2008 Ford Taurus X: jerking or lurching

Filed Oct 20, 2021 · Acceleration, Electrical · FL

I bought this vehicle used from a lot. It had 2 previous owners and came with all the service history. I first noticed the vehicle seemed like it didn’t want to go into overdrive . It would get to about 70 mph which would have the rpm’s at 3k! The 2nd time or so that we got it to these speeds (on interstate) the vehicle suddenly clunked , steering wheel jerked , vehicle lost power - I had my 2 children in the vehicle and I was pregnant. We had to pull over immediately . After sitting side the road for a few , it crunk up and we rode out . Only for it to happen 2 more times. And this is not the only thing effected by this . Not long after I got it , I started noticing a hard shift / clunk / slam when going into gear and especially when the vehicle has just tried to downshift and I pressed the gas again . Due to this , I’m unable to tell when and if we can pull out into traffic and such. I must time it good in order to not risk getting T boned etc. Also, with 3 kids in tow , a vehicle slamming their necks and heads is dangerous and scary. So , I’ve had some work done on . Trying to help my issue. Apparently my issue is the same as a lot of others . Which is an intermittent issue . And apparently no matter if all the passed recalls were addressed. Or if the owners of the vehicle serviced it often and currant . Or if the pcm was reflashed , replaced etc - the Ford Taurus X will continue to have these issues . And these issues seem to be the same issues that were addressed in the ford recall in 2020 ( which didn’t include the Taurus X) and previous recalls . This drivertrain transmission has been an issue for the Taurus X since forever . Please check into this. Last thing we need is whiplash or life flights from this .

Filed Jan 21, 2021 · Steering, Suspension · 100,274 miles · MI

Driving down the road straight, our car made a pop sound and suddenly lurched and steering was impaired. Car was taken to the nearest dealership where they found the engine cradle/front sub frame had rusted through internally causing the sway bar to break away and it had perforated around the mount for the control arm. We were extremely fortunate the control arm didn't completely drop out causing an accident. Failure is almost identical to the ford escape subframe recall. Dealer technician said he has replaced a lot of these engine cradles in the taurus x's for the same failure (some worse than ours, completely rusted in half etc.). Lack of sufficient paint inside of the cradles causing premature failure is a major safety concern. I would not be surprised if there are accidents reported for this concern. I have requested the engine cradle from the dealership after it is removed for photographic evidence.

Filed Oct 20, 2017 · Engine, Transmission · VA

We have been complaining since 2016 to ted britt ford and to ford about the transmission and the jerking, popping, slipping, especially while turning, and they told us that they could not duplicate the problem. This is not the first time we complained. At one point the service tech told us that slipping, jerking, and popping from the transmission was normal for the taurus x. On 10/20/2017, we broke down on a very busy road. We were driving the car when all of a sudden the car started to buckle and choke. Then we had smoke billowing from the rear of the vehicle. We turned off the engine and turned on the flashers. We found out that the antifreeze reservoir was empty. Something is clearly wrong with this vehicle and ford does not want to correct it. We were forced to buy this car because we believe that ted britt sabotaged our 2003 ford windstar lx. Ted britt sabotaged our windstar through disconnecting the vacuum line that fed the heating and AC. We went for three years freezing in the winter and boiling hot in the summer. They did not want to reconnect that line for our heat and AC. They disassembled a lot of our windstar and threw everything in the back of our van onto the cloth seats. Dashboard, cowl, grill, hood was off the van, tires, brake lines, engine parts, and other parts were thrown onto our cloth back seats. They made our tan seats black with the road grime and grease. Then they decided to ask us if we wanted our van back. That was very rude. We had just cleaned those seats. Now we are having problems with the 2008 ford taurus x. We had to call the police and our auto insurance to help us out. We filed an insurance claim to get the vehicle towed and we had to take a taxi to work.

Filed Apr 29, 2016 · Acceleration, Body · 60,808 miles · IL

Problem 1, paint peeling off hood and rough metal under problem 2, transmission began failing while under warrenty, dealership could not get any codes to show problem this, has continued to present. Was notifed this week by dealer that transmission needs replaced, but because every time you turn off the car the codes reset. Ford motor company and the dealer do not want to assist in the repairs of over $4500.00. Bought extended warranty to 75,000 miles and problem first documented on there forms was at 60,000 miles. While driving the car would down shift and jerk. Happened several time and each time took to dealer they could not find a problem. On several occasions the car would not go in reverse but after turning car off and restarting it would.

Filed Dec 22, 2015 · Transmission · 64,000 miles · TX

There is an intermittent problem with the transmission that has happened about 4-5 times in the past 14 months. When pulling onto a road from a stationary position (like from a driveway or gas station), the transmission had a horrible grinding sound, the vehicle would jerk around for a couple seconds and the gas pedal would not work. It felt as if there were rocks in the transmission. Then, after several seconds, it would be back to normal. I tried taking it to the pegues hurst dealership but since they could not duplicate the issue, even though the vehicle is still under warranty, they say they could not do anything about it. The taurus x has about 64,000 miles on it currently. It most recently happened on about december 7th 2015. If this happens again while pulling into traffic, it could easily cause an accident since the vehicle loses power for several seconds.

Filed Oct 22, 2014 · Transmission · 84,000 miles · KS

This vehicle was shifting incorrectly on a busy hwy ...from second to third. And slammed into gear eventually, extremely hard causing me to jerk the vehicle to the side. Took it to the dealer they supposedly fixed it. Doing the same thing took it back and they will not fix it because it will not throw a code. I got online and found several blogs about having the same issues and not throwing a code. It does all of this totally random. Several people have brought up the fact of being on a major hwy or interstate and this being extremely dangerous to them or their family. Someone will get hurt, this is an ongoing problem that dealers won't fix. Same transmission is used in several chryslers and they are having the same troubles. This is very dangerous and the dealers , warranty company, and ford keep playing the blame game and passing the buck. This can be as big as the toyato's that kept accelerating and killed a bunch of people.

Filed Oct 13, 2014 · Acceleration, Transmission · TX

I have a 2008 ford taurus x , it jerks intermittently, but there is never a specific speed - it jerks at take off, at low speeds, high speeds, there were 2 incidents and it was just for a moment that the vehicle seemed to have lost power no brake, no gas, no steering and I almost went out into traffic ( I was coming out of a parking lot). I called the dealer I bought it from because I thought it was the brakes and took it in they checked the brakes and found nothing wrong. The second "loss" of power was again in a parking lot at an incline I started rolling back and a couple of jerks the vehicle regained power, the check engine light would never come one, as the jerking kept happening and the 2 incidents of loss of power, I took it to a ford dealer and they said they will charge me $100 but if the check engine light is has not on, they will not find anything because the computer records mishaps and will indicate a record by lighting up. Then my transmission clutch fell apart and had to have that replaced on 9/22/14. I thought that must have been the issue with the jerking but was going out of town yesterday 10/12/14 and accelerated to pass an 18 wheeler and my vehicle jerked really hard and continue a couple more times after that. I had to drive 65mph on a 75 MPH, and not accelerate to much to fast.

Filed Aug 18, 2014 · Acceleration, Transmission · 94,095 miles · PA

When u put the car in reverse or in drive it hesitates to move and it jerks.

Filed Jul 29, 2014 · Acceleration, Transmission · 62,000 miles · GA

(my wife) driving vehicle on highway, car violently jerked (jumped) and then dropped in speed dramatically. Coasted off interstate onto exit and waited for wrench light to go off and then made it home (car would not accelerate over 20mph). We called about having it checked but was informed that they needed to have the wrench light on in order to read anything on it. It has happened a few other times and most recent as today (7/29/14) with the car not wanting to accelerate. Prior to this, my son felt the jerk and thought a tire blew. It will not accelerate so you want to hit gas pedal more and it will suddenly jump (accident waiting to happen). This is obviously an issue with all the complaints I have read. I hope this issue is taken care of quickly before a horrific accident happens. God bless.

Filed May 18, 2013 · Acceleration, Electrical · 98,000 miles · TX

Backing out of driveway- I noticed that steering column was not locked prior to inserting key. Inserted key, turned to start and no response from ignition. Kept turning steering column and decided to engage transmission from park to drive several times. I returned to park-ing the car and removed the key. Initially, steering column was not locked, then I turned the steering wheel several times and then the column locked. Turned the key and the ignition hesitated- the dials were jumping. After several seconds the engine turned over and dials went to normal. I commenced to back out of driveway- the engine RPM jumped, far more then what I was applying acceleration for and the transmission was hesitant ( clunking was audible). The vehicle reversed too rapidly and I applied quite a bit of brake to stop- I shifted to drive and again I could hear the transmission. The car hesitated to go forward ( transmission was clunking), jerking forward and slowing down and the engine RPM was erratic. I pulled to the side and placed car in neutral; waited a minute which during this time, the vehicle RPM went to normal. Ok, I placed gear in drive and vehicle responded normally. Have had several instances of some of the above described events happening since original occurrence. At this moment, steering column is not locked with the key removed and when turning car to start the ignition is just turning over.

Filed Jan 15, 2012 · Transmission · 35,000 miles · TN

We initially had issues at 35k miles with the transmission making loud noises and suddenly jerking while accelerating from a stop. Took the car to the dealership and they said they couldn't figure out what the problem was but since we reported it prior to the expiration of the warranty we would be covered if it continued to have problems. In september 2011 the problem was finally bad enough that it tripped the computer and they said that they just needed to replace the sensors (oss and tss), and that it would be a $600 repair. I reminded them that we brought it in for the repair prior to the expiration of the warranty and they eventually agreed to make the repair for a $200 deductible. A month later the transmission went out completely while driving down a narrow road at approximately 35mph. The car lost power but we were eventually able to limp home at 5mph. I agreed and they made the repair. At this point all of the jerking from the bad sensors had destroyed several gears in the transmission and necessitated a complete rebuild ($3900). If they had fixed the problem in the first place the transmission would never have been damaged from trying to shift at the wrong times due to the bad sensors! There were safety concerns throughout the life of this vehicle as is jerked, jumped, and ultimately failed in a completely unpredictable fashion.rebuild ($3900). If they had fixed the problem in the first place the transmission would never have been damaged from trying to shift at the wrong times due to the bad sensors! There were safety concerns throughout the life of this vehicle as is jerked, jumped, and ultimately failed in a completely unpredictable fashion.

Filed May 19, 2011 · Engine · 39,000 miles · NY

My 2008 taurus x has lurched forward on more than 1 occasion. In all the events I have been going very slow, almost just rolling to a stop sign or stoplight. I have been able to control it by stomping on the brake. It doesn't happen often, and there are no other circumstances I can recall.