After driving about a mile, the air conditioning stopped and black smoke came out of the hood. Stopped the car and thought of opening the hood but saw flames. Three adults and two children (5 and 2 yrs old) got out of the car. Called police and fire service. By the time they arrive, the car was in flames. The engine and front row seats were totally burnt. The car was a total loss. There was no way to determine the reason for the (mysterious) fire. This happened in miami, Florida.

- Rockville, MD, USA

The contact owns a 1998 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle and turning it off, it would not start again. The failure occurred intermittently. No warning lights illuminated on the instrumental panel. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer and they informed her that they were unable to diagnose the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 142,000.

- Portsmouth, VA, USA

No heat. Took our 1998 Ford Taurus 6cyl.,3.0L,182fi vehicle to dealer with complaint of no heat. I am told from the Ford service advisor that there is rust in the coolant system caused by a metal allergy reaction from the water pump impeller blade and the antifreeze coolant in the system which cause rust the inside of the engine, freeze plugs, heater core, thermostat and eventually cause the engine to overheat/breakdown due to lack of water/coolant circulation. Ford answer: Replace water pump with upgraded water pump, flush system with anti-rust chemicals, replace freeze plugs, replace heater core, hoses, thermostat and refill with anti-freeze coolant at a cost of @ $1700. This vehicle has had regular maintenance on it since I've own it 10/1999, ie. Oil changes @5000K mi., coolant flush @1/yr., brakes & tires check/service @5000K mi. I believe Ford knows of this problem or they wouldn't have upgraded the water pump to correct the problem. And I believe Ford should take care of the replacement of this defective part and related components.

- Youngstown, OH, USA

Head gasket and head had to be replaced due to overheating, total cost of job was 1400. Dollars

- Strathmore, UN, USA

Last summer, my 1998 Ford Taurus blew an engine. It was about 4000 miles over warranty. The garage told me that it was nothing that I had done. The problem was probably' a failure in the oil pump, that my car had experienced oil pressure problems. They also said that they regretted that my warranty had expired. I had to pay to replace a new engine. They sent in a rebuilt engine, replaced the bad engine, and extended the warranty to 100,000 miles. Then, this July (July 25,2003) I was driving the same 1998 Ford Taurus with the previously blown engine. The add coolant light came on. I immediately stopped the car. Water was pouring from either the radiator or hose. I called a tow truck and had the car towed home (about a distance of 60 miles). I had it towed to my local mechanic. On Monday morning, the mechanic called and said that I had many more problems that just a leak. He said it looked like I had a blown head gasket. He could not even get the car to start. Because the car was still under warranty, I had it towed to the bowling green Lincoln & Mercury in bowling green oh. This is where I had originally purchased the car and the place that had replaced the engine the previous summer. After waiting nearing two weeks to get permission from detroit (?) to fix it, an inspector was sent down to examine the damage. His report indicated that the problem was not from a defective engine, but from environmental contamination. They voided the warranty. I asked what environmental contamination meant. I was informed that the inspector had decided that my car had been in a flood. I was taken back. My car had not been in a flood. The mechanics, the service representative, and service manager all confirmed that there was absolutely no evidence that the car was in a flood. I personally heard the service manager talk to someone in detroit confirming that the car had not been in a flood. Detroit sent out another inspector who took flood samples from the car.

- Bowling Green, OH, USA

1998 Taurus SE has had problems with cooling system Nov 2001.cutter Ford of aiea the agent for Ford made three attempts to repair problem spaning a year and a half. For the time being problem has been solved. However freeze plug has malfuctioned twice now and I am currently getting it repaired. Fuel injectors malfuctioned and where repaired April 2003. I have records of car's problems dating back to 2000

- Kapolei, HI, USA

Design flaw in the engine block that allows coolant to settle and accumulate in certain spots in the engine block. Twelve months after the coolant system was flushed, the vehicle began exhibiting a lost of heat and that was when the consumer was told of the problems with the engine that would eventually cause rust and sediment to accumulate over time if the coolant remained in the engine block.

- Lincolnwood, IL, USA