Faults:

The first thing that went wrong was warped rotors. They went bad at 60,000 miles, and were replaced again at 95,000 miles.

At 55,000 miles, the vehicle speed sensor was replaced under my extended warranty.

Most recently, at 100,000 miles, both lower ball joints were replaced.

General Comments:

Our 1999 Taurus has been a good car so far. I have read about other problems with this model, but my car doesn't seem to be affected yet.

I am an Assistant manager of a local NAPA Auto Parts Store, and can attest to problems other manufacturers are having with there cars. General Motors in particular seems to have charging system problems.

Faults:

The rear window has been out of service since buying the car.

Anti-freeze reservoir cracked at 79800 miles.

General Comments:

It is the very rare Vulcan Stealth engine that cranks out 252hp.

It is very quick and agile.

However, the suspension and steering in it is the same as the chassis on the 145hp 3.0 Vulcan.

So it gets cranky when you push it around a hairpin at 50mph.

It has an enormous trunk near 15 cubic feet.

The Alpine 400 watt sound system is a definite plus with the 20 disc CD changer.

The windshield wipers are as fast as the car. You won't have to worry about hard rains with this car.

I have never had the car to hydroplane even in the hardest of rains.

The interior is very comfortable with very supportive seats.

Visibility is great it has hardly any blind-spots.

Faults:

To this point the only issue I have seems to be poor gas mileage, approx 22 hwy.

The front end is a little unstable.

If anyone else has had the mileage issue and corrected it please contact me via e-mail john3879@attbi.com.I would like to correct this problem before it heads to Florida in March.

General Comments:

I wish Ford would supply CD players.

Faults:

Front brake rotors warped at 35,000 due to a hard braking in order to avoid an accident. Dealer resurfaced rotors at no charge.

Window weatherstripping began whistling at 38,000 miles. Dealer replaced at no charge.

Radio display began working intermittently at 40,000. Dealer gave us a loaner radio until Ford fixed ours. Again, at no charge.

Multi-function switch (turn signal switch) began malfunctioning at 45,000 miles. As this was a common problem with Taurus', Dealer replaced switch and paid 50% of bill.

Interior light would not shut off at 60,000 miles. Dealer greased door latch (this is where the light switch is at) at no charge.

General Comments:

First and foremost, I would strongly recommend the 24v DOHC (Duratec) engine for anybody thinking of buying this car. The base V6 (145hp) is nice, but the extra pep of the Duratec (200hp) comes in handy when merging with traffic or avoiding potential hazards.

On a downside, Ford attempted to turn the Taurus into a sports-sedan with the Taurus SE by stiffening the suspension and seating. Unfortunately, because of the different seating, they begin to feel a bit too rigid during long drives.

Other than the seating and the usual complaints about the rather odd styling, the vehicle is actually a well-designed vehicle. The interior is laid out very well.

In summation, the Taurus is a good vehicle with it's good points and bad points. But I also want to say that I have owned just about every brand of vehicle available today and have had my fair share of problems with each of them. However, my local Ford dealer is what tips my scales and makes me pleased with my Taurus.