Used 2006 Ford Taurus

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Just bought a 2006 Taurus off of eBay and I go to pick it up on Saturday. It has the Vulcan 3.0L, AX4N transmission and 104k miles. Other than normal items (fluids, brakes, tires, etc., which the dealer claims to have already checked out) what other issues should I be looking for? I am not afraid to walk away if I find something is out of the ordinary and I want this car to be solid enough to give me good service for another 75k miles.

Mainly, what are some common issues with this MY/generation of Taurus that can end up being a major repair? I DIY most of my stuff short of tranmission/engine replacement.

I currently have a '95 Sable with 204k and the drivetrain is still solid...replacing due to rust now.

Thanks for the help!
 
If the engine is chirping from the left (drivers) side, you need to replace the Camshaft position sensor - it has a tendency to break on the non-distributor ignition Vulcan engines. When it breaks, the oil pump no longer turns and ... well that never ends good.

Obviously, check that the transmission is working well. The AX4S/N transmission are living on borrowed time once they hit 6 digits on the odometer.

Install a BIG transmission cooler on it as soon as you can.

Springs on the 96-07 Tauruses tend to break.

By then, most of the issues were worked out of it - it is essentially same same as the 1986 Taurus.
 
I might be wrong, but I thought the AX4N has decent reliability and the S was the problem child.

Dealer claims the fluid is bright red and clean, I will still service it first thing.

Is the cam position sensor chirp sounds like a belt chirp? which side of the engine?

Thanks
 
Check out this video about 3/4 of the way in. There will be a before and after of the sound that the camshaft position synchronizer makes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXOJXnYIZQk

I had good luck with the AX4N. Have had many of them in upper mileage, 150-160k area. Regular fluid and filter + add a transmission cooler and they'll be a lot happier.

I even had an AX4S with a 120k still shifting real good. But still those are the problem child.
 
cmorr - No, Champaign Honda in Illinois.

After my flight and gas to drive back, the car is about $1200 less than the best deal I could seek out locally. Still, $1200 is not worth buying a piece of junk and driving it home so I plan to give it a good look over when I get down there.

Thanks for the tip on the camshaft position synchronizer.

Keep the information coming...I am sure there are many BITOGers that drive these cars and DIY repair them.
 
You should go over to Taurusclub as there's a forum for the cars there. The AX4N was better than the S. Lots of people recommend the transmission cooler but they do last even if you don't do it. Just make sure the fluid gets changed every 30k or so. Also that auction looks like the reserve wasn't met at $3250. If you got it for that, it's a pretty good price as you did get an SEL. Too bad they weren't making many with the Duratec engine at that point. Just make sure to check everything when you get it, not sure if you have autolamps but the sensor is on the dash and covering it up should turn them on. Check that all the power windows work, the rears tend to stop working on earlier models. Do some hard braking, warped rotors or excess brake pad material can cause shuddering.
 
Wolf359 - that is the one. I did not get it for $3250 (wasn't even the highest bidder) but I called and offered them slightly more and they accepted.

It is supposed to be a clean vehicle with a good bill of health from their service department (not that it really means too much). I'm not afraid to fly back home without the car if it is junk.

My main concerns were transmission and anything major in the engine that could stop me fron driving it back to Minneaplis w/o any issues. I will check the coolant condition - I assume this one came from the factory with Motorcraft Gold like my '04 F150...? If it is muddy, that means major issues or a flush/water pump replacement is in order...?

Sounds like the cam synchronizer chirp is obvious when the hood is up. As long as the trans shifts good, coolant is clean and the motor sounds and runs good it should be a nice car.
 
Originally Posted By: XJ1100
Wolf359 - that is the one. I did not get it for $3250 (wasn't even the highest bidder) but I called and offered them slightly more and they accepted.

It is supposed to be a clean vehicle with a good bill of health from their service department (not that it really means too much). I'm not afraid to fly back home without the car if it is junk.

My main concerns were transmission and anything major in the engine that could stop me fron driving it back to Minneaplis w/o any issues. I will check the coolant condition - I assume this one came from the factory with Motorcraft Gold like my '04 F150...? If it is muddy, that means major issues or a flush/water pump replacement is in order...?

Sounds like the cam synchronizer chirp is obvious when the hood is up. As long as the trans shifts good, coolant is clean and the motor sounds and runs good it should be a nice car.


It depends on the coolant, to be honest.

IF it's muddy, it's not a death sentence by any means, it just means that you may end up having to put in a radiator, heater core and water pump at some point.

If it's cruddy, flush it out. Once flushed, if it has no problems making heat at idle on a cold day and it doesn't overheat in the summer, you're good.

As long as it's not chirping and the transmission is good shape, a Taurus with the 3.0 Vulcan is a car I'd confidently hop in and drive across the country.
 
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Originally Posted By: cmorr
It's not from a seller in PA/NJ is it ?


crackmeup2.gif


My sides!
 
Originally Posted By: scurvy
Originally Posted By: cmorr
It's not from a seller in PA/NJ is it ?


crackmeup2.gif


My sides!


I did see the NBC story last night about how some hurricane/flood cars make it through to auction without getting a salvage/marked title...a little scary actually. I do believe that a little poking around under the cover on one of those cars would probably show that it was damaged.

This car has lived it's entire life in Missouri and Illinois...so probably not a hurricane/flood vehicle.
 
^ They were referring to Technologs, a member here who fixed up a 95 taurus from the ground up.
 
Originally Posted By: XJ1100
Wolf359 - that is the one. I did not get it for $3250 (wasn't even the highest bidder) but I called and offered them slightly more and they accepted.

It is supposed to be a clean vehicle with a good bill of health from their service department (not that it really means too much). I'm not afraid to fly back home without the car if it is junk.

My main concerns were transmission and anything major in the engine that could stop me fron driving it back to Minneaplis w/o any issues. I will check the coolant condition - I assume this one came from the factory with Motorcraft Gold like my '04 F150...? If it is muddy, that means major issues or a flush/water pump replacement is in order...?

Sounds like the cam synchronizer chirp is obvious when the hood is up. As long as the trans shifts good, coolant is clean and the motor sounds and runs good it should be a nice car.


I have an earlier model Duratec with over 180k on it. Still have the original starter and water pump on it, never did the transmission cooler, just changed the fluid regularly. There's probably a bunch of other Vulcan owners that have 150k+ on their cars. I did end up replacing the alternator at one point, it's easier on the Vulcan than the Duratec. As for coolant, not sure what happened in 06, I just have the regular green stuff. Sometimes the coolant sensor in the reservoir tank goes bad so you get a coolant light on the dash. Only other thing would be to check the front and rear struts, hopefully at that mileage they've been changed. The rears tend to sag a bit if they're the original and the spring can snap and puncture a tire on earlier models.
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
^ They were referring to Technologs, a member here who fixed up a 95 taurus from the ground up.


*for certain definitions of "ground" and "up"
**"fixed" being a relative term
 
Make sure the front engine cover does not have the dreaded coolant leak. A google search will reveal that 8/10 tauri have this problem. As previously mentioned the cam position sensor WILL fail eventually, guaranteed. My 2004 Taurus shucked it around 95,000. Check for wet carpet padding on the front passenger floorboard. Ford did a poor job of sealing the chassis and firewall and it will leak. The coolant lines that feed the heater core will rust out and fail eventually.

The AX4N is just strong enough for the Vulcan. Pan drop and filter change with Mercon V replacements every 30k is a must.

Once you get past the failures of Ford's engineers the Taurus really is a great car. I really miss my 2004 SE.
 
Originally Posted By: 04SE
Make sure the front engine cover does not have the dreaded coolant leak. A google search will reveal that 8/10 tauri have this problem. As previously mentioned the cam position sensor WILL fail eventually, guaranteed. My 2004 Taurus shucked it around 95,000. Check for wet carpet padding on the front passenger floorboard. Ford did a poor job of sealing the chassis and firewall and it will leak. The coolant lines that feed the heater core will rust out and fail eventually.

The AX4N is just strong enough for the Vulcan. Pan drop and filter change with Mercon V replacements every 30k is a must.

Once you get past the failures of Ford's engineers the Taurus really is a great car. I really miss my 2004 SE.


It's a shame that mine was such a rust bucket. I miss mine a lot (leather, upgraded swaybar, Mach audio).I got the swaybar and mach RCU out of a junkyard. I had a JBL RCU and sub ready to go in but the car was just too far gone at that point.

The Vulcan had more than enough power for me. The oil light did flicker once in a while.

I'm still occasionally browsing CL for a 2006/7 Taurus in reasonable shape with leather and column shift.
 
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Check for rust. Some cities use lots of salt. The subframe, underbody, rocker panels, sub frame mounting areas in body can rust out with salt. Can rust from the inside near the dogleg between rear door and rear wheel. May be visible in the seam weld area at rear wheel opening.
 
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