Seven problems related to headlights have been reported for the 1997 Ford Taurus. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Consumer owns a Ford Taurus. The headlight lens was not clear, resulting in poor visibility. The cloudiness has become progressively worse in the last 5 years. Had to buy 2 new sealed headlights.
A progressive deterioration of the front headlight lens. Headlight lens is so foggy that visibility is poor enough that it must be replaced. Ford says the deterioration is due to automatic car wash soap. However, car was hand washed. The approximate cost for parts alone is $500 as the lens is not sold separately. Cars in the junk yard also have same condition.
While driving at night headlights went out. Consumer had to constantly wiggle headlight switch to keep headlights on. Vehicle at dealership at this time.
While driving on i95 during a rainstorm, I experienced a total failure of the windshield wipers when I activated my left directional signal. Visibility suddenly became zero and I narrowly avoided a serious crash. I finally was able to restore partial use of the windshield wipers by switching on my high-beam headlights. I tried this procedure because the headlights as well as the directional signals are all controlled by the same handle. I believe there is a defect inside the stalk that houses the wiring for these controls. I have rarely used this car in the rain ( there has been a virtual drought in my area) and this is the first real workout of the wipers.
The car had been pre-inspected for lease-turn-in in Jan 1999, and then remained parked until Feb 8, 1999. At the time of the inspection there was no visible damage to the windshield. On Feb 8, 1999, there was a large crack in the windshield, originating from the top center of the windshield, down 4 inches and trailing off 4 inches to the left. The windshield was inspected at the time of replacement, and no chip marks or trauma to the glass was found. Glass installer stated that the crack was a stress failure. While driving at night both headlights went off at 55 mph. After stopping, shutting off the car and restarting, they came back on. Also, the passenger side headlight become disconnected on several occasions.
The headlight bezel is discolored. There appears to be a fog inside the bezel. The dealer states that this is not a manufacturers defect, and is not covered under the warranty. The dealer states "something" must have been sprayed on the outside of the bezel. I was told that some of the headlights have a gasket leak and that was the problem. Do you have any information regaurding this problem?.
Poor sight side vision from the headlights. If having to make a sharp trun driver cannot see the road to the side. Problem was brought to the manufacturer's attention. Please provide any further information.