16th Aug 2011, 21:06
ORIGINAL REVIEWER HERE.
It's been a month, and nothing too out of the extraordinary has occurred, good or bad.
The radio is working fine now (other than the CD). I never did put the new radio or CD player in.
The line for the window washers has split, so the sprayers don't work. More of a pet peeve than anything. My old Camry's sprayers never worked properly. At first, the left sprayer would not work, and then the right one went out soon after.
The catalytic converter is rattling, so I will be getting it replaced under warranty (8 years/80,000 miles and I have 78,333 on it). The car still runs drives fine, but the rattling is annoying and the replacement is free!
I got a nail in a tire, so I replaced 2 tires. The tires that came with the car at 54,000 miles still have excellent tread on them (Coopers, I believe). I still don't know if these are the tires that came with the car or not, and if they are, if they are or are not the original set.
The Taurus is still solid, and I still look forward to driving it each time. The Taurus, overall, is more comfortable and more fun to drive than our 2011 Focus, but the sculpture on the Focus's seats is in a different galaxy.
I still love my Taurus, and I await many more miles of happy motoring.
17th Aug 2011, 14:54
My parents have a 2005 Taurus too, and they have been super satisfied with it. We have not had even one small, slight problem with this car, it still runs like new with almost 150000 k on it. This car is well made and excellent value too, as they are pretty cheap to buy used compared to the Impala or Camry, which my parents looked at too.
The best features in this car are the huge trunk, and the massive backseat, which makes it super comfortable for passengers in the back.
31st Oct 2011, 21:35
ORIGINAL REVIEWER HERE.
Since my last update, the Taurus has continued to serve us well. When the dealer fixed the window sprayers, they did not tighten the line as well as they could have, but the problem is now totally remedied.
With winter approaching, the gas mileage still appears to be the same as it has been. On a hypermiling tank, I saw 27 in the city. The Taurus is being predominately used for a hilly, city commute with an occasional highway run. I suspect gas mileage on the whole will decrease.
Since the Taurus was purchased at 54,000 miles, the tires were replaced between the last update. The tread was still pretty good on them (6/32 if I recall correctly), but I could not pass up the deal I got for new tires.
Knock on wood, I think I am home free with the radio. The CD player was never hooked up again, but the cassette and AM/FM functions work. I never even bothered to replace the radio.
The Taurus still does not rattle. When it went in for its 80,000 mile service, the technicians at Ford were amazed at how tight everything was and how smoothly it operated.
Upon initial review, I noted a pause during startup. This still happens persistently, but now that the weather is colder (and possibly wetter), this "pause" is occurring more frequently. No mechanic has been able to troubleshoot it yet.
On a side note, my grandfather owns a 1997 Ford Thunderbird. Ever since he bought it (brand new) and I was three or four years old, I knew I wanted to be a car and/or road designer. Legos have been my life, and I read car reviews leisurely.
At college, whenever I have trouble with math or I hit a mental roadblock, I can look out the window and see my Taurus (or Focus, to a lesser extent) and be motivated to continue with my studies. I may learn to be a mechanic before I become a car designer, but no matter what, my Taurus has been more than I could ask for.
Current mileage: 80,700.
26th Jan 2012, 09:15
ORIGINAL REVIEWER HERE.
01-26-2012.
It's been a few months since my last update, and winter has arrived here in Pennsylvania.
The Taurus is still performing well with 82,200 miles on it (the reason for the lower mileage increase this time is because I have another car to drive, and try to balance them out, since we lost a commute in my household).
The only issue I have, and it's more of an annoyance, is the starting issue that has happened since we purchased the car. The car starts on the first try (99 times out of 100), but, if it is really cold out, the tachometer will not jump up immediately. The needle just sits at zero and shakes (all the needles do).
On a rare occasion, the car will die once it is put into gear (Drive most of the time, since I back into parking spaces, et cetera, not out of them).
I have not seen any lights on the dash (Check Engine, etc.), and the car still runs, drives, and gets the same (or in same cases, better) gas mileage.
The trip computer also resets the gas mileage every few days. Miles To Empty and Distance Traveled stay the same, but the gas mileage display will reset to zero.
Like I said, the Taurus is doing well. Nothing major, just a minor annoyance.
Mileage: 82,200.
27th Jan 2012, 10:00
I think you have a loose connection somewhere. Maybe it is a ground connection for the instrument panel, or a battery connection. I would also check the connections at the alternator.
7th Mar 2012, 20:34
ORIGINAL REVIEWER HERE.
On February 2, 2012, we traded the Taurus. Long story short, the warranty ran out and it was cheaper to trade than to add the warranty to the monthly payment.
Our trade is a 2010 Toyota Camry LE (4-cylinder, 6-speed automatic, 55,2XX miles). Based on the first few drives, it is uncomfortable, had mega blind spots at the C-pillar, and handles like a boat.
I wanted a 2009 Fusion (SEL 6-cylinder), but after crunching the numbers, I saved $4,000 by buying the Camry as opposed to buying a Fusion.
I'll greatly miss the Taurus. Other than the PCM, the Taurus had NO major problems during my ownership. Final mileage was 82,273 as I left it at the dealer.
In a few months, I'll post a review of our Camry. I'm already hoping to trade the Camry for the latest generation Taurus (specifically SHO).
Thank you for your time and be safe on your travels!
8th Jul 2011, 16:01
ORIGINAL REVIEWER HERE.
The radio started acting up again, randomly changing stations, volume, and presets. I just bought another radio.
I'll update again once the radio has been in for a while.
Also, the shocks/struts/springs are sagging in the back, and the Taurus is picking up more bumps than usual. I may have them replaced, but they don't affect how the car runs.
Mileage: 76,400.