[Joes2003SES]

Hello everybody! I purchased a 2003 SES almost 2 months ago. I've been happy with it. Although I thought it would get better gas milege. Well, about 3 weeks ago I noticed on occasion when I came to a stop you could smell oil burning. It was oil leaking on the exhaust pipe. I took it to the garage and got it fixed under warranty. The dealership replaced the pan gasket and the rubber seals. This does concern me a little. Cars with 20,000 miles shouldn't be leaking anything. I guess I worry about the longevity of this car. I've been a chevy man my whole life and this is my first Ford. Has anyone else heard of this problem? Thanks for your time and I love this club.
Joe

 

[kermitec]

Welcome Joe! Which engine do you have? The 24v Duratec or pushrod Vulcan?

 

[spridget]

That's the first time I've heard of a late model Taurus with you problem. Sometimes lube shops won't put the oil filter on tight enough or they don't clean the spilled oil off of the exhaust pipe. Replacing the pan gasket with low miles sounds like it was either defective or installed incorrectly in manufacturing.

My friends 2003 SVT Cobra had a rear main seal blow out at 900 miles!!!! I hate to say it, but the 2003 Cobras are problem children.

 

[Joes2003SES]

I'm sorry I didn't tell you which engine I had, its the vulcan. When I first took the car in they said the oil filter was to tight. Three days later it was still leaking and I traced the leak to the front of the pan. It really frustrated me at first, I had the car a little over a month and it already have a leak. I was starting to second guess my selection in cars. But it seems everyone else has had good luck with theres.
Joe

 

[stang2be]

How does the oil drain plug look? I've had a few of my cars get theirs stripped out by over zealous teens that work at those lube places. I try and change it myself when I can to avoid that problem.

 

[Joes2003SES]

The drain plug looks good. I've drove it over the last couple of days and haven't seen or smelled any leaks. I have my fingers crossed. Thanks guys for the input.
Joe

 

[biteableniles]

I would mark it off as a fluke; I mean, even if the actual problem was the seal, that still is only one problem, and now it's fixed (probably for good, too.) And, if it wasn't the problem, and was instead something like a loose oil filter or oil on the exhaust pipe (this is a big problem since the oil filter is DIRECTLY ABOVE THE EXHAUST PIPE AHHH), then you just got shafted by the dealer and you're in the same barrel as most of us.

Either way, just sit back and enjoy your car. Vulcan == "awesome" (reliability), and start to worry when you begin to have different problems every month.

 

[Joes2003SES]

That makes alot of sense, thanks again!