When I was a kid, my mom ended up with a 1989 Ford Taurus GL. It was actually given to her as a gift.
It had a 2.5 liter 4-cylinder engine that produced 90 hp. Yes, you read that right.
Although the first gen Ford Taurus (from 1986-1991) was very popular at the time, her car was a total piece of junk. It had a lot of problems, and before long she ended up trading it in for a Toyota Camry and she never looked back.
Ford also offered a 140 hp v6 in it’s Taurus models. But they set their sights much higher, and dreamed up a much spicier version.
Way back in 1984, Ford signed a contract with Yamaha to make a potent “GT” engine.
Yamaha pulled out all the stops, and delivered a nasty little gem that put down 220 hp and screamed to a 7,300 rpm redline. And with that, the Taurus SHO was born.
SHO stood for “super high output”, by the way.
Ford dribbled in some new exterior parts to provide some visual distinction from the “base” Taurus models. Performance-wise, the SHO would do 0-60 mph in 6.6 seconds, the quarter mile in 15.0 seconds, and keep pulling to an incredible 143 mph top speed.
The car only came with a 5 speed transmission, and it would turn 5,350 rpm at its 143 mph top speed in 5th gear!
At a starting price of $20,500 the SHO was really well reviewed. In their December 1988 issue, Car and Driver magazines article claimed “Tested: 1989 Ford Taurus SHO Shocks the World“.
Rumor had it the engine was capable of revving to 8500 rpm, but was limited to 7300 to protect accessory drives from going boom.
Although it sold more than 15,000 units, finding a clean one these days is virtually impossible.
This 1993 example from Facebook is technically a 2nd generation. They had minor changes to the exterior panels and exhaust tips. And they began offering an automatic transmission, as in this car.
Seller states:
Powerful Ford Taurus SHO available, All original, White sedan has the 24V DOHC SHO engine. If you don’t know about these cars, you need to look them up.
81k original miles, 3 owner car
New tires, A\C radiator ext…
I have a pile of receipts for work that’s been done recently and mantance, CARFAX as well totaling around 4k
He has a pretty humorous video in his ad of him peeling out and laying rubber all the way down his driveway.
I really love the white car with white wheels. It gives me flashbacks to the Anniversary Edition FC RX7.
The exterior looks pretty clean, with no obvious dents or dings.
Looking under the hood, nothing worrisome, no obvious rust or leaks.
The interior driver’s side carpeting has some stains. The car is 33 years old after all, so some of that is to be expected. Both front and rear seats are in incredible shape.
Do you see that photo of the odometer and trip meter? Pure mechanical bliss! No LCD shenannigans in 1993.
It’s hard to see the full dashboard, but I don’t see any signs of cracking. I don’t think they are particulary well-known for cracked dashes.
It still has the OEM radio! To me that is a huge deal, as the look of the stocker adds so much to the authenticity and ambiance in the cabin.
This guy is asking $5,500. I know it’s an automatic, and that will be much less desirable and less collectable than a manual. But given the condition and the low mileage, I really think he has it priced about right.
