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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:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
100,218 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.

2002 Ford Taurus suspension problems

suspension problem

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2002 Ford Taurus Owner Comments (Page 4 of 8)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #95

Jan 012012

Taurus

  • 162,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the front passenger side coil spring failed. While reversing, the contact heard a loud noise coming from the front end. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed that the front passenger side coil spring fractured and pierced the tire. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 162,000. The VIN information was not available.

- Pataskala, OH, USA

problem #94

Jan 022012

Taurus

  • 106,000 miles
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving 5 mph, the front driver's side coil spring fractured and pierced the tire. The vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 106,000.

- West Salem, OH, USA

problem #93

Dec 312011

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 75,810 miles
New years eve with my husband myself, son and his fiances daughter in the car, driving on interstate at 70mph, heading to restaurant, rt front coil broke. Thank god it didn't slice tire and cause a blow out and kill us or someone else. Why has there been no recall on coils installed on Ford Taurus newer than 2001?? this is the second incident of coil failure on my car, a back one went a few years ago.

- Pine City, NY, USA

problem #92

Feb 052007

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 35,546 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Backing out of garage heard loud leak of air. Thought flat tire. When about to change tire discovered coil broke and slashed tire. Thank god didn't happen a couple weeks before when son borrowed car and was driving on highway out of state. Of course no recall on these coils so had to pay out of pocket cor 2 new rear coil springs and labor to install. Checked on internet and read hundreds of posts on this problem with the Taurus. Why not a recall on this year??

- Pine City, NY, USA

problem #91

Nov 202011

Taurus

  • 69,000 miles
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact was driving approximately 5 mph when the front driver's side coil spring fractured. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and was repaired. The failure recurred approximately one month later on the front passenger side coil spring. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 69,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Syracuse, NY, USA

problem #90

Dec 192011

Taurus

  • 120,000 miles
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the driver front coil spring failed. The contact found that the coil spring had also punctured the front driver side tire. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but the vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 120,000.

- Jamesville, WI, USA

problem #89

Nov 022011

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 62,200 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

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

- Port Saint Lucie, FL, USA

problem #88

Jan 012010

Taurus

  • 60,000 miles
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that she heard a loud banging noise while driving 5 mph. Upon exiting the vehicle, she noticed that the front driver side coil spring had fractured and pierced the tire. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where three of the four coil springs were replaced. The fourth coil spring fractured approximately two years later. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.

- Northville, MI, USA

problem #87

May 012010

Taurus

  • miles
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the vehicle was having new tires installed at an independent repair shop when he was informed that both rear coil springs were fractured. The vehicle was in the process of having the coil springs replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #86

Sep 162011

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 44,526 miles
Took my car in for an oil change and they showed me that my front passenger coil spring was broken. Was told this is a very common issue and is a safety concern because many people have the spring go into their tires.

- Washington, MI, USA

problem #85

Nov 152010

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 148,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was pulling my wife's car out of the garage when the left front tire blew. I thought it was just a flat till I noticed that the front strut (spring) had broken. I could tell that this happened because of a manufacturing defect (the steel was not heat treated properly). I know this because I spent 40 years in the auto industry as a quality control manager. I took the car into my mechanic and had all four struts replaced at a cost of almost $800 this is a true safety defect because my wife travels to work on I-75 at 70 mph and drives 60 miles one way to work. If this happened on the highway, she surely would have flipped over!

- Lapeer, MI, USA

problem #84

Jun 132011

Taurus

  • 39,004 miles
I own a 2002 Ford Taurus that has approximately 39,000 miles on it. On Monday June 13, 2011 I was backing out of the parking space at work and heard a loud noise. I got out and my left front tire was flat. I attempted to use the scissor jack that came with the car but it collapsed and broke. I had to have the car towed. The front strut and spring broke and exploded into the tire. Today I have spent $1,200 for the repair of both front springs and struts and 2 new tires. I want to know who to address so that I can get reimbursed for this obvious safety issue. I could have been killed if I have been on the road driving. I am reporting this incident to the federal Agency that looks into safety recalls.

- Urbandale, IA, USA

problem #83

Apr 102011

Taurus

  • 95,200 miles
My car was just sitting in the drive way, untouched, when the coil spring just broke and a piece went in to my tire for no apparent reason. It should also be noted that on June 3, 2011, I was having a muffler replaced whenthe mechanic noticed that my rear coil spring was broke with a piece of the remaining coil spring within a half inch of my tire. It was quite costly to repair each time. I feel extremely lucky to not have been driving my car at the time this occured.

- Averill Park, NY, USA

problem #82

Mar 112011

Taurus

  • 66,000 miles
The right rear suspension coil broke and punctured the corresponding tire, causing it to go flat. When the vehicle was taken to the dealer for repair, the left rear coil was also found to be in defect and no longer safe for driving. Luckily, I was not driving at a fast speed when the incident occurred. Upon first getting the vehicle, we saw many reports of the front suspension coils breaking at low mileage, in addition to several rear coils breaking described on this site : www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Taurus/2002/suspension/broken_front_spring.shtml

- Burton, OH, USA

problem #81

Jun 012011

Taurus

  • 162,275 miles
2002 Ford Taurus wagon, front coil spring failure with tire puncture. Slowing as approaching traffic signal, speed 22mph, front passenger coil failed. Broken coil spring then punctured tire, ripping large gash in inside sidewall causing immediate deflation and body of car dropped to the ground suddenly. Cut in tire is 180 degrees around tire, . incident required use of a tow truck and replacement of both front coil springs and replacement of one tire. Thankful that this incident didn't happen five minutes later on the freeway at 65 mph. As loss of control would have been probable.

- West Bend, WI, USA

problem #80

May 272011

Taurus 6-cyl

  • 139,123 miles
Car was receiving safety inspection and was noticed that rear coil spring was broke both rear struts replaced at that time 1-4-10, 119,500 miles. The front driver spring also broke while driving leaving parts on the road on 5-27-11, 139,123 miles. Both front struts were replaced at that time.

- Lehighton, PA, USA

problem #79

Apr 292011

Taurus

  • 106,000 miles
At 7:30 am on April 29, 2011, I left my apartment and got into my car to drive to work. I turned on the ignition and went to back out and immediately I heard a scraping noise. I got out of the car and noticed the tire was completely flat. I called aaa and they arrived by 8:00 am and the gentleman removed the tire and found that it was tore in half in a semi-circle shape. He then looked at the spring and realized that it was completed broke in half as well. The spring was completely cracked and was broken off from the top where it was mounted as well. He then called a tow truck to come, which took the car to a nearby mechanic to repair the issue.

- Windsor, CT, USA

problem #78

Apr 262011

Taurus

  • 86,560 miles
While backing out of our driveway the drivers side front coil spring broke puncturing the tire, separating the axle, and damaging the stabilizer link. Fortunately no injuries occurred.

- Johnsburg, IL, USA

problem #77

Apr 012011

Taurus

  • 82,000 miles
While maneuvering in a parking lot, the right front coil spring failed, puncturing the tire and rendering the vehicle undrivable.

- Saranac Lake, NY, USA

problem #76

Apr 042011

Taurus

  • 165,628 miles
On the morning of April 4, 2011, I started my 2002 Ford Taurus SE wagon and put it in reverse. The moment the car began to move, I heard a loud "bang" sound and then the car would not move anymore. I got out and saw that the front tire on the driver's side was flat. I checked the tire and found that it had been slashed by the spring that had just broken. I had to have the car towed to the Ford dealership. The mechanic said that when the coil spring broke it damaged the sway bar link as well as cutting up my tire. Both front coil springs, 1 sway bar link, and 1 tire had to be replaced. I did some research on the internet and found that many others have had this same problem. There is a recall on the 1999 - 2001 Taurus, but not the 2002. Ford is being very negligent by not extending the recall to the 2002 Taurus. It is unfair that I, and many others are having to pay for repairs that have been caused by faulty parts. The only thing I am grateful for is that this happened in my driveway and not while I was traveling on the highway. By ignoring this problem and not extending the recall, Ford is not only causing financial hardships for customers, they are also endangering the lives of many people. Please do what you can to continue the investigation of faulty coil springs on the Ford Taurus.

- Wales, MA, USA

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