24valve D.O.H.C. I love it, but I have had the problems. The dome light and open door lights stay on, this also causes the doors not to lock while in motion, to fix this I took WD40 and sprayed it into the door locks with the little straw. Problem solved. Now the transmission solenoid is junk, wonder what that's going to cost me. The dealer can replace the door sensor to eliminate the light problem, but it will only come back, WD40 works. Does anyone have a problem when its cold, my doors will not close, I have to lift the door latch inside the door up a couple of times or the door flies open when driving.

Yes yes yes and once again yes. I have had all of the same problems! I received this car as a gift... some gift. It has 169000 miles on it and, I'm lucky kind of, the tranny is starting to go. It also has a mind of its own. The lights dim on and off at night. My grandparents always bought fords and never had any problems with them. I was hoping I had the same luck! Thanks sis! DKD.

I have a 98 Taurus sitting in my driveway with a blown transmission. Apparently, I am not the only one!!! And yes, the dome/door light problem plagues this P.O.S. as well.

Lucky I got a great deal on it from my in-laws!

Yea I have the SAME problems!!! This car really is terrible!! Door ajar, dome light staying on, transmission problems or shuttering while turning. I've got it all.

But another problem was that the evaporator coil and compressor went out at 50,000 miles! (over $800).

I have the 24valve DOHC limited edition package and I loved it at first, but it really does seem now to be a money pit! Another problem every week.

Just realized that the center console screws were striped from the inside, so the console won't even close shut! This car was just built SO CHEAP!! I'll never buy a FORD again!

I have a 98 ford Taurus. The service engine soon light came on with codes p0171 and p0174 fuel system too lean and I was concerned that it may be a sensor problem when in fact after inspection found it was only cracked/worn hoses from the crank case breather to the intake. The problem was caused by a faulty PCV valve allowing too much oil to enter the hoses. PCV valves should be replaced every 30,000 miles. It cost about $20.00 to fix and clear the codes by simply removing the negative battery terminal for about 10 to 20 minutes, doing so erases all saved fault codes and forces the pcm to reset all adaptive memory. The most common causes for these codes are intake or vaccum leakage past the mass air flow sensor. When diagnosing these conditions just listen closely near the intake for a hissing sound. You can also use brake cleaner or carburator cleaner for lower intake leakage, just spray around the intake lightly (with the engine running) and listen for idle fluctuations. Other cause for these codes could be low fuel pressure, or faulty sensor readings (02,mass air flow). Late model fords are notorious for door ajar lights staying on especially ones that don't have the push button in the door jam. They switched to door ajar sensors on the latch assembly that are very hard to get to, but fairly inexpensive. The easiest solution for this is to spray some WD40 in the latch assembly. located on the door. The drivers front is the first to fail. I used to work in a ford dealership as a technician so I do know what I am talking about.

I have a 98 Ford Taurus Se with 200,000 miles on it, and it runs beautifully; I can't complain at all. You have to expect things to go wrong with cars; they take a beating. Mine had the door ajar light and dome light problem, all I had to do was spray all 4 door latches with Pb blaster (inner latch on door- not frame) and the problem has never returned. Also, I have had the s.e.s light come on after stop-and-go driving, got the code read at auto-zone for free and it read egr system, I think it was p0401 which is very common with any model ford/ I changed the DPFE sensor after troubleshooting and the problem hasn't returned/the part was only $42.00. With any car you are going to have maintenance issues and value depreciates dramatically form year to year especially if you try to drive a touring sedan like a race car. I have no complaints about my 98 Ford Taurus SE which just surpassed the 200k barrier and I'm looking forward to riding comfortably for another 200k. BUILT FORD TOUGH!

I own I 98 taurus se edition this car will not die has 90,000 miles never needed a tune up haven't had a problem yet when driving the car you cannot step on the gas hard or yes you can blow out the tranny the car will open up once hitting 20-35 mph. once reached the car will open up. about the turning yes I get the same thing doing 20-30 in a turn the gears shift hard. its doing that because the gears are ready to down shift and in the process when you step on the gas that's what gives you that shake.

Hello all!

Well I guess I'm not the only one that's had problems. Tranny yes, Dome light yes, door ajar yes, just replaced the a/c compressor this week! Now it seems that my headlight won't shut off, I had to disconnect the battery so I wouldn't drain it.

My 1998 Taurus has over 200,00 miles on it (346,000 Km) and to be honest it has been a decent car. I had the tranny replaced at 160,000 miles (226,000 Km) by a tranny shop and guess what its going again in less mileage than the original one. I want to try and keep it going over the winter and then get rid of it.

Has anybody else had a problem with the headlight and if so what did you do to fix it?

P.S. before this car I had a 1992 Tempo 5-speed and when I got rid of it it had 370,000 miles (426,000Km) and all I did was regular oil changes put on 1 set of brakes,4 mufflers and 3 sets of tires. That's it! That car didn't owe me a dime.

Would I buy another Ford? YES!

Cheers.