Listing snapshot
| Spotted | July 2023 |
| Asking price | $1,800 |
| Mileage | 67,000 |
| Location | Grandville, Michigan |
| Listed on | Craigslist, private seller |
| Drivetrain | 3.0-liter V6, automatic |
| Status | Ad expired. This page is our archive of the listing. |
We found this 1989 Ford Taurus GL on Craigslist in July 2023, listed by its owner in Grandville, Michigan, near Grand Rapids, for $1,800. It showed 67,000 miles. The ad is gone, but we keep the record. First-generation Tauruses in this kind of shape are getting scarce, and a real asking price helps anyone trying to value one.
What this car was
A dark red sedan with a light gray cloth interior. The body looks straight in the photos, the paint still has some shine, and the bumpers and trim are all there. It was the mid-level GL, sitting between the base L and the top LX.
Inside, the dash and steering wheel are in the same light gray, with the woodgrain trim panels Ford used across the instrument panel. The seats look clean, and the trunk carpet is in good shape too.
Power came from the 3.0-liter V6 with an automatic, the most common Taurus combination of the era. The seller was clear about what needed attention:
- The air conditioning did not work
- The power windows worked
- The front brakes were fine, but the rear brakes needed work
- Otherwise it ran and drove well
Was $1,800 a fair ask?
Yes, it looked fair. For under $2,000 you got a clean, low-mile first-generation Taurus with an honest list of faults. Rear brakes are an inexpensive fix. The broken air conditioning is the bigger unknown, since the repair cost depends on what failed. Prices for these cars are still low, so the low miles and clean interior were the main things working for it.
A little Taurus history
Ford launched the Taurus for the 1986 model year, and its rounded, aerodynamic shape looked nothing like the boxy American sedans around it. It was a big hit and became the best-selling car in America in the early 1990s. The 3.0-liter Vulcan V6 arrived with the first Taurus and stayed in the lineup for two decades. The GL was the volume trim that most families bought.
More cars from the archive
- Every Ford Taurus GL we’ve spotted, with asking prices
- 1989 Ford Taurus SHO, another Ford Taurus
- 1990 Ford Taurus SHO, another Ford Taurus
- 1993 Ford Taurus SHO, another Ford Taurus
- 2003 Ford Taurus SE, another Ford Taurus
