CarComplaints.com Notes: Most people need a car that shifts gears & coil springs that don't shred tires. The Taurus fails in that respect.
The 2003 Ford Taurus has major issues with the transmission failing. Typically the 2003 Taurus transmission failure costs $2,000 to fix by about 90k-100k miles. Not good.
Adding insult to injury, the 1999-2003 Taurus also 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 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
99,782 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.
I was driving to work going approximately 10 mph and my car just stopped moving, the engine continued to run, but I could not get the car to move in any gear. I also noticed transmission fluid leaking onto the road. I had the car towed to a service garage to have it checked out. The mechanic called me later that day and told me my transmission was shot. I was given 2 options, have a new transmission put into the car or have mine rebuilt. This would include replacing the torque converter and a chain in the transmission shaft that was showing signs of excessive wear. I choose to have it rebuilt. The mechanic informed me that there was a recall on Ford Windstar's for similar problems involving the transmission and the torque converter. He told me that the same transmission and torque converter were also in my Ford Taurus. I have owned and operated several vehicles produced by the Ford Motor Co. With more than 100,000 miles on them and never experienced any problems with the transmission. The mechanic told me I should file a complaint with the national highway transportation safety board.
Went to my mothers for thanksgiving dinner. On the way home going 55 mile an hour the car stared excelling in speed. My husband was driving and knew to put the car in neutral to get the car to stop. He had to constantly stay on the brakes to slow it down. We got the car home, I looked on line and saw the complaints on your website. My husband then took the car to the local for dealership. He took a copy of the complaint with him. Ford service dept. Said they didn't want to see that article and wanted $80 to even look at the car. The car is not fixed, we plan on trying to get it fixed in the near future. If you would like to see what it is doing, that should take place in the next few weeks.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the transmission failed without warning. The vehicle was towed back to the contact's home. After searching the internet he surmised that the torque converter was the cause of the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis. The contact was advised that the splines inside the torque converter were the cause of the failure. The entire transmission was overhauled. The manufacturer was notified but offered no assistance. The failure and current mileage was 113,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Taurus wagon. The contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and was inspected by a personal mechanic. The mechanic advised the contact that the failure could have been caused by the transmission or the torque converter. The manufacturer was notified who advised the contact that there were no recalls for the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 103,000.
Brake light switch failed, at first the car wouldn't go out of park, after several tries it finally did. At that point it was noticed that the brake lights wouldn't turn off. I found an old recall that appeared to match the vehicle (04S12) but the Ford dealer stated my car was not part of that recall and they would not state whether the car had already had it done or not.
- Winnetka, CA, USA
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As I was driving on the exit ramp at approximately 65 mph December 14, 2012 my 2003 Ford Taurus began to decelerate at a fast rate. When I pushed down on the accelerator there was no power. As I pulled off to the side of the road and dropped it into a different gear there was no change in condition. After idling in park and moving the gear into drive again the rpms increased, but there was no acceleration.
Affected part: Transmission I was accelerating after stopping at a light. The car lunged and made a pop sound then lost speed. I coasted to a shoulder and placed it in park. Then tried reverse and drive and it would not move. It started but would not go anywhere. Had it towed to a transmission shop for repair.
As I was driving on the highway on cruise control, the rpms suddenly increased and the car quickly slowed down (even though it was on cruise control!). luckily, there wasn't a ton of traffic, but I was forced to slowly exit from the left lane. The car just stopped on the service road, right in an area that I could have easily been hit. I've read a ton of complaints exactly like this, and this is pretty unsafe in my opinion.
After driving approximately 3-miles without incident stopped for a red-light. When light changed, stepped on accelerator but car would no move in an gear selected. No prior noises or fluid leakage; just a dead transmission. Appears to be a common (well documented) problem with vehicles of this year, make and model.
The transmission failed as the contact attempted to accelerated uphill in heavy traffic area. I was able to coast to a stop and put the car in park. Started the ignition and attempted to shift into reverse but the vehicle would not respond. The vehicle would not operate in any gear which was selected. The vehicle was towed back to the mechanic where the transmission was replaced/repaired 18 months ago. The manufacturer was notified of the defect. Total cost of repair was $710.
When I was on my way to arbys the transmission went out on me with no warning. My car could not shift gears to go into reverse or forward. Luckily I was able to coast to a stop and put the car in park. The employees at arbys assisted me with pushing the vehicle out of the drive-through. The car runs but cannot shift into any gears. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the faulty transmission was replaced with a transaxle assembly reconditioned transmission with reman torque converter. Total cost of repair was $1,839.33.
I just picked my four year old sun from daycare and the car suddenly stalled without any warning, I was on the left lane and had to steer the car to the side of the road. No forward no reverse. Neighbor said same thing happened to his Taurus and he changed the torque converter and now it drives fine, seems like a common problem. This is a disaster waiting to happen, imagine what would have happened if I was on the highway driving 60?
Was driving down I-74 in the quad city area at approximately 50 mph, when my 2003 Ford Taurus quit moving - just stopped while driving down the interstate! would not move in either forward or reverse directions. I was very lucky I was not hit from behind. Had it towed to my mechanic, and it was determined the pump drive splines inside the torque converter were defective. Had to replace the torque converter at a cost to me of about $2,000. My mechanic said he's seen this exact same issue in about three dozen Taurus' in his shop alone, in 2003 to 2007 models. He is wondering if all torque converters are made at same location and shipped to various plants for installation?? Taurus' built at some plants are part of the recall, but mine isn't because it wasn't built at the "recall" plant. But my vehicle had the same problem as the other torque converter recalls!
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Taurus. The contact was driving 50 mph when the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer who performed a diagnostic test and the located the failure as a defective transmission. The dealer advised the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced. The contact did not have the transmission replaced. The failure mileage was 145,000.
The latest incident was today. Vehicle was started, idling, put into reverse with foot on the brake. Engine suddenly increased speed and vehicle lurched backwards. Vehicle was put in drive with foot on the brake, engine would periodically increase speed and vehicle would lurch forward. On several other occasions while driving, notably at speeds 20-40 mph, vehicle speed would start increasing on it's own. On those occasions, the increase was not rapid or extreme, these were thought to be flukes, but now it's lurching after the vehicle is put in drive or reverse. The frequency of these incidents with this vehicle are increasing and I believe this is a serious safety issue.
Driving 2003 Ford Taurus in heavy traffic on overpass champaign Illinois. RPM's soared and drivetrain completely stopped moving car forward. We coasted to safe parking. Had car towed to transmission mechanic and he stated that Ford should be ashamed of themselves and to keep the receipt of what I had paid in excess of $1200 for new torque converter. I have exact dates in September 2011 to include full receipts in storage at this time. Had I not been as skilled a driver, many could have died in such abrupt drivetrain failure, no warning!!!!!! we want a full refund for want we had to pay, to include towing. We have moved from Illinois to Florida, I am on disability and would appreciate some attention to such a large amount we had to pay for such a dangerous condition. Please contact me if you need additional information and copies of our receipts from the reputable mechanic. Thank you.
Coming into town at highway speeds, slowed down to 30 mph and then nothing the splines in the torque converter stripped out and I lost power to the wheels. Couldn't go forward or backward. Ford does have a recall for newer vehicles but not on my model. My Ford dealer says they have done a number of these repairs on older models as well.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving 55 mph, the vehicle lost power without warning and the transmission would not engage in drive or reverse. A local mechanic inspected the vehicle and advised that the transmission would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure and the current mileage was 119,869.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while stopped at a stop light, the vehicle would not accelerate. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home and was not taken to the dealer for a diagnostic test. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed a transmission failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 232,000.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Pittsburgh, PA, USA