2002 Ford Taurus Powertrain & Transmission Problems

Backing out of parking space resulting to damage to both vehicles . Brake\gas pedals. Position of driver ( body turned) relative to pedals while backing car can allow drivers foot to be in contact with both pedals. Increased pressure on the brake can allow increased pressure on the gas pedal allowing the vehicle to continue in a reversed direction . Can strike a person or object resulting in injury or damage. Subject car is a station wagon and appears to have lower seating \configuration than a sedan .

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD TAURUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD LOSE POWER WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE SPLINE AND TORQUE CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 152,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD TAURUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE GEAR SHIFT HESITATED TO SWITCH INTO THE REVERSE POSITION. AS A RESULT, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESPOND INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE FLUSHED AND THE TRANSMISSION FILTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 190,000. MA 10/25/15 *CN

DRIVING OUT OF TOWN THE VEHICLE SHOWED NO SIGNS OF ANY PROBLEMS INCLUDING NO DASHBOARD LIGHTS OR WARNINGS DISPLAYING ANY NEED OF MAINTANANCE. WHILE TURNING ONTO ANOTHER STREET AT A LOW RATE OF SPEED THEN PRESSING ACCELERATOR TO GO, THE DRIVETRAIN SUDDENLY STOPPED PULLING AND THE CAR STOPPED . THE ENGINE WAS STILL RUNNING AT IDLE SPEED BUT THE RPMS WERE FLUCTUATING UP AND DOWN THEN STABILIZED AT ABOUT 1,200 RPMS. THERE WERE NO SIGHNS OF ANY FLUID LEAKS OR PINCHED LINES. JUST A SUDDEN STOP, LEAVING ME AND MY FAMILY STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. THE EXPENSES OF HIRING A WRECKER TO TOW THE VEHICLE TO THE NEAREST SHOP, AND THE ACTUAL REPAIR EXPENSE WAS WELL OVER OUR FAMILY BUDGET AND HAS CAUSED US A GREAT DEAL OF UNNECESSARY HARDSHIPS IN OUR DAILY LIVES.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD TAURUS. WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 99,700. UPDATED 9/12/14*CN

I THE OWNER OF A 2002 FORD TAURUS,THE TRAN IS CRAP,SECOND TIME REPLACEMENT,WHAT R U GOING TO DO ABOUT A RECALL.WILL NOT MOVE AT ALL.TRANS GONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TRANSMISSION WILL NOT SHIFT INTO GEAR EVEN THOUGH THE SHIFT LEVER FEELS AS IF IT IS SHIFTING. WHEN LEVER IS IN D OR R, ENGINE JUST REVS. IN N THE CAR CAN BE PUSHED. IN P THE VEHICLE CANNOT BE PUSHED. *TR

I PURCHASED THIS CAR NEW IN 2002 AFTER PREVIOUSLY OWNING SEVERAL FORD VEHICLES. ON JULY 20, 2012, I ATTENDED A FAMILY FUNERAL A LITTLE OVER TWO HOURS AWAY FROM MY HOME. WHILE RETURNING HOME VIA I-75 IN MIDDLE GEORGIA, THE TRANSMISSION COMPLETELY FAILED. WHILE TRAVELING AT 70 MPH, THE ENGINE SUDDENLY INCREASED TO OVER 6000 RPM. I IMMEDIATELY LET OFF THE GAS AND LOOKED IN THE REAR VIEW TO SEE WHITE SMOKE BOILING FROM THE REAR OF THE CAR. AFTER SAFELY GETTING THE CAR OFF THE INTERSTATE, I RAISED THE HOOD TO SEE TRANSMISSION FLUID ALL OVER THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ENGINE. IT'S SIMPLY A MIRACLE THE CAR DID NOT CATCH FIRE. I WAITED FOR TWO HOURS IN 100 DEGREE HEAT BEFORE A TOW TRUCK ARRIVED. AFTER BEING TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALERSHIP, THE SERVICE MANAGER TOLD ME AND I QUOTE, "WE SEE A LOT OF TAURUS TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS LIKE THIS AT AROUND 120,000 MILES." IF THIS IS SO, WHY CAN'T FORD DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM? I REALIZE THE CAR HAS SOME AGE ON IT, BUT THE TRANSMISSION SHOULD LAST MUCH LONGER THAN THIS. SINCE DAY ONE, I HAVE "BABIED" THIS CAR AND HAVE NEVER ONCE ABUSED IT IN ANY WAY. I HAVE NEVER DRIVEN IT RECKLESSLY AND HAVE ALWAYS SERVICED IT ON REGULAR INTERVALS. THIS CAR HAS BEEN IN MY SHOP FOR OVER 3 YEARS BECAUSE WE CAN'T AFFORD TO GET IT REPAIRED. I WISH FORD WOULD MAN UP AND DO THE RIGHT THING TO FIX THIS PROBLEM FOR ME AND MANY OTHERS. HOWEVER, I CERTAINLY WON'T HOLD MY BREATH. "HAVE YOU DRIVEN A FORD LATELY?" I HAVEN'T. *TR

CAR WAS RUNNING GOOD I PARKED THE CAR WHEN I CAME BACK THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT ENGAGE IN REVERSE OR DRIVE. *TR

SUDDEN AND COMPLETE LOSS OF TRANSMISSION POWER - NO SECONDARY ACTIONS CAUSED THE PROBLEM, NOR WAS THERE ANY INDICATION OF A PROBLEM. NO LEAKS, NO TRANSMISSION SLIPPING, NO OTHER INDICATORS OF A PROBLEM. *TR

TRANSMISSION FAILED ON INSTERSTATE. NO WARNING WHATSOEVER. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD TAURUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE CONTACT'S HOME BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000.

MY 2002 FORD TAURUS STOPPED PULLING WHEN I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREE WAY. THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AND FORD WILL NOT HELP WITH ANY OF THE REPAIR COSTS. *TT

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD TAURUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION FAILED, CAUSING HER TO LOSE POWER WHILE DRIVING 53 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER. THE FAILURE DIAGNOSTICS STATED THE TORQUE CONVERTER FAILED. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 103,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS THE SAME.

WHILE DRIVING TO WORK MY TRANSMISSION FAILED. AFTER HAVING THE CAR TOWED TO THE MECHANIC, I WAS TOLD THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. IT ONLY HAS 45,000 MILES ON IT. AFTER RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE ONLINE, I HAVE FOUND NUMEROUS ISSUES WITH THE TORQUE CONVERTER FAILING DUE TO A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT. I HAVE NOT HAD IT REPAIRED AS OF YET. *TR

WITHOUT NOTICE, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED TO RESPOND IN ANY GEAR AND THE ENGINE JUST REVVED. I WAS ON A ROAD THAT WAS NOT BUSY AND ABLE TO COAST OFF OF THE ROAD TO A SAFE LOCATION. HAD THIS HAPPENED ON MY WAY HOME ON THE INTERSTATE DURING RUSH HOUR INSTEAD, I MAY HAVE BEEN SERIOUSLY INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT SINCE THE CAR JUST SLOWED DOWN WITHOUT ANY WARNING OR INDICATION THAT IT WAS ABOUT TO QUIT. I WAS TOLD BY MECHANIC THAT STRIPPED TORQUE CONVERTER IS COMMON ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE.

PREMATURE TRANSMISSION FAILURE ON 2002 FORD TAURUS. BASED ON MECHANICS COMMENTS, DISCUSSION WITH OTHER TAURUS OWNERS AND INTERNET RESEARCH THERE IS SUFFICIENT ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE ASSUMPTION THAT THERE IS A DESIGN DEFECT IN THE TRANSMISSION IN THE AND OTHER FORD VEHICLES. I HAD RECENTLY HAD THE TRANSMISSION SERVICED. I NOTICED A PERFORMANCE ISSUE FOLLOWING THE SERVICE. THE PCM PRODUCED AN ERROR CODE THREE WEEKS FOLLOWING THE SERVICE. I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY DRIVE DIRECTLY TO THE MECHANICS THE ERROR CODE INDICATED THAT 3RD GEAR IN THE TRANSMISSION HAD FAILED. THE ONLY FIX FOR THIS PROBLEM IS TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. *TR

I HAVE A 2002 FORD TAURUS AND WAS DRIVING/ACCELERATING DOWN THE ROAD AND ALL OF A SUDDEN NOTHING WAS HAPPENING. THE CAR WAS LIKE IN NEUTRAL EVEN THOUGH THE TRANSMISSION WAS IN DRIVE. THE CAR ROLLED A BIT TO THE SIDE WITH THE IMPULSE IT HAD, BUT HAD TO PUSH IT TO THE SIDE. THE TRANSMISSION'S DRIVE AND REVERSE WERE IN NEUTRAL. THE TRANSMISSION WENT OUT. SEEMS TO HAVE HAPPENED TO MANY OTHER OWNERS THAT THE TRANSMISSION GOES INTO NEUTRAL. THE CORRECTIONS I HAVE BEEN TOLD IS TO (1) CHANGE THE TORQUE CONVERTER OR (2) REBUILD THE TRANSMISSION. WELL OVER $1,750 IN REPAIR AND LABOR COSTS (MINIMUM). *TR

I WAS DRIVING DOWN A FOUR LANE FREEWAY AND WAS PASSING SOMEONE IN THE LEFT LANE WHEN SUDDENLY MY CAR JUST REVVED UP AND LOST ALL ACCELERATION. NO WARNING SIGNS OR ANYTHING. IT WAS A BUSY DAY ON THE ROAD AND I COULD HAVE GOT INTO AN ACCIDENT TRYING TO GET OFF THE ROAD. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AVOIDING AN ACCIDENT, BUT THAT WAS NOT AN EASY TASK. IF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED AS I WAS ACCELERATING THROUGH A BUSY INTERSECTION OR SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCE IT COULD HAVE BEEN DEADLY. I CHECKED ONLINE FOR PEOPLE WHO HAD THE SAME PROBLEM AND I FOUND MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ISSUE AND HOW MUCH OF A PROBLEM IT WAS FOR PEOPLE WHO WERE NOT AS FORTUNATE AS ME WHO HAVE COME CLOSE TO LIFE THREATENING INCIDENTS. I'M WONDERING WHY SOMETHING HAS NOT BEEN DONE TO RECTIFY THIS ISSUE WITH THIS CAR. IT MAKES ME VERY UPSET TO SEE THAT NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE TO ALLEVIATE THIS LIFE THREATENING ISSUE. NOW THE CAR WILL NOT GO INTO ANY GEAR. I MAKES ME FURTHER UPSET TO KNOW THAT SOMEONE ONLINE INDICATES THAT "THE PROBLEM STEMS FROM A BAD HEAT TREATMENT ON THE TORQUE CONVERTER STAMPED STEEL PART" FROM HTTP://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/FORD/TAURUS/2003/TRANSMISSION/TRANSMISSION_FAILED.SHTML (SEE COMPLAINT #69 SUBMITTED BY [XXX] ). IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THE CONSUMERS SHOULD NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR BAD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES. ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN MY CAR JUST STOPPED ACCELERATING AND WOULD NOT GO BACK INTO GEAR. THIS LEFT ME IN THE MIDDLE OF AN OFF RAMP. I TOOK IT TO A TRANSMISSION SPECIALIST AND THE MECHANIC SAYS I NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION. *TR