VehicleVerdict

1988 Ford Taurus engine problems

The 1988 Ford Taurus has 76 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 16% of the year's total, and up sharply from the prior model year.

76

Engine complaints

16%

Share of year

1

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

“LEMON SINCE THE DAY I GOT IT. FORD WON'T HONOR HERTZ RESALES. AT 31K ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION BLEW; MULTIPLE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS, LIST OF DEFECTS WOULD BE TWO PAGES LONG--SOME MAY STEM FROM SEVERE CORROSION ON UNDERSIDE BUT CAR WAS ONLY ON EAST COAST FOR 1 YEAR. FORD NONRESPONSIVE. *AK”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · July 1, 1999 · crash

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 1988 Ford Taurus have?

NHTSA has 76 complaints about the 1988 Ford Taurus engine — 16% 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.