[Nomadic_Dragon]

Ok, I bought my first Taurus about a month ago, a 2003 SES. It was used as a program car, so racked up 21400mi in one year. The last used car I had was almost trashed, had almost no horsepower, etc, etc. I want to get this thing to as close to factory quality as I can, then start modding it. What should I do first, maintenence wise?

 

[biteableniles]

Change oil, transmission fluid, coolant, as well as maybe change the plugs. Everything else should be spot on, still; it's only 21.4k

Are you a Duratec brother, or Vulcan lover?

 

[alex_perry]

yeah, just keep up with regular maintenance. Not enough miles on there to worry about anything serious, so start modding!

 

[Nomadic_Dragon]

Thanks for the recommendatins, I'll try to get those done. What kind of price range am I looking at and what shops should I use/avoid? I never used shops with my old car, I did it all myself...too crappy to spend labor dollars on.

Oh, I'm not quite sure if its Duratec or Vulcan...actually,its probably Vulcan, no 24v badge. Probably not FFV, either...no badge for it.

 

[jason8225]

Make sure you get the right kind of tranny fluid - if you change that, that's not actually due til 30k miles according to the maintenance schedule, so if the fluid looks good, you could probably let that wait a little while. I would definitely get the coolant flushed, get new plugs (Autolite or Motorcraft platinums). Oil change - I absolutely love Valvoline full synthetic in my vulcan.

I recommend a K & N air filter (if you don't plan to do any CAI or anything). If you're doing a CAI or something soon, the K & N (panel) is probably a waste of money. If you're leaving the stock intake, definitely remove the intake silencer (instructions in our mods section). Then you could do exhaust. I guess our Gen 4's already have nice mandrel bends and everything - I just switched to a Flowmaster 40 Series Deltaflow. The butt dyno says I may have gained a little from it (high end) - plus a noticeable difference in reponsiveness (w/ K & N and restricter removed). Not to mention it sounds awesome.

For handling, I highly recommend Bob's FSTB (Front Strut Tower Brace). It is a big help and very noticeable difference. And, of course, if you need any help with mods or anything, don't hesitate to ask. Good luck and welcome to the club.

 

[firespirit]

Originally posted by Nomadic_Dragon@Feb 8 2004, 12:09 AM
Thanks for the recommendatins, I'll try to get those done. What kind of price range am I looking at and what shops should I use/avoid? I never used shops with my old car, I did it all myself...too crappy to spend labor dollars on.

Oh, I'm not quite sure if its Duratec or Vulcan...actually,its probably Vulcan, no 24v badge. Probably not FFV, either...no badge for it.

hehe, you got the low end of the spectrum too! Vulcan (SLO) powah!!

PS..

Welcome!!!

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[kermitec]

Originally posted by Alex_Perry@Feb 7 2004, 10:45 AM
yeah, just keep up with regular maintenance. Not enough miles on there to worry about anything serious, so start modding!

I really agree with Alex 21 K is really still maintenance stuff. Ford program cars are usually in pretty good shape, this one might even be better than new, its just broken in.

IMHO, other than a quick oil change just check out your fluids, if they look ok or a little low top em off. You don't really need to go all out on changing those fluids. Its not needed unless they are contaminated or burnt and thats means you probably have bigger problems. Tranny flush isn't scheduled for almost 10k more and the plugs are good til 100k.Coolant flush every couple of years or so. If you are doing any engine work down the road and its easy to change the plugs ok. I have seen some 100k "tuneups" done at around 60k help out some but never at only 20K. I would be more concerned with making sure the tires are looking good and have been rotated and getting the car under some jack stands and checking out the front end.
Really the best thing to do is follow the Ford schedule unless you go get some synthetics in there then just follow the manufacturers schedule.

 

[slider5634]

OK i need clarification. What's the difference between the ones with 24v badge, the ones with ffv badge, and the ones with no badge at all?

 

[XLSuruaT]

Originally posted by slider5634@Feb 8 2004, 12:28 PM
OK i need clarification. What's the difference between the ones with 24v badge, the ones with ffv badge, and the ones with no badge at all?

no badge = vulcan
ffv = flex fuel vulcan
24v = duratec

 

[occrocks]

a lot of the sables i see don't have the badges either, even if they have the duratec. mine does and there are no badges and i know two other people with the same deal

 

[bull geek]

a lot of the sables i see don't have the badges either, even if they have the duratec. mine does and there are no badges and i know two other people with the same deal
[/b]

96-7 models don't have the Duratec badge. 98+ do.

 

[Monsoon]

Yes keep up with the maintenance. However you should learn the weak points of any vehicle. The Taurus is no exception. I would recommend you keep the car as Motorcraft as possible; there are a few exceptions. For example, ignition cables I would recommend Magnecor.

 

[qwertz9586]

This topic is four years old.

 

[fdogg96]

a lot of the sables i see don't have the badges either, even if they have the duratec. mine does and there are no badges and i know two other people with the same deal
[/b]

Get them from Ebay.

This topic is four years old.
[/b]

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