This "Classic" Ford Is One of the Blue Oval's BIGGEST Failures...Here's Why!
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( www.alltfl.com/ ) Check out our new spot to find ALL our content, from news to videos and our podcasts! This Ford was all the rage when it first arrived - one of the brand's most iconic cars ever - but this generation, in Brendan's opinion, was one of the Blue Oval's biggest flops in its 120-year history. Here's why!
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It’s hard to hate something that old that still gets around well.
Not even close to a failure. These were great cars in the time. Maybe the styling was a little too different, but they were reliable, affordable, comfortable, and efficient.
The Taurus was #1 in midsize sedan sales from 1992-1995. The 1996 redesign killed that for them. The Camry became the #1 seller.
I think toyota just ate ford lunch to the point that ford is not even making cars anymore.
I still love it anyways because...It's a car.
Nah that generation did not hold up, we still get gen 1 and 2 Tauruses at auction, also gen 4 and final gen, all solid vehicles. The spaceship gen 3's mostly ended up in the crusher, don't see them much and when I do they're inoperable.
@@benchmark3332the quality difference between the Camry and Taurus at the time was night and day. At the time I was loyal to American car companies but in hindsight those Camry's are tanks, I own a 2000 Camry and have done nothing to it except valve cover gasket and rear subframe cradle (northeast, they rot out). Runs, rides, and handles like a late model Camry.
The biggest gripe I have with this generation Taurus was how small the door openings are. My friend had one and I’d always whack my head getting in and out of it. There’s so much headroom once you get in and yet the top of the window was eye level.
I love you videos Brendan. Your passion for affordable forgotten classics is quite infectious and really important in the crazy expensive new car market. Thanks for making these videos, you’re one of the best contributors to TFL ever 👍
Thank you!
@@brendanao no, thank you
I know a guy who has two of these wagons and they both run perfectly well! just about bulletproof... except ford has always had transmission problems...but there is a remedy for that... keep the trans fluid changed with new filters. I have 1998 Ranger with the 3.0 V6...I just drove to florida and back florida from indiana... it now has almost 248,000 miles on it... by the way it did not use a quart of oil to florida and back! (of course i change oil often and have serviced the trans fluid as well a few times).
i had a 95 ranger with that motor. sold it after 15 yrs nearing 200k miles. thing was the most reliable vehicle i ever owned
I owned a 1999 Ford Taurus that I bought used for an amazing deal. I know that, part of the reason was because of it’s design. I loved that car. I would own one again. Things that people don’t know is they are awesome in the snow. Brendon great job.
I don’t have strong opinions on the Taurus one way or the other. That design didn’t kill the Taurus though, the new Camry was just better. And this all happened when everyone started buying SUV’s instead of sedans.
I kinda like your car. It’s a nice one. Clean it up!
I sold these new and that design was polorizing, but didn't stop people from buying the old reliable Taurus. It was the time frame where the Japanese cars took over the #1 sales spot. They were comfortable, pretty reliable, and cheap. I had a 2003 that was dead reliable until 370k miles. They were plain vanilla sedans. A lot of fleet sales bumped their numbers. Seems everyone with a fleet bought these. Lots of rental cars too.
I really liked the front bench seats and cloudy ride. They also look nice in my opinion. 2004 got it right with the looks but it was too late : (
98 is very unique, would get one if there is a good example over a 04!
It was an oval theme, and they went way way too far
I had one transmission failure was the worst could not find a shop to successfully fix it. It was one comfortable ride nice seats. I sold it it did drive but new trans shifted hard.
Those were not the worst (gotta remember what else was common in those times) not the greatest. But the next generation (early 2000s) were extremely reliable and so cheap. I bought many for $600-1900 ... put tens of thousands of miles and got my money or more back out of them and usually only needed rear struts, they perfected the Vulcan v6 by then. Not a powerhouse but basically Lexus like reliability even not maintained at Taurus prices lol
Vulcan v6 is a pile of garbage like anything Ford builds. Our Clitaurs needed a second engine. Even good maintenance cannot overcome junk quality.
Down here in Georgia we use to call this bodystyle Taurus "The Fish-Eye Taurus". My cousin Gloria had a blue one. It was a GL trim.
Where I live here in MN, we call it the tortoise.
It's a decent enough car, but for about the same money, I'd rather a Panther based car. The first gen was much more popular because it was the first "jellybean" car. It was a new design language that nobody else had. Because of the Taurus, the next generation Camry got rounder. My step-mother had one of the very first Tauruses sold in Massachusetts. It was an LX with every option. I loved it.
That round look was part of corporate Ford's overall design theme at the time. Aside from the Taurus/Sable, the F150, Expedition, Escort, Contour, Explorer, Mustang, and even the Panther bodies went through that design "mentality/scheme" of the 90's (especially the 98-02 Lincoln Town Car). And those round window switches were parts bin to lots of Ford of its era including the F150, Explorer, Expedition, Crown Victoria/Grand Marquis and a bunch of other cars from the Ford lineup in those days
I had a wagon with the fancy 4 valve per cylinder V6. Early 99 so it still had the dual exhaust they discontinued in 99. Loved mine. Front bench seat was the way to go. Only thing my kids didn’t like was a lack of air conditioning in the rear facing back back where they would sweat like crazy baking inside all the windows. The wagon had a better rear suspension to make it fun to drive.
Sister in law had the Buick-ized replacement. 🤮
Bro, my family had one new in the 90s. They were absolutely stunning looking and still look good! They were beating Honda and Toyota in sales back then. That never happens. Definitely no failure. This was easily one of their best cars produced in generations!
Toyota camry and honda accord are so booring and sad. Honestly you could get this. This 6 PASSENGER model with it's unique look. Camry and Honda were boxes with no bench seats. IDK What happened.
My wife worked for a huge real estate management company back in the mid 90s and they had a fleet of fully loaded Tauruses. My wife had a beautiful blue one with the chrome wheels and gray leather. Interestingly enough it had the 200hp 3.0 DOHC. I have no idea how those engines were long term, but it was a phenomenal engine new. Powerful and quick compared the to the OHV Vulcan models.
3.0 Vulcan engines were reliable. I heard the Duratech had head gasket issues.
@@42luke93Vulcan is junk. I know from ownership.
Aw@@mikefoehr235
I had among the last of the pre jelly beans, a 95 Taurus Wagon. Great car.
I had a 1998 and 2010 SHO. The 1998 wasn't quick but it sounded good.
I sold my 2 years old ago. I had it brand new in 1999 & loved it. It's still in the family. My cousin owns it now
they tried testing sales of this in Australia, the plan was that if sales of this Taurus was strong then Ford would scrap the Falcon and adopt a Global car platform with the Taurus (and re-badge it as a Falcon), we Australians took one look at this ugly mutha and it's Front wheel drive layout & said "get lost Yank!"
Ford should have brought the Australian Ford Falcons to the US. Great styling and that inline six… I would have bought one.
@@themechanic9226 and dont forget Rear Wheel Drive! 😎
@@GTFORDMAN for me that’s a given. Only owned one front wheel drive car in 40 years! 😁
Don't know why but I love its design when it's first introduced and still like the design today.
I owned a 1994 and 1997 Taurus. Both were excellent cars.
My favorite design Taurus/Sable 🤷😂 My parents had a '98 Taurus, and I had a '97 Sable a few years ago and they were so COMFORTABLE, and I love the bubble look lol
It's a decent car. The fourth generation Taurus did a great job at cleaning up this design while preserving the styling. However, I LOVED my '99 V6 Camry. New owner loves it just as much as I do.
Despite living in the rustbelt, I still regularly see Camrys from that era on the road today. A Taurus or Sable from any generation, on the other hand, is a rare sight these days.
The SHO of this in Rose Mist Metallic looks just awesome
Like many Ford v6's of that era, the Vulcan 3.0 was known for blowing head gaskets among its other nefarious habits.
Oh yeah those Vulcans were complete junk. I had a ‘99 Ranger with one and it blew head gaskets in under 30,000. As is usually the case with Ford, they refused to cover the issue via warranty and eventually cost me $2400 to replace heads (which were cracked to all hell thanks to the gaskets).
I liked it. They did go Overton the oval design. Inside and out. Had the 3.0 Volcano in a first gen Sable. Anemic engine. My wife had a 89 Sable wagon with the 3.8 V-6. Same horsepower, loads more torque! Weak points were transmission (both cars) and head gasket (3.8)
My dad bought one when I was about 10years old. I thought that it was a very futuristic looking car back then. My brother and I would go and listen to our cds in the car which back then it was so cool. Good memories!
I do know that best buy employees hated the radio. Especially when customers came in to upgrade to other systems.
I have just plain fallen in love with your content. 😁 As a kid I was all about "Fast and the Furious" , it's gotta win races and look good doing it. Now as a grown man I find myself really appreciating old school reliable rides most people would not give a second look. I guess I've always been into cars, but now I'm more of a car geek than a car Hoon...........😆 GOD bless you and keep up the good work.
I've driven all 4 generations. I really like the Taurus. Especially the 2nd generation. They are roomy, comfortable, safe for their time, and relatively cheap to fix. I really miss split-bench seating with a column shifter. Reliability in general really isn't that great. Power steering pump, alternator, fuel pump, airbag sensors, and of course the transmission, are all notorious problem points. The Vulcan V6 is probably the most dependable part of the car. If you're willing to rebuild the transmission once or twice, you can get 200k miles out of the Taurus with proper care.
I have to say, I always liked the styling language. Different from everything else. Whoever designed it doubled down on the round theme. Fun review. Thanks!
This was the first car my mother bought when I was a kid,before that we walked everywhere. This is iconic to my childhood! I have been looking to buy one in good shape for many years now, it's near impossible to find a decent one that hasn't been wrecked or rotted!
Id keep it and restore it! This exact car color and everything was my first car i got off my Dad back in 2004 for HS Graduation. He bought it in 98 before my youngest brother was born. I was 12 then and the car was a 96 model. When my Dad first got it, everyone seemed jealous of it and it seemed high quality for the time! Was a pretty good car and held up well basically. Same for his 95 Windstar van he bought used in 2000. Both those Fords were reliable. Miss the memories with them as well as being a young kid with my family at the time! Even a simple thing like a car can become part of your family. So for me this style Taurus was special
My mom had the first 2 generations of this car and she was looking forward to the next generation to purchase but it never happened. I remember her saying Ford has messed up big time, this is not a Taurus!😂😂😂
Cant beat that for the price. I always liked the wagon version better but it is what it is nice cheap reliable car
Congratulations Brendan, That's one of my all times favorite Ford. I wish I can get one of those very soon
I own a 2003 SES and i love it, if it were in new condition i would love it even more. Its a lot different and a lot the same as the one in the video. I think comparing the 2 they did good redesigning all the complaints of the 97. Mine has 203k on it now and i got it as my first car for 1800dollars after i destroyed a kia soul i was driving. The only 2 major things id say have given me any issue is the alternator went out at about 185k the ac is needing a new compressor and of course there's other issues id say are just due to age and needing basic maintenance. Just like the one you bought in the video my interior isnt too damaged mine has all the power buttons and door locks youd want being an ses model. It has the smokers package which i can tell was used by previous owners all the time with lighter burns in the fabrics but other than that its nice and no rips yet. Best selling car of the 2003 model year, shares most the design as the rangers interior of the time and its a decent daily driver if you can. The last thing to note is gas mileage is not the best but it has an 18 gallon tank to compensate and goes a little over 300 miles before its empty which is about 4 hours of straight highway driving ive noticed.
Oh and of course i forget to mention that due to it being the best selling car of the year i see way too many of them on the road still being driven in every color option and some are in better shape than mine although most are in way worse shape still being driven i see about 4 including mine at the shopping center i work at and i have passed a few that look just like mine(silver) in different areas at different times of day/night its interesting to see the popularity of the early 2k models still being driven today.
The 3.0 Vulcan engine will not win any dragraces but is very durable. I've had this engine in a Tempo, Ranger and a B3000. It did wake the tempo up a bit but it's slow in the trucks.
I had a 2000 SEL with the Duratec engine as a company car, I complained so much about the driving experience that my boss gave me an used 1999 Intrepid of someone who left. The worst part the lack of steering response and the offset steering wheel. If you put both hands on the wheel, your arms were not extended the same way, very annoying in country roads or snow driving. Even the dealer acknowledge the issue but had no fix for it.
I'm not a Ford fan, but I worked at a Ford dealership in the late 90s to 2000 when these were still plentyful. Any time I had to go out of town, either to deliver paperwork somewhere or take someone to pick up another car in our network, etc., I'd grab one of these off the used lot. They were just so comfortable and smooth on the highway. I'm also a sucker for a column shifter. Camry's and Accords just didn't appeal to me back then like the American cars did.
Best friend had one in high school and we drove the piss out of it. Finally grenade the transmission at 250k miles.
People complain they can’t tell one car from another. And then this Taurus hits the streets. And everybody seems to hate it. Exactly because it is very different. I and personally think it’s a well done stand out. Ford went way out of the box when they did this one. EVERYTHING on this car was touched. Sometime down the road, I think time this generation will age well stylistically. Even it’s somewhat more conservative stablemate the Mercury Sable will become unique. But I think this aqua drop Taurus will remain a special car.
This car had a lot going for it. But I think two things hurt it functionally. The grumbly Vulcan 4.0 v6 and the suspension needed an additional inch of travel. The Vulcan 6 sounded and felt crude and did reward you with either good highway performance nor fuel economy. And the suspension worked well, right up to the point it crashed into the bump stops. All to frequently because it did not move quite far enough to properly absorb the bumps.
I had 2 of these and they were pretty bulletproof. One was over 250000 miles till a deer took it out of commission. That center console thing was pretty creative and it worked pretty well.
I’ve owned 2 of them and a mercury topaz my favorite ford sedan would be the fusions 1 and 2 generations
I remember feeling so sad for the folks who had to be seen in one of these jellybeans. And I took one look at the radio and thought "how on earth can I replace that THING with a good radio when it breaks"?
If you review the used car ads you’ll see several that had these terrible aftermarket kits that basically allows for one to stick an aftermarket radio in a rectangular hole. 😂
My family got the Mercury Sable when I was about 8 or 9. I think my mom had a pink 95 Escort sedan before that so the Mercury Sable was a huge upgrade and was extremely comfortable at the time. It was dark green with beige and black interior. That car actually was quite reliable from what I recall. Mom either traded or sold it, but I remember my grandmother I saw it later at a local store, an old man had purchased it and was driving it. There was a small dent on the rear that I recall clearly which verified it. I guess they were okay, maybe average for reliability depending on mileage. Stylish?? Not so much imo, ugly, but comfortable.
You kind of make me one to own one now. Especially that cheap. But I would want the Duratech engine
My mother-in-law had the Mercury Sable. The seats were comfortable.
As a new car, I never would have bought one - the styling was too weird. However, as a used car, for what it offers I could learn to love its weirdness. After all, I love dome homes -
Pinto Runabout in back. This Gen is much better than first two gens in terms of reliability. The transmission won’t self destruct at 75k. I drove a 2002 V6 LX wagon and it was a decent vehicle. It was my dad’s he had to get around in before he passed. I sold it because I did not need it. But that flip up rear seat would have been handy as I had a second kid and the extra space is cool. I’d prefer it over a mini van, honestly.
Fords biggest failure was ending the panther platform Crown Victoria. Quite possibly the best car ever made. I own a police interceptor crown vic, that i will completely rebuild, just like my GMT400/800/900 vehicles. 400 is 96 K1500 Silverado Z71, 800 is 05 Suburban Z71 4x4, 900 is 07 Yukon 4x4.
My father bought a ‘98 Taurus SE wagon in dark green back in ‘00. Had the 6 passenger config. The car lasted 11 years before the engine overheated while on a road trip (radiator sprung a leak while driving) and started knocking and smoking bad. But in those 11 years, other than general maintenance, he never had any issues other than that power antenna getting frozen during winter 😂. That video surely brought back some memories!
Wanted to buy a used '98 or 99 Taurus wagon after renting one for a trip. Great car. Couldn't find one at the right price, so went with a '97 Escort wagon. Similar interior design, well built. Drove it for the next decade.
I owned a 99 SE from 2006-2010. Bought with 53k, sold with 124k. It was ok. Had to replace power steering pump 3x and rack once, over 18,000 miles and it was still showing signs of going out after the 3rd pump. I finally said enough and got rid of it. It was a practical car at best. Those and even the next gen 2000-2010 were terrible rust buckets.
Brendan, you're missing the design team's intentions of the "rounded" design... "it will go fast so we need to try to design a lower radar cross section... make it round!..."😂
Never owned a Taurus, but I’ve owned 4 Mercury Sables a 99, 01, 04 & 08. All great cars. I still own the 2001 today.
Like the Aztec, Ive come around to the Taurus. They don't bother me anymore.
I was ok with the round shape . , it was way nicer to me than the original model . It's just a car . But I quite like the round radio . I had a 04 Focus ZX5 too that I like too . Practicle family cars weren't meant for setting the world on fire , but who cares ? Not me .
I like the design and I think they looked great in NASCAR as well.
Had a 99 with the same seat as yours. Those were great driving cars for a sedan, vulcan engine solid reliability, trans werent great in those, mine was a lease 2 trans replacements in 50k miles, replaced under warranty. I liked the round radio and the cluster had a great nighttime view.
Had 2 of these. A 97 SE and a 99 SE. They were twins literally exactly the same. With the 3.0 V6. Loved them. They were comfortable and spacious. Reliability was great too. When Ford rebranded the 500 with the Taurus badging I was out. They took a great car and ruined its legacy.
Only way it's a failure is that some would blow head gaskets and or trans would fail kinda early on thus sending mid size sedan buyers into Camrys and Accords and away from the Oval for good.
I had a V-6 Contour as my first car. it looked almost exactly like this to my eye. It honestly was a great car until the tranny gave out about 5K miles into owning it on the freeway.
No disrespect to domestic cars, but that was my first and last one. The power was surprising, but only if you completely floored it and even then it was holding back a lot.
We used to have those for working in a security company daily on the Night Shift and practically 24 hrs a day during the weekend. Good cars!
I remember as a kid in like 98 or 99 my dad trying to help 2 women who locked their keys in a green UFO Taurus. They seemed futuristic for its time, so I'll always have a soft spot for it, but the repercussions of it still affect Ford to this day.
Ford knew about the head gasket failures in the Essex V6, and the transmission failures in the AXOD transaxle, and didn't bother fixing it. This figured into the dropping sales figures. Consumer Reports was on their butts about it the whole time.
The oval theme was commemorating the centennial anniversary. This rounded look (albeit with less ovals) also showed up throughout Ford's US lineup, excepting the geriatric Crown Vic. The Probe was already wearing soft curves. Mustang, too, to the chagrin of those fans. The Escort was ruined with this blobby look. Even the F150 went aero.
Theory: Nearly everything well-kept becomes a "classic" once it's old enough.
My mother had the wagon (would've been good to mention that was an option in the video).
The styling was definitely polarizing.
The practicality, especially the wagon, was very solid.
8 seats with the rear jump seats!
Ours, though it was just a 4-pot, eventually succumbed to transmission failure at around 10 years old.
The 3.0 Vulcan was a reliable long lasting enginge, but they are notoriously oil drippers. I had a Ranger with the same engine. I gave it to a relative with 190k miles on it. He's still driving it now with 250k miles on it.
My father had this exact car for 11 years and I do remember the transmission falling out. Other than that, I always loved it and missed it. Great car that always got us where we needed to go.
I actually liked this generation Taurus. The Taurus/500 was the worst design. Picture how complicated it was to align all these components at the factory.
Great little sedan I had a mercury sable wagon of that same era with the rear facing backseat third seat. It was awesome. Wish I had it back.
This is the most CAR looking CAR Ford has ever produced.
And I said it sarcastically. I bet the Ford engineers looked at the Ford logo and thought "Let's turn it into a car!"...and we got this Taurus.
Love your video's man keep them coming!
Dearborn wanted Ford Australia to replace the Falcon with the Taurus, Ford Australia at the time insisted that the Falcon was exactly what Australians wanted in a car. They launched this generation in Australia in 1996 as a single high-spec model (strangely with the Mercury Sable front end), priced towards the higher end of the Falcon range. There was a big launch, only for it to be withdrawn from sale after about 12 months. It’s been years since I last saw one.
The Toyota Camry and Hondas really took these American sedans out in the 1990s.
Drove my 2008 wagon for 300,000 miles. Replaced the transmission but the engine was original when I sold it in 2012.
I just noticed the tires are brand new Continentals… Those are probably worth at least half of what you paid for the car.
It was a failure sales wise but to be honest I never thought it was that bad looking
the camry would last 300k+ miles and 4 cylinder engine better mpg
The Camry also had an optional V6 engine....with more power than this one.
@damilolaakanni I believe Camry's 3.0 was more powerful than the Vulcan, but less powerful than the Duratec.
@@doug6191 camry 3.0 was more reliable when the oil was changed on a regular basis
@@damilolaakanni Most camry le's were 4 cylinders. The v6 xle camry was almost a baby avalon or lexus es 300
@raymondcanessa7208 true, but you could also get an LE V6...with a manual transmission.
Memories. Wow. Had a '97 Taurus LX sedan, light denim blue with grey leather, moonroof, console. It was a great driving car, comfortable, and well appointed. The transmissions was the weak point, slipping. These cars are all but gone here still...but 97 Camry are still everywhere. Had a 97 Camry also. Much better built, that 4 cyl Toyota had just as much power as the V6 Ford
My grandpa had a 98 in Torader Red with the bench seats (SE Trim).
I had a few as Company Cars from 01 to 04. They were pretty reliable and comfy on long trips. We never kept them more than 80k.
I disagree. While the Taurus may have fallen off, the 2nd gen Explorer came out that same year and more than picked up the slack.
My grandma had a 97 Taurus CX. Black, chrome wheels, leather interior. Classy ride lol
1996 Ford Taurus was my first car. Although, it wasn’t cool it was extremely comfortable and pretty reliable. It made it 275,000 miles before we just left it in a parking lot. It still ran well, just wasn’t worth anything.
I actually like the styling , I have a Ford escort zx2 that is of similar design even down to the radio and oval windows and lights, plus I live in the uk and my zx2 is the only zx2 in the country, so iy really stands out.
My father owned 3 Taurus sedans, the 98 LX he owned looked nice but had a very finicky transmission. It would start, back up, go into 1st, all ok but as soon as you pulled out of the driveway it would hesitate going into other forward gears...very dangerous. It probably just needed a fluid flush, but it was scary to drive.
If nothing else, the infotainment and ventilation control layout was off-putting. Upgrades to the radio were difficult and the various minor controls were scattered in an oval shaped ...pod?
Certainly the most unpopular looking Ford product of the 60-90s period.
My aunt had a forrest green 95 mercury sable loaded carphone, digital gauge cluster was so nice . Unfortunately head gasket went so on. I think head wasn't shaved.
Ford Australia tried selling these in an attempt to replace the local Ford Falcon. To say that it was a sales disaster is being generous. Customers stayed away in droves. The Taurus was quietly dropped a year or so later and the Falcon kept going. However, many styling cues found their way into the 1998 AU series Falcon.
I called our 97 SHO "Bubbles" because of the roundness of it. It was a great fun car though
I always liked the 3rd gen my neighbor had one for my whole childhood and even into today.
I owned a 1989 Ford Taurus GL and when I saw this model on the street I was appalled. That was the real reason why I did now buy another one ever again.
Had a 1997 Taurus. Great, comfortable, reliable car. Exciting? But it was a really good car.
The design was weird but head of the time due to the newer car do have curves.
For perspective, recall what Ford did to Volvo (where this body style came from), Land Rover, and Jaguar.
Taurus / Topaz got off easy.
I always wondered why these sold so well when I thought they were so ugly.
I saw a ton of these still driving around about 10 years ago (2013), which says something about the longevity.
That's definitely the most well kept one I've ever seen though - looks nearly new.
I do really wish the last generation sho got the coyote before they discontinued them kind of a bummer seeing as it would've basically been an AWD mustang GT with a usable rear seat but I am grateful to have owned many crown Victorias I have zero complaints in regards to the crown vics