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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:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
40,000 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.

2003 Ford Taurus engine problems

engine problem

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2003 Ford Taurus Owner Comments

problem #1

Apr 082005

Taurus 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 40,000 miles

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

Driving on highway, vehicle suddenly lost power. Pulled off roadway. Smoke coming from under hood. Raised hood and called 911. Fire department responded to put out fire. Car fully engulfed in flames. Car total loss, front end melted, passenger area fully involved in fire. Extra Ford manufacturer 75,000 warranty specifically states it will cover engine defects, etc however Ford says it can't determine the cause of fire due to excessive thermal damage.

- Spokane Valley, WA, USA

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