Should I keep it?

Well I bought my girlfriend a 2001 taurus with 99k about a 2 months ago but I have been driving it lately and I'm wondering if I should sell it.The reason for this is the fact that when I drive it,almost every component feels kinda cheap and not very well built.for example:
the transmission feels very weak and not smooth
the engines power is not adequate for the 17/23 mpg it gets
the leg room for the driver is annoying
the steering is stiff and not very smooth
the windows sound kinda fragile
when I close the drivers door,the insides rattles and feel loose
the auto locks sound is not very stiff
and the pedal adjust sounds unhealthy.
Sorry if there are any real big fans of the taurus are reading this but i'm just trying to see if you guys agree with my complaints.Bear with me, i'm 19 and I think I spoiled myself by buying a 92 town car for my first car{not say that these are the most reliable cars but definitely comfortable and luxurious}.
On the bright side,I have done alittle research and my conclusion is that it seems like when these cars pass about 90,000 miles,there in the clear up till around 200,000.This could not be accurate but that is what i'v seen.
but,these cars do not hold there resale very well.I bought this car for $5,000,and if I put another 30,000 miles on it,ill probably only get $3,500 if that because the drive feels like it has 200,000 miles on it
Other than these complains,the car is not bad.It looks nice and clean and I got an alright deal on it.
Oh and another thing,I have been wondering what the 24V SEL drives like,Is it faster,is it smoother and is it more reliable? tell me what you think.PLEASE/THANKS/SORRY

The wife has an 05 Gran Marquis built on the same frame as a Lincoln and it rides better and quieter than my 03 Taurus SES but to me it doesn't drive any better. Taurus has more leg room than the Marquis with adjustable foot pedals. As for being made cheap, well, it's a smaller car and as a rule they cost less than the bigger more luxurious cars and therefore have less luxurious appointments. You want to see cheap, . . go look at some of the $15,000. "economy" cars.

Also depends what you want and expect out of your car and people don't have the same criteria for their vehicle. I found this interesting: "Well I bought my girlfriend a 2001 taurus with 99k about a 2 months ago but I have been driving it lately and I'm wondering if I should sell it." Hmmm . . . . The purpose of a test dive is to get a feel for the car, not only mechanically but snuggle down in the seats, adjust them, push 'em back & forth and make sure they are comfortable because when you are in that vehicle that is where you spend 99.9% of your time sitting in a seat. Does it ride & good drive good, corner well, accelerate and shift to your liking? Knock on the dash and doors and see if they are solid enough for you and are you pleased with the overall quality and looks. (I love the sleek look Euro styling.) Do you know who owned it before and valid maintenance records to review?

Provided you took your time and gave it the proper test drive, I believe you should have picked up on all of the things you dislike during the test drive and not bought it. But in re-reading your list of dislikes, personally, I think you're being "picky". Nothing really mechanically wrong with it except you don't like this and that. Well, do what you think is right.

"the transmission feels very weak and not smooth" Maintenance schedule calls for changing the tranny fluid every 30K miles and with 99K mi on it that should have been done three times. Make sure it has good fluid in it 'cause a tranny rebuild is $1,500. or more.

Last but not least, it was nice of you to by your Lady a car but as long as it is a safe car and she likes it and enjoys driving it, . . . I wouldn't worry about if I liked it or not. I'm thinking about getting rid of her car because I don't like it. Hmmm . . . Smehow I fail to see the logic. Now, . . . if you're a rich kid with money to burn, go for it, get her a new 'Stang GT convertable and ride Daddy ride. My .02 cents.

The wife has an 05 Gran Marquis built on the same frame as a Lincoln and it rides better and quieter than my 03 Taurus SES but to me it doesn't drive any better. Taurus has more leg room than the Marquis with adjustable foot pedals. As for being made cheap, well, it's a smaller car and as a rule they cost less than the bigger more luxurious cars and therefore have less luxurious appointments. You want to see cheap, . . go look at some of the $15,000. "economy" cars.

Also depends what you want and expect out of your car and people don't have the same criteria for their vehicle. I found this interesting: "Well I bought my girlfriend a 2001 taurus with 99k about a 2 months ago but I have been driving it lately and I'm wondering if I should sell it." Hmmm . . . . The purpose of a test dive is to get a feel for the car, not only mechanically but snuggle down in the seats, adjust them, push 'em back & forth and make sure they are comfortable because when you are in that vehicle that is where you spend 99.9% of your time sitting in a seat. Does it ride & good drive good, corner well, accelerate and shift to your liking? Knock on the dash and doors and see if they are solid enough for you and are you pleased with the overall quality and looks. (I love the sleek look Euro styling.) Do you know who owned it before and valid maintenance records to review?

Provided you took your time and gave it the proper test drive, I believe you should have picked up on all of the things you dislike during the test drive and not bought it. But in re-reading your list of dislikes, personally, I think you're being "picky". Nothing really mechanically wrong with it except you don't like this and that. Well, do what you think is right.

"the transmission feels very weak and not smooth" Maintenance schedule calls for changing the tranny fluid every 30K miles and with 99K mi on it that should have been done three times. Make sure it has good fluid in it 'cause a tranny rebuild is $1,500. or more.

Last but not least, it was nice of you to by your Lady a car but as long as it is a safe car and she likes it and enjoys driving it, . . . I wouldn't worry about if I liked it or not. I'm thinking about getting rid of her car because I don't like it. Hmmm . . . Smehow I fail to see the logic. Now, . . . if you're a rich kid with money to burn, go for it, get her a new 'Stang GT convertable and ride Daddy ride. My .02 cents.Well,I didn't have much of a choice.Her grandpa had to get rid of the car and she fell in love with it.I did test drive it and I didn't really pay too much attention to everything because I knew I had to buy it.Actually the car isn't as bad as I make it out to be but I was just wondering if any other taurus was similer.I don't think I could have got a better deal.I like the look,the suspension,the handling and other details about the car so I don't totally dislike the car.oh and about the foot room,that left foot rest will not let me strech my leg out on long drives.
I wish I was rich,I just have alittle trust fund that I can start to dig through and I was actually going to buy a 87' mustang as a project and build it up from scrach but I don't know
Sorry again,I'm not tring to make these cars have a bad rep.this is just my ignorant review.remember,my first car was a town car{A car that sold for $33,000 15 years ago}and I think I should lower my standards especially since i'm thinking about buying old muscle.
So any other constructive criticism will be understood.

The Taurus was chosen by many companies as a fleet vehicle and with decent care and maintenance it will last a long time.

It is an alright car and I would recommend getting one if the price is right.
I think the thing that sticks out the most is the nice sleek look it has,especially the fact that mine is black{like a car should be}.
I just wish it had the DOHC 24V,at least I think,I haven't done much research on them.What do you guys and girls think about them?

The quality problems you have noted do not sound at all like a typical Taurus to me. The '96 I have seems well built and solid, but I cannot say for sure without putting my own duff in that car and trying it out. Most Tauruses I've seen are priced fairly inexpensively, but are built like a rock and with love, and everything seems to work like it was made of gold. The only real exception I've found is the power for gas mileage issue you noted, and that may just be a power to weight ratio (meaning the motor's undersized, so it must work harder). The SHO probably wouldn't have that problem. :popcorn:As far as the foot-room issue (and you mentioned the foot rest too), I've found that simply moving the seat back helps a lot. :p

My mileage is nothing to brag about 20 town and 22 on the road. Last time I did a town check I got 21.6 but I drove ultra conservatie light on the pedal and that's not usually how I drive. Not a fast driver but I accelerate to fast and that doesn't help. Ford says use 5W-20 oil, I do that and it helps mileage because the thicker it is the harder it is to turn the engine. By the way, Ford MotoCraft synthetic blend oil got a very good review and it's fairly inexpensive at WallyWorld. I figure if it's good enough for the Police cars it's good enough for me.

It came with Bridgestones and I did not like them so I changed to Kumho Solus and it made all the difference in the way it rides & drives and they're very quiet to. If I didn't know better I'd think I was on Michelins. 45K mi on the Bridgestones and they gave me a trade in credit and Kumhos mounted, balanced with tax $210. out the door. $40. rebate now not in effect when I bought mine. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=Solus+KH16

"As far as the foot-room issue (and you mentioned the foot rest too), I've found that simply moving the seat back helps a lot." I use to be 6' tall but my senior years shrunk me to 5'10" and if I push the seat back all the way it's to far back. Wife's 05 Marquis with adjustable pedals doesn't go back as far as Taurus and to me the Taurus seats are more comfortable. SES power seats with lumbar support. I'm a senior citizen I'm picky and particular and I like my Taurus, period. I was a QC Inspector with MASA during the Apollo program and I have no problem with the quality in the Taurus. My .02 cents, have a nice week end and drive safe.