1994 Ford Taurus GL 3.0L from North America

Summary:

A sluggish 8 seater that refuses to die. An American Eyesore with a purpose!

Faults:

We still have this wagon but it is old now. We have only ever done the routine maintenance on the car with only a couple of unusual events.

For some reason, this car eats alternators. We have gone through 3 or 4, but the part is cheap and the location is on top of engine so it is easy to get to.

Interior headlight switch has been replaced three times. When it acts up, the rear tail lights and instrument panel lights no longer work. Replaced with wrecking yard parts so this may explain the constant failure.

Interior plastic parts have fallen off the seat bolt areas. But hey - the cassette player still works.

The rear "FORD" oval has fallen off.

General Comments:

It has been a great 8 seater wagon. We no longer use this wagon as a daily driver due to its age, but it is still a big part of our family of cars. Our kids grew up and threw up in this thing, the seats are still comfortable and the ride is still wagonish 90's style. It is now the family "reserve" car and we still take it for drives when we need an 8 seater.

I made it a point to flush the coolant every 30,000 miles and transmission fluid every 60,000 miles. This has resulted in still having the original water pump and zero transmission issues. All four shocks probably need replacing now.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 28th September, 2021

3rd Oct 2021, 02:19

"flush the coolant every 30,000 miles and transmission fluid every 60,000 miles"

You won't regret that schedule :)

Hint: If you do the transmission fluid/filter service every 30,000 miles, it will not be wasted $$$.

1994 Ford Taurus GL Wagon 3.0 from North America

Summary:

All American Wagon

Faults:

The only things that have gone "wrong" with this car are just the regular maintenance issues. I have changed:

Brakes.

Tires.

Battery.

Oil changes every 10,000 miles.

Auto transmission change every 100,000 miles.

4 alternators (this is probably its weakness).

Serpentine belt.

Plugs, wires, cap (every 50,000 miles).

Fuel pump once.

General Comments:

This car has been with us for so long that it has become part of the family. Although we do have newer cars, I still drive this as my daily driver with the kids, their ice creams, the fishing gear etc. It really is a perfect family wagon. No complaints at all.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 23rd October, 2019

3rd Nov 2019, 03:21

You changed the transmission every 100,000 miles?

In reply to 3rd Nov 2019, 03:21

3rd Nov 2019, 15:50

I think he meant the transmission oil. Either that or a very expensive preventative measure to make sure the transmission never gives any problems :)

In reply to 3rd Nov 2019, 03:21

3rd Nov 2019, 18:00

I was on my second with an Acura TL before 50k miles.

In reply to 3rd Nov 2019, 03:21

4th Nov 2019, 15:22

More than likely they are referring to fluid changes. And if they are I would have a hard time believing that it's the original transmission. These front drives used in this generation Taurus weren't renowned for reliability and the fluid should be changed every 30,000 miles.

In reply to 4th Nov 2019, 15:22

4th Nov 2019, 21:10

They were hit and miss reliability wise. I had a friend with over 300,000 miles on his 90s Taurus, but then had a house mate who had a Mercury Sable (same car) that blew the head gasket before it made it to 100k.

In reply to 4th Nov 2019, 21:10

5th Nov 2019, 16:01

I had a couple new ones as company cars. They were decent reliably wise and nice in the Pa mountains Pocono areas with snow and ice. They were pretty powerful as the SHO. Went to Crown Vics after. Often up to 200 miles a day. Very well built. Comfortable and solid, not a back busting, bouncing ride.

20th Apr 2022, 21:18

Original Poster here.

Well - the time machine Taurus wagon just keeps on going. When gas hit $4 a gallon, I parked the SUV and put our trusty wagon back to work again full-time. I took the advice of a poster here and changed the transmission fluid again and will do so from now on at every 30,000 miles. This time I added some Lukas anti-slip to the transmission.

I get 28.4 MPG driving across South-West Washington 2-3 times per week loaded with "stuff". I use Ethanol free gas. No major mechanical problems to report. Unfortunately, the cruise control stopped working. I changed the lights to high quality halogen as the original lights were quite yellowish.