Good AC and that about sums it up.

Serveral weaknesses. At approximately 50K, My CV joint needed replacing then at 66K I had my main seal replaced and a busted gasket in the transmission pan. As soon I drove my car home from the shop, my battery went dead and power steering went out. Luckily, I purchased a extended warranty and it helped with the fees to fix my car but it still gave me alot of misrey. I owned serveral cars in my past and this is not normal. I made a promise to myself to NEVER buy a Ford again.

I purchased the vehicle at a good price with low interest. Very roomy and smooth ride but lacks manuverability. Easy to work on and parts were fairly resonable. Because of the lack of reliablity, my overall impression is below the market standard. The resell value doesn't even come close to other vehicles (i.e. Honda/Accord).

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Junk

The 32-valve V8 engine is truly a work of art, visually and performance-wise. Center console is excellently designed, as are the climate controls. Power leather seats with lumbar support keep trips comfortable. The console has air vents built into its rear for passengers in the back seats. Huge trunk.

Looks too much like the standard Taurus on the outside and definitely doesn't do justice to the engine in the car. Tall drivers could use a little more legroom. Tires seem to be lacking big.

After owning a '96 Taurus GL, I can say that the '98 SHO is much, much better. I've enjoyed driving this car ever since I got it, and I still find myself taking the long way home just so I can stay in the car a little longer. Acceleration and handling on the SHO are great and the ride's more fun than your average Taurus. I wish Ford would have given the SHO the exterior styling changes it deserves to distinguish it from other models. The center console keeps the car from looking cluttered and the integrated climate controls and radio are a break-out from the ho-hum styling you get with cars like the Grand Prix and the Camry.

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Pontiac Grand Prix GT/GTP
Chevrolet Monte Carlo

Most people prefer the Grand Prix styling to that of the Taurus. The Grand Prix interior is cluttered and uncomfortable compared to the SHO. Performance is very close, though. A 2-door Grand Prix has more legroom than the 4-door SHO (I haven't tried out a 4-door GP). The Monte Carlo, which is a 2-door, is a great car in my opinion. It's comparable to the Taurus because of performance, but I wouldn't give one much of an edge over the other. '98 Monte Carlo styling seems a bit dated now, but the '00 styling seems too plain.

manual transmission, speed, 143mph top speed!

Chassis not as rigid as newer v8sho's, some rattles and squeaks

This is one impressive sport sedan, especially with the 5 speed manual transmission. The car was cared for very well and feels solid. This is definately one fun car to drive, especially with such a revhappy Yamaha motor.

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Engine !!!

GoodYear tires were terrible. I spent a lot of money replacing tires with a larger 225/55/16 (Z or W rated) tire, but the car is worth it. You will never know what this car is capable of doing, until you invest in a decent pair of tires.

Great car. This has been the best vehicle I have ever owned. I purchased the car in Kentucky & had a chance to drive it out west for a couples years. This car is very fast !!! It's not a corvette mind you, but great great fun. I've never before owned a car that could cruise between 80 & a 100mph, still racking up gas mileage in the 20's.

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We purchased the Buick version for my mother about the same time (Grand Sport) & it was not match in any catagory (but in the same price range)

Very comfortable seats to sit in while your wating for the tow truck.

Everything mechanical.

My taurus has done nothing but break, and cost a lot of money to repair. It's the V6, 3.0 w/ overdrive and had 100,000 miles when I bought it. I have had it for five months, and the list of parts I've had to replace so far are: heater core, water pump, radiator, power steering motor, power steering pressure hose, emergency break(its very very weak) and work on the transmission, all together costing more than $1,500. That car was not built well, and you would have to be three inches tall to be able to work on it with any room at all. Save yourself time and money, and buy something else. You don't want to learn what its like to be on a major highway and not be able to move because your transmission gave out. Trust me, it probably looks nice, but don't fall prey to the evil construction, and the high repair costs.

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I've had Chevy's and Mopar's before this and they wern't nearly as bad as the taurus.

None. Good stereo

everything

The Tauras's below 96 are crap. They have no leg room in the back and the power windows are slow and make loud whinning noise. bad head gasket at 71,000 miles. cheap cud holders and a coin popped up from the holder and you can't open it. I like the 97 Tauras I am buying one there is so mich leg room! you can cross your legs with the seats allthe way back!

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every car

32valve, 3.4l V8 Engine, tall-geared transmission. Power seats w/lumbar. Quiet interior. Decent factory chrome wheels. Lots of trunk space. Rear climate control vents. Good cruise control.

Factory stereo is horrible. Tuner is better in my brother's ten-year-old Hyundai. No manual transmission option. Styling isn't different enough from base model Taurus.

Real nice semi-performance sedan for the masses. Can be gotten and insured for a reasonable dollar amount. Nice power, great handling, good steering response, great mileage for a V8.

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At least 35% better than GL, LX, or SE Taurus in the areas of handling, acceleration, braking, creature comforts, and all-around pleasure.

Looks nice, has a powerful 3.8L engine.

Hmm . . . engine mounts broke (had that replace about a year ago, but now it feels like the engine is ready to fall out again); moon roof decides when it wants to work and how; drives terribly in the snow; needs brakes already, TERRIBLE gas mileage (14.5 mpg ahhh!); wiper motor is broken; air conditioning has been fixed twice, and still doesn't work; I don't know if I can think of anything else right now. But, I did just look on the NADA site (to see what I might be able to get for the thing if I traded it in) . . . "good" news . . . I'm only $2,000 in the hole with the thing. Our 1990 Buick LeSabre is worth about the same amount and it has about 150,000 miles on it.

Ugg!

GREAT ENGINE! That Yamaha engine is superb, great off the line, and top end is good too. That supercharger really kicks in. One time a 5.0 tried to go around us in a merge lane by flooring it, so we responded and our supercharger easily blew that guys doors open. It also beat most cars off the light even with an automatic tranny.

Everything that said "FORD" on it broke. The thermostat broke like 3 times, once causing an overheat on an aluminum block. The sports tranny broke like 4 times. The brakes went about every 5,000 miles before changes and always squeaked (they said it was supposed to-BS), the AC broke like 3 times, the center console broke, the dashboard had cracking problems, the leather was crappy-it was cracked even after many leather treatments, Sunroof never worked right, power windows made clunking noises, when power steering was turned all the way it made that annoying FORD power steering clunking and hum, it couldn't do a U-turn accross 4 lanes (steering sucks), was in and out of the shop about 30% of the time we had it.

Great off the line I have to admit, even with the manual tranny. The car sucks however overall.

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Mustang 5.0-kicked its ass, our 97 honda Civic-blows the SHO away in mileage, reliability, and quality, not to mention value.

Love the engine and the body styling.

Aluminum Rims, they warped and rusted very quickly

I love my Taurus, have not had any major problems at all, just oil
changes and filter replacement. I would recommend this car to anyone.

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