Retro Review: 1986 Ford Taurus & Mercury Sable 

i remember as a kid these cars look so futuristic.

Ford Taurus still has a modern design despite its 32 years. It was a car that suddenly made the competitors old

The 1986 Taurus was an absolute game changer no questions

These retro reviews are like crack to me...can't get enough.

"Dad, that tree wouldn't fit in our yard. It's not going in the yard Russ, it's going in our living room."

I don't know why but i've always loved these 1st gen Taurus and Sable's. They were a huge hit as police cars in Robo Cop, then the SHO came out in 89 and just solidified the Taurus name even more.

My dear aunt, who died in 2014 used to love her light-blue Sable!

I was a Ford car salesman in 1989. The Taurus had a great year that year. Updated styling and the first SHO. It was a good time to sell Fords and I made really good money. Another great car that year was the all-new Thunderbird. What fond memories I have of that time.

I remember the sable looking so futuristic with that "light" look up front instead of a grille. Now I can't help but think how dated it looks. Damn, I feel old...

As a kid I remember seeing A LOT of these two cars on the road, due to the public liking the futuristic styling of these cars, along with its good room for a family, and (I'm assuming) good price / value. What I also remember is going to a transmission repair shop in the early 1990's and seeing 8-12 of these cars abandoned in the back of his lot taking up space. When my father inquired about them, the owner told him how everyone would drop off their car with transmission issues and when he'd diagnose them and inform them of the cost of rebuilding the electronic controlled trans, (along with the shortened warranty period that he'd offer) the vehicle owners would just abandon them there and he'd never hear from them again. He'd call and call with no answer from the owners. Now the repair shop owner would be stuck with the cars and no title. Made for a tough time getting rid of them and he was peeved that they'd take up valuable space in his limited lot for a long period of time. I'm sure that it would also cost him towing to remove the cars. He claimed that the transmissions would fail at 50,000 to 60,000 miles like clock work. I'm sure that most of them never had the transmission fluid changed. Most people don't know that they have to maintain their transmissions.

1986 was a good year for ford and gm. so many updates/new cars

I bought a 1988 Mercury Sable LS in Midnight blue with a Dove Gray leather interior. I loved it. It is the car I miss the most.

why dont more auto makers make dual sunvisors at all like what a amazing feature

For '86 this was the most futuristic production sedan yet. Even RoboCop made it their future cop car. LOL! Then it blended in with everything else by the early '90s.

i still see sable wagons on the road sometimes.

The Retro MW videos mean the world to me, and bring back so many awesome memories. I miss the HIT and MISS segments of car reviews. LOL

The Taurus wagon: famous for driving under semi-trucks

I remember when these came out. It was such an amazing departure from other '80s American makes and left GM reeling for quite a few years. It's the same year the U.S. law of having a third brake light came out.

Just discovered the "Retro Review" videos a few days ago....Think I have a new fav YT channel :)

Always loved the lines of the wagon's styling.

The Taurus was sure a game changer.

The platform that saved Ford from financial disaster. These were solid cars with great quality control. Ford really knocked GM back onto their heels for years with these vehicles.

I'm just happy retro reviews are back man!!

The Mercury Sable whenever in red reminds me of the movie, Coneheads.

I have a 2000 Mercury sable I got it at 46.000 miles it now has 176,462 miles on it and I've never had to repair anything on it but the alternator and it rides so smooth ant you can even feel the transmission shift it's truly a luxury car

My parents had a 1988 Mercury Sable. They bought it because it was one of the first American cars to have three point seat belts in the rear. I don't remember the car being as slow as they are indicating (0-60 in 13+ seconds?!) We got 150,000 trouble free miles out of it...

Astounding these were made in 1986. Even the engine oil filler cap looks ahead of its time.

that grill was really controversial I remember people rioting

car was seriously ahead of its time, can easily pass as a 90s model with its aerodynamic styling,

Young folks with more Money? Not anymore!

This car left us on the side of road so many times...we called it the Taurus time bomb

nothing beats the late 80s and early 90s Taurus SHO

I have always liked the Ford Taurus. I am on my second one. I had a 97 and now I drive a 07. Great car I do want a first generation SHO

My grandmother had a maroon Sable just like these. The half-skirts over the rear wheel were hilarious!!!

That slatted grille on the taurus sedan was tooled up for production just in case there was backlash from the grille less front end, obviously it turned out to be unnecessary

"Dead or alive, you´re coming with me"

I remember seeing so many of these on the roads until the 2000s. My dad's cousin had a wagon that survived 500k miles. He bought it new in 1988.

1:26 Black slotted grille planned for low-series Taurus and cancelled sometime between pilot and full production. I wonder if any of those ever escaped Ford's hands.

As a kid in the 80's and 90's it was almost weird if your family didn't have a Taurus, or a Chrysler minivan. We had a Taurus wagon with the rear facing seats which were a blast to sit in and look out the back window... after that my parents "upgraded" to a Plymouth Voyager. Futuristic vehicles at the time, and they did their job well.

I absolutely love the first gen Taurus and Sable! They must have looked amazing when they were new, and still look quite modern. My grandmother bought a brand new loaded Sable LS in 1988, and I was so fascinated with that car as a child! (It still exists thankfully and I own it now) The only downsides with these cars were the sometimes temperamental transmissions.

Damn I wish companies started making wagons again

To me, the Sable was always the more aesthetically appealing car. I once rented a late '90s Sable V6 in Baltimore to drive back to Ohio...not a sports car but smooth and comfortable the whole way.

That retro motorweek theme is everything

Ford sold a ton of these great cars!

It's hilarious that the MT-5 model with the 2.5L 4 cylinder engine was quicker than the V6 cars. A manual transmission can wake up just about any car.

There's a green 1992 Mercury Sable wagon still being used by our school district. I see it parked next to the cafeteria every day

Thanks for better quality and a return to the retro review!

You got the vcr fixed yay !

Thank you for these reviews and sharing. I liked seeing the Mercury Sable. It was nice to see this and appreciate the cars for what they were. The Ford Fusion has taken over this role.

It's amazing how much auto trans held back old cars. the i4 shaved nearly a second off the 0-60 from the auto 6 cylinder.

Loved my parent’s ‘86 Sable. ❤ In white, it was beautiful. 🥰Loved washing & waxing its smooth shape.

had a 87 taurus with auto and the V6 i thought it was a great car drove great and smooth. the V6 engine was a great engine

My father ran out and bought one of these just as they were coming out and they were the hottest thing going. They sold like hotcakes. They were radical at the time... especially to a family coming from a 1978 Mercury Monarch.

Yay, Retro Review is back!

I'm hear to tell ya I have been a ford man since I got my license 22 years ago and have owned a dozen Taurus and sables ranging from 89 to 2007 and that 3.0 v6 was bullet proof!

i had one where i made a "CLI" badge and placed it before the taurus in the back. I had a FORD CLITAURUS

idk why but these vids are gold

YES Retro reviews are back!

My family owned one of what seemed like the first Taurus wagons. I remember being the dealership while my mom and dad purchased it while the US was bombing Libya. Great car.

This review brought back some great memories. I remember when Ford released these revolutionary cars upon the public. I had a friend who got the Taurus SHO and that was one impressive ride.

That mercury sable is still sexy ! lol

more more more more retro reviews please

Love this car so much. I'm thinking about finding and restoring a fully loaded 1986 Taurus LX wagon in red. Only problem with these cars is the delicate transmission that can easily die if not given proper maintenance.

My first car was a 1989 Ford Taurus.

YESSSSS FINALLY ANOTHER ONE please upload more of these more often

I bought an '87 Taurus in June of 1987. It lasted until September of 2009, with the exception of needing many a fuel pump replacement. It was a good car, but it was not good that over 6 times i had to replace the fuel pump, failures of which left me stuck on the shoulder of the interstates stuck with a car that would not run.

Those cars were amazingly futureistic when they came out. I always thought the wagon was so spaceship like as a kid.

Never once saw one on the road with the grille, must have changed at production

ahh the memories come flooding back

I remember my mom bought one of these Sables in '86. She was 65, not exactly that youth market they talk about in the video. My dad had a Grand Marquis. He wasn't up for all the futuristic stuff and he liked a cushy ride.

My grandmother had an 87 Taurus, I know I've ridden in it but I have no recollection of doing so, my dad had a 2nd gen SHO, I certainly remember _that_ haha

i miss seeing these on the road, always loved the look of them (and the blob-shaped ones that replaced them)

Taurus was absolutely a highlight in Ford's history... We had one in our family when growing up.. The wagon, in beige with tan leather interior. I loved the key code entry option, and it was super futuristic at the time. Did tend to have problems overheating though... Ford after all... But for what it was, it was awesome!

I remember when those were new. Volvo in Torslanda had bought a mercury wagon and my brother borrowed it. It was so futuristic. I loved those headlamps.

The InstaClear windshield was a God sent in Midwest winters. I wish they would bring it back on current cars.

Robo-cop police car

The good old days before the crossover plague.

I had a 92 GL sedan with the 3.0 V6. It was an oddly optioned car with cloth interior and dual arm rests, full gauge set, 4 wheel disc ABS, hd suspension and firm feel steering, but skinny 15 inch wheels with plastic caps. The a/c never worked for long, and the radio quit not long after I bought it. I had a ton of problems with the front suspension and alignment and the ABS quit a couple yrs after I bought it. That 3.0 however, ran very well, and I sold it with nearly 200k on it.. It did get a new chain though at 170k. The 4 speed auto was worn out badly by then, an AXOD if memory serves. A very comfortable easy driving car with lots of visibility. Was it on par with the imports of the time? No... Was it as good or better than the rest of the domestic family cars? Yep.

own a '93 & even after 29 yrs - it's the best car I've ever owned...

I’ve owned an 88 Sable and a 94 Sable. I owned the 94 first at 18 years old and I drove it like a complete dumbass while completely ignoring maintenance and it never let me down, it had the 3.8 V6 which was peppy. I literally drove it until the struts were so worn that the front tires hit the fenders when I hit large bumps, I wound up trading it for a Ranger, and when the Ranger died, I traded it for the 88 Sable with the 3.0. The 3.0 has to be one of the most durable engines ever, mine had over 300k, the temp gauge had busted, and one day the radiator fan broke, so I wound up getting it so hot that the coolant boiled for about 45 minutes when I shut the car off, it lost over a gallon of coolant to evaporation. I filled it up, fixed the fan, and kept driving it for about 3 months until the headgasket finally gave up.

the lines of the Taurus are pleasant especially on the wagon

If only I could get a glimpse of a current MotorWeek back then! Now THAT would be something.

I love these shows

"A picnic table"!! Just what I've always wanted! ...to eat my pb&j 6 inches from an exhaust pipe!

We had an '87 Sable. Transmission needed a rebuild @ around 100k miles, and it rusted pretty quickly even though it was kept mostly garaged. We had it from '89 to '96.

From an european owning both a '91 Taurus wagon and a '91 Oldsmobile Custom wagon, both are are about the best cars i've ever owned...

I loved my 1993 Mercury Sable with the 3.8 liter V6, the 3.0 Vulcan V6 was slow

The mom and dad in that show The Middle drove a banged up early 90's Mercury Sable wagon ( I liked watching that show)l

MW MISSES -------------------- --DOESN'T GO -- DOESN'T STOP Other than that, it's great!

My mom used to drive the 87 GL V6. Lots of good memories.

I used to think my Turbo Coupe's 0-60 in 8.5s was sad, but when looking at cars back then most of them, even light ones were over 10 seconds.

Before the roll out, Ford or perhaps the dealership network, sent some of these on a tour around the country. I never forget going to the Mall and seeing the new sleek Sable. I was truly shocking at the time.

This car line actually brought me back to ford . My in laws had an 88 taurus back in the 90s. I had a 92 sable and now I have an 03 Taurus that I've had for 8 years. 2 great aspects about it is the long haul comfort and its ability to handle shit weather.

The company I worked for in the late '80s and 90's had a contract with Avis to provide us with company cars. At that time they replaced cars every 12 months or 20,000 miles. What they supplied me was both Mercury Sables and Ford Taurus in various models and trims. I probably drove more than a dozen of them in that time frame. They were OK cars, but not without problems. Brakes and transmissions were issues during that time. Brakes lasted about 15,000 before you got warping of the rotors. Usually I got a new one before that became a problem.Transmissions had torque converter problems and Avis had to replace at least 4 of the cars because transmissions failed. Also, as they pointed out in the video, these were slow cars. They felt like dogs compared to the GM cars I owned at that time.

They do corner pretty flat. I remember when they first came out, they looked so "futuristic".

I've got the 1990 model for the Sable wagon I'm gonna try and fix up this summer with my partner It used to be my dad's car but it's been dead in the driveway since 2015. If we can get it to start I can keep it

A 91 Mercury Sable with a 3.0 V6 was my first car. I loved it. It got decent gas mileage and was very comfortable. I also had a 95 Sable with a 3.8. I really like the 1st and 2nd generations of these cars. The 3rd not so much.

ahh so good to see these again.

makes me want to buy one now.

My first car was an 87 Taurus LX... in 2001. Most of the electronic options were broken by then