Ford Taurus X VIN Decoder: History, Engines and VIN Lookup Guide
Every Ford Taurus X carries a 17 character Vehicle Identification Number, and reading it is the quickest way to confirm what a particular vehicle really is before you trust a listing. The Taurus X was a three row crossover sold for 2008 and 2009, the renamed and updated successor to the Ford Freestyle, offering seven seat practicality with front or all wheel drive and a strong V6. The VIN settles the model year, the engine the vehicle left the line with, the drive type and the plant that built it. You can run any Taurus X VIN through the decoder at the top of this page and read the result in a few seconds. The rest of this guide explains how the number is built, walks through the car, and points out what to check when you look one over.
How a Ford Taurus X VIN is put together
The 17 characters split into three blocks, and because the layout follows a global standard, the same position always carries the same kind of information. The first three characters are the World Manufacturer Identifier, and the Taurus X begins with 1FM, the code Ford uses for its multipurpose passenger vehicles built in the United States. Characters four through eight describe the vehicle, including the body and the engine, and indicate whether it is front or all wheel drive. The ninth character is a check digit that validates the whole number. The last eight characters describe the individual vehicle, with position ten the model year, position eleven the plant and the final six the sequential build number. The quick reference below covers the clues you will use most often when you read a Ford Taurus X VIN.
| VIN clue | What it means |
|---|---|
| WMI 1FM | Ford Taurus X built by Ford in the United States |
| Position 8 | Engine and drive code, for example the 3.5 V6 with front or all wheel drive |
| Position 9 | Check digit that validates the whole VIN |
| Position 10 | Model year code, for example 8 is 2008 and 9 is 2009 |
| Position 11 | Assembly plant code |
You will find the number at the base of the windshield, on the certification label in the door jamb and on the title, and matching them is the first check worth doing.
Ford Taurus X VIN position by position
The Taurus X was the renamed and updated Freestyle, a three row crossover, and it uses the seventeen character VIN. Read it in order and you can settle the year and the drive layout before you trust the advert.
| Position | Name | What it tells you on a Taurus X |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | World Manufacturer Identifier | 1FM marks a Ford built in the United States as an SUV or multipurpose vehicle |
| 4 to 8 | Vehicle descriptor | Body, trim and drive layout, where front drive is separated from all wheel drive |
| 9 | Check digit | A calculated character that validates the rest of the VIN |
| 10 | Model year | A single character, listed in the chart below |
| 11 | Assembly plant | The Ford factory that built the car |
| 12 to 17 | Serial number | The build sequence unique to that Taurus X |
Ford Taurus X model year codes (position 10)
The Taurus X was sold for two model years, and the tenth character reads as follows.
| Model year | Code in position 10 |
|---|---|
| Ford Taurus X 2008 | 8 |
| Ford Taurus X 2009 | 9 |
Where to find the VIN on a Ford Taurus X
Read the VIN through the windshield at the base of the glass on the driver side, and check it against the label in the driver door jamb. A quick VIN read confirms the year and whether it is front or all wheel drive on a car that was often bought to carry a family.
Reading a Taurus X VIN in practice
Take a VIN that starts with 1FM and shows 8 in position ten. That marks it as a United States built Ford from the 2008 model year. The descriptor characters then tell you whether it is front or all wheel drive, and the final six digits are the car’s own serial number.
A short history of the Ford Taurus X
The Taurus X was essentially a renamed and improved Ford Freestyle, the three row crossover that Ford launched in 2005. For 2008 it gained the more powerful 3.5 litre Duratec V6 and a conventional automatic in place of the earlier continuously variable transmission, along with the revived Taurus name. It was a short lived model, replaced by the Flex and the Explorer for 2010, but it remains a practical used family hauler. The table below sums up the car and its Freestyle predecessor.
| Model | Years | Body | Key engine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Freestyle | 2005 to 2007 | Crossover SUV | 3.0 Duratec V6 |
| Ford Taurus X | 2008 to 2009 | Crossover SUV | 3.5 Duratec V6 |
Ford Taurus X engines and specifications
Because the engine and drive type are encoded in the VIN, a proper check confirms what the vehicle was born with. The figures below cover the Taurus X engine and its predecessor.
| Configuration | Years | Power | Layout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Taurus X 3.5 Duratec V6 | 2008 to 2009 | about 263 hp | Naturally aspirated V6 |
| Ford Freestyle 3.0 Duratec V6 | 2005 to 2007 | about 203 hp | Naturally aspirated V6 |
Ford Taurus X by model year
Buyers searching for a specific year want to know what they are getting, so the table below maps the Taurus X model years to their VIN year code and drive options.
| Model year | VIN year code | Drive | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Taurus X 2008 | 8 | Front or all wheel drive | 3.5 V6 |
| Ford Taurus X 2009 | 9 | Front or all wheel drive | 3.5 V6 |
Reliability and the things worth checking
The Taurus X is generally dependable, but it is now an older family vehicle, so condition matters most. Always run the VIN through the NHTSA recall database and look closely at the points below.
| Engine or area | What to check |
|---|---|
| Ford Taurus X 3.5 V6 | Strong engine, confirm cooling system condition and service history |
| Ford Taurus X transmission | Check the six speed automatic for clean shifts |
| Ford Taurus X all wheel drive | On AWD cars confirm the system engages smoothly and check for driveline noise |
| Ford Taurus X interior and seats | As a family hauler the third row and interior take wear, so check their condition |
Ford Taurus X recalls
Below are the safety recalls recorded for the Ford Taurus X by the American road safety regulator, the NHTSA. The Taurus X was a short lived model, so the list is short. This is a reference list, not a check of your individual car, and a recall applies only to certain build dates and VIN ranges.
| Model years | NHTSA number | Area | Problem and risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 to 2009 | 16V247 | Driver airbag | The driver frontal airbag may inflate improperly during the second stage in a high speed crash, which can increase the risk of injury. Airbag module inspected and replaced as needed. |
Because the Taurus X shares its platform with the Ford Flex, Taurus and Five Hundred, it is worth checking the VIN against those related campaigns too. Recall data is published by the NHTSA and changes over time, so treat this as background rather than a substitute for the official record for your VIN.
Check a specific VIN for open recalls: use the official NHTSA recalls lookup or the Ford recall page. Both are free and show whether the work has already been done.
Buying a used Ford Taurus X
When you find one worth pursuing, decode the VIN first and make sure the model year, engine and drive type line up with the advertisement, then run the same number through the NHTSA recall search. Confirm a clean service history, check the transmission and, on all wheel drive cars, the driveline. When you are ready, enter your Ford Taurus X VIN in the decoder above to confirm the year, engine, drive type and plant, then use the advice here to make sure the vehicle is genuinely what it claims to be.