1997 Ford Taurus: brake failure

Filed Sep 27, 2015 · Brakes · 105,000 miles · GA

When driving the car at a low rate of speed a few miles from my neighborhood, I noticed that the brake light indicator came on. I slowed down to look around the car but could not find anything. I drove the car home and just as I was driving into my neighborhood, the brakes stopped working. Very luckily, I did not get into an accident. It turns out that the metal rear brake lines running underneath the driver's side front door were completely corroded and one of the lines had burst (the one affecting the diagonal brake circuit for the front driver side and rear passenger side). This came without warning, and I could have easily been stranded (or killed) on a busy highway out of control. This is a safety issue justifying a recall. Amazingly, the other underside components of the vehicle are in much better shape than the brake lines. Why ford would fail to properly coat or protect a critical component like the rear brake lines so that they would not corrode is an inexcusable safety hazard. I have read of this rear brake line issue elsewhere being extremely common for this vehicle, so this is not a "one off" event. Sooner or later, someone will get into a serious accident or be killed!

Filed Oct 31, 2010 · Brakes · 77,387 miles · PA

Brake line burst. Control became nonexistent. Got very lucky bringing it home, although I did run into the back of my garage (because the brakes didn't work).

Filed Dec 16, 2009 · Brakes · 90,000 miles · NJ

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford taurus . During brake application at 25 MPH the pedal went to the floor. He had to use the emergency brake to stop the vehicle. A mechanic from a local repair facility stated that the brake line was leaking. No repairs were made. The failure and current mileages were 90000.

Filed Apr 23, 2009 · Brakes · 120,000 miles · NH

Complete and sudden brake failure. Placed foot on brake pedal to reverse car out of parking spot. (would have caused severe injury/damage had I been at highway speed or city maneuvering). Pedal went to floor and brake fluid puddled under the car. Had car towed to repair facility and brake lines were repaired. Mechanic said ford's plastic bracket allowed water/dirt/salt to accumulate and rust through lines.

Filed Feb 11, 2009 · Brakes · 89,700 miles · PA · crash

While driving for a fuel fill-up on a heavily-traveled allegheny co (pa) four-lane road (speed approx. 30-35 MPH), traffic heavy, I experienced, without prior warning, a sudden total loss of all braking effectiveness. I followed a ford f-250 pickup into the gas station lot and brought my car (1997 ford taurus sdn, 90,000 miles on odometer) to a stop by smashing into the back of the truck. No one was injured. There was extensive damage to the front end of my car; inconsequential damage to the heavy-duty steel rear bumper of the truck. A sizable puddle of brake fluid was observed forming under driver's side fr door of my car, caused by sudden catastrophic rupture of one or more hydraulic brake lines on my car, resulting in total loss of all braking power. My car is now under repair to replace all rusted-out or corrosion-compromised brake system components. What if, instead of 5:15 pm on a saturday, this catastrophic loss of brakes had occurred at 3:15 pm on a school day, with a school bus in front of me disgorging half a bus load of school kids crossing the street in front of me? Believe me, the flashing red lights of the school bus would not have caused my car to stop. In over 50 yrs of driving, this is the first time I ever experienced a brake line failure, and I routinely drive a car for 10+ yrs. Have the auto mfgrs been permitted to squeeze a few more pennies of profit by adopting a cheaper, less corrosion-resistant grade of steel for the vehicle brake lines? Is not the braking system of my '97 supposed to have a redundancy feature to retain some braking effectiveness in the event of loss of one of the lines? The manager of the repair shop where I took the car tells me that brake line replacement has become an increasingly common repair in this part of the snow-and-salt winter driving belt.

Filed Mar 8, 2006 · Brakes, Engine · 14,000 miles · NY

Dt*: the contact stated while attempting to apply brake pressure at 65 MPH the brakes went to the floor. When hitting a bump the brakes bounce and the check engine light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent repair shop for inspection. The mechanic replaced the front and rear brakes and the engine light sensor. The manufacturer was alerted.

Filed Apr 17, 2005 · Brakes · NY

I am the owner of a 1997 taurus. Approximately one week ago, the brakes failed completely while I was exiting off a highway; the pedal went all the way down to the floor. Since I was relatively close to home, I drove cautiously back to my house, after which I called a tow truck the take the car to my mechanic. A couple of hours later I received a call from the shop informing me that the entire brake line system was rusted & rotted away and that the fluid had completely leaked out. The mechanic said in his 20 years he had never seen a brake line system rust so completely in such a young car. In fact, he said, it should basically last the life of the car, never needing to be replaced. After all was said and done, the job cost almost $800. I asked to see the old lines and couldn?t believe how rusted and rotted they had become. There was no protective sheathing on the lines. I feel that I should be reimbursed for these repairs since it should have never have happened in the first place. The mechanic did mention that he had recently been seeing a lot of young ford models coming in with the same problem or rusting and failing brake line systems. Also, while searching the federal safety agency website for similar defects, I found complaints lodged about the rotting of the hard tubing, causing the brake lines to burst. In these cases, the cars were 1997 taurus?. My mechanic fixed the entire line system, completely replacing any old parts with new, custom made tubes. I kept the old tubing just so I can show ford what their cars are relying on for stopping. The entire job came to almost $800.

Filed Jul 11, 2003 · Brakes · 58,000 miles · NJ

The vehicle experienced grinding noise on the rear passenger side. The brake rotors could not be resurfaced because they were too thin. The consumer felt that the elimination of the warning indicator on the rear brake pads could pose a hazard because sudden brake failure could occur without warning. *ph *cb

Filed Aug 2, 2002 · Brakes · RI

While driving 55 MPH brake failed to operate. Vehicle towed to dealer. They informed consumer master brake cylinder was the problem. Feel free to provide any further information.

Filed Sep 26, 2001 · Brakes · CA · crash

Consumer was traveling about 55mph on highway and another vehicle jumped in front of him. He went to apply brakes and pedal went all the way to the floor. Dealership was aware of problem.

Filed Aug 18, 1999 · Brakes · MI

Rear wheel cylinder is leaking , causing loss of brake fluid, which could lead to brake failure and a vehicle accident. Can the federal safety agency provide information on this matter.

Filed Feb 1, 1999 · Brakes · CA

Brakes failed.