Why are used Tauruses so low in price?

Question

I'm doing some research for a vehicle purchase I plan to do in February upon receiving my tax return. Since my wife and I are expecting a little girl, I'm looking at something conventional. I've noticed that there are a LOT of newer Tauruses out on the used car market fetching some very low prices compared to other vehicles in the age and mileage range. Should I be skeptical to look at these, or is there a logical reason for the low asking price?

Thanks!

Answer 1

The reason for the low price is the super high volume of the Taurus combined with the super low demand and their horrible reliability record: nobody wants a Ford Taurus. It's about settling for a used Ford Taurus. Avoid Tauruses from the years 1986-1999. The 2000-2009s are much better.  Still, always be skeptical no matter what used car you choose.  

Answer 2

Ford Taurus is a good car,some common problem but otherwise is good for the price.Just stay away from those DOHC or Yamaha engine,( more money to fix or maintain),then you are OK.

Answer 3

Get a Chevy Malibu, lots of room, good mileage, dependable, GM employee discount for everyone right now, probably deals in Feb too.

Answer 4

its not reliable and can have a lot of problems

Answer 5

A Taurus really doesn't keep a good resale value, it may be a good car but it's definitely not the most reliable

Answer 6

I have a 1996 Taurus, I bought it in March this year, and four months later my head gaskets went bad. Just be careful with Tauruses, they are great to drive, but have lots of engine problems.    

Answer 7

They are repair hogs! and most of my customers complain they aren;t a comfortable ride.

Front ends are a big problem.

For a good reliable vehicle try to find a Saturn pre- 2007 (GM changed how they are assembled and 2007 & up  aren't as good) - really doesn't matter what model. My kids both bought them-on one of my mechanics advise-  and are still driving them 3 years later and are basically trouble and repair free. Pay a little more and get a lot more vehicle.  

Answer 8

some are known for issues but it depends upon previous care and feeding...

But it's true that resale value is low due to the fact that many were sold to rental agencies and other car fleets as work mules and then resold in the mainstream as used vehicles (program) that it produced a glut of them. On top of that , some of Ford's issues with the car are known like the transmissions (most 2004-2007 cars are about the best out of the 10 year line of them)

Have one you are interested in checked out, but most made in the past 5 years were the problem free out of the bunch.. but read reviews in other places before you decide.

Also I'd stay away from the malibu. almost every one of them had intake gasket leaks (a few years ago) and is still a common issue due to gasket materials and coolant used. (a internet search can bring up those problems as well as the common ford ones)

Answer 9

the taurus is a fairly large car, and even though it has quite decent fuel economy, plenty of room, and solid reliability, people tend to overlook the cars in favor of smaller cars. my mothers 97 sable, the mercury variant, is an excellent family car that averages 23mpg in city driving, and better than 30mpg on the open road. do yourself a favor and pick one up. do yourself another favor and DONT get one with the 3.8 V6. they have issues with the head gaskets. the 3.0 V6 on the other hand is an excellent engine, and whether you get the vulcan or the duratech engine(mom's has the vulcan V6) you will get a solid reliable and efficient daily driver.

Answer 10

Here is the history of the taurus, in short and sweet words.

For starters, Americans are stupid mules and they stay firm and bold even when they are completely wrong and fighting the current.

The taurus was name very poorly in the beginning.

I think the designers wanted this:

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http://api.ning.com/files/gfRVKGwk-XMAML...

But most people get an image of this when they think of a Taurus:

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http://www.greenup.com.au/Lot21A124.JPG

Not very pleasant to ride....huh....

The taurus was supposed to be the progressive car of the future, in 1986, when it was released. It was the template for the new mustang.

It was featured in robocop, which was the SHO performance model that had everything......from a japanese engine....to a digital thermostat for the inside of the car.....cd player and all....

It would of succeeded greatly if that WAS the base model and sold at the base model price with either an i4 of a v6.

Another major problem that plagues the entire ford line is their transmissions. They are manufactured by a company called AXODE, and 9 times out of 10, it is this component of the car that fails. If they have made a more reliable transmission, maybe it would of been a better car.

Another thing that was problematic was that the tension line leading to the gas cover, it NEVER worked or it failed very quickly. Eventually, ford completely eliminated the tension line for an electric button.

The car was belt driven instead of chain driven, like most people's cars. Chains never wear out.

The only pluses are its steering, and the fact that it has bench seats, and not bucket seats.

Lets just face it......the car is UUUUUUGGGGLLLLLYYY and it kept getting uglier over the years......

The car was originally styled after the Mercedes Benz 230E, but had too many round accents which made it really ugly and it wasn't as reliable as the Benz at that time.

87

http://is.rely.net/2-55-16934-l-GWSGoVPi...

93

http://bradshea.com/images/IMGP3896.jpg

96

http://www.theautochannel.com/media/phot...

2000

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/j...

2004

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co...

2005 (ford 500)

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2008

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008_Ford_Taurus_Full.jpg

Some years did look descent...as seen below like the 2004

http://www.andysautosport.com/images/det...

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In 22 YEARS, they have only released 2 good performance sho model and only 1 descent look car....and that's the 87 sho and the 2004 for best body styling.....and because you could add a nice body kit.

Nobody but old people bought it and the poor because of that. Many of them were sold....umm...unloaded onto law enforcement and then to car rental places which further decimated its resale value.

The major problem is that they still use AXODE trasmissions and they are still styling conservative cars. The have only moved from ripping off Mercedes to ripping off VW.... The new one looks like a really huge passat.....

The should of ripped off BMW. They had really nice and lean cars, which they did in OTHER countries.

And finally, stop using names in the english dictionary....like taurus or t**d....

They should of named it the model T and with each generation...added a number....like T1...T2...T3....etc....

And it should look like its european and australian sedan counterparts....

If ford sold THESE cars in the USA, the camry and accord people would actually buy them !!!!!!!!

Ford Mondeo

http://image.motortrend.com/f/auto-news/...

Ford Falcon (the make a 4wd model that can crush the nissan skyline)

http://www.caradvice.com.au/wp-content/g...

So as you can see, that is the stupid American mule reasoning.....even though the sell beautiful cars else where.....they torture poten