Bet GM took one look at the Taurus/Sable when it was introduced and thought "Oh boy... We're screwed" lol. Many of GMs cars a few years later resembled the Taurus a lot.
@@jimdayton8837 And yet, when GM redesigned the Caprice, much of the market went "Ew, bathtub styling!" Which I don't really get because I always thought the aero Caprice was an awesome car (though the first incarnation had that throwback dashboard with the horizontal speedo--yuck!)
In 1986, Robocop was in production. The film had hired a team to produce a car of the future for the police cruiser. Unfortunately, the car they received looked terrible. Director Paul Verhoeven saw a Taurus and thought it looked like the actual car of the future. For this reason, Robocop rides around in a Taurus.
My mom ordered a 1988 Sable LS sedan in late 1987. When the car was delivered, it was an absolutely breathtakingly beautiful car....the color, a pale gold with "mocha" (taupe) cladding and perforated leather interior. The car was utterly elegant and looked far more costly than it's $18,800 sticker price. The gorgeous wrap around windows, the light bar grille, the insta-clear electric windshield, the full-power interior including dual seats, windows, and auto temp control. The most impressive part of the car, beside it's stunning appearance, was the outstanding assembly quality and beautiful materials used. The leather interior was truly glove-soft and aromatic, too. It's sad that cars like this are no longer offered to the average consumer. It was truly the most memorable cars that my mom ever owned, which range from a 1958 Olds 88 (lavender white and black coupe) to a 1964 Ford Thunderbird landau, to a 1967 Continental coupe, 1978 Mark V, 1983 Ford Thunderbird, and subsequent 1992 Toyota Camry, 1999 Town Car, and 2018 Ford Fusion Platinum, which suits her 87 year young driving style.
I worked for the Lincoln Mercury Division of Ford Motor Co. when the Sable was introduced. Its styling was very modern and revolutionary, and it made its competitors look quite dated. Our office had one of the first Sables produced. My boss told me to drive it to a local Pontiac dealer and convince him to open up a LM dealership in a nearby town. The Pontiac dealer was so impressed with the Sable, that he agreed to become our new LM dealer. Thanks for the memories, those were exciting and fun times in the car business.
My best friend's grandma had one new, and it featured the jumpseats in the cargo area! My neighbors, on the other hand, dismissed it as "another Japanese jellybean." LOL
In 1993 my dad replaced the family wagon, an 87 A body century with a 1990 Taurus wagon. It was like jumping 30 years into the future. It still shocks me to think that those 2 cars were in production at the same time.
Much of Robocop's futuristic look comes from the use of the Taurus cop cars. The visual element has lost a lot of its punch today because we're used to aerodynamic cars and street cops wearing body armor, but in the 80s it was a big departure from the Adam-12 look that we were all used to--boxy black and whites and police officers in blue suits and proper hats.
@@atlanticbsr3246As a kid being born in the mid 80’s, I was too young to appreciate how new and futuristic the design was and when I saw them in Robocop I thought it was sooopoo lame lol. In retrospect and knowing what I know now I see how they could have been perfect and cool for the part. I still think they look lame in the movie though, even though I like the design as a civi car.
An absolute grand slam by Jack Telnack. Such a revolutionary design for the time…especially when you lined this up against the boxy 86 Chevy Celebrity, Plymouth Caravelle, or Dodge Diplomat. I recall in Bob Lutz’s last book that Iacocca dismissed the Taurus/Sable as “potato cars” that were going to bomb in the market against the upcoming Dodge Dynasty/New Yorker. That his prediction aged so badly would be an understatement.
"the Grand Marquis and Crown Vic later became almost identical." Only after Ford fitted the Grand Marquis roof to the Crown Vic. Prior to 1998, they looked quite different, with different rear end treatments in addition to the differing rooflines.
I had a 1986 Sable LS as a company car. I was favourably impressed. The handling was amazing for the time with great throttle response. It was a wonderful car. PS: I love the commercials you attach at the end of your featured cars. Nice touch Adam.
What's C4C got to do with anything? The requirement for that program was a federal combined city/highway fuel-economy rating of 18 or fewer miles per gallon, and the Taurus wagon was rated at a combined 20mpg. It was never eligible for destruction under this program. The most turned-in vehicle was the Explorer.
I had a 1994 Tarus. I ended up liking it much better than I ever expected. It drove great in deep snow, which is common here. It was the only Ford I've ever owned.
My only Ford was a 99 Taurus. The only reason I bought it was because I was broke and my cousin gave it to me on payments. As soon as I paid him off, I put a for sale sign on it and got rid of it. It was an okay car. But after working on my wife's Taurus she owned at the same time. I knew I had to get rid of it while it was still running decent. Horrible cars to work on. And garbage transmissions. Not as bad as Chrysler minivan transmissions. But definitely not as good as what GM was building
Seems like EVERYBODY was having auto trans problems in the 80s [EDIT: I mean all the DOMESTICS. The Japanese, as ever, had it figured out]. My buddy in the 90s swore off automatics after experiencing failures in three cars in a row (I had a few as well!). He still only drives stickshifts. I just choose carefully after reading technical articles, LOL.
interestlingly the sable shares many design elements with the european Ford Scorpio (or Merkur Scorpio in the US), especially the "floating glass roof". In earlier developement stages, they almost look like siblings (check the model at 10:46).
One of my favorite Mercurys and I'm a Mercury guy. And...the only car I ever had that I regret selling -- a '91 LS sedan. Thank you for featuring this car, Adam.
I was working at an Airport parking lot outside Boston in 1985 when these cars came out. Many were brought to the parking lot for their owners to take trips, so I was able to drive a few of them....just a few hundred feet at the most, usually just finding them a spot out of the parking aisles. I bought a 1993 Ford Taurus GL in June 1994. Hertz former rental car from NYC. It was a great car for me. Drove it until 1998, when I traded it in on my next ride. 4 years and just under 70k miles. My Mom also bought a 1993 Mercury Sable. Hers was brand new and she had LOTS of issues with hers. I had zero issues. Anyways, great video!!
Now. As a 38 year old and this being the first car I remember actively riding in with my family, I love so much that you dedicated 15 minutes to this car.
I just got my hands on a white 89 sable GS sedan with 47,000 original miles. It has the 3.0 Vulcan v6. The car is in excellent shape. Old man died in 05 and the wife kept in her garage until I got last month. It runs perfectly.
I had a 1989 Sable LS in white with a blue interior, blue leather seats, and those same aluminum wheels. It was almost fully loaded. I recall that the only options it didn't have was the electronic instrument cluster, the insta clear windshield, and the keyless entry system. It was a beautiful car. It drove and handled amazingly well for the era. It is the only vehicle I ever owned where I felt totally connected to the vehicle. Problem areas were the 3.8 headgaskets and you had to change the tranny fluid every 30,000 miles. I had that car for 14 years and I hated to get rid of it, but it served me well. To this day I miss that car.
My dad rented a Sable wagon when I was much younger. It was very comfy, quiet, and had a lot of room. Would buy one now if they still made them as I do not like SUVs.
Thank you Adam. the video on the Sable is appreciated. The Sable was indeed revolution. I liked the look of the Sable over the Taurus. The Sable went on to influence many GM cars. the light bar grille was on the Pontiac Grand Prix and the rear window was similar to ones used on Oldsmobile, Saturn and Holden. The skirted rear wheel was on the Oldsmobile Ninety Eight. I prefer the digital gauges in the Sable. You covered this car quite well. I liked watching the design proposals as well for the Sable. what is interesting is how far back they were working on the design, I recall when the cars came out December 1985. They had a commercial.
Thanks for shining a light on the Sable. I think mercury did a pretty good job differentiating it from the Taurus. Always loved the floating roof and glass c pillar, along with the light bar front fascia.
Ford Motor Co. got sued over those TV commercials featuring an impersonation of Bette Midler (done by one of her former backup singers), after they asked to license the use of Bette's original version of the song and she refused. Bette ultimately won the lawsuit against Ford, and it's quite a famous case in regards to impersonating someone's voice without their permission.
Very interesting tidbit! BTW I always enjoy seeing a youtuber I follow regularly comment on a completely unrelated video of another youtuber I regularly follow!
We had a LM dealer right by my elementary school. At one time in the late 80's over half of the staff had a new or program Sable...They were so neat and a few had the digital dash and I got to ride in Mrs. Lambert's and I felt like I was in a space ship...I even remember their smell and how quiet they were....After the Sable fever cooled they all went to mini-vans mostly....
I had an ‘86 Taurus GL company car. Good car for its time. Also owned a ‘92 and a 2001 Sable. At least one bulb in the light bar grille in my ‘92 burned out monthly. I dutifully replaced them. To me the Sable with a burned out light in the grille was equivalent to a supermodel with a missing tooth. My 2001 had the 24 valve V-6. 90,000 trouble free miles.
My wife and I had a ‘92 Sable wagon. The styling had been refreshed a bit from the ‘88 models but retained the overall design. Have to say, it was one of the best cars we ever owned. We took it on a number of long road trips, racked up well over 100k miles and it required very little beyond normal service intervals.
My Dad said when these came out in 1985 he wanted one, he always liked the styling of these cars especially the Sable. He later got a 96 Taurus GL that was loaded was a nice car had for many years. Upgraded to a top of the line 2001 Sable LS Premium he bought in fall of 2004. Another awesome car! Then lastly to a 2010 Fusion Sport, which is my car now before the SUV craze.
No one ever noticed or saw a Sable with a light out on the light bar. EVERYONE noticed when the Beretta came out that the rear lights didn’t light up all the way across. And when the Grand Prix sedan copied it. There was also an LS special edition that was all white that was amazing.
I had an 86 Taurus wagon - pretty cool car. It handled quite well, as I remember. One of my coworkers had the rather rare MT-5 version with the 4 cylinder and 5 speed.
I recall well mom and I test-driving a 86' Sable LS at Preaus Motor Company, Farmerville, LA. She was in a 85.5 Escort wagon, and the difference in ride, comfort, and quiet over the Escort was astonishing...almost Grand Marquis like. As a lifelong collector and automotive mechanic, the Taurus/Sable twins never stand-out as being problematic, even the earlier year models. Great vid!
I had a 1986 Sable for my Company Car in 1986...it was a wonderful car...it ran until 1991 and only needed a fuel pump and a water pump in 80K miles!!!! Ran up and down I-95 in total comfort and those seats were fantastic!!! That exterior center light bar bulbs burned out about ever 30K miles oddly, but I fixed it at least 2 times!
Of the three engines offered, the 3.0 Vulcan V6 was by far the most reliable one; with proper maintenance, it could easily last several hundred thousand miles. The 3.8 Essex V6 was notorious for having head gasket issues that Ford, for whatever reason, never fully resolved. When we purchased a well-maintained pre-owned 1993 Ford Taurus Wagon in 1999 off of someone we knew pretty well, I made sure that it had the 3.0 V6 engine; if it would have had the 3.8 V6, I would have passed on it. Any issues that inevitably occurred with this vehicle as it aged did not include any problems whatsoever with the engine or cooling system.
Adam, we ordered a new 1988 Black Taurus GL wagon with bucket seats , console, full Guage, the aluminum wheels for our family car. Within a year a couldn't take the Silver bumper covers front and rear along with Silver rocker panel covers, so I removed them and painted them Black with Dupont Centari enamel with the flex additive. It looked better and didn't seem to chip as bad as the original Silver and the hood ( these cars had a bad paint chipping problem). It used to be fun when some people thought it was an SHO wagon. It was just a standard 3.0 automatic. Overall a pretty good car. We kept it till 1998. Jim E
My friend's parents had a Sable and it was such a huge leap forward for Ford / Mercury. It was a quiet, comfortable and fairly good ride / handling vehicle, especially given some of their contemporary domestic competitors. The wagons were gorgeous vehicles
The first sketch of the Sable has those fender flares that were clearly taken from the 79-86 Mercury Capri. I'm kind of surprised Mercury didnt use that styling element on other models, it's definitely one of my favorite features of the Capri
We bought a used red 4-door Sable. Just before it’s 36 month warranty expired, it’s transmission started going out on a long family vacation trip to the Outer Banks. We hadn’t had the car long, and I’ll never forget that awful trip nursing along a failing transmission. I said at the time that I wanted to just drive it into the ocean to become an artificial reef for the fish! When we finally got back home, Ford replaced it for free. My brother also had a Sable, and his was loaded with every high tech add-on available, but the entire electronic dash display had to be replaced due to some kind of persistent gremlin. They drove well and looked great, but they should have come with at least a 3 year supply of aspirin to deal with all the headaches of ownership.
I went to church with a guy who worked at the old Ford assembly plant in the town of Hapeville, just south of Atlanta, that built the first through third generation Taurus and Sable. We toured the plant, witnessed the assembly process from start to finish. It was amazing, and the first Gen Sable was a beautiful sedan, so was the wagon. The plant was torn down a few years ago, and is now home of Porsche Cars North America headquarters and test track.
It's cool to see that first concept you showed had similar fender bulges to the '79 Capri. And the final model reminds me of the '69-70 Marauder with the sleek shape and skirted wheel. Sometimes it seems like designers just don't care about family resemblance, but clearly sometimes they do!
My Mom traded her cool ‘82 Peugeot 505STI for a loaded 1988 Mercury Sable (leather buckets, digital dash, floor shift, sunroof, 3.8 V6) and she loved it… Compared to her Peugeot, the new Sable was FAST! At the time, Mom’s Sable LS was super-cool; now I just want her black Peugeot back…oh, well..?!? Her next car was a ‘93 Explorer Limited…she owned about 5 more of those… She also owned a couple Jags before she passed…Miss you, Mom!
I was a teenager when these cars debuted. I thought they looked great. Still do. Such an improvement over the old-fashioned vehicles on offer from other manufacturers. Especially that vertical backlight which I loath with every fiber of my being. These car sold quite well and were indeed a sensation at the time. It was noted at the time, the similarity to the Audi 5000. Of course most Americans had no idea what that was anyway
The Audi 5000 wagon was one of the most futuristic cars of its time. I loved the design. I believe it was the first car with flush mounted glass. Very innovative. Great times!
Absolutely loved my 1988 Sable LS Wagon. It was red, red interior. I remember reading that Ford had women designers involved in the interior design that all the controls would be comfortable for women. Mine was a originally my Mom's. And I got it as a 'city' car, but it was fun to drive, got good gas mileage and makes me long for it even today. I still remember the first time I saw one, from a train car on the LIRR, there was a white one in 1986 alone in a parking lot, it was stunning, and futuristic exactly like what people called it, a space shuttle. Of couse the one I remember was white and honeycomb wheels. I still find myself searching for them for sale. Early 90s wagons appear occasionally. Almost no wagons from the 80s. Mechanically my car was fine, what did it in was getting side swiped by a tractor trailer at the tolls of the GW Bridge.
This generation of Sable and Taurus were so beautiful and revolutionary! I love them. Btw, wouldn't mind if you made a video on the aero Cougar with it's quirky C pillar 😄👍
@@philojudaeusofalexandria9556 Agreed. I think they thought that if the "molten blob" look worked in 86, a "Really Molten Blob" ought to be even better. I wasn't.
I had an 86 Sable wagon in maroon and later had the next Gen Sable wagon.. a ‘96 in dark green with tan interior. Both cars were really great with loads more storage capacity (due to them not having the rear jump seats) than most full size SUV’s today.
I remember when the first commercial made the local news because if it's use of a Bette Midler soundalike performing Do You Wanna Dance. The case went nowhere but it got the Sable some free press. I believe the Joe Cocker commercial is also a soundalike but Joe didn't go after FoMoCo. The first gen Sable and Taurus will always remind me of Robo Cop because the movie takes place in the "future" and the police cars are all Ford Taurus sedans. Hope you do a segment on the Gen I SHO Taurus one day. Keep up the good work Adam!
I was just looking up the first commercial in its own and saw most of the comments discussed that aspect. I can’t remember who the stunning brunette is however. I think maybe Connie Sellecca?
Thanks, Adam. A great feature on a car from my teens. My girlfriend’s dad brought a Sable in 1986, and yes, it looked like a spaceship compared to everything else on the road at that time. Though, like the one you saw at the gym, it was white. You should have made him an offer, Adam. They’re pretty rare birds now, regardless of condition. Haven’t seen one here in SoCal for a long time.
MY first newly purchased car was the 1990 Mercury Sable LS sedan in black. Beautiful car and great road trip car for a family. It had the optional 3.8 ltr V-6. I loved to look back through the left side mirror at the smooth side glass almost flush with the doors. That was one of the big differences from the GM bodies at that time.
Awesome video! I've been a fan of the first gen Sable since I was a kid. We had an dark grey '88 growing up. It still exists in fact. I hope these cars are more appreciated someday, and it is sad how few are left considering they sold in the millions. Ours was always reliable but did have some transmission issues, as did most Ford's from the 80's & 90's.
I remember what a space ship the Taurus and Sable were when they first came out, especially the wagons. It's difficult to appreciate now, since everything that followed eventually adopted a similar, rounded look, making it ordinary.
I find your video’s to be very informative and enjoyable to watch. I owned a 1988 Mercury Sable station wagon that I purchased pre owned. I must say that it was a nice looking car and very well equipped, it even had a leather interior. The engine was a 3.8 v6 and had a head gasket leak! I only owned the car for about seven months and traded it for a Toyota Camry. Very disappointed with the Sable.
I remember seeing one brand new in the Arizona desert in 1986. Looked like a vision from the future. In terms of the ribs. Along with the 71 Mercedes they were also on the 1971 Ford LTD. I note the female talent in the last ad has the Lady Di hairstyle. 👍
I've owned 3 Ford Taurus cars. I bought a new 1988 4 door Taurus and found it to be a very reliable car. In 1993 after my childnwas born, I traded the sedan in for a new 1993 Tarus wagon. Absolutely loved that car. Quiet, road like a dream, and it's 50/50 weight distribution made it awesome in the snow. In 1998 I reluctantly traded it in for an F150. In 2020 I bought a pre-owned 2019 Tauris AWD Limited. Nice car but I know one day I'll have to have an expensive water pump replacement and it doesn't ride as good as the Tauris wagon. What is almost ridiculous is the 1993 wagon and 2019 sedan get the same mpg. You'd think the mpg would habe gotten better after 26 years.
I had the 1988 Taurus as my company car right out of college. The Taurus and Sable twins were really good vehicles, especially in midlevel or higher trims. The advertising in this era were also really good. I remember the Joe Cocker ad as one of the best of the era for a car commercial. It tried successfully to make a wagon cool as a sporty vehicle you could still use as a family hauler. Also, Mercury had introduced the car with another great song in an ad, "Get Ready" by the Temptations. Finally, I liked the animation of the Mercury logo in this era as a stylized curved road....a nice animation to introduce a new logo for the era.
8:42 - So glad you mentioned the Audi as inspiration for the Sable. The Sable/Taurus were groundbreaking among US makes, but they weren't unprecedented.
I owned an '86 Taurus LX that suffered from engine overheating and dead battery issues. It didn't last a year with me, but was traded for an Acura Legend, the first of a continuing series of Japanese cars that have never let me down. But I did love the styling of that Taurus.
I remember the first time I saw ads for the Stables and Taurus. WOW! They were unlike anything else made in America. My first thought was that they would own the market, and they nearly did. I've had four Tauruses, but never a Sable. They were all good company cars, except the first one, an '87. Blown head gasket, snapped head bolts, heater core failure at 30,000 miles.....and so forth.
The early Sables and Tauruses (Tauri?) were actual driver's cars, meaning that they had a fairly taut suspension, and they handled very well. Also, the wagons had a totally different rear suspension, featuring upper and lower control arms, while sedans had a McPherson strut arrangement. The SLA gave more cargo room in the back. Most wagons have visible negative camber on the rear wheels. I worked at a Ford dealer in the 90s, and they were pretty good cars, with few engine problems, except in later years when they dropped the 3.8 V6 piece of junk in there. Ford screwed up when they restyled the cars in 96, where every single line was an oval, making the cars quite ugly, and sales dropped. Great video, Adam!
Great spot light video Adam on two great cars, Taurus & Sable that changed the future of car styling. I was working at Rotunda Tool doing service tool compatibility studies on many of the new parts for these cars. I remember being at the test track and seeing several old Ford midsize LTD mules mocked up with the Taurus 3.0L powertrain. The wheels stuck out on each side of the front fenders when they put the moon buggies drivetrain under them. Later working for FCSD, as part of the validation team developing new auto diagnostics for the FLM dealers, we used Taurus & Sable’s for these diagnostics. The 3.0L Vulcan engine seemed to be bullet proof as we put them through their paces. I still think the first-generation Taurus \ Sable was way a head of it time.
I replaced the metric TRX wheels on my 1982 Mustang GT 5.0 with those same wheels shown at 11:00! These cars' biggest weakness was their transmission - high rate of failure, and often at a lower mileage..
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I thought the original Taurus wagon was beautiful for its time. I would agree with you if you were referring to the 96 and up Taurus. What were they thinking???
My mom had a 1991 Ford Taurus wagon. That car was great and the right size. I had a 1999 Mercury Sable company car in black with dual exhaust. One of the best driving cars in the winter.
The Sable caused my dad & my aunt to defect from GM to Ford. The styling was much better than GM at the time. The lower ribs on the Sable doors was only on the LS. The GS had body color lower doors. My aunt bought a 1986 LS. My dad liked the car, but hated those lower door ribs. He ordered a loaded 1987 GS sedan. The GS looked cleaner. The Taurus & Sable sedan didn't share any body panels. The Sable wagon did share Taurus sheet metal from the cowl back. The Taurus & Sable did have problems & multiple recalls for the front suspension. And two final notes. You forgot to mention the optional " picnic table " for the wagon & the " Insta-Clear " heated windshield ( both my dad's & aunt's car had it, and it worked really well ).
My Aunt and Uncle had a new 1986 Taurus. They loved the car. I think that I remember Ford having a recall on the 3.0L engine. My uncle received a new engine in his car. That was the only time he ever had any problem with it.
They we’re absolutely revolutionary; and the wagons even more so! The only thing seen similar was Ford’s Probe concept car (of course the Merkurs were influential in the product development if you were to ask me).
Probes had the wrap around glass done right. Continual glass, no metal trim exposed, exterior mirror to exterior mirror. It's strange the Ford and the Mercury had the crossover design feature.
I had a 1987 Sable LS and then got a 1995 Sable LTS. I had the LTS until 2021. It had 62k on it. It was flawless. I sold it to a local and well-respected used car lot and was offered $1500. I had just picked up a Lincoln MKS and didn't need the Sable. Within 20 minutes someone offered that dealership $5000 for that Sable!!!
I was entranced when Sable and Taurus came out! One of the designers had been berated by a colleague: "(Taurus-Sable) will be a big flop and it'll be YOUR fault!" (paraphrase) 😅😂
Too bad Mercury division is gone. Those cars had a little more styling and equipment upgrades than Ford products. We had a '03 Taurus wagon 8 seater- lots of room! Unfortunately, learned what "FORD" acronyms meant after owning it for 230K+ miles. I think I've either fixed or replaced every part on the car at least once except for the Vulcan V6 which for some reason never gave us any problems. Thanks Adam for your postings and great knowledge about older cars.
I almost bought one of these back in '88! It just looked so cool! It was too big for the twisting driveway and garage situation at our house. Sad I had to get a much smaller car.
To say Taurus/Sable had an impact on me (got my license in 1986) would be massive understatement. I can't remember all the Fords I have had since then. It's a pity that they make only fat raised wagons today. I will hold tight to my 2018 Taurus til death do us part.
I loved the Taurus/Sable when they came out. While the two wagons look fairly similar, Ford was smart to differentiate the Mercury sedan with that terrific backlight, and by making the Continental completely different. Drove a refreshed than new ‘92 Taurus across country, while it was pretty old hat by then I appreciated the ergonomics and how intuitive all the controls were.
