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8.8

pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$2,170
Average Mileage:
80,450 miles
Total Complaints:
176 complaints

Most Common Solutions:

  1. not sure (49 reports)
  2. replace transmission (48 reports)
  3. rebuild transmission (44 reports)
  4. repair torque converter (18 reports)
  5. ford should repair this (17 reports)
2005 Ford Taurus transmission problems

transmission problem

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2005 Ford Taurus Owner Comments (Page 1 of 9)

problem #176

Sep 032012

Taurus SE 3.0

  • Automatic transmission
  • 102,000 miles

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

Transmission failure: Torque converter splines stripped

- W C., Kansas City, MO, US

problem #175

Jul 272019

Taurus SE V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 54,000 miles

I Just brought this vehicle from Mass Auto World in Whitman Ma from Micheal Rinella on 3/30/19 with 52,684 miles on it. This car broke down on 7/27/19 the gas pedal went to the floor and the vehicle just would not move. I was stranded for 4 1/2 hours broken down before I could get a tow truck in 100 degree weather to come get the vehicle. It was towed to an auto center where they were able to identify that the car stopped because of the transmission. To make a long story short I am trying to get this rectified one way or another. I am trying to find out if this is a manufacturer defect. This is unheard of, a car transmission gone at 52,684 miles. I have a feeling that the dealer may have known something was wrong with this vehicle and got it going enough to pass the inspection.

- staff19, Brockton, US

problem #174

Jul 152016

Taurus ES 3.0L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 59,406 miles

I bought a new 2005 Ford Taurus after knowing that Ford had built this model for 17 years and thought that it would be reliable. It turned out to be the WORST car that I have ever owned. As of today (4/10/17) and with only 62,400 miles on it, the transmission has been changed TWICE, the starter and coil have failed, and the cam follower has failed. I hope that the rotten Ford engineers who designed this car rot in hell.

- leporednddl, Ormond Beach, US

problem #173

Feb 182017

Taurus LE 3L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 125,000 miles

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

I had 2005 Taurus everything was so good but one day from nowhere transmission got failed. My mechanic said Torque converter failed but you have to rebuilt transmission. To rebuilding transmission it will cost $2200 as well there is no guarantee that it will be fixed completely.

SO I scrap my car and bought new one.

- Abhijeet G., Troy, MI, United States

problem #172

Jun 162010

Taurus SE 3.0L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 76,000 miles

ON HWY 3 going home with daughter; there was a very loud noise and then started losing power quickly; able to coach car off hwy into a lot; had to push into parking lot; had to walk home (1:30 a.m.). Called an auto shop. Had car towed to home. Mechanic came and checked vehicle. Towed to his shop. The transmission was totally gone. The shop replaced transmission-giving me a 2 year warranty.

- Marjorie J., Houston, TX, US

problem #171

Feb 092017

Taurus SE 3.0L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 185,000 miles

Transmission failure again. Twice within a 7 year period. First time was 6/2010 and now again 02/2017. I am not waiting any more money on transmission. Apparently, there is a problem with the 2005 Ford Taurus transmission as well. This is wrong. Ford should consider buying this car back from me or pay the the countless $ spent in replacing electronic items that are constantly going out. I have a book on everything that I have had to fix on this vehicle. I could have brought another car.

I was never informed about a recall on service brakes, hydraulic. My car have been in the shop 3 times pertaining to brakes service, 4 times due to battery replacement, countless times for tires replacement (at least 9-10 times), fuse box assembly replace, starter assembly replacement, engine flush, radiator service; you name it, it was done. Regular routine maintenance should have been enough but not with the problem that this car had. I purchased this 2005 Ford Taurus in February 2009. Now it is February 2017, and the car will not move because the transmission is totally gone. I will not spend any more money on this car. It's a piece of junk. I thought Ford was a great brand to buy.

Update from Feb 27, 2017: I purchased the car used at 48489 miles

- Marjorie J., Houston, TX, US

problem #170

Apr 042015

Taurus SE

  • Automatic transmission
  • 76,009 miles

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

This is a 2005 Taurus that I was given by my Mother that she gave me for free last summer. On April 4,2015, I was1/2 mile from home, coming home from work with my car full of musical equipment. At 1:15 am when the transmission quit on me. I had to PUSH the car home or the police would have had me towed. I am a 62 year old man with severe lower back problems and this was the last thing I needed to be doing.

A few days later I found a transmission repair shop who towed my car back to their shop (I was glad they didn't charge me for that).

The charge for the work and parts and labor was $1650. The mileage was 76,009. I bought a new 2005 Taurus back in 2005 and eventually (I forgot the mileage) the same thing happened to the transmission and the price to fix it was exactly the same. What a coincidence!

- Dennis D., Superior Twp., MI, US

problem #169

Mar 012014

Taurus SE V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 134,000 miles

Car has always up to date on maintenance. I expect the transmission to completely go out on any day. I am disabled and cannot afford another car. I must abandon my home also as it must be completely rewired and will put no more in to this constant chaotic house mess. In other words it appears I may be homeless this month in order to avoid another house fire and will have no way to drive anywhere; I imagine that no home and no car will remove me from the transplant list so I am PISSED!!!!!!!

- ebbing, Bigelow, AR, US

problem #168

Sep 012014

Taurus SE V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 101,300 miles

This is the second major problem I have had with this vehicle. I really regret buying this vehicle. My spouse works for DDS and they have five FORD TAURUS IN BACK Gate due to transmission failure. This is a sorry vehicle. I will never buy a Ford again.

- john.williams551jw, Albany, GA, US

problem #167

Jun 152014

Taurus ES

  • Automatic transmission
  • 85,000 miles

My mother is 76 yrs old and on social security. She has a 2005 Ford Taurus with 85,000 miles. We are driving down the road and the RPM's jump up between 4 and 5, the check transmission light comes on and the car won't go over 20 mph. It costs $2150 that she will never get paid off. I wonder if the Better Business Bureau can help with this problem if there are enough complaints. I know I will never buy a Ford.

- Sandra M., Washington Court House, OH, US

problem #166

May 202011

Taurus SE 3.0L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 80,000 miles

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

I'm 18 years old and received a 2005 Ford Taurus SE 3.0L V6 for my birthday. It was my dad's and it was handed down to me . The car always had some sort of transmission problems but grew worse when I received it. As I read all the other complaints on this particular 2005 Taurus I realize that Ford makes these transmission completely sh*tty.

When I accelerate from a stop it jerks hard when shifting from 1st to 2nd, it's annoying AF. All the diagnostics I get is rebuild the tranny or replace it!! Also realize that this is no coincidence that people have the SAME PROBLEM with the SAME YEAR Ford Taurus. This is complete BS and Ford should have recalled this a LONG time ago.. I always thought Ford was the greatest but I'm glad I learned at a young age to never buy a Ford again. They can care less about their customers and they build sh*tty transmissions with warranty of only 60k!?!?!? WHAT THE F*CK!!!

Seriously people, this is a serious problem with these cars and Ford should be sued and recall all Ford Taurus' with these problems and ship us all new cars, those rat bastards.. It's not people as car owners, its FORD with their carelessness. I can build a better tranny make of sticks twigs and glue!!!!! My father always kept this car in great condition, treated it like a baby as he is a prof. Mechanic. I am so furious and I feel other peoples struggles because this is complete crap.. RECALL THE 2005 FORD TAURUS AND GIVE US NEW CARS YOU DICKS. I know everyone agrees because these transmissions suck ASS!! . Start a class lawsuit people .

Please. Never buy a Ford, they don't give 2 sh*ts about you and they don't take in consideration that these cars are dangerous and can get people killed with these transmissions.

- Joey G., Lakeside, CA, US

problem #165

Sep 112013

Taurus 3.0L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 72,000 miles

Ford dealer claims unaware of any issues.

Past 3 yr. 36000 mi.

I am going foreign now.

- Mark H., schererville, IN, US

problem #164

Oct 092010

Taurus 3.0L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 65,268 miles

First time Ford buyer! I did the research, consumer reports, edmunds recommendations. All seemed great! Purchased used, 3/07 - 29,000 miles. Car was really great for past 3 1/2 years. Only replaced tires, and did regular oil changes.

Car now has 65,268 miles, yet this past weekend on a major highway at 70 mph the engine suddenly revved to 7,000 rpm, and the car suddenly had no gears. I was passing another car at the time, I managed to get to the side of the road without getting killed. Park and Neutral was all I had. No warning light, no unusual noise. No indication what so ever! Towed 100 miles to get it home to regular repair shop. 4 days later, I just Paid $2,999 dollars for a new rebuilt Jasper transmission with a 3 year, 100,000 mile warranty. I called Ford's complaint line. They are so sorry, but can do nothing for me. Powertrain warranty on this car is 3 years or 36,000 miles! A rebuilt transmission comes with a better warranty than a new Ford! That says alot about Ford!

From what I have seen on this website and many others this is a common occurence with the 2005 Taurus, 100's of people have had the same problem, yet Ford does nothing! No recalls at all on the 2005!

$3,000 certainly makes up for 3 years of no repairs! Still owe 18 months on the car, so had no choice but to repair it. Everyone I know told me not to buy a Ford when I purchased this, I ignored them based on the research. Clearly, I was wrong! Be assured, I will never buy a Ford again!

- Sara A., Dryden, NY, US

problem #163

Mar 262012

Taurus SEL V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 100,256 miles

I drove my Ford Taurus to work and it was working fine , whenever I got off and started the car up it wouldn't move in any gear, it started up perfectly I've never had any transmission problems with it before, but it wouldn't drive or reverse. This really frustrated me I actually only owed a little over $700 left to finish my last payment. Now I had a $2000 transmission problem, I kept it well maintenance my car actually stills looks pretty much brand new. So yeah never buying ford again.

- Paul Y., College Station, TX, US

problem #162

May 152012

Taurus

  • Automatic transmission
  • 170,000 miles

I've had my 2005 Ford Taurus for 5 years and about a year ago Ive noticed after highway driving, as I'm accelerating from a stop the car "jumps forward" as it gets into gear, its getting more often. So I took it in to a friend who works at a transmission shop. Yep, sure enough its the trans. I'm disappointed because this car has been great for me, now I have to dump over $1000 bucks into it. Thanks FORD!!!!

- Kristin B., Highland, IN, US

problem #161

Jul 012013

Taurus

  • Automatic transmission
  • 118,000 miles

PLEASE READ THIS REVIEW, IT MAY SAVE YOU A LOT* OF MONEY AND HEADACHE*

I had already read this site before regarding transmission issues months ago when my car experienced juddering (turned out to be a bad exhaust system and unrelated to this) so I was aware of the likelihood of this used car having transmission issues.

As I feared, I left for work on July 1st and whilst driving, I revved, and it didn't go anywhere. Transmission fault.

I had it sent to the dealer who charged $100 to look at it and conclude, and I quote: "the entire transmission is messed up: burnt oil and everything. It needs to be entirely replaced."

I did research on the link I added to this site (Please read - it's extremely useful) http://www.taurusclub.com/forum/82-maintenance-repair/167530-transmission-died-torque-converter-failure.html

A lot of people had advised it WASNT a transmission problem in entirety, but a torque converter whose splines are too thin and as a result, tend to wear out. They all described the exact same symptom: Car revs, but won't move in any gear.

I spoke to a transmission shop near me, who funnily enough, have 2 tauruses parked there now. Apparently, the torque converter is an issue with tauruses in general, not just the '05, and they fix 5/6 PER MONTH!!

They replaced the converter and it works perfectly. They told me that they've never seen a repeat issue once they put in a converter with stronger splines.

TL;DR: The dealer wants to throw in a whole new transmission for $3310 and claimed it was totally fried. It wasn't. Swapped torque converter for $650 and works perfectly. PLEASE CHECK WITH A GOOD TRANSMISSION SHOP BEFORE AGREEING TO SWAP A TRANSMISSION - if they do, you get a new converter, and that's all you need - my dealership swore up and down it wasn't the converter, but then they wanted $3310 of my money!

Good luck, all.

- David A., Huntsville, AL, US

problem #160

Jun 012007

Taurus SE

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles

I had the car two years,bought in 2005 and in 2007 the transmission went out! NOT HAPPY

The cost to repair was 2100 since of course was out of warranty

Was told by the mechanic that Ford is aware of this problem and will not do a recall.Getting ready to purchase a new car and highly doubt it will be a Ford which is sad because I have always bought Fords.

- Jamie W., Buchanan, MI, US

problem #159

Jun 072013

Taurus 3.0L V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 63,388 miles

I was on my way to the hospital around 6am with my 5 year old daughter after she had been up sick all night. i stopped at a intersection and started to pull out and the car would not move, just rev up. no forward or reverse gears. I had to push the car over to the side of the road and call for somebody to come pick us up and continue to the hospital. I have owned 4 new fords over the past 15 years and and this will definetly be my last. if I can only get a 100 000km on it and the tranny quits. And from what i have been reading a lot of people has had the same issue with the transmission in these Taurus's and Ford hasn't accepted any reponsibility what so ever for their screw up..

- kman, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada

problem #158

Feb 132013

Taurus

  • Automatic transmission
  • 96,000 miles

Three years ago my 2005 for Taurus started to excelerate on its own....very scary!! my neighbor was able to rig it with a zip tie and I have not had troubles with that. However, within the last month my Taurus has decided it doesn't want to excelerate as quickly as most cars. Flushed the transmission fluid, still having problems. Diagnostic testing today says it transmission failure. I am ticked.....thought I could atleast get 100,000 miles out of this car. I am so done with Fords. Even if someone gave me a ford I think I would pay them to take it away! what a RIP!!!

- DeAndra S., North Oaks, MN, US

problem #157

May 272013

Taurus SES 3.2L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 155,000 miles

Well, it looks like I'm in good company. My son and I were coming home at 8:30 p.m. I stopped at a red light and when it turned green, I turned left. Midway through the turn, I lost power. I coasted into a gas station parking lot and turned off the car. I turned the car back on but it wouldn't move. I had to call my 71-year-old mother to come pick us up. By the time my mom got back to her own home it was after 10 p.m.! The next day my brother took me back to the gas station so we could meet a tow truck. My car was towed to garage. I found out today that it will cost $2400.00 plus tax to rebuild my transmission. I have the option of getting a remanufactured transmission for $2800, or a Jasper transmission for $3800. I am getting it rebuilt because I can't afford a new car or even an old car. I am hoping the rebuilt tranny will last at least 100,000 miles. The original lasted 155,000 miles. Ford should definitely recall the 2005 transmission, and I will join in class action suit that may result from this problem. Thanks for all your help Mom!!

Update from Aug 28, 2014: Well I had the transmission rebuilt and it worked for a little over a year. Yesterday the Check Transmission light came on and, yes, I need another transmission. This time I have 181,000 miles on the car. The rebuilt tranny lasted almost 30,000 miles. I am so disgusted! My now 72-year-old mother had to save me again!!! I should have bought a different car last time this happened since I am going to have to buy a different car this time around--then at least I wouldn't have wasted my time and money.

- Melody T., Evansville, IN, US

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