Ask the Car People.SM


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 283 of 340

#2818 of 3389 New 2004 Ford Taurus SEL Owner.. by iexplore2000

Mar 17, 2004 (8:03 am)

Hello Everyone,
 
I am new to this forum and wanted to post a message to you all for your feedback concerning the Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable.
 
I purchased a fully loaded 2004 Ford Taurus SEL (with TCS, Mach, Home Link, etc.) back in January primarily to use as a work commuter vehicle. I chose the Merlot exterior with the two-tone parchment leather interior. My other vehicle is a 2003 GMC Envoy XL V-8, so the Taurus helps me save on fuel costs as well. I really like the Taurus because it's very roomy, has a nice look and seems to be ranked fairly high in terms of occupant safety. I looked at some other major competitors to the Taurus, but decided on the Ford based on the incentives and rebates that were available.
 
As with the good things, come the bad things. There are several items on my Taurus that kind of bother me, but not the the point where it deteriorates my ownership experience.
 
#1: Sound insulation? I honestly think that either my vehicle left the factory without any sound insulation materials at all OR this is just the nature of the beast? I specifically notice a lot of road noise, especially from the back seat area of the vehicle? It's not that quiet at all. I can really tell the difference when I drive my Envoy as compared to the Taurus, because the Ford is considerably noisier. On my first day of ownership, I checked the windows and sunroof several times because I swore that something had to be open for the vehicle to have that much wind noise? Could a lot of the noise stem from the Continental brand tires? If so, I will yank them and put on something else.
 
#2: Sunroof? I think that my sunroof may need adjusting due to the tremendous amount of wind noise that emanates from it while it's closed? Once on the freeway running approximately 80 mph, a cross-wind struck and it felt as if it were gonna rip off the sunroof? I felt (and heard) a big gush of wind come through it? Even when I go through the touchless car washes, the dryer cycle really gets the best of me. I am usually guaranteed to get WET everytime I go through the dryer cycle. I am guessing that the dryer creates enough force to push water from the seals into the vehicle and make it sound as if it's gonna rip off the sunroof? This alarms me because my predecessors did not do this (2002 Chevy Impala LS, 2002 Grand AM GT1, etc.). I thought about purchasing a sunroof deflector in hopes of cutting down on the wind noise. Would anyone suggest a particular brand/style?
 
#3: Duratec V-6? While this is a very strong engine for the Taurus, I have a wierd vibration that comes from my engine while on the freeway and accelerating? Does anyone else experience this? I can depress the accelerator 1/4 way down to pass a vehicle and I can feel this vibration either from the engine or tires.. but I am assuming it's the engine due to the fact that the vibration quits once I let off of the accelerator. Maybe this is just the nature of the engine, but I just did not think that it was that smooth? I can cruise along the freeway at 80 mph and the ride is as smooth as ever, once again allowing me to rule out any possibility of the tires. The vibration only occurs when I am accelerating. Additionally, I changed the engine oil over to Synthetic at 1K and the vibration seemed to diminish for a few days, now it's back again.
 
I have approximately 1500 miles on the odometer to date and have plans on possibly addressing these concerns during my first 5k scheduled maintenance appointment. Otherwise, I think that the Taurus is a wonderful vehicle, just wish that it was a little quieter? Oh.. last but not least, I purchased the Ford remote start for the vehicle and it works like a dream! The vehicle is nice and toasty every morning!
 
Any feedback that you all could provide would be greatly appreciated.
 
Thanks!
 
IExplore2000

#2819 of 3389 iexplore2000 by badgerfan

Mar 17, 2004 (8:50 am)

Taurus is not vault quiet(I have a 2000 SES Duratec) but is certainly a reasonably quiet vehicle, so I do not know if you have an issue related to yours alone. You may want to test drive another Taurus and see if it behaves the same as yours. Road noise is highly dependent on the particular road you are on-I have noticed this issue on my Taurus, and could be influenced much by the tires. I have the OEM Continentals, and have no other basis of comparison, except I know our 1996 Caravan is quieter than the Taurus but that comparison has different tires and completely different vehicles.
 
One guess-are the fold down back seat cushions fully up? They could be letting noise in from the trunk. Maybe a side window is not fully closing?
 
I do not have a sunroof, but certainly it appears yours may not be closing/sealing properly and maybe needs adjustment.
 
There is some vibration feedback through the accelerator pedal under hard acceleration, but I guess I have never felt it to be unusual. Again, I would maybe test drive another Taurus with Duratec to see if the problem is just with your vehicle. Your dealer probably has a demo unit you can test. I cannot imagine how there could be any relationship between synthetic vs conventional oil and vibration levels.

#2820 of 3389 iexplore2000 by oxx93

Mar 17, 2004 (2:56 pm)

I have a 2001 SES with the sunroof and have not noticed any excessive noise or any water coming in. It might be your vehicles roof. I would take it to the dealer right away.
 
On another issue, has anyone noticed a rough start with your Taurus. I have noticed that after starting the car and shifting to drive, it feels like the engine is jumping/reving hard? It is not smooth and it sounds like it might die. I have noticed this only in the mornings. Any thoughts?

#2821 of 3389 iexplore2000 by upsetter1

Mar 17, 2004 (3:54 pm)

My Sable Premium is definitely more refined and quiet than Olds Alero that I rented. There is no problem with sunroof eigther. You have to check did you really close it, you have to get used how to close it, because if you push button a bit longer it starts to open other way.
 
About Duratec it depends what you call vibration. When you accelerate it changes gears and revs-up. When you're cruising it overdrives at lower rpms, so at higher rpms it may vibrate more. It is not as silky smooth as Japanese or German V6 for sure.

#2822 of 3389 iexplore2000 by automan227

Mar 17, 2004 (7:14 pm)

You have to make sure that your sunroof is really close, because like upsetter1 said, its very easy to have it open the other way and you get a lot of windnoise.
 
On my '01 SEL I have not noticed any such vibration when accelerating at all.
 
Oxx93- I have not noticed any such high revving or anything. On the duratecs, when you start them, they will rev slightly higher for several seconds then idle normally because it warms up the engine. When I shift into drive/reverse, the engine starts revving even lower.
 
I have not found Road Noise to be excessive at all like anyone is describing. Of course it doesn't have the refinement of a German V6 (passat et al), but for the most part I find it just fine.
 
AS

#2823 of 3389 automan227 by oxx93

Mar 18, 2004 (9:23 am)

Sorry-I do not have the Duratec, just the base V6. It feels like the car wants to lunge forward, it is very strange. I have to have it checked out.

#2825 of 3389 by danielj6

Mar 19, 2004 (6:19 pm)

"I have not noticed any such high revving or anything. On the duratec, when you start them, they will rev slightly higher for several seconds then idle normally because it warms up the engine. When I shift into drive/reverse, the engine starts revving even lower."
 
I've noticed the same with my Sable. Regarding the road noise, I hear the Duratech growling under the hood, but I don't find it to be excessively noisy to the point of annoyance. I just enjoy hearing the motor though.
 
In Camries and Accords you probably have to pull over, pop the hood open to check if there is a motor in there or it fell out somewhere;). The growly engine is part of the Taurus/Sable personality.

#2826 of 3389 iexplore by snowman

Mar 19, 2004 (7:12 pm)

The vibration might be related to universal joint angle. Mentioned this to your dealer, they should know...
And also defective motor mounts...

#2827 of 3389 Update by chicagosky

Mar 20, 2004 (8:42 am)

Hey All,
 
Thanks for your advice on my 30K tune-up question. Also, way back in mid-January, message #2643, I brought up a vibration issue I was dealing with-- more felt than heard, under the gas pedal, particularly at highway speeds. After two visits it was diagnosed as the half-shafts in the axles. I hope that makes sense because I don't know much about cars, so I am just writing it from the mechanic's write-up. They were completely replaced under warranty. Just a heads-up to all of you, especially if you're still under warranty-- vibration seems to be a concern for some lately, and it would be an expensive repair outside of warranty.
 
Also, keep an eye on your clocks. Mine is slow--to the tune of maybe 5-10 minutes a week-- and they are completely replacing the unit for me. This is one of those things that I would never pay to replace outside of warranty, but it can be slightly irritating not to have an accurate clock, so I am glad I noticed!
 
Other than that, all's well. The replacement of the axles made the car a lot quieter and smoother. For reference in terms of these repairs--I don't know if they might vary between model year-- I have an '02 SES.

Messages Page 283 of 340

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement