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:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
81,157 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.
My wife drives a 2002 Taurus ses. In December the front coil spring broke. Thankfully, it was parked and did not cause the tire to blow out while driving. Yesterday a rear coil spring broke causing damage to the tire but the tire did not blow out. I understand there was a recall (id#14649) through the model year 2001 Taurus but not including 2002. I have had two springs fail and I'm concerned that the scope of recall #14649 was too limited in scope. There may be a very serious safety issue the model year 2002. I have notified Ford Motor Company about the potential safety issue and have asked for reimbursement. Initially they said no, but I have asked for a call back from the customer service supervisor. I have the broken coil springs if a metallurgical check makes sense. I can also send pictures.
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. While driving 30 mph, the contact heard a loud thumping noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. He was able to safely maneuver the vehicle to his destination. Upon reviewing the failure, he noticed that the rear passenger side of the vehicle was lower than any other side. He concluded that the coil spring failed. The contact has not taken the vehicle to the dealer for inspection and no repairs have been performed. He is in the process of notifying the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 103,000 and current mileage was 106,000.
I have had both rear coil springs and one of the front coil springs break on my 2002 Ford Taurus. The front one broke yesterday and damaged the front tire and I just bought the tires three weeks ago. Now I have to replace both front coil springs and buy a new tire which is not cheap. Coil springs if made right should not be breaking this easy.
- Baltic, OH, USA
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The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. While driving less than 35 mph, the rear coil springs failed and punctured the tire. The dealer and manufacturer could not assist with the repairs because there were no recalls on the failed component. Currently, there is an open investigation pertaining to the front coil spring failure, but not for the rear springs. The failure and current mileages were less than 40,000.
2002 Ford Taurus rear coil spring broken. Front coil spring failure approximately one year ago and repairs were made. I am aware the rear coil spring failure is also a well-known problem with the 2002 Ford Taurus. This problem needs to be addressed and resolved as soon as possible before severe injuries occur.
I purchased a new 2002 Ford Taurus in Nov. 01'. I have had three coil spring break. The first one was on 2/16/07. I was backing out of my driveway and my front left tire blew. Had to have it towed to a garage. They had to replace the broken coil spring and front left tire and both front ball joints. On 5/15/08 during my state vehicle inspection, the inspection garage notice that one of my back coil springs was broke. I had to have it replaced. On 1/13/09, once again I was backing out of my drive and my front right tire blew. Once again I had to have my car towed to the garage. The front right coil spring was broke. I have to have it replaced along with a new tire. I called Ford Motor Co. Customer service and they said there was no recall on 2002 Ford Taurus coil springs and could do nothing about it. I have since learned there was a recall on Ford Taurus coil springs for model years 1999-2001 & again for Ford Taurus coil springs for model year 2003. I have researched this online and have learned there are 100's if not more complaints about 2002 Ford Taurus coil spring breaking. This situation is very upsetting. I worry every day wondering if a coil spring is going to break and blow my tire while I'm driving. I think it is an outrage that a company as big as Ford cannot do something to correct such a defective piece of equipment.
2002 Ford Taurus ses purchased 12/31/01. Front coil spring broke, slashed tire as I backed out of garage. On inspection, a piece of the strut broke and had to be replaced. Also a rear coil spring was broken and strut was damaged. Now having to replace 4 coil springs, the struts and 4 tires. $1700, with only 56, 000 miles on the car. I will contact Ford about this. There was a recall through 2001 and many documented incidents on the internet chats about the 2002 coil springs. I feel Ford should be accountable and should have included the 2002 model also in the recall. Please advise
We returned home after a five hour trip and parked in our garage, a while later returned to car to retrieve an item out of the car. When I sat down in the drivers seat I heard a loud "bang" that came from the rear of the car. Upon checking things out, I found that the rear drivers side spring had broken. The end result could have been much worse if this happened while traveling due to the fact that the sharp edge of the broken spring was really close to the inside of the tire. I have never seen a spring break like this before. I had a 2001 Taurus that had a recall for the front springs. The band-aid recall from Ford was to install a "shield" on the springs to keep them from puncturing the front tire if the spring broke. When this last issue happened last week, I done some checking and was shocked at the amount of complaints I found for the front and rear spring breakage on the Taurus. Ford is only recalling the 99-01 Taurus for the front springs. The Taurus has continued to have this problem beyond the 2001 model year and Ford has done nothing to help. Why don't I have this kind of problem with my 15 year old 170,000 mile Toyota avalon? when Toyota has a safety issue with any of their vehicles the step up and correct the problem including buying back thousands of their trucks. They must put a higher value on a persons life then Ford! this repair for the rear struts and springs was over $300 for parts alone. Now I'm worried about the front springs breaking while my wife is driving! I was looking to buy a 2010 new body Taurus later this year, but I have suddenly changed my mind. I see a new avalon in our family's future.
My rear spring on the left side of my car snapped and slashed my tire as I was driving. The car is a 2002 Ford Taurus. From what I've read on many discussion boards this is a common occurrence with 2002 Ford tauruses. I think Ford should think about doing a recall for this particular problem being that there is a defect in their springs for this model.
Both rear coil springs snapped into two pieces. The car has 54,000 miles on the odometer. I replaced both struts containing the springs and kept the old parts.
My 2002 Ford Taurus broke a front spring and punctured my tire. This is the second time one of the springs has broken. In the summer of 2007 a rear spring also broke. I only have 32,000 miles on my car and take very good care of my car I was luck the last spring broke in my driveway but right before it broke I was driving in an ice storm. These 2002 Taurus need to be recalled before no one is in a serious accident. December 2008 I had a merry christmas because I was not involved in an accident.
Rear springs snapped in 2002 Ford Taurus. Causing the spring to slide into the side of the tire. Spring has signs of rust pitting, possibly causing the stress of the spring to snap.
2002 Ford Taurus V6 front coil spring broke and ruptured tire in 2006, rear coil spring broke in 2008. Front strut assembly including spring was replaced along with the tire.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bettendorf, IA, USA