Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||||
| 17358 | 08/01/2004 | 17963 | 10008183 | Groan/buzz/vibration when the gear selector is in park with the vehicle parked on an incline. *tt this bulletin updates previous bulletin 17358, dated 11/01/2003 to include 2005 models. *tt | 07/22/2004 |
| 16678 | 03/01/2003 | 10001934 | Ax4s transaxle may exhibit no reverse engagement condition. *tt *jb | 07/28/2003 | |
| 15820 | 04/01/2002 | 637556 | Some vehicles equipped with an ax4n/4f50n transaxle may exhibit a shudder during a 3-4 shift. *tt | 12/02/2002 | |
| 15370 | 11/01/2001 | 630351 | Some vehicles may exhibit a groan/buzz/vibration when the gear selector is in park. *tt | 04/16/2002 | |
| 15392 | 11/01/2001 | 630356 | Some vehicles may exhibit a park pullout clunk noise when shifting from park to another gear position. *tt | 04/16/2002 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||||
| 042107 | 12/13/2004 | 042414 | 10014086 | General (pcm) power train control module programming procedures. *tt | 04/28/2005 |
| E1E15 | 06/01/2001 | 622679 | Emission recall for vehicles with a powertrain control module (pcm) which was inadvertently programmed with software that cuases the vehicle to operate using the gasoline default values regardless of the level of alcohol in the fuel. | 10/22/2001 | |
| 14074 | 03/01/2001 | 620296 | This bulletin states that certain vehicles' powertrain control module (pcm) require a final drive ratio (not axle ratio) and tire revolution per mile information during a pcm replacement or pcm re-program. *tt | 07/24/2001 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - COOLING UNIT AND LINES | |||||
| 03148 | 07/21/2003 | 10003748 | New transmission cooler flusher - service tips. 2003 escort and super duty f series included. *tt | 10/29/2003 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - PARK/NEUTRAL START SWITCH | |||||
| 01181 | 09/17/2001 | 625715 | Brake shift interlock.*jb | 11/30/2001 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - TORQUE CONVERTER | |||||
| 03123 | 06/23/2003 | 10002684 | Torque converter clutch not engaging when commanded and/or diagnostic trouble codes p0741 or p1744 stored in memory. models from 1996 to 2003. *tt | 09/10/2003 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE ASSEMBLY | |||||
| 15059 | 07/01/2001 | 621059 | Concerns with vehicles equipped with a ax4n / 4f50n transaxle exhibiting a shudder during a 3-4 shift. *tt | 09/06/2001 | |
| 14220 | 01/01/2000 | 620388 | Information used to service ax4n transaxle equipped vehicles exhibiting shudder during 3-4 shift. *tt | 08/07/2001 | |
| 14911 | 05/01/2001 | 620222 | Some vehicles equipped with ax4n or 4f50n transaxle may exhibit a fluid leak from the main control cover area. *tt | 07/20/2001 | |
| 14920 | 05/01/2001 | 620184 | Subject regarding ax4n transaxle diagnostic pint point test c3 error. *tt | 07/19/2001 | |
| 01T01 | 03/01/2001 | 619444 | Special service instruction for ax4n transaxle inspection / replacement on certain 2001 model year vehicles. *tt | 05/31/2001 | |
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE | |||||
| 05145 | 10016808 | Erratic fluid level reading on transaxle dipstick-leaks-4f50n, ax4n, ax4s transaxle. *sc | 10/11/2005 | ||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||||
| 15559 | 01/01/2002 | 630095 | Subject regarding shudder while in reverse. *yh | 04/12/2002 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 02/16/2013 | 120205 | ||
| Traveling at 45mph suddenly the vehicle did not respond to throttle, rpm's jumped yet no response from the transmission. i can shift into any gear and the vehicle acts as if it is in neutral. | |||
| 09/01/2008 | 101000 | 1 | |
| My ford taurus 1st broke down on the interstate. i was on my way taking my kids to chuck e. cheese. it ran hot out of the blue. after that i got it towed, i did replace the motor, had the transmission worked on, replace many sensors, replaced the fuel filter, replaced the fuel pump, the sensor of the air condition. i have replaced almost everything on that car from the time i bought it in 07 until 2010. and its still not running. its parked they are saying its something with the transmission again. i have spent so much money in that piece of junk ford. i feel they should fix the transmission this time and give me some of money back for all the repairs. and for the record my dates are estimated because i just parked and it and stop keeping up with it. just plain ole got tired. that car took me broke. i finally had to bow down and go get another 1 with payments as last resort. for me and my 2 little girls 1 of them whom is disabled. *tr | |||
| 11/10/2011 | 87000 | ||
| I would first like to say i am 19 years old and a college student who doesn't have $2000 laying around for a crappy transmission and i'm very upset that i made such a naive purchase. here's the story.. i bought it from a private seller whom told me since he had the car he replaced the transmission twice . so i thought i had a good running car with a new transmission. two weeks later the transmission just gave up on the highway while i was doing 65-70 mph the momentum pushed the car of the i10 to a safe place on the shoulder. i turned it off and started it back up and it moved a couple of yards to an nearby gas station where it sat for hours. i took it to cottmans transmission and a older guy who have been fixing cars for the longest told melook i'm going to be honest with you, i've been working on cars for a long time and these tauruss have common transmission problems im not putting another dime into this car. these cars are known for getting people fired from work and messing up people lives. i was planning on taking a vacation in my car but i guess my transmission hit the road before i did. i've read many many reports on blog site where every taurus owner transmission gave out on them. and it seems these cars go out at the wrong time. it's a fuckin shame that some of the reports i've read some of the people was in life threatening situations at the time of the transmission failures. it's gonna take somebody to get seriously hurt or die as a result of these poorly built piece of shit for ford to get up off their ass. i should just went got that new maxima. | |||
| 05/29/2008 | 64200 | 1 | |
| Starting engine with transmission in park; won't shift out of park, brake lights don't work. occurs daily. have to turn engine off, start, then put into gear, but brake lights still don't usually work. tried to have ford dealer repair under recall (04v10600 or 04s12, related to 1s08?), but was told by dealer & ford customer service it didn't apply to my vin. paid dealer to replace brake light assembly and wiring. concerned as both failure to shift into gear & brake light failure have left the driver stranded & at risk of an accident. i believe the recall should be expanded to include my vehicle and probably many others with the same issue, that were not included in the previous recall. repair cost 158.61. *tr | |||
| 08/15/2003 | 48000 | ||
| I haven't got repair done yet. transmisson has alway had a slight slip. it totally slipped out in low gear the other day. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 09/10/2009 | 110000 | 1 | |
| Without notice ford taurus 2001 ses just stopped accelerating. i was on a very busy highway and going around 70mph. and the vehicle just stopped going. seems like a very common problem with this vehicle luckily i was able to get safely to the side of the road. *tr | |||
| 01/10/2008 | 95500 | 2 | |
| I own a 2001 ford taurus station wagon. twice now i've been told i need a new transmission. true, i have just under 100,000 miles on it; but that's still two transmissions. the first time i replaced the tranny i had about 50,000 miles on it. piece of junk! *tr | |||
| 09/01/2007 | 107000 | 30 | 09/01/2007 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford taurus. when the contact started the vehicle, it jerked when the engine was cold. he stated that when he places the vehicle in drive, it accelerates too quickly. the vehicle has not been taken to the dealer. the dealer stated that all of the vehicles of that year, make, and model start in that manner. the vin was unknown. the current and failure mileages were 107,000. updated 11/06/07 *tr | |||
| 04/07/2006 | 77000 | 2 | 05/05/2002 |
| Transmission failed on 2001 ford taurus at 41,000 mile. transmission was rebuilt and began failing again at 77,000 miles. car began vibrating around 45 mph until 60 mph, ford dealership took it for a test ride and said there was nothing wrong and i should get new tires. now at 97,000 miles the transmission has failed again. slips out of gear when driving, slips on the upshift, clunks on the downshift. when dealership was notified of vibration car was still under warranty, now that it has failed completely there is no longer a warranty. *nm | |||
| 02/21/2005 | 38000 | 1 | 06/06/2003 |
| My daughter got to work and shut the car off and when she came out the car started but would not go in gear. no warning of any kind. we had the vehicle towed to inver grove ford and found out the transmission went out with only 38,000 miles on the vehicle. of course the warranty expired at 36,000. we talked with ford and they stated that since we didn't buy the extended warranty there was nothing they could do. i helped my daughter buy this car so she would have a reliable car to drive my two grandchildren around in and get back and forth to work. i thank god everyday that the car was parked and she was not driving it let alone with my grandchildren in it. inver grove ford stated that a major component had gone out and it would be $3400 to fix the component or for $3500 we could get a new transmission put in it. give me a break. a $100 difference. i most definetely will not be buying another ford product. shame on them for not stressing the fact to me that by buying this car i really needed to buy the extended warranty. now the car will be sitting until we can afford to get it fixed. the ford motor company takes the money but really doesn't care about the consumer. we were told we were not loyal customers because we didn't bring the car back for oil changes and such and give them more money. we were faulted because we could change the oil ourselves. *ak | |||
| 12/10/2004 | 73000 | 1 | 06/28/2002 |
| 2001 ford taurus developed a loud chirping sound that was heard when car was running. this car has only a little over 80000 miles on it. when it was taken to a garage to be looked out. they claimed the sound was coming from the transmission and the tork converter. to make a long story short, we now have to pay $2300.00 for a new transmission. after the transmission was installed, the sound is still there. we were informed that the tork converter is what is making the sound and it will take several weeks of driving before the sound disappears. we have been without our car for 3 weeks and very disappointed in the ford taurus.*ak | |||
| 09/30/2002 | 35000 | 1 | 09/01/2002 |
| As with my 1992 taurus my 2001 taurus has the same problem with the windshield wiper switch or motor.presently not fixed because i do not want to pay for it. also my trans. slips and up and down shifts hard in and out of second gear. once again i don't want to pay for it .*ak | |||
| 08/10/2004 | 2 | ||
| Consumer complained about transmission problems. while driving transmission shook since february, 2004. took vehicle to dealer, and was told that it had a problem, and kept vehicle for 4 days. when consumer received vehicle back she was told that they replaced the computer piston because it was stuck. also, had problems wit the windows. they made a weird noise. she took the vehicle to the dealer and they just realigned the windows. *ak | |||
| 07/21/2004 | 1 | ||
| While driving 35 mph consumer heard a loud noise coming from the front of the vehicle. consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle, and drove it to a garage for inspection, where mechanic determined that transmission needed to be replaced. *ak | |||
| 07/25/2004 | 29500 | 1 | 06/01/2001 |
| Intermittent transmition disengaging. the other day i drove to my driveway, slowed down, pulling into the driveway, gave it some gas and the rpm's went up but i could not get up my driveway because of this issue. i have had my 2001 ford tauras with 31000 in two other times to the ford dealer for this issue and they find nothing wrong, yet they want me to by an extended warranty. *ak | |||
| 05/08/2004 | 3 | ||
| I own a 2001 ford taurus the car won't shift into gear is this problem going to be recalled? 23,000 miles same vehicle has 23,000 miles the egr valve has been replaced twice is this going to be recalled? *la | |||
| 04/10/2004 | 26010 | 1 | 04/30/2002 |
| I was parallel parking my 2001 taurus and when i put the car in drive(to pull forward in the parking space) the car sped up to hi rpm's and i had to jam the brakes on to avoid crashing into the vehicle that was parked in front of me. *ak | |||
| 02/10/2004 | 1 | 06/10/2001 | |
| I have, on several occasions taken my car to the dealership for check engine light, engine running roughly, and transmission problems. each time the check engine light has been taken care of by installing a different type of sensor (which happens to never be covered under the so-called extended warranty i purchased). the transmission problem, on the other hand, is a problem that has yet to be rectified yet remains a problem. for example, when turning out onto the highway from a stopped position, car will accelerate properly at first but then rpm's will build and transmission will violently jerk after the increase in rpm's. this has also happened on several occasions during high-speed (55-75) driving conditions. of course, the dealers (yes, i've had it at two dealers) have never found anything wrong with the transmission even though i have had an independent transmission repair person change the fluid and filter and inform me that there was a film in the fluid indicating a wearing problem within the transmission.*ak | |||
| 1 | |||
| 2001 ford taurus 4 door sedan.*mr there was a clunking noise when the consumer moved the gear shift selector from park to another gear position. the lock cylinder in the ignition was frozen, the radio was inoperative, and the door panels were removed to clean the window runs..*ts. the rear drum assembly was cracked and pitted. *jb | |||
| 06/11/2003 | 38350 | 1 | 01/20/2001 |
| Consumer states while traveling at 30 mph, the vehicle began to respond like it was in neutral. there was no power. *ph the vehicle experienced complete transmission failure. the vehicle was repaired by a transmission shop and the consumer requested that ford reimburse him for the repairs. ford denied the request due to expiration of his warranty. *ph *jb | |||
| 05/28/2003 | 1 | ||
| While traveling on the highway the transmission stalled and made a loud grinding noise. *tt | |||
| 08/08/2002 | 93000 | ||
| Nhtsa# 15190 01-f-071-000 automatic transmission loose third gear operation. consumer states having problem with the automatic transmission which broke on august 8, 2002. dealer charged over two thousands dollars, four months later vehicle has the same problem with the transmission. please provide further information. | |||
| 07/28/2002 | 2 | 07/01/2002 | |
| Mr | |||
| 03/01/2002 | |||
| Consumer states transmission jerks in and out of gear while driving. mr | |||
| 07/01/2002 | 1 | ||
| When key is turned to start engine ignition switch will not return to the number 4 position. vehicle checked by dealer, who advised consumer that it is suppose to work that way.*ak consumer stated the starter blew up, the brakes were inoperative, the transmission does not shift properly, the windows were inoperative.*jb | |||
| 07/01/2002 | |||
| While merging onto highway transmission lurches forward and does not allow gears to shift properly. consumer stated was not able to accelerate, and was almost was hit from the rear.*ak | |||
| 1 | 09/06/2000 | ||
| Consumer was travelling when the transaxle warning light illuminated and began to flash. vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was kept for further diagnosis. dealer informed consumer that a new transaxle unit was ordered because the orignal transaxle was put together improperly during assembly and ford wanted it for further investigation. *jg | |||
| Transmission would not change gears properly, causing vehicle to jerk. once vehicle shifts into proper gear, there is a clunking noise present. driver checked under vehicle, and oil was leaking. dealer said trans axle was not lubricating wheel and driveshaft caused the noise. *ak | |||
| 03/15/2001 | 2 | 08/06/2001 | |
| Consumer states that vehicle had shut off causing a car crash. nlm consumer adds there was a loud noise when put in reverse and drive at times and goes into gear very hard, then the transmission went out in the vehicle while driving, dealer replaced transmission and worn planetary gears. eleven days after vehicle was repaired, the engine cut off causing an accident. consumer loss all power with steering and brakes. consumer states there is a sqeaking noise in right front and drivers seat when driving. no problem found. *tt | |||
| 03/05/2002 | 1 | 01/01/2001 | |
| While driving the vehicle, i had difficulty shifting from park into drive. initially, the vehicle would shift, however it was difficult, ultimately, the vehicle would not shift out of overdrive. therefore, i could not shift into neutral to take the keys out of the ignition. i later learned that the shift cable snapped. on a one year old vehicle w/13k miles this is unacceptable. a similar problem occurred a month prior, where the vehicle would not shift from o/d into d or 1. the dealerships solution was to forcefully raise and lower the shifter through all of the gears. shifter is column mounted. thank you for your time.*aky | |||
| 06/05/2001 | 1 | 06/01/2001 | |
| When parked on inclines & shifting from park to reverse or drive transmission jerks & clanks very bad!deallership said that is normal for the ford taurus i find this hard to beleive. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||
| 11/25/2001 | 1 | 12/01/2000 | |
| Pavement was a little bit wet, but the vehicle lost traction control totally and ran along the curb before can be stopped while making a right turn. the vehicle is equipped with traction control and abs but did not seem to work well. on other (3~4) occasions in making turns, the tires appeared to spin too freely for seconds before traction regained.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - LEVER AND LINKAGE - FLOOR SHIFT | |||
| 10/16/2009 | 117000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 ford taurus. when starting the vehicle he could not shift into the drive position. after several attempts he was able to start the vehicle; however, the brakes failed intermittently. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for inspection. the technician stated that the failure was contributed to the brake light switch. the battery and brake light switch were replaced. the failure and current mileages were 117,000. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - PARK/NEUTRAL START SWITCH | |||
| 06/06/2001 | 100 | 06/01/2001 | |
| Problem #1: when the car is started and the transmission is put in reverse, the car jumps back approximately 1 foot, even though your foot is pressed firmly on the brake pedal. this was reported numerous times to the dealership who has been unable to locate the cause of the problem. the dealership replaced the transmission in the hopes that this would correct the problem but it did not. when i informed the dealership of this, they claimed that the jumping back problem was normal vehicle operation. this does not make any sense since they admitted it was a problem previously and tried to correct it by replacing the transmission. problem #2: the driver-side seat belt tightens by itself around the lap while driving. this is resulting in a restriction of normal movement inside the car. the seatbelt has, on several occassions locked-up while the car was in motion, preventing me from turning to look over my shoulder for on-coming traffic to make a lane change on the highway. the dealership tried to fix this by replacing the seatbelt. when i informed them that the tightening problem still existed, they said that the seatbelt tension was normal. this again does not match what they had previously said and acted on by replacing the seatbelt in an attempt to correct the problem. both of these problems pose, in my opinion, a significant safety hazard that the dealership is currently claiming are both beyond their capability to rectify.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - TORQUE CONVERTER | |||
| 07/22/2009 | 70000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 ford taurus. the contact stated that the transmission began leaking fluids and slipping two months after the vehicle was purchased. the speed was unknown. the dealer replaced the torque converter to correct the failure; however, the failure persisted. the vehicle was taken back to the dealer who stated that the torque converter had fractured. the dealer advised replacing the transmission. the manufacturer stated that there were no recalls on the vehicle and would not provide any assistance. the failure mileage was 70,000 the current mileage was 80,000. | |||
| 02/28/2006 | 1 | 03/25/2003 | |
| Purchased a 2001 taurus in 2004 with 26000 miles. had transmission issues within 2 months. dealer reflashed transmission under warranty of used car dealer. now the transmission is still not working right, and is on the verge of failure. i already had a code for torque converter come up, but it doesn't show any more. *nm | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE ASSEMBLY | |||
| Transmission would not change gears properly, causing vehicle to jerk. once vehicle shifts into proper gear, there is a clunking noise present. driver checked under vehicle, and oil was leaking. dealer said trans axle was not lubricating wheel and driveshaft caused the noise. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE ASSEMBLY - AXLE SHAFT - SEAL | |||
| 12/07/2001 | 11138 | 12 | 08/06/2001 |
| I bought a new ford taurus in 2001. three months after my purchase, a vibration began in the front end. i took the car in and had repairs. to my dismay, the car began to vibrate again in january 2002. i took my car in for repairs again. april 2002 the same problem occurred again, so more repairs. this continued until i gave the car back (july 2004) due to these problems and many others. the dealership, silsbee ford, seemed to only fix the problem temporarily,resulting in me returning the vehicle again and again. i believe there was an underlying problem that was overlooked and i assumed taking the car to a dealership the problem would have been found and properly fixed. by mar 2003 appr. 21,000 miles one cv shaft and axle seal replaced, rod asy replaced at 38,000 miles, and by jan 2004 the other cv axle was replaced. this car has had three sets of tires before 60,000 miles, new rotors at appr. 38,000 miles. the rotors have been turned a number of times before replacing. consumers need to be informed of makeshift repairs done at dealerships. i turned in my car to the company because it was getting too dangerous to drive and obviously the dealership wasn't competent enough to find the underlying problem. i have tried many different avenues trying to resolve this situation and the ford company keeps stating the warranty is out. i know this but the problem is, my vehicle should have been repaired properly the first time or at least the second time it was in the shop for repairs, while under warranty. i believe my family was endangered because of the negligence of this company. *jb | |||
| POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY - PEDAL/LINKAGE | |||
| 11/01/2002 | |||
| The brake and gas pedal are to close together when apply please provide additional information dealer is aware of the problem. ts | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE | |||
| 01/26/2005 | 53000 | 1 | 04/18/2003 |
| Auotmatic transmission failure with no warning and no warranty or recall from ford. car has 53000 miles . driving along at 30 mph and it was like the car was put into neutral.complete trans failure with no warning not a safe thing to happen on the highway or anywhere else for that fact. i am a devoted ford person but at this point also very upset and would have to consider buying another brand .*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT | |||
| 04/13/2007 | 120000 | 4 | 12/15/2005 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford taurus. while driving 35 mph the driver's side coil spring failed. the mechanic replaced both coil springs, a damaged cv joint, a failed connector rod, and a damaged strut. the contact never received a safety recall notice, and didn't know if the repairs were performed with the previous owner per recall# 04v332000. the contact had the front brake pads repaired. the current and failure mileages were 120,000.*ak | |||
| 03/23/2002 | 1 | ||
| Consumer states while driving the steering was off. when they check under the vehicle their was alot of oil and grease.the oil from the boot right front drive axle had leaked out. nlm | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DIFFERENTIAL UNIT | |||
| Transmission would not change gears properly, causing vehicle to jerk. once vehicle shifts into proper gear, there is a clunking noise present. driver checked under vehicle, and oil was leaking. dealer said trans axle was not lubricating wheel and driveshaft caused the noise. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||
| 02/07/2005 | 500 | 08/07/2001 | |
| My 2001 taurus ses has had a hesitation when i engage from park to drive, after a second or two it finally engages into drive. every dealership i spoke to stated they could not duplicate the concern. i have had it since 2001 and i still have this issue. i feel as if ford hid something in this manufactured product and now i have a problem that no one can find. *ak | |||
| 05/03/2004 | 103000 | 1 | |
| While driving it was hard for the consumer to shift gears. the dealership was notified but did not resolve the problem. please provide any additional information. *nm | |||
| 8 | |||
| The consumer states that the engine had a lack of breaking, a malfunction in the transmission shifting, the left front window had locked, the switch caused the starter to become inop/remain in power, and the ignition switch locked in the start position. the dealer refused to remedy the problem. *scc | |||
| 03/06/2001 | 1 | 11/10/2000 | |
| Vehicle makes a clunking noise when putting it into gear. *tt | |||
| 07/19/2001 | 2 | 04/01/2001 | |
| The dealer ship will not help me and blames me for the problems with the car and ford agrees with them i am getting no help and the car drive horrible for being a 2001. i have had nothing but problems since i purchased this vehicle and i beleive i have been mislead in purchasing this vehicle. no safety defect listed in summary. *ak | |||