• The Taurus is a family car from American automaker Ford. The model made its debut in 1986 and was among the most popular cars of the 1990s. The 1997 model represents the third production generation of the Taurus. A driver who opted for the Taurus LX model in 1997 received a car powered by Ford's 24-valve, Duratec 30 V-6 engine as an upgrade from the V-6 engine with just 12 valves that came in other Taurus models.
  
  

Engine

• The Duratec 30 is a V-6 gasoline engine with four valves per cylinder, consisting of two intake valves and two exhaust valves, for a total of 24. The engine uses dual overhead cams and has a bore and stroke of 3.50 inches by 3.13 inches. In the 1997 Taurus, it reaches its peak of 200 horsepower at 5,750 rpm and produces 200 foot-pounds of torque at 4,500 rpm. Paired with a four-speed automatic transmission (the only option for a Taurus equipped with the Duratec 30) it delivers a fuel economy of around 18 miles per gallon in city driving and 28 miles per gallon on the highway.
  
  

Body and Layout

• The 1997 Taurus uses a conventional front engine/front-wheel drive layout. This means that the Duratec 30 engine is positioned in a transverse manner, perpendicular to the length of the car. Ford offered the 1997 Taurus LX as either a four-door sedan with an enclosed trunk or a station wagon with a rear liftgate. The sedan offers seating for five with the standard front bucket seats or six with the optional front bench, while the station wagon can seat up to seven with an optional rear child seat and front and rear benches.
  
  

Dimensions

• The dimensions for the Taurus LX sedan and wagon are slightly different. Both vehicles have the same 73-inch width and 108.5-inch wheelbase, but the wagon is 199.6 inches long while the sedan measures just 197.5 inches. The wagon is also taller at 57.6 inches, as opposed to 55.1 inches for the sedan. The wagon's extra body material raises its weight to 3,480 pounds from the sedan's 3,326 pounds. This allows for up to 81.3 cubic feet of luggage volume (the sedan has just 15.8 cubic feet) but also reduces the wagon's fuel efficiency by one or two miles per gallon.
  
  

Mechanics

• The 1997 Taurus LX augments its Duratec 30 engine with other mechanical refinements, including optional four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock braking and rack & pinion, speed-sensitive steering. The standard silver alloy wheels take size P205/65TR15.0 tires, but buyers could also upgrade to 15-inch chrome alloys.