2001 Ford Taurus: pulls to one side

Filed Aug 1, 2011 · Body · 117,569 miles · NY

My 2001 ford taurus has been plagued by premature and excessive corrosion. I have previously filed for the coil springs snapping in half- now my frame has failed. While driving my car started swaying- I held the steering wheel tightly but the car wandered on it's on. Upon inspection of the vehicle at home , it was obvious that frame failed. When the vehicle was inspected by a nys facility I was told that excessive rust was an issue. I was also told that they see this on the taurus regularly and have failed vehicles due to this issue. I contacted ford , they said out of warranty. They do not sell replacement frames and suggested I purchase an aftermarket frame and have repairs done. This is a huge safety issue. I have been driving for 37 years and was able to recognize that there was a safety issue with my vehicle, young new drivers without experience will continue to drive these vehicles. I am requesting that the federal safety agency look in to the premature failure of major components in the taurus due to low grade material use. The ford company was required to recall minivans with this same issue- yet the taurus which ford says is one of its best selling vehicles has been completely ignored when it comes to safety and customer satisfaction. If this vehicle were manufactured by toyota it would have been recalled years ago. Shame on the powers that be that allow this situation to continue. The car has not been repaired as new oe parts are not available, used parts are not an option due to the fact that they also will be rotted beyond use. I had a 1940s dodge parked in a farm field by a previous owner that had less rust than this vehicle had when it was under 5 years old. What does that say about quality?

Filed Jan 26, 2009 · Suspension · 112,135 miles · PA

2001 ford taurus, 112,000 miles. Driving about 35 MPH on highway interchange, heard loud bang and car pulled left and I gained control and stopped. Found left front coil spring broke puncturing left tire. Took car to dealership for repair. Ford will cover cost of front springs replacement. Dealership called and said right spring was broken also and transmission pan was also punctured from broken spring and needed replaced. Ford will not cover cost to pay for punctured tire or transmission pan plus fluid. Tire had around 300 mile on it. Ford garage called back and said rear springs were also broken and not covered under recall from ford. Shouldn't rear springs be covered also since breakage was result of corrosion problem like the front springs? Also, shouldn't the collateral damage to the tire and transmission be covered also? Never received any form of notification relating to this recall. But I had receive other recall for wiring problems.

Filed Dec 24, 2008 · Suspension · 91,792 miles · NY

I noticed that after installing four brand new tires on my 2001 ford taurus, that the vehicle pulled to the right dramatically while driving. The alignment was just done as well. I also noticed that the rear of the vehicle sat extremely low. Further investigation found that the rear coil spring on the right side had snapped at the base of strut. Front springs have a recall, why not the front. I am aware of the problems on this subject as I am formerly a service advisor for ford. This is an all too common problem and does pose a safety problem!!!! This is true as the vehicle fails nysi and makes vehicle undriveable. Ford will not repair, yet there are hundreds, if not thousands of the same exact concern. My vehicle is in perfect operating condition and cared for well. This should not happen! Apparently until someone dies, ford and the government will not do anything about this. My 2001 impala and my 2002 cavalier both had well over 100k, never had this problem and they were in the salt states their entire operating lives!! There must be something done now please. I am forced to repair the vehicle at my own cost for something that is well known by the government and ford.

Filed Jan 15, 2004 · Steering, Tires · 39,415 miles · NE

Bought used 2001 taurus in aug. Of 2002. On the test drive I noticed the car pulled to the left and there was vibration in the steering wheel. The dealer at no cost to me did a wheel alignment and wheel balance. I drove again and it was fine. Approximately 4500 miles later the steering wheel vibration returned and the car was again pulling slightly to the left. I took it in to the dealer again and was told that the likely cause of the vibration was that a wheel weight was lost, but had no explaination for the pulling. They rebalanced the wheels and rotated the tires. Again everything was fine until nov. 2003 as I was driving I once again felt the vibration in the steering wheel and it was much more severe on cornering. I took it to an independent repair shop(nearest ford dealer was 25 miles away). They found the left front tire to have a flat spot on the outer tread area(slipped belt) and both outer tie rod ends to be loose, the left one being extermely worn. They indicated to me that they have seen numerous problems with the continental oe tires not holding balance, having bad wear problems, etc. They installed two aftermarket, greasable tie rod ends and did a wheel alignment and rotation. At this point I have submitted the repair bill to a ford dealer for possible reimbursment, however I am not holding my breath. My opinion is that continental tires are junk and ford knows it. The ford dealer indicated to me that they have had no othe problems like mine, a much different opinion than the independent garage. Also tie rod ends usually don't fail at 39k miles for no reason. I have a friend that has a 2002 taurus with continental tires and has had to have them balanced several times due to steering wheel vibration.

Filed Apr 24, 2003 · Suspension · 10 miles · ME

The vehicle severely pulled to the left while driving. The dealership was unable to locate the cause of the problem.

Filed Mar 31, 2003 · Body · 31,100 miles · CA

The vehicle pulled to the left. The dealer stated the engine mount was broke and the sub frame was bent.

Filed Oct 25, 2002 · Brakes · MA · 1 injury

The vehicle pulled to the right and left and failed to stop when brakes were applied. The dealer replaced the rotors and brake pads, but the problem was not corrected. As the result of the brakes failure, the consumer lost control of the vehicle and was injured and the vehicle was damaged.