VehicleVerdict

1987 Ford Taurus engine problems

The 1987 Ford Taurus has 42 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 12% of the year's total, and up sharply from the prior model year.

42

Engine complaints

12%

Share of year

2

Crash-involved

0

Related recalls

Engine complaints by year

Taurus engine complaints by model year760 complaints1986: 27 complaints1987: 42 complaints1988: 76 complaints1989: 114 complaints1990: 91 complaints1991: 147 complaints1992: 261 complaints1993: 760 complaints1994: 339 complaints1995: 403 complaints1996: 241 complaints1997: 173 complaints1998: 66 complaints1999: 89 complaints2000: 115 complaints2001: 68 complaints2002: 65 complaints2003: 90 complaints2004: 44 complaints2005: 108 complaints2006: 43 complaints2007: 29 complaints2008: 31 complaints2009: 24 complaints2010: 47 complaints2011: 49 complaints2012: 13 complaints2013: 76 complaints2014: 22 complaints2015: 33 complaints2016: 14 complaints2017: 5 complaints2018: 7 complaints2019: 2 complaints
Taurus engine complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

What owners report

“WHEN DRIVING IT FELT AS IF THERE WAS NO POWER STEERING, ALSO MOTOR VIBRATED. HAD TROUBLE STEERING AND DRIVING, AND REAR ENDED A TRUCK. FRONT END DAMAGE, MOTOR WAS TILTED AND STILL VIBRATED. RADIATOR EXPLODED. DEALER NOT AWARE OF PROBLEM. VEHICLE TOTALED. *AK”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · July 23, 1997 · crash

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 1987 Ford Taurus have?

NHTSA has 42 complaints about the 1987 Ford Taurus engine — 12% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.