1993 Ford Taurus

[One crazy woman]

I am the proud owner of a 1993 used Ford Taurus, but I think the dealer saw me coming. The car ran good for about a month and then all hell broke loose. So many things are going on in that car, that I call it the battle of germ warfair. It has this thing of while zipping down the road at 55 or less, the engine just shutting off. I let the car roll off the road, wait a minute or two; she fires off and way I go. It is scary because you never know when it will happen, the car often will give a little bump and then all is dead. I worry about getting hit by the back. The heater fan will not work when it is super cold, the heater does but without the fan. It is very cold, sometimes messing with wires will make it work. Then on Sunday during a drive in a snow storm the car broke a spring and took out the front tire. I am lucky that is was hard to see and I was driving slow. I hate to think what might have happen. The windshield has holes in it and the paint is starting to come off the hood. So I need to get on someone about the recalls but mean while. Does anyone have any idea what would cause it to just stop like that? I have replaced the fuel pump but that was not it. So help me out people, I don't feel right selling the car to someone else with this problem and oh the car has 166,000 miles on it. Thanks; One crazy woman.

[Willyum]

Apparently you didn't have any kind of inspection done on the car before you bought it. If you buy a car with 166K miles, holes in the windshield, paint peeling off it seems like you should have expected problems. Don't expect to find any recalls on a car this old with this many miles.

[Petesleaf]

Originally Posted by One crazy woman

I am the proud owner of a 1993 used Ford Taurus, but I think the dealer saw me coming. The car ran good for about a month and then all hell broke loose. So many things are going on in that car, that I call it the battle of germ warfair. It has this thing of while zipping down the road at 55 or less, the engine just shutting off. I let the car roll off the road, wait a minute or two; she fires off and way I go. It is scary because you never know when it will happen, the car often will give a little bump and then all is dead. I worry about getting hit by the back. The heater fan will not work when it is super cold, the heater does but without the fan. It is very cold, sometimes messing with wires will make it work. Then on Sunday during a drive in a snow storm the car broke a spring and took out the front tire. I am lucky that is was hard to see and I was driving slow. I hate to think what might have happen. The windshield has holes in it and the paint is starting to come off the hood. So I need to get on someone about the recalls but mean while. Does anyone have any idea what would cause it to just stop like that? I have replaced the fuel pump but that was not it. So help me out people, I don't feel right selling the car to someone else with this problem and oh the car has 166,000 miles on it. Thanks; One crazy woman.

Sorry to hear you are having so much trouble. It must be really scary when it just quits like that. Cars that I've owned in the past, that would shut down and restart after sitting a little while, had a problem with a clogged fuel filter. Sometimes after sitting the pressure is relieved on the fuel filter allowing it to pass more fuel through again. Hope this helps. Also sometimes an engine will quit or stall when comming to idle at a stop sign or light when the EGR valve sticks. I'd try having the fuel filter replaced first. Pete

[talonlover]

From the sound of things(a broke suspension spring!) it sounds like you would be better off selling the car for parts rather than fixing it. Maybe 500.00 plus/minus is a realistic figure for it. Take that and get a car with a good maintanance record. I would rather have a 100,000 mile car that has been taken care of than a 30,000 mile car that has been abused. I got my 98 Taurus se with 79,000 miles, perfect service records, paint and interior look brand new and new tires for 2200.00 from a friend of mine. Keep an eye out and the right car will come along.

[mlw35405]

My 93 had the same prob with cutting off and not starting, and I too replaced the fuel pump to no avail. We finally figured out that it was the relay box under the hood that had gone bad. It is a square black box with a lot of wires going into it just behind the radiator (under the black fan sheild) right above the fan. The next time your car stalls, beat on this box and it'll start back up. You should be able to find one pretty easily. This also controls the a/c compresser, but I don't know about the heater fan.
Also, I think there was a recall in the northern states about springs breaking due to corrosion. Call a dealer and give them your VIN number and they'll be able to look it up and see if your vehicle has any recalls, it doesn't matter how old it is.
Good look with your car, and people, please understand that not everyone can just run out and buy a new one when something goes wrong.

[maspoon]

definatly was a recall on front coil springs how ever all they will do is put a shield on the struts so when it does break it dont contact your tires,,, too late for u though. I had a 93 gl broke before I got the recall taken care of. didnt get my tire though. if you are gonna sell the car dont put a bunch of money into it because its only worth about 600.00 if you are lucky, just tell the people what problems it has and if they still want it then its their problem.