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Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable Sedans Pre-2008

3389 messages,  Last post on Jan 21, 2011 at 11:46 AM

You are in the Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable Forum.

What is this discussion about? Ford Taurus, Mercury Sable, Sedan

Messages Page 13 of 340

#115 of 3389 What should I buy? by toddpern

May 30, 2000 (1:34 am)

I am currently in the process of determining the right car for me and have limited my choices to three vehicles. 1. 2000 Ford Taurus SEL, 2. 2000 Subaru Outback Wagon or 3. 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix.


I have driven the Taurus and liked the feel, cost and safety feature. Although, I am thinking it's may be too big, and there may be too many of them on the market and will have poor resale value down the line when I want to sell or trade it. Any thoughts on this?


The Outback looks nice, has good room for hauling cargo and bikes, and has All-time All Wheel Drive. The negative about it is it's quite a bit more expensive than the Taurus and it may not handle as nicely. I also am wondering if I'll like not having a trunk. I'm used to storing a lot of stuff in the trunk and may be discouraged by the station wagon's exposed area.


Lastly, the Pontiac Grand Prix. It's a sharp and powerful car. But I've hear nothing but bad things about the noises the vehicle makes (especially the dash when it is either really hot outside or really cold). I don't know much about it's performance aside from the fact that last year's model (1999) was ranked very low, but they don't say much about this year.


I guess the main thing I'm having trouble with in my decision is that it seems that all car reports or evaluations say things differently. Consumer Reports may say one thing and then another publication or website will say something else.


Does anyone have any good recommendations that will help sway my decision?


Thanks.

#116 of 3389 . by regfootball

May 30, 2000 (6:22 am)

Avoid the Pontiac. Not because it isn't a good car, but because its just kinda tacky. Of course this is a personal taste issue but hey, they are somewhat too flamboyant. The Taurus looks tasteful for a y2k car.


The Subaru is too spendy unless you get a good lease deal. Also, no v6 yet I'm aware of. Stick with the v6. the all wheel drive is nice but hey, u got by without it before.


Go with the Taurus. Resale is not an issue because you get the car for a reasonable price to begin with. Plus it looks good and with the Duratec is a good runner.

#117 of 3389 . by sable93

May 30, 2000 (5:38 pm)

danni454,


I don't think any of the Taurus transmission problems happened with under 10K miles. Most people have problems after the warranty expires (3 years.) These Accords are having problems within the first few months. There is a big difference between replacing a transmission with 70K miles on it, and one with 5200 miles on it. I'd bet if the Taurus' transmission had failed so quickly, instead of many years down the road, Ford would have replaced them as well, and admitted they had a problem.

#118 of 3389 . by danni454

May 30, 2000 (10:38 pm)

sable93
I agree, there is alot of difference between a transmission failing at 70k or 5K. At 5k it's under warranty at 70k it's not and comes out of your pocket. That's what makes the Fords disposible cars. They just aren't made to last very long. It is best to sell a Ford before it goes out of warrant as my experience with my Taurus has proven.

#119 of 3389 . by regfootball

May 30, 2000 (11:29 pm)

I'll be the first admit a Ford is a 70-75 thousand mile car before it may need some work. But by then you should expect to put some $$ into a car. I also think that by 75k miles I've gotten bored with what I'm driving and want to get a new one anyway.

#120 of 3389 It finally arrived! by barjon

May 31, 2000 (11:53 am)

Exactly 8 weeks from the day I placed the order, my new SEL was finally delivered to me on Saturday, and it's everything I expected. The car handles very well, the 24V engine has plenty of get-up-and-go, the transmission is very smooth, and the Mach audio system sounds great. The car seems solidly built without a single squeek, rattle or strange vibration.


It's still early at only 300 miles, so we'll see if I'm still as happy at 50,000 and 100,000 miles. Since this is a car I'd like to hang on to for a while, I opted for the Premium Care extended warranty for 5 years/75,000 miles.

#121 of 3389 1,800 miles and still happy by indytab

May 31, 2000 (5:51 pm)

I got into our Taurus SE because of the $4K incentive for 95 WS blown headgaskets, but I enjoy the car more the longer I drive it. I just hope it has better reliability than the Windstars. I know that past Tauruses had similar headgasket and transmission woes, but the engine is different.


Does anyone know if the transmission used in the 2000 models have a track record? It is amazing how many Tauruses I see on the road these days. Almost as many as the Chevy Malibu. I test drove the Malibu and generally liked it, but I think the Taurus has more features for the money.

#122 of 3389 My Taurus Test Drive by toddpern

May 31, 2000 (10:21 pm)

Well, I did drive the Taurus SEL last night and can say I was impressed by the get up and go. But, I was disappointed in a couple things. The support post on the driver side behind the seat is kind of intrusive when you're trying to check your blind spot. Also, the rear window is pretty small and difficult to see out of. And, the stearing wheel seems too large and when you're trying to switch gears and go in reverse, if your wheels aren't straight your view gets blocked.


Have you Taurus owners gotten used to all these factors? What are your thoughts on ease of driving.


Also, the fact that you see so many out on the road, does that bother any of you as far as planning down the line when everyone else is trying to sell their Taurus? I know that they will be saturated and will have pretty low resale value. Don't get me wrong, in general I like the car, but just have some reservations.


Any feedback?

#123 of 3389 . by regfootball

May 31, 2000 (11:18 pm)

buy it in a nice color with options that people will want to have like power seats, sunroof, leather. these items will set yours apart from the garden variety one and make them more attractive in the used market.

#124 of 3389 What options to buy by slunar

Jun 01, 2000 (3:14 am)

toddpern: A good percentage of Taurus' are fleet cars and rentals. While some of the rentals have the DOHC Duratec most of these fleet cars have the pushrod Vulcan engine. I agree with regfootball's comments and suggest to differentiate your Taurus from the vast #'s of fleet cars get the following options: Duratec 24V engine, 5 passenger seating, Mach Audio, Traction Control, Adjustable Pedals, ABS.
If you are getting a wagon I can tell you from having sold a couple of Taurus wagons the first thing every prospective used wagon buyer asks about is the 3rd seat.

Messages Page 13 of 340

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