CarComplaints.com Notes: Most people need a car where the coil springs don't puncture or shred tires while driving. The Taurus fails in that respect.
The 1999-2003 Ford Taurus has a huge problem with coil springs breaking, which can puncture or even shred tires while driving.
The US government spent THREE YEARS (2008-2011) investigating the 2002-2003 Taurus coil springs. Although Taurus/Sable from earlier years were recalled, ultimately the NHTSA did not force a recall. They determined that because there had been no deaths & very few bad crashes & injuries, the broken coil springs defect was no big deal & not a safety defect. Tell that to all the owners who had close calls...
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
57,451 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the blower relay switch continuously failed in the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or mechanic; however, the contact made repairs to the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 70,000.
Started the engine this morning and the engine raced to over 4000 RPM, having never touched the accelerator pedal today. Shut it down and started it again - same thing. Never seen anything like this before on this car. I looked under the hood and a beige colored plastic guide for the cruise control cable had a chip out of the side of the guide entry point such that the cruise control cable and sheath were caught out of alignment in the slot of the chip in the guide. I pulled out, straightened and reset the cable, sheath and guide and, again started the engine. Perfect idle. This is very dangerous if it were to happen while driving! I won't drive this car until I know it's resolved. Do you need pictures? I don't see any recall for this here...
I have a 2002 Ford Taurus sedan, and while driving about a month ago I pushed gas pedal to accelerate, the throttles became stuck causing the cars engine to speed up to 80 mph in a 30 mph speed zone. I had to apply as much pressure to the breaks as I could to control the car, and finally I was able to pull into a gas station, with the engine still racing, put the car into park and turn off the car. I was so afraid I just set in the car for about 10 minutes to collect my thoughts. I open the hood to see if anything had broken or came apart but could not find any unusual. I turn the car back on, the engine was still racing, I looked for the accelerator cable and found it. However, I notice that the small plastic O-ring on the cable used as a stop was caught on the corner of the air intake housing. I pulled back on the cable releasing it. When I let go of the cable it went back to its normal position, the engine stopped racing and slowed to a normal idle. I crept back home were the car set for two weeks before I had the nerves to drive it again. It happen again on 3/14/12 when I pushed the accelerator pedal to pass a truck on I-70W in columbus, oh.
2002 Ford Taurus almost got on fire on 11/2/11. There was gray smoke and horrible burning smell coming out of the front of Ford car. Called the police dept, they came and found a belt broke.... if it were not for the police persons that came to let me know what the problem is and what to do, along with the fact (and luck) I had that I was not driving on the street with speed, the entire vehicle could have caught on fire and produce even more damages for myself and anyone that could be around. Ford, tk, and Firestone has the details of.. all problems on this vehicle and what has been repaired....update 01/20/12 the serpentine belt broke. The consumer also stated the suspension system needed to be replaced. Updated IVOQ 03/07/12
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that as the engine was started, the vehicle exhibited an abnormal noise. The engine was quickly turned off and the key was taken out of the ignition yet the engine noise continued to increase excessively without the keys being in the ignition for approximately five minutes. The contact stated that the vehicle would later be towed to the dealer for inspection. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 79,656.
- Southbury, CT, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. While driving up hill the vehicle lost power. The motor made a noise the check engine light illuminated after the failure occurred. The vehicle was taken to the garage where the spark plugs and wires were replaced, but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, the diagnostic test located the failure at the head gasket. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure and the current mileage were 57,200.
'model year : 2002 'make: Ford 'model: Taurus SE 'component*: car just shuts off at rest and lately in the middle of driving. Cranks right back up but this is dangerous. Have taken to different mechanics but no one seems to know what it is or how to fix the issue. The RPM bobs and the engine stops if at rest(stop light) or will just shut off when turning a corner or even while on interstate. This is a hazard. There are several Ford Taurus owners who are experiencing the same issue if you goggle "Ford Taurus shuts off" everyone is seeking a resolution through forum. This is a safety hazard and I am afraid to drive because I never know when it will shut off. Please do something about this.
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. While the contact was drving 30 mph.the vehicle suddenly shut off without warning. While the contact was attempting to pull to the side of the road the driver side seat broke off from the bottom of it's base causing the contact to crash into a nearby wall.the contact was injured during the crash. A police report was filed for the incident. The vehicle was taken to the dealership where the contact had the brakes, struts, ball joints and instrument panel replaced. The failure and current mileages were 68000.
The blower in my 2002 Ford Taurus works intermittently. There is also water on the floor board on the passenger side which I suspect has something to do with the problem.
Blower motor doesn't work. Ford dealer fixed it. Problem was a leak in the cowl, they had to put a new cowl, cowl seal, and silicone a hole. With all this is could this be a defect?
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact backed approximately ten feet out of her parking garage, and the coil spring failed and ripped the front driver's side tire. The vehicle had to be towed to the dealer and they replaced the front coil spring, struts, and front driver's side tire. In addition, the vehicle was aligned. The repair costs were $1,300. The failure mileage was 70,000. Updated 09/10/08 the cam shaft position sensor was replaced. Updated 09/16/08.
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact took his vehicle to the dealer because the check engine light illuminated on the instrument panel. He was informed that the rear coil spring failed. The contact paid $350 for the repair; however, his extended warranty paid for some of the repair costs. The failure mileage was 55,000. Updated 09/16/08. Updated 09/18/08.
There is a leak in the passenger compartment of my 2002 Ford Taurus when ever it rains. The leak comes from above, and floods the floor while the car is sitting still. This has caused the heater/cooling blower to repeatedly stop. I have has the fan replaced 3 times in the last 17 months. I have had to additionally have the compressor replaced. This problem seems to be a continual one, and very much highlighted by many Taurus owners in many forums and places. This is a factory defect in the Taurus body, that now continually causes internal problems, and since the vehicle is out of warranty Ford takes a stand that it is not their problem.
The contact stated while driving vehicle stalled intermittently. Also, at a stop light the vehicle lost power. The vehicle was taken to the dealership for inspection. They replaced the air valve assembly. The contact drove the vehicle home. Currently, the problem recurred.
The contact stated the hub bearings on the right wheel in the front were bad, had to replace them three times. On 8-22-05 a garage told the contact the wheel was getting ready to fall off. They had not taken it back to the dealer. She heard a noise like a rubbing, grinding sound and the noise got worse. The noise occurred at speeds of 10 mph and above. Also the engine light was coming on, and they had to replace the feedback sensor to the engine. The vehicle would stall while being driven. The dealer replaced the fuel tank and pump. The vehicle could not be started. The dealer replaced the battery. Two ball joints, one inner tie rod and left side axle shaft were replaced.
Sept 18, 2001 we purchased a new 2002 Ford Taurus. In one day radiator hose popped off. Thirty days after the firs repair the hose popped off again. The dealer wanted to replace the engine to correct the problem. On 10-29-01 the car started to make a hiss noise and smoke would come from the front end when it was parked or turned off. The vehicle was taken to the dealer dirks motors. They asked if the could replace the engine again and we said no. We left the car and they told us they would let us know but we did not hear nothing from them, when we would call to ask them what was going to happen they did not know at all. On 11-5-01 the car was returned to us and with leaving the service center and not being less then 20 miles from akron, Iowa the car got hot and started to smoke and I called dirks service center on my cell phone and told them I was bring it back and this time I wanted the car replaced no questions.. but the car was taking back and they looked over it and they did not call us at all while it was in service, we called everyday to see if they knew what was wrong with it and the funny thing about it was the car was at dirks motor Inc from 11-5-01 to 11-16-01 and they could not find nothing wrong. On 11-16-01 this would have been the 4th time this car had been serviced and it was getting old.. on 12-27-02 the car started the hissing noise and short cuts on and the cd player stopped working and that was it.. I called the Ford company at 1-800-392-3673. While talking with the call center they called dirks service center and edu'd them to have the cd player replaced and look at the engine. This car has been service for the same issue more then 3 to 4 times.. we wanted the car replaced.... we rec'd a call back from Ford call center (natalie) and she edu'd to me they were going to order a new cd player and have the car looked at to see about getting the car replaced. Steve irwin afitchboy1@iw.net P# (605) 761-0268
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Houston, TX, USA