1998 Ford Sho (taurus)

Routine

Owners filed 4 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the engine and engine cooling. No safety recall has been issued.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Service Brakes1
000
Seat Belts1
000
Power Train › Automatic Transmission1
000
Engine and Engine Cooling1
000

What owners reported

Newest filings
Service Brakes
Filed May 6, 2013OH

I PUT OVER $800 IN TO MY CAR ON THE ALIGNMENT, TIRES, OIL, AND BALL JOINTS. IT JUMPS GEARS, WHEN STOPPING IT SHAKES REALLY BAD, I HAVE HAD TO CHANGE THE BATTERY SEVERAL TIMES, NOW THEY TELL ME THERE IS A BUSTED BOLT ON THE FRAME...... THE AUTO SHOP DID NOT TELL ME ABOUT THE BOLT UNTIL I PAID $600+ $ ON THE BALL JOINS, ALIGNMENT, AND OIL CHANGE......... I DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO KEEP PUTTING IN TO THIS CAR...... I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO ABOUT ALL THESE PROBLEMS WITH THIS CAR, THE SHAKING IS VERY BAD, SO BAD ITS LIKE THE CAR DON'T WANNA STOP....... *TR

Seat Belts
Filed Feb 13, 2013125,000 milesDE

I OWN A FORD TAURUS SW, THE SEAT BELTS IN THE BACK ARE UNABLE TO WORK. THEY WILL NOT UNLOCK SO THEY CANNOT BE USED. THE ONLY BELT AVAILABLE IS THE MIDDLE LAP BELT. I TRIED ALL THE MANUAL HAS TO OFFER. *TR

Power Train › Automatic Transmission
Filed Sep 28, 200568,000 milesWI

WHEN SITTING AT AN INTERSECTION WAITING FOR THE TRAFFIC LIGHTS TO CHANGE, THE TRANSMISSION FAILS TO STAY COMPLETELY ENGAGED. WHEN PRESSING THE ACCELERATOR THE RPM GOES WAY UP AND VERY LITTLE MOVE OF THE VEHICLE. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME SEVERAL TIMES WHILE SITTING IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC LEAVING ME VULNERABLE TO BE STRUCK BY ANOTHER VEHICLE TRAVELING AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. AFTER A FEW MINUTES THE TRANSMISSION DOES EVENTUALLY COMPLETELY ENGAGE. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUSHED, BUT THAT FAILED TO REMEDY THE PROBLEM. I KNOW A FEW OTHER PEOPLE WHO OWN THE SAME TYPE OF CAR AND THEY HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEMS. WHEN I CONSULTED AN AUTO MECHANIC, HE AND OTHER MECHANICS HAD INFORMED ME THAT THIS WAS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL VEHICLE, AND DON'T KNOW WHY THERE HAS NOT BEEN A RECALL. *NM

Engine and Engine Cooling
Filed Aug 15, 2003AZ

CAMSHAFT FAILURES IN 1996-1999 FORD TAURUS SHOS.*AK

4 of 4 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 1999
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
19998000Routine
1998 — this page4000Routine
19961000Routine

Compare every Sho (taurus) year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.