10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 2 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 79,402 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
Design flaw - station wagon rear tailgate opening lever and rod to lock is inoperative.
- Normal, IL, USA
Started recently, when I start the car the rpms rev way up. Past 3000. While driving I constantly have to ride the break or put it in neutral. I literally can drive miles at 45 mph and never touch the accelerator pedal. It would shoot up past 3000 rpms. This car's going to kill someone.
- Kalamazoo, MI, USA
Drove head on into a ditch the car wouldn't stop.
- Phoenix, AZ, USA
First time (Oct 2018): While driving on freeway car kept accelerating without my foot on accelerator. I had to brake to slow within acceptable speed. Within 10 minutes the problem stopped occurring. I took it to mechanic & he could not find any problem or replicat the problem. 2nd time (Oct 12, 2018, 4 days after being St mechanic) & 400 miles away from home-- I was driving on surface street in the city, acceleration happened again without any use of accelerator. I had to brake & get to side of street, put in park & turn off engine. Waited 10 minutes & tried again. Problem remedied. We looked on internet & found "unintended acceleration" problem with same make & year due to cruise control cable coming off the throttle control & getting in the way of throttle trying to close. Took it to mechanic, told them to look for this problem with cruise & throttle, & they said they would check. They said they could not replicate the ui but ascribed it to something else & charged me over $400, so I could drive back 400 miles to home safely. 3rd time- within 7 days, same acceleration happened after just leaving home, driving in city. Happened right way, throttled really high RPM's & so I shifted to neutral to stop. Tried it again over next 24 hours & problem continued. Tried it 2 days later when taking it to mechanic & it had resolved so I could drive it there. Told Ford mechanic about the internet explanation. Indeed, that is what they found: The cruise control cable was off the throttle control. Was pinching against the throttle, causing it to stay open. They tri ed to get the part, but were unable. So they used a cable tie to secure it in place. That has been almost a month ago, & I have not had the unintended acceleration occur since.
- Oconto Falls, WI, USA
The car suddenly lost all forward motion while in highway traffic at about 70 mph, engine running and transmission in drive. The cause is a stripped out torque converter input spline. The transmission pump drive rod is too weak and the gear teeth too fine that the teeth on it get stripped inside the converter quite easily and without warning. This causes loss of transmission pump pressure and resultant loss of forward propulsion. In highway traffic, this could result in a fatal accident, particularly from the rear and if at highway speed. This is a design flaw because the teeth on the torque converter input shaft (which powers the transmission pump), are prone to strip. If the transmission pump is not being driven (which will happen if the input shaft strips inside the torque converter while being driven), the transmission will lose all ability to propel the vehicle. There are complaints all over the internet of owners of Ford Taurus's with the very same problem. What is odd is that Ford did issue a recall on some Ford freestar minivans with the very same transmission and design flaw, but the recall did not include Ford Taurus's with very same transmission and design flaw. Ford refuses to repair the vehicle free or issue a recall. Please force Ford Motor Company to recall all Ford tauruses with this design flaw. Many years ago Ford was found guilty of intentionally building defective Ford pintos, which resulted in several death with exploding gas tanks when these vehicles were involved in a collision. Please don't let Ford Motor Company get away with another design flaw that could result in more accidents with fatalities.
- Washington, UT, USA
Door will not latch closed. Door remains open. Door latch spring may be frozen. I opened the door and started the motor but could not drive car because driver door would not latch closed. There are several similar complaints online regarding the same type of vehicle. This problem causes significant risk of injury and death and should be addressed by the manufacturer immediately.
- Voorhees, NJ, USA
I was driving my 2005 Ford Taurus home when the car began to accelerate on its own. The gas pedal was stuck. I tapped the gas pedal several times and this helped for a second then it began accelerating on its own again. It picked up speed and I had to ride the brake all the way to my house. This is a very dangerous situation and I have seen that other 2005 Ford Taurus owners are experiencing the same problem. I called the Ford company and there is no recall at this time. If you own a 2005 Ford Taurus be aware of this issue. Another complaint: My daughter was driving my car when it stopped dead in the middle of the road, on April 28, 2016 I had to put out $1100 to fix the torque converter on my 2005 Ford Taurus. This amount set my budget over the top. I had to borrow the money to have it repaired. Called the Ford company again, no recall again. No resolution.
- Atlantic Highlands, NJ, USA
www.freep.com/story/money/cars/Ford/2016/09/08/Ford-recalls-15M-more-vehicles-faulty-door-latch/90005514/ Ford recalls 1.5M more vehicles for faulty door latch my 2005 Ford Taurus experiences multiple non-latching issues on all 4 doors (front and back), including going down the road and the door flies open. I can then no longer close the door as it won't latch closed. Only after clicking the latch open/close manually does it finally begin to work once again. Note: This issue is much worse in the colder season especially after rain/ sleet, or snow. Biggest concern - once it opens, it won't close/lock shut. Please address this voluntary limited recall by Ford as a safety recall for all Ford products.
- Livonia, MI, USA
Car accelerates on its own when driving. I have almost wrecked numerous times because of it. Not safe at all. When pulling into my driveway every day it does it and shoots me into the driveway fast almost hitting garage. This needs to be recalled before me or my kids are hurt because of it.
- St Joseph, MO, USA
I have a car that revs to 3 on start. On driving or backing it 'chugs' on it's own and has jumped 3 ft back when backing up. It stall at stop sign/red lights. It "chugs" even when car has warmed up and will "chug" at each stop and start. City driving is impossible as are parking lots. Very dangerous! I have spen $450. On repairs. I even went to the Ford dealer, same thing. Trial and error and it is not fixed and is getting too expensive. I need a solution to this. It has been 3 months of horror driving this car and I have my grandchildren on a very regular basis. Please help!
- Winslow, ME, USA
The car revs to 3 RPM's on start. Eventually, it may kick down. As you start off, reverse or drive, the car "chugs" and has jumped back 3 ft while I was backing up. It may stall at stop sign/red light. It "chugs" at each slow down and start. Very dangerous. It is necessary and very dangerous and unnatural, but left foot on the brake and right on the gas is mandatory. Also very dangerous. Parking lots are hazardous, as is my parking at home. The car "chugs" completely on its own and if one is not completely aware and prepared will jump 3 feet and hit what ever is near.
- Winslow, ME, USA
Was at stopped at a red light, when it turned green proceeded through the intersection when my car suddenly down-shifted into neutral without any warning. The check engine light had come on, but no noises or any other mechanical indication. The car behind me had to swerve around quickly to avoid hitting me. I had to put the car in park, and turn off, and restart to gain my drive ability back. After that I would not drive the car, for safety of myself and children. My husband test drove it after doing some basic transmission services, but the problem persisted. He now believes that it is the torque converter, which after much research is highly common with this make and model. This is a costly repair, and an extremely dangerous issue, that seems to be occurring frequently among owners of this make and model. Im in disbelief that Ford hasn't been investigated for transmission issues by now, after the hundreds of complaints made about this exact issue.
- Port Charlotte, FL, USA
Was driving my car when all the sudden it accelerated up to 40+mph with our me even touching pedal... I attempted to hit brakes but it kept going and slammed into curb on passenger side.. no body damage was done but I destroyed both rims, tires are flat and wheels are bent which I'm assuming is the alignment and suspension... I just bought/financed this car from a used lot on 10-18-2014 and now owe for a car that's pretty much totaled... however I did notify them that night (5 hrs after purchase) that the car was revving high and accelerating and hard to stop. I also took video of this... but I had to work all week and didn't have time to go in and complain about issue.. then on Friday October 24th after I got off work and was almost home.. the car sped up and I couldn't stop it had to hit curb in order to stop car from driving me through an intersection and into a concrete wall. And now the car is parked in my complex, and can't be driven.... I'm just extremely thankfull that my wife and newborn were not with me this time..
- Las Vegas, NV, USA
When aoperating about 35 miles per hour the car will suddenly accelerate on its own. The RPM will go to 3+. to interrupt I tap the gas pedal a couple of times and step on the brake. It does not happen all of the time. I thought I had done something the first time, but then it has happened several times since. It is at the car dealership to be worked on tomorrow.
- Windham, ME, USA
The mileage listed is approximate as the car is still in for servicing. On the morning of 3/14/2012, I was slowing down to stop at a red light. The car felt like it was still accelerating, as if the cruise control was on. I hit the brakes but nothing happened. I ended up having to hold the brake down to the floor to make the car come to a stop. I tried shifting into neutral and the rpms shot up to 4. I shifted back into drive and the car still tried to accelerate. The whole time at the red light, the engine was revving and the brake felt like it was fighting the accelerator. When the light turned green and I took my foot off the brake pedal, the car accelerated. I pulled off into a parking lot and held the brake to the floor again to make it stop. I put the car in neutral and the rpms shot up again. I put it in park and the rpms were going to 5. I turned the car off thinking that may reset whatever the issue was. I waited 5 minutes before turning the car back on and when I did, the rpms again shot up to 4. I called the nearest Ford dealership to make arrangements for service and started the car again. The same thing happened. I shifted into drive and as soon as I took my foot off the brake the car accelerated. The car seemed to be stuck in cruise control, fully accelerating. The car was taken straight to the dealership and when the technician started the vehicle, he experienced the same issue. After a diagnostic test, the technician told me that the issue was with the air intake and also stated there was an electronic update for the Taurus available. I asked if this would correct the acceleration issue and he stated that it should.
- Woodbridge, VA, USA
2005 Ford Taurus - throttle sticks, vehicle will speed up without pushing on the gas. This has occurred numerous times, quite scary regardless of location or speed. This has occurred in town and on the interstate. Vehicle must be put in neutral and the gas peddle must be pushed to the floor to get vehicle back under control.
- Warrensburg, MO, USA
Numerous times, when the foot was removed the accelerator, the engine did not return to idle but continued as if your foot was still on the accelerator. Would have to apply brakes and get off the road. Extremely hard to stop if going very fast. Kill the engine, raise the hood and barely touch throttle control where the accelerator cable is attached and it would snap back to the idle position. This has happened at least 7 or 8 times. Extremely dangerous!
- Aledo, TX, USA
I noticed a musty smell first. After a heavy rain I noticed that my passenger foot well was soaking wet under the floor mat. I dried it up. Next time it rained it was wet again and I did notice some dripping from the top right of the foot well. Other water is coming in somewhere else, maybe behind the carpet as it is getting more wet every time it rains. The entire floor is soaked with water.
- Syracuse, NY, USA
While in parking lot, car suddenly accelerated without touching the gas pedal. Held the brakes to keep car from moving and put the car in neutral. When I put the car in neutral, the rpms when up to 7000, gas pedal was not being touched. After I got the car stopped and while in neutral, I quickly pumped the gas pedal once and the engine came back down to idle. This has happened on the highway as well. I am surprised by the many reports of this on the Ford Taurus that it isn't a recall. This is the same type of issue Toyota had. Sudden acceleration. Does someone have to die before this gets recalled?
- Columbus, OH, USA
- Concord, NC, USA