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Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable Sedans Pre-2008

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Comments

  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    I think they dropped the dual exhausts in the middle of the last generation, and lowered the Duratec output some when they did that. Then for the 2000 model year, they redesigned the single exhaust and got the horsepower back again to its previous level.

    You might have a point that the SEL versions should be loaded up with all the bells and whistles available, and maybe a few that are not such as rear discs and dual exhaust. This would raise their price some, but could still be less than the equivalent Accords and Camries, which fully loaded are pushing into the upper 20's.

    My choice was lower on the options ladder. While I might appreciate rear discs and side air bags,the other options like dual exhausts, heated leather seats, upgraded audio is not worth the cost to me, thus I have a 2000 SES, which stayed well under $20K (acually $18k+TTL) but still had the Duratec.
  • ndfarndfar Member Posts: 19
    What is the proper torque value for the Taurus wheels?
    Also the dealer is going to do a chemical flush on my 1999 tomorrow to remove the brown engine coolant. Warranty is up but will split the cost.
  • regfootballregfootball Member Posts: 2,166
    my 99 SHO has 4 wheel discs.....rented a 2000 Taurus one time with drum rears and the difference was huge. Four wheels discs should be standard. The Drum rears suck.
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    Is everybody happily and quietly driving their Taurus?

    This board has been really slow lately. I even was forced to post in the Camry board, as there were a few people slamming Taurus in there that I thought were being too unfair.
  • eng6ineeng6ine Member Posts: 29
    Well scince I've last been here I have made a few mods. I replaced air filter with a K&N filter and removed the intake silencer, sounds no different but does get off the line quicker and seems to breath easier.

    Next is the exhaust, not sure what to do yet.

    2001 SEL Silver, tinted windows 35%, K&N air filter, Silencer removed, relocated TAURUS(had to order from the dealer $15 each) badging to both sides on sail panels(just behind rear doors) and added V6 badging to trunk lid opposite of the key lock.
  • danielj6danielj6 Member Posts: 285
    Today I had my Merc. Sable simonized and waxed. Looks showroom new.

    Happy trails!
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    Are K&N filters available through retail stores? Do they really have enough effect on performance that you can really feel it? Are they expensive?

    I have not considered doing any performance enhancements, but swapping an air filter is easy enough.

    My 2000 SES is now officially 2 years off the dealer's lot and at 18K miles, hasn't been back to the dealer but once for a minor windshield wiper recall.

    Other than oil changes I do myself and one tire rotation (I am due for another), I have had zero maintenance costs. Still solid and rattle and squeek free.
  • eng6ineeng6ine Member Posts: 29
    K&N filters usually need to be ordered at a auto parts store, cost about $45.00. They never have to be replaced, only cleaned at 50,000 miles or 100,000 miles according to the instructions. 50,000 if you drive in dusty conditions and 100,000 if not. I have a few friends that have them and they tend to clean them at the 25,000 miles mark, it is up to you.

    I do notice that upon hard acceleration that the engine does not shake as much, like it breaths easier? Before the K&N it seems my engine was trying to hard to rev now it seems to do effortlessly. They do claim to give you 4-6 hp I believe, and removing the silencer will give you even a little more like 3-4 hp. So that is almost 10 hp for under fifty bucks, not bad.

    This is a link to the silencer removal:
    http://www.tauruscarclub.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9429
  • mralanmralan Member Posts: 174
    When you think of a good exhaust mod let us know. I'm going to look into a few mods when my 01 SES goes out of warranty in about 3k miles.
  • upsetter1upsetter1 Member Posts: 205
    Last labor day I bought new 2002 Mercury Sable LS Premium. It has all options - leather, sunroof and etc., except so called secure package (side airbags and traction conrol). Actually I was looking for one year old one with low miles, but it was impossible to find decent one. So when I saw the ad in newspaper offering $5,000 off MSRP, 13 in stock, I thought hell its just the right time to buy a new car. Next day with ad in my hand I visited local Lincoln-Mercury dealer. There was no haggle and hassle, when I showed the ad to sales consultant his manager got mad and started to call dealers to learn the real price :-). After an hour or so he agreed to sell me car just for $18,700 (MSRP 23,700), with all taxes and fees it was about $20,700. It was the only car with medium parchment interior on the lot with floor shifter and it was Arizona Beige. Well it was among colors I was looking for, though in that moment I was more inclined to buy dark red. But my color preferences change with time so it is not a problem at all, car looks terrific. Week later I bought 5/100,000 Basic care ESP for $975, just for peace of mind, mainly because of transmission and air conditioning concerns. I'm driving more than 20,000 a year so basic warranty would last just year and half.

    Now the most interesting is that my friend called me the same day for advice. He was in the same town in Toyota dealership haggling for 2002 Camry XLE with 6 cylynders. It was exactly the same car like my Sable, except rear disk brakes and traction control plus side airbags. So he was ready to pay $26,000 (without taxes) and manager asking $29,000 told him that he is insulting him. I just couldn't believe him, he was ready to pay 8 grands more for almost the same car. I told him are you crazy man, leave dealership immediately, save your money. Later I let him to drive my car and he told me that it feels almost like Camry, though Camry has smoother acceleration and better stop distance, but not so much better to pay extra 8 grands I guess. So I told him wait man until 2003 Camrys arrive and then you will take it for free.
  • ecvc03ecvc03 Member Posts: 5
    Which car do you think is best, better, good?
    I want to know are current Taurus owners happy with their car? And would you buy a Japanese car instead of American?
    thanks.
  • ezaircon4jcezaircon4jc Member Posts: 793
    I am on my 4th Sable. We've had an 86 (50K miles), an 88 (125K miles), a 91 (172K miles) and our current one, a 96 with 112K miles. I would never consider another Japanese car. We've had 3 Mitsubishis and a Civic. I was not at all impressed with the much overated quality. They are also not (IMNSHO) worth the price premium. A fully loaded Camry costs close to $30K. I got my Lincoln LS for just over $31K. My Lincoln has things not even offered on the Camry. You say, what about resale? I couldn't care less. A car is a lousy investment. As you can see above, we keep our cars for over 100K miles. When we traded our 91 Sable in on the LS, we got $1500. That's with the mileage and on a trade-in. Not bad in my book!

    To answer your second question, I am VERY happy with our Sable. We have spent <$1K on repairs over the last 7 years. The only "major" repair was a water pump at about 100K. The clutch for the A/C compressor died around 95K. I don't think that was early as the compressor runs every day. I would recommend a Sable/Taurus to anyone.
  • tomcat630tomcat630 Member Posts: 854
    In the "good old days" 100K miles was considered "junk". Now, it's no big thing to pass.
  • srocsroc Member Posts: 15
    Hi guys, I posted this on another board but that one seems to be inactive - I have a problem with a loud squeaking/clicking noise that is coming from the spark plugs/engine area. It is probably not a belt cos there is no belt in that area (the center/right of the vehicle when you pop the hood and look down).

    Any ideas? I have a 2000 Vulcan V6.
  • sculldog33sculldog33 Member Posts: 19
    "Best" car is a tricky thing. I would argue that Taurus/Sable are best in terms of initial value and feature content. As I and others have pointed out in other posts, the potential price difference on a loaded sable vs a similarly loaded camry is about 7K. Add in potential interest savings of 2K since Ford is offering 0% financing for 60 months, and the real savings is pushing 10K.

    In terms of build quality, the camry and accord win hands down. I drove a Civic EX for a year and everything was so well thought out, all the switches and gear just had a certain "feel" to them that spoke of quality. Long term reliability comes in here as well, as clearly the foreign cars have better records. However, american cars have come a long way and as many posters have noted, they have had high mileage Taurus and Sables with no problems.

    Safety is a nebulous thing and all mid size sedans these days are pretty safe. Ford seems to be trying hard here with the first dual mode airbags, seatbelt pre-tensioners, adjustable pedals, available side airbags, safety release in trunk, solid 5 star crash numbers, etc. Also, the size of the car is a little bigger and at least against the accord the weight is higher. More size and mass generally mean a safer car.

    Styling wise, I love the look of the Sable and feel the accord and camry are just wind tunnel designs that are pretty bland. Also, at least in the northeast, every third car seems to be a camry. Sables are a little more rare and look more distinctive.

    Resale value -- Ford products depreciate really badly compared to the foreigns. Sold the civic I mentioned earlier after 1 year and broke even on the loan -- typically you'd be "upside down" in this situation. Would certainly have lost money on my current sable had I sold it after one year. But, everyone should really hold on to a car for 8 yrs or so this is sort of a moot point.

    Bottomline is that as many others have said, cars aren't good investments, and we should buy what makes the most sense from an economic standpoint, as well as to some degree aesthetics. I drive well under 10,000 miles a year currently and figure the Sable will be more than reliable for the 10-12 years or so that I plan/hope on keeping it. If I drove 25,000 a year, I'd probably consider the camry or accord, even at an inflated price, since they could conceivably get to 250K miles with fewer problems. (Although at that point, buying a 12K econobox that gets 35+ mpg would probably be a better choice if you're doing that kind of road warrior mileage.) If I drove the average of 12K a year, I'd really consider the Sable. That $10K difference in actual cash should easily pay for the additional few repairs I might face on the sable, plus during the loan years, my costs would be easier to fit into my budget. If I was trading cars in every couple of years, well, I'd have more money than brains and it wouldn't really matter....
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    I agree mostly with sculldog33.

    Taurus currently is a very good vehicle, with perhaps a little less "refinement" (which is very subjective anyways) than Camry and Accord, but for a lot less cost when comparably equipped. I believe the quality gap has narrowed as well.

    With all the money you save over Camcords, you can certainly afford an extended warranty on your Taurus/Sable if you have doubts about long term reliability.

    For those in the used car market,a one or two year old Taurus/Sables are quite a bargain, and I have seen one local dealer throw in a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty with these cars.
  • wkohlerwkohler Member Posts: 74
    The squealing noise you hear under the hood, MAY be coming from the belt tensioner pulley. I'm deloyed with the military at this time, so can't look at my 2001 taurus. However, I had that problem on a chrysler product that was driving me nuts. Come to find out the pulley was worn due to all the stress it takes to keep the belt tensioned properly. Changed the pulley, and cured the problem. Another thing to check is your power steering fluid level. It that's low, the power steering pump can cause an intermittant squeal. Again, don't know if ford has this pulley, but it's worth a look.
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    say what! do you have to flunk a math test and lack common sense to get a taurus/sable?

    there's an organization called intellichoice that determines the overall cost of ownership over a 5 year period. the accord/camry finish near the top and the taurus/sable (not). as far as initial $10k savings, absurd.
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    Well, $10k is likely stretching the price difference between comparably equipped Taurus and Camry. However, there definitely appears to be at least a $5-$7K difference in out the door costs when you are comparing the higher end models of each vehicle. On a base "stripper" model of each vehicle, it is more in the $2K-$4K range.

    Low financing incentives may result in higher purchase prices for Taurus. For example, on 2002's, the current choice is either $2500 rebates or 0% financing, not both. I believe Camry's have no rebate in place, just a low, but not zero financing incentive right now.

    In any event, there are significant initial price differences between the two. Depending on how often you trade cars and what your annual mileage is, the total cost to own could vary widely. Anyone who only keeps their vehicle 2-5 years is going to take a bath on depreciation, it's just a question of how deep the water in the bathtub will be.

    For myself, depreciation means little, as I plan on keeping my Taurus 10 years (I did my last one), and neither a 10 year old Taurus or a 10 year old Camry is going to be worth much. I sold my '90 to a private party for $2k when it was 10 years old. So initial cost is more of an issue with me. With the much better reliability of nearly all new cars, I contend reliability issues are becoming less important to the decision making process.
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    i'm going to do some backtracking. lets exclude the camry for they can get pricey and i'm not as familiar with them as i'm with the accord. and i only know the accord finishes near the top with intellichoice.

    the 03 accords tops out at $26k (i refuse to count the nav system models, buy a map) and are available with no or little discount. but this is only temporary and will soon be available with $2k discounts. that leaves $24k. factor in the higher interest rate and you're still a long way from $10k or $7k.
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    All I will respond right now is that you can get a very well equipped 2002 SES Deluxe version with the 200HP DOHC V-6 and a lot of bells and whistles which will have a list price of about $23000, and buy it for about $18,000 without tax title and license. While I am not about to go through the item by item comparison of what is included, this results in a difference of $6K from your Accord example.

    I will leave it up to others to respond with more detail if they want, but I do not think the above cost comparisons are too far off base.
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    lets count the destination charge. i did with my accord example. but $18k for a loaded taurus, how does ford make any money? good news for the consumer though.
  • eng6ineeng6ine Member Posts: 29
    This is a Taurus board. We talk about our experiences good or bad(mostly good).

    Take your pricing war to another board.

    Next time you get in your foreign car thank God and the men and women(United States Armed Forces) who died for your right to drive it. Stay out of the way of our(what you call bad cars)we might not be able to stop from hitting you. Leave us patriotic US auto buying people alone.

    God bless AMERICA! and my Taurus(Silver bullet)
  • ktcncktcnc Member Posts: 1
    I agree eng6ine. I thank my lucky stars to be am American. And I will always support my country and buy American!
  • snowmansnowman Member Posts: 540
    for this guy -whatever the venus-. If I were you, I would worry on long term reliability of my - Made in Mexico - overpriced VW rather that lurking here and making comments about Taurus. This would be a optimization of Internet Usage for you. You know, use your time wisely.
  • riswamiriswami Member Posts: 192
    Honda boy have his say. I own two Ford products, a 97 Taurus and a 98 Villager. I know the Villager has a Nissan drive train. So I should have bought a Windstar and waited for the transmission or head gaskets to fail?

    You better look under the hood of that Taurus. I'm pretty sure I saw the words Bosch on some parts under my Taurus's hood. We now live in a world economy. Honda assembles a lot of their vehicles here. Ford has shipped jobs to Mexico; did I say Contour.

    I don't give a damn what Intellichoice says about ownership. A lot of that cost is slanted towards depreciation. That's why I bought my Taurus used. I was shopping a Honda Accord at the same time. Found out the Accord cost 300 more a year to insure. Wonder if Intellichoice figured that in?

    Even if you buy a Taurus/Sable new you'll get a great deal. Are they perfect, don't think so; but they are a pretty good value.

    Why would I care if Ford makes money. Are some of my mutual funds tied into Ford Stock? They have made the Vulcan engine for at least 17 years. They interchange parts among different models.This helps keep the cost low. They make a ton of profit on Explorers and Expeditions. Do you really think it cost 60% more to make a Expedition? It's a profit center; same thing for their trucks.

    I have no problem with Honda Boy coming onto this board. The Honda board has some pretty ridiculous postings.They also like to slam American Iron without fact. There also a few idiots who think Japanese paint and labor are superior. Don't think so.

    But don't say he can't express his opinion. I find it healthy. This board is all too quite at times. A little difference of opinion can only get things moving and people discussing and sharing information.
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    These kinds of comparisons really need to take place under an appropriate discussion name over on the Comparisons - Sedans vs. Sedans board.

    That will allow folks who are not interested in that sort of debate to continue here in this dedicated discussion, and folks who do want to debate to carry on in an environment created for the specific purpose of debate.

    Capiche?

    (Wonder how you spell that...)

    :)

    Pat
    Sedans Host
  • hutch7hutch7 Member Posts: 88
    I'm about to buy my brother-in-laws '98 Sable GL
    which has 120K on it. I'll use it as my "airport"
    car since I'm tired of driving my beloved Tundra (I had a bad experience with an F-150) to Atlanta airport and parking it there for a week. What kind of stuff should I be looking for when I start driving this car? Engine and tranny seem fine and the price is right!
  • wendell95wendell95 Member Posts: 3
    Have 1997 Sable wagon / Duratec. Have replaced the sway bar links with Moog parts. Now the noise has started again and it is not fom the links. Could the rack steering assembly be sliping? It happens when turning or braking.
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    "Found out the Accord cost 300 more a year to insure. Wonder if Intellichoice figured that in?"

    Yes, that's figured in.

    thanks for your comments about allowing dissenting opinions. i hope your viewpoint is more representative on this board than the previous posters. very unamerican in spirit.

    not quite sure how i'm slamming the taurus by saying it doesn't cost $10k more for a comparable accord.
  • ezaircon4jcezaircon4jc Member Posts: 793
    I have 112K on my '96 Sable w/Duratec. The only things I've replaced were the water pump and A/C clutch. I did the water pump myself. It was a bugger, but well worth the savings! I still have excellent power and the (since day 1) 1-2 hesitation. Oh,yea. I just had to have the oil gallery plugs replaced. They were leaking up a storm! The repair was ~$100.
  • sculldog33sculldog33 Member Posts: 19
    Was away for a few days, missed all the fun. 10K is actually real hard dollars that you the consumer don't have to pay.

    Sable LS Premium has a TMW of about 22K but are advertised in the Boston area for 18,999. At the time of my post, I'm 90% sure that Ford did have a 0% 60 month offer available. (I remember since this deal was so much better than the one I got in 2000 when I bought a Sable.)

    Camry XLE comes up with an Edmunds TMV of just under 26K. Options can push this higher, and you'll need to select some to get the same equipment level as the Sable. Based on just the TMV, the difference is 4K, with a real world spread in my area of 7K (26K - 19K).

    Ford financing is now showing 2.9% for 60 months on the Sable, while Toyota has no promotional offerings in the Boston area. Figure you can get maybe 5.5-6% on your own for 60months. Fully finance both and the interest difference is 1500. At the time of my post, 0% vs 5-6% would be about $2300.

    7K price difference plus 2300 interest savings = about 10K.....

    Intelli-choice will factor in insurance and depreciation, and yes I'm taking a bath on depreciation....but I plan to keep the car for 10-12 yrs so depreciation doesn't really affect me. Up front purchase price and interest savings are real dollars you don't need to shell out. Any Intelli-choice numbers for a holding period of 10yrs?
  • edmund2460edmund2460 Member Posts: 293
    Where do you guys think Accords and Camry's and most Mazdas are made? They are providing wages for Americans. Anyway, regardless of the country of design, I wonder, suppose you were insistent on buying 'American', and suppose you had the worst luck on more than one car, would you continue to buy 'American' just on principle? Just curious.
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    sculldog33
    why would tmv be off by $3k. not saying you're wrong, just thought tmv is supposed to be adjusted for a particular area?

    edmund2460
    boy are you asking for it, good luck. i'll just add that some of these japanese transplant cars also have high domestic content in terms of parts. and it's true the profits go back to japan, but billions of dollars are invested right back into this country. they don't have a problem with american labor.
  • upsetter1upsetter1 Member Posts: 205
    Actually there are tons of Camrys available on Hertz car sales (www.hertzcarsales.com) I counted something about 60 Camries in CA available versus only 8 Tauruses. The price of 2001 Camry is 14,500 - about 2,000 more than for Taurus. It is similarly equipped cars with 155 hp engines but with less milage ( 20,000 vs 30,000 on Taurus). So that milage difference also explains partially the difference in price. Now tell that Camry don't depreciates or that it is not a rental car. Thats all are crap. It is just a myth. Go check yourself if you don't believe me.

    It is that plain simple that you save a money buying Taurus or Sable esp well equipped.

    If you don't beleive me consider Matrix and Vibe. Matrix outsell Vibe 2 to 1 (35,000 vs 20,000 so far). And it is exactly the same car. Uninformed customers pay the price. When my friend went to buy Camry XLE he didn't have an idea what the price is. Salesman and manager in Toyota were just fooling him. He called me to find in Internet the invoice. Toyota dealership didn't allow him to use computer. They just trying to make big money on him, as simple as that. He was really angry and furious after that experience. But he deserved it. You have to be prepared before going to dealership and don't believe the hype.
  • oxx93oxx93 Member Posts: 67
    I have a 2001 Taurus SES(3.0 V6) and I notice that under hard acceleration the engine has a rattle/ticking type noise. It sounds like something is shaking up front. I really notice it if I am trying to merge onto the highway. I have just over 13k miles. Has anyone else noticed this? any solutions? Thanks
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    now that you backed your assertions with such solid facts, of course i believe you. thanks for straightening this out. by the way, who said there wasn't any camry rental cars?
  • upsetter1upsetter1 Member Posts: 205
    The point is not that there are rental Camries, but that there are a lot of rental Camries and they are on sale right now. And the most attractive is that Hertz backs it with good warranty and choice is much better than of rental Tauruses or Sables thats are only few available. And plenty of factory bumper to bumper warranty is still in place in 20,000 miles. And also I have to add that my friend I mentioned before spend about $1,300 for 60,000 miles service on his 1997 Camry - four banger that he bought as a certified preowned for 20,000+ in 1999 with 20,000 miles on it. So don't tell me that Camry is cheaper to maintain. He said that he had a lot of repair made already, most of them thanks god covered by extended or basic warrantly like power steering failure, rotors, waterpump and etc.
  • jcat707jcat707 Member Posts: 169
    My Taurus also makes that rattle noise. I hear it all of the time. But it is really bad when the A/C is on and I am accelerating. I guess I will have to take it back to the dealer again. This will be the fifth dealer trip since I bought the car new in July 2002. At least I don't have to pay for these problems. This car will be going straight back to Ford Motor Credit when the lease is up in 2004. Hopefully I'll have better luck with the 2004 Explorer, Crosstrainer, or Expedition.

    P.S. I wonder why Ford doesn't give some kind of visial notification when you press unlock or lock on your keyless remote. I would love to have my headlights and/or taillights flash.
  • g1994stsg1994sts Member Posts: 26
    Good thing these cars have an on/off feature. Has anyone had this problem? Is this an easy fix or an electrical gremlin nightmare to diagnose?
  • venus537venus537 Member Posts: 1,443
    am i reading your post correctly? are you saying there are more camry rental cars than taurus rental cars? i didn't know this, i thought it was the opposite by a good margin. thanks for straightening me out again.
  • ezaircon4jcezaircon4jc Member Posts: 793
    Funny, Ford owns Hertz.
  • upsetter1upsetter1 Member Posts: 205
    I cannot tell how many cars of certain brand really Hertz owns. All I said is based on the number of vehicles that Hertz is currently selling in California. If you go to www.hertzcarsales.com and check different brands you will find that there are usually about 10 Tauruses are available, about 5 Sables, about 60 Camries, about 40 Mazda 626. There are also Nissan Maximas and other cars, though I checked only cars that were interesting for me when was chopping for low miles preowned family sedan.
  • upsetter1upsetter1 Member Posts: 205
    I also believe that Ford sold or going to sell Hertz. From my experience and others experience I can tell that Hertz cars are in pretty good shape and are dependable? though there may be some issues, because it doesn't get the best ones from manufacturer. And also engines are basic ones, thats why I didn't go that way and decided to by a new car, semptember-october this year is a fantastic opportunity to buy a new car. It is very unique time and may never happen again soon.
  • riswamiriswami Member Posts: 192
    I had the same problem. Was a door switch. Part is about $10. You can still shut your interior lights off? I had to close my drivers door about 15 times to get mine to go off.

    I got charged about 2.5 hours of labor by the dealer for this repair. New a Ford Dealership mechanic; he said this is fairly common. He liked this job because they can get it done it about 45 minutes.
  • sculldog33sculldog33 Member Posts: 19
    Not sure why TMV is off on the Sable. Sunday Boston Globe had ads for Sable LS's at 18,999 with 0% 60 mth. Ad claimed that they had multiple vehicles in stock and there was no fine print on the finance deal (eg: nothing on rebate in lieu of 0% deal.) Two local dealers are offering this, including the one I purchased from 2 yrs ago.

    Not sure why this is, but this price has been like this for months. Paid 19.5 for my 2000 and at the time could not figure out how they made any money on the car since my cost appeared to be below the invoice price per Edmunds. They had probably 15 of these on the lot at the time, so figured they got some discount based on volume.

    It's a mystery, but also a great deal. The new LS has a platinum trim option and got new lights under the side view mirrors and the cost went down $500 from 2 yrs ago????
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    Edmunds TMV has been high for Taurus for a long time. For example, when I bought my 2000 SES, the TMV for an SES with the base engine was $18699 and this was for a car that had MSRP of $19810+$600 destination charge=$20410. The one I bought had the Duratec engine option + floor mats which raised the MSRP of it to $20410+$695+$55=$21160. I bought the car for $18,000 (not including sales tax, title and license transfer). So I got a more well equipped SES than Edmunds for $669 less than TMV.

    I think Edmunds TMV is does not account for rebates and other dealer incentives that allow for much lower prices than TMV.

    If you don't understand how Ford does these prices, it is likely because Ford wants to keep their plants up and running. With the union contracts that are in place, it costs them nearly as much when a plant is idle than when it is operating. With the weak economy, low prices and incentives keep sales up and the factories open.

    Just makes you wonder what kind of profits Honda and Toyota and their dealers are raking in, given the substantial additional prices they are commanding for equivalently equipped cars.
  • johnwngjohnwng Member Posts: 24
    I have a '97 Taurus GL, about 82K miles. Recently, the steering wheel has started shaking once brake is applied just a bit hard. Is this normal for a car of this age, or is this a sign of major problems coming? Does anyone of you have similar experience with your Tauruses?
  • ezaircon4jcezaircon4jc Member Posts: 793
    Sounds like warped rotors. Replace your rotors with a quality aftermarket set (like NAPA) and you won't have problems again. Also make sure your wheels are torqued correctly with a torque wrench, not an impact gun.
  • tomcat630tomcat630 Member Posts: 854
    Ford has no plans to sell Hertz Rentals.

    They should buy more Camries, since it is the #1 car. Fill the lots with them to erase their imagined resale value.
This discussion has been closed.