I received some PM for my Taurus mods. As you may know I work in the biz, so I can get many things for cheap. There was a lot of time, and some parts in the Taurus.
lemme get a fresh cup-o-joe and we'll begin.
In 1999 I worked for the corner gas station as Shop Manager. Translation; I did most of the work.
Our towing company was auctioning some of their collected vehicles.
I purchased a 1995 Taurus Sedan for $125. ( great price eh?)
It ran very well but looked like #e!!. not a straight panel on the thing.
I drove it for years
Specs:
14" original steel wheels
3 spd auto trans (no lockup, no overdrive)
3.0 cam in block V6
nothing special about the car, to & from work, groceries getter etc. (My wife had our Better car 1996 Dodge Spirit,[last of the "K" cars])
jump to 2003
I now work for my good Friend who owns and Independent Repair Shop
Customer comes in shop with 1995 Taurus that won't run.
Diag: need motor, blown heads led the demise of engine.
~ 2300.oo
Customer P!$$ed
Just had Trans rebuilt to the tune of $2500.oo
Gives car to Ralph to cover cost of towing and Diag.
Ralph gives car to me, Heck I already got a good Eng.
Nice
car, very pretty, my wife wants to drive it. It's bigger inside than the Spirit.
Now I have 2 Tauri.
Pull both apart, ( from here i will call them t1 & t2)
Oh, Ralph lets me borrow shop truck while I work on cars.
t1 runs
t2 don't, but has the 4 spd trans with overdrive and lockup. WooHoo.
Rebuild motor from t1 with
>New cam and lifters, "RV" style cam, apparently this is the same 3.0 in the Rangers. "RV" cam has better low end torque, no gain in hp. more overlap blah blah blah.
>New bearings, Perfect Circle circle track style(looking for longevity not speed)
>New rings, see above
>all new gaskets, seals, etc.
>used emery-cloth wrapped around drill bit spin at high speed on die grinder to clean intake and exhaust ports, while I rebuild heads.
>local machine shop cuts 15 thousandths from heads.
>new everything else i can get my hands on.
> basically just re-use the block, crank, slugs, &rods.
while engine is out of t2 clean engine bay till landlord gets mad at runoff.
Install fresh engine in t2(Krap i just realized this sound like a terminator movie, oh well)
Catalytic converters must be removed to install engine.
While they are out, open cats, all four of them, and replace strata with flex-pipe, weld cats closed. Result.. free flowing exhaust and no empty chamber ringing. Still looks like I have cats. NOTE this is not legal in all states check with your local gubmint.
upon install i find under-drive pulleys are available for the 3.0.
oops it just fell on there.
new owner gonna be mad when he has to replace the belt. I only used the crank pulley resulting in the need for a shorter belt. the kit comes with pulleys for all. but I was feelin lazy that day.
as with any major project everything I touch gets cleaned, occasionally painted but don't hold your breath.
after its all together take it for a drive.
Performance is greatly enhanced. WOW.
i expected some boost. but got way more than expected.
14" tires will NOT stay glued to the road anymore, even my wife spins them pulling away from a stop.
local boneyard here i come
Score 15" Taurus SHO rims. KEWL.
new tires Good Year Comfort Tread. 205/70 R 15.
man these tires are
quiet and they ride smoother than any Ive ever installed IIRC.I believe the smoothness is an indicator of rolling resistance. ie: if you can hear your tires making noise they are creating friction with the road.
This is what it looked like the day I sold it. Ain't she purty?
thats not a dent in the front fender, thats a reflection of the lamp post across the street.
Recap:
> lots of time and my own skills
> new cam, better low end torque(less effort to pull from stops) I believe this alone made the biggest diff.
> under-drive pulley
> free flowing exhaust. btw i had to replace the muffler for Va. State Inspection. I used 2, 1 was too loud, straight through el-cheapo glass packs. IIRC they cost me $15.oo each.
> larger diameter tires. (you NEED, i can't stress this enough, to get your speedo recalibrated!!) before you ask, no i did not get a ticket, but i should have.I got pulled over by a Friend who happens to wear a uniform, we go way back and i let him beat me once in a drag race. ( I got skeered and i didn't want to hit the tree-line)
> 4spd auto with lockup torque converter & overdrive.
> all new tune-up parts, best I could afford. New owner may NEVER need to replace the wires.
> set timing 7 deg more adv. than stock.
> all fluids replaced with synth.
> free flowing heads. do not make the ports bigger just clean 'em a little.
> adjust the nut behind the wheel.
and thats all i can recall right now.
Yes the guy I sold it to said he is getting ~ 27 mpg, that's combo driving, him, his wife, his daughter, city, highway. Some tanks a little more, some tanks a little less. He does spend most of his time on the highway tho.
I sold the car with 225K on the clock. He knows the engine was rebuilt 4 years ago and asked me if we could run the clock back. NO. I am relatively sure he found a shop to change it tho.
I buy and sell cars all the time.
I always have too many cars. Ask my wife.
check my garage. in addition right now( working a deal for another Metro,[don't tell Barb.])I have
1999 Buick Le Sabre
1993 Dodge Shadow
1989 Honda Civic
none of them run ,but, they will.
If you look in the background of the Taurus pic you'll see 4 in my driveway, then there is the Taurus, and out of pic is my sons Grand Am and a Neon I had.
Never
Ever
Own a
Neon.
sorry had to throw that in there. I am sure they have "fixed" the head gasket problem by now. When I worked for the Chrysler dealer we said," there are two types of neon on the road, those with a new head gasket and those that need a new head gasket". A little inside humor.
Hope this all helps, I gotta goto work now.
S.