1990 Ford Taurus Reviews, Pricing & Specs

This is the first car I've ever bought outright with my own money. The Taurus SHO I found on Craigslist 5 years ago was a 1990 SHO+ model, meaning it came fully loaded with every option under the sun. I've since upgraded to a 2008 Chevrolet Impala SS, so I'll make comparisons between these two cars along the way. The SHO is your classic sleeper sedan. SHO stands for Super High Output, a name designated to it because its specially designed Yamaha 3.0L V6 produced 220hp - nearly as much as the LT1 Corvettes and Mustang 5.0's of the time. It all starts back in 1986 when the Taurus won Motor Trend's "Car of the Year" award, and rightfully so with its clean, stylish, and spacious design. You'd be surprised how well these cars have aged. My 2008 Impala SS has only a couple more options over its predecessor, which was nearly 20 years older. Rumblings from Ford hinted at a possible mid-engine sports car, made specifically to compete against the mid-engine imports like the Porsche 911, Toyota MR2, and more domestically the Pontiac Fiero. It seemed mid-engine sports cars were becoming all the rage in the late 1980's (see DeLorean). Ford even went so far as to contract the engine out to Yamaha. Unfortunately, the project was cut before it even got off the ground and now Ford was stuck with all these Yamaha engines. What did they do? In 1989 Ford unveiled a new performance model for the Taurus line, called the SHO. What makes the Taurus SHO so interesting is its uniquely designed double-overhead cam 3.0L V6. The magic is in its intake manifold, specifically in both its design and operation. Under 4,000RPM the SHO is a quiet, fuel efficient, and civilized family sedan. After 4,000RPM a set of secondary intake ports open up and all hell breaks loose, all the way up to 7,000RPM! These cars are surprisingly quick. As stated, their performance numbers were on par with your base C4 LT1 Corvette or your typical foxbody Mustang 5.0. Its straight-line performance is amazing, a 0-60 sprint in 6.6 seconds and a 1/4 mile leap in 15 seconds flat. The SHO mixes well with all types of traffic, city and highway. Comparatively, my 2008 Impala SS with 303hp is only 1 second quicker to 60mph and 1 second quicker through the 1/4 mile... The SHO walks all over the 2013 Impala LTZ with a 305hp V6. The Yamaha V6 is also solid as a rock. When I bought my SHO, it already had 125,000 miles on it and by the time I was done with it, I piled on another 125,000 miles and it still pulled like a banshee with a moderate gas bill. This is the only high mileage used car I'd suggest looking at, given these engines are good for at least 250,000 miles. These engines are known to heavily leak oil, but most engines from this era did. For optimal performance the engine demanded premium gas and with a 16 gallon tank that can be an expensive bill. Also, I did have my run-ins with maintenance. Typically, I try to save as much money as I can on repairs or replacement parts. I'm not afraid to turn wrenches. Opening the hood on the mighty Taurus, the engine bay is daunting. First of all, the engine bay was meant for smaller, less complicated engines. So Ford tried really hard to cram that Yamaha and Mazda 5-speed transmission into the car, leaving little room for me to work (big hands). Unfortunately, this car had to sit at the shop a couple of times (one for a serpentine belt, and another time for the clutch). One of my favorite things about the SHO was merging on the highway, power-shifting through all the gears keeping it in the power band, listening to that engine howl. That's right... this is one of those rare, mid-sized family sedans that has a 5-speed manual transmission. It wasn't until 1993 that Ford gave an automatic option. Even though the transmission was one of its weaker points, I'd still suggest the 5-speed manual over the automatic for that added control. Inside the SHO, a plethora of luxury and upgraded options await. My SHO was fully powered and had a full leather interior. With an upgrade to the stereo, the SHO's interior is competitive with newer cars. As I stated, the SHO had a couple less options than my SS. Space is plentiful, including a massive trunk which is great for dual-subwoofer speaker boxes and amps, leaving ample space for luggage, groceries, or whatever else. The backseats are surprisingly spacious too, able to fit my 6'4 frame comfortably enough. The SHO is a lively car that I can only sum up as just being FUN. Like the Impala SS, its a good practical car with a really entertaining edge to it. The handling is amazing in dry weather. Weighing only 3,300lbs (more than 400lbs lighter than my SS) the SHO is able to squirrel its way through town no problem. Living in Colorado, I have my fair share of adverse weather. Driving through rain, ice, and snow, the SHO is decent enough. While there isn't a lot of torque steer, there is under-steer, so be mindful when you're carving the canyons. Today you can find decent 1st and 3rd generation SHOs for less than $2,500. It is without a doubt one of the best bargains under $5,000 you can find. They come in automatic or manual, they have tons of space, all the luxury options of newer cars today, unique engines with great performance, and you can beat on them all day long. Like I said, this is the only high-mileage used car I'd recommend looking at, seeing as how they're good to at least 250,000 miles with only basic maintenance. I'd say if you're in the market, and a decent SHO is available, give it a chance... the worst it can do is leave a smile on your face.Mar 17, 2015

I bought this car new in 1990. Fantastic Interior..plush seats with lots of room in both front and back. Very comfortable on long drives. Good engine, sold car with 1000,000 miles on it to my niece, and she drove it another 30,000 miles without too many issues. Lousy front suspension. Tie rod ends, ball joints etc had to be replaced every 30,000 miles. Went through 2 water pumps, but that seems to be a Ford tradition. Back trunk lid rusted badly. Pretty good acceleration for a family sedan, and good traction on snow covered roads. I never had to use chains or studded tires with this vehicle, and the roads here are snow covered 6 months out of the year. 3 Liter engine gave good fuel economy, usually 33mpg on the freeway. Seemed prone to windshield damage from flying gravel etc. I can't even count how many times I had windshield repair done on this car. Average cost to drive and maintain. I never had trouble with the transmission even though others complained about it. I did make sure the transmission was serviced every 30,000 miles. Loved the big trunk area, but hated having a mini spare. I did my own oil and filter changes, and found this car moderate to difficult to change the oil on. Poor access to the filter was the major problem. The parking brake cable was a piece of crap. The lever housing in the dash kept popping loose, and it was a nightmare to fix. Sound system had poor volume, and the radio hardly worked on AM. One other thing....had a super irritating rotating wheel squeak that no one could fix, and I gave up on, until it went away after about 30,000 irritating miles. It was probably a stone caught in a brake rotor, but it drove me absolutely nuts. So the 1990 Ford Taurus is an average car with a great interior. Had little irritating problems you had to live with, but other than that, it wasn't too bad. I'd never buy another Ford though.Nov 01, 2009