Sho gods i call upon thee.....

[rippedcamel]

What's up guys. I'm new to the site, but not new to Fords. I had a pretty built Focus ZX3 that I modified when working at Steeda, and graduated to my current 03 GT vert almost fully bolted on.

I'm looking to get into a gen 3 v8 Taurus SHO. I'm finding all the ones I run into seem to be in pretty rough shape. So I have a few questions I was hoping the Sho Gods could school me on.

All questions pertain to only the third gen Taurus's

1. Is there any noises that are common to SHO engines (like a knock, or anything like that)?

2. Is there any common issues with the SHO engine?

3. How much would it cost to replace the engine?

4. Do the transmissions have any known issues, how long do they usually last, and how much are they to replace? (speaking of auto tranny)

5. Do these need to be brought to specialty shops to be fixed, or can regular performance shops fix these?

6. Any other tips on what to look for and what to avoid when looking at these cars?

I'll be sacrificing an import for my offering via my Mustang. I hope this offering appeases the gods....

 

[dodgebusta]

this sounds like a thread for Mr Anonymous. PM him, i'm sure he would be a GREAT help, he sure knows his GEN3's!

 

[rubydist]

The engines have a significant issue with cam drive sprockets coming loose - this is a problem because the engine is an interferance engine, so if the cam gets out of timing the valves crash. Depending on how bad that is, it may be a total engine replacement. This is a difficulty because there are no 'new' engines, so you have to find a rebuilt one. The cam sprockets can be welded to solve this problem - search 'welded cams' for example. Many of the engines will tick or click for a while as the cam sprockets work loose, but reportedly some have just let go with no warning.

If the one you are reviewing ticks, you will want to remove the valve covers to see what shape the cams are in before you commit to buying it, because the cost of engine replacement is equivalent to the value of the car. Unless you know its been welded, you will want to have it welded at once to avoid engine death.

The transmissions are marginal, and if overheated will fail. Overheating is common because of undersized factory trans oil coolers. Putting a gen2 trans cooler on the car is a common aid to increasing trans life, as is driving more prudently. If there are trans issues, they should appear with either a test drive and/or pulling the codes.

Many people are of the opinion that both engine and trans will fail around 100k miles if not welded and not cooled better.

 

[NebraskaSHO]

1. Is there any noises that are common to SHO engines (like a knock, or anything like that)? The injectors often make light clicking noises.

2. Is there any common issues with the SHO engine? Cam Failure. V8SHO.com

3. How much would it cost to replace the engine? 2-4k

4. Do the transmissions have any known issues, how long do they usually last, and how much are they to replace? (speaking of auto tranny) Put a Gen II ATX cooler on it, replace factory hardlines, replace barbs into transmission, install temp gauge. ~2k for a rebuild.

5. Do these need to be brought to specialty shops to be fixed, or can regular performance shops fix these? If the shop is reputable the car is not a problem for them to work on.

6. Any other tips on what to look for and what to avoid when looking at these cars? Look to see how the car shifts, how the ABS stops, check coolant, tranny, and oil levels. Look for leaks, normal checklists.

 

[luigisho]

These are very low production cars (well.. the motor is anyway) and the aftermarket support is not there. You will not be able to easily make this car with available bolt ons and forced induction kits like you could for the Mustang. This is more of a daily driver. Not many boosted GenIII's out there and reliability with the ones out there has not been great to this point (except maybe a nitrous setup).

You can work on most of the car yourself or through a good mechanic. The cam issue is out there and you can read up on that. These cars are very affordable, but remember they are higher performance sedans based on hp/torque levels from when the SHO program began (late 80's).

 

[rippedcamel]

Thank you SHO gods. I hope you accept my offering of a third gen eclipse. I couldn't find the usual honda civic to sacrifice. I hope 6-7 car lengths was enough of a an offering I would need to install the 4.10 gears in my garage to get 10 car lengths on him.