Problems with 2001 Ford Taurus SUSPENSION

The consumer indicated that it is taking an unreasonable amount of time having recall 04s17 repaired. the recall is for the front coil springs. * nm *jb

While driving a loud noise was heard coming from the rear. consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle, and pulled over. driver's side tire blew out due to passenger's side coil spring break. consumer called for road side assistence. then consumer drove the vehicle to the dealer, and mechanic determined that the front coil spring was on recall, but not rear coil spring. *ak

Nhtsa recall 04v332000 on the front coil spring. no parts were available . *ak

Reversing down my driveway this morning, 8/19/2004, i heard a loud noise from rear of car. examined and determined rear of car was very low and right rear tire appeared damaged. taken to garage 2 blks away and found both rear springs have broken, appeared to have rusted through and right rear tire destroyed. to replace the spings the stuts needed to be replaced. so 2 new springs, 2 new sturts and one new tire = $800. i do not have my vin# with me now but can giev it to you tomorrow. this car has 55k miles on it, nice easy miles. i have driven other cars 200k+ miles before i have had a spring fail. now i'm out $800 and ford says they are only liable for the front springs! please, please expand your recall notice #4v332000 to include the rear suspension. after reviewing other complaints it is obvious that this is a major problem. i mean really, broken springs that are 3-4 years old with only 20-50k miles on them?? please consider this a serious problem, if they had failed on the highway i'm sure i would have had both tires punctured and my widow would be looking at caskets right now. i am picking up the car tomorrow, firday 8/20, would you like me to save the parts for your review? would you like someone to take my deposition? i know it's too late to get my $800 back but why should others have to suffer that come after me, and you know they will. please call or email me with any quesitons or please call anyway to discuss. thank you for all you do to keep us safe!*ak

Front coil spring malfunctioned. a recall was issued. however, the part will not be available until december. *ak *tc

After receiving a recall letter, the consumer made contact with the dealer and was told that the parts will not be in until december. *jb

While driving 50 mph, the consumer heard a loud noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. the consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle and pulled over. the consumer noticed that the left side of the vehicle was lower than the right side. the vehicle was towed to the dealer for inspection. the cause has not been determined at this time. *jb it was determined that the passenger side rear coil spring broke. *nm

Consumer received, nhtsa recall campaign 04v332000 regarding coil spring. dealership still does not have the parts available to conduct recall repairs. dealership telephoned operator, indicated to the consumer that management gave instructions for dealer to tell consumer that if the coil spring was not broke they won't replace it. *ak

While driving at 35 mph consumer heard a loud noise coming from the rear. vehicle was taken to the dealership, and technician replaced the rear coil spring and the tire at consumer's expense. *ak

Recall campaign: 04 v 332 000/front coil spring: consumer received this recall notice since august 10,2004 and still unable to get the dealer to honor this recall because "no part available". *nm the consumer was made to wait 6 months for recall service. *tc

Front coil spring punctures tire. *bf consumer started the vehicle and put it into reverse and heard a loud pop. the front right tire had popped.

The dealership was unable to perform the front coil spring recall 04v332000 repairs because the parts won't be available for 3 1/2 months. *ak *sc *jb

While driving at 25 mph consumer heard a loud noise coming from the rear driver's side wheel, consumer pulled the vehicle of the road. then, vehicle was towed to the independent shop, and mechanic determined rear coil spring on the driver's side broke and punctured the tire. *ak

Consumer received a recall notice concerning coil spring failure. after making contact with the dealer consumer was told that the coil spring. will not be replaced, but only inspected.*ak

Consumer stated a recall was issued for the front coils springs. however, the parts will not be available until the end of december. *ak

Consumer was advised by dealership to make an appointment to have front coil spring recall 041v332000 repairs perrformed. however, parts will not be available until december 2004. *ak

Consumer was not notified of the december deadline for the spring shield nhtsa recall 04v332000. *ak

After receiving nhtsa recall 04v332000 from the manufacturer for the coil spring shield. made an appointment. consumer had not been able to have the shield placed onto the vehicle for no parts were available. *ak

Consumer received nhtsa recall 04v332000 concerning coil springs in august of 2004.when contacting deale she was told that they would get back to her upon arrival of parts. four months has past and dealer still has no parts.*ak......consumer called dealer on december 15, 2004 inquiring when the parts will be in. was told wouldn't get the parts until the end of january 2005. *ak

Consumer received recall 04v106000. dealer stated that if they performed recall repairs it would mess up the alignment. however, consumer was included in the recall, and did not get the repairs done. also, consumer was told by the dealer that ford would not pay for the alignment if they did the repair on the coil spring. *ak struts were replaced instead of recall issue. consumer was made to pay the bill before vehicle would be released. *tc

Left rear coil spring broke suddenly while drivng across a parking lot, rendering the vehicle inoperable.*ak

While driving 35 mph right side rear body suddenly flopped down. the consumer inspected the vehicle and noticed that rear spring broke. the dealer was notified. *ak *sc

While driving, the coil spring fractured and caused one of the tires to go flat. *nm *jb

I purchased the car on 7/13/04, the recall came out for the front suspension system on 7/16/04. the mileage is 77,135. i heard a popping noise and took the rear tires off as it sounded like that was where the noise was coming from. i discovered the right rear coil spring was broken and was grinding into the tire. i have spoken with ford motor and at this point, informed me that this vehicle is under no recall. they advised me to take it to the local ford dealership. i also advised them that i was making a complaint with nhtsa. why is the front suspension under recall and not the rear also ?? people need to be made aware of these issues with the rear suspension also. *ak

While driving at any speed the consumer heard a loud noise coming from the from right passenger side. the vehicle was taken to the dealership. the mechanic found the front coil spring on the passenger side had failed. *la *sc *jb

Dt: the caller received recall on the front springs, but he was having a problem with the rear springs. the caller said the rear spring failed, and it put a groove in the passenger rear tire. the caller found it before the tire blew out. the caller replaced both rear springs at his own expense with another brand. dealer said they would not replace the rear springs for free. manufacturer has not responded to the caller on the rear springs. *ak the sway bar bushings were replaced three times, the rear bushings were replaced twice. updated 01/19/06. *jb

In june 2004 i heard a noise in the rear of the car. i immediately took the car in for repair. my mechanic told me that a rear spring had broken and torn a hole in one of my rear tires. the tire was not repairable. i had both rear springs replaced, a new tire installed, and the vehicle still made a noise. i then took it to the ford dealership, who replaced the left rear strut assembly. i reported the incident to ford (twice) after the front spring recall. they refused to pay for the repair. *nm

Ford recalled the vehicle due to the front coil spring corrosion, and tearing up the tires. the consumer stated that the rear coil spring was the problem and the manufacturer was not willing to make an exception. *ak the rear driver's side springs failed while the vehicle was in motion. this problem punctured the inside portion of the tire. *sc *jb

While driving consumer heard a loud popping noise coming from the rear. consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle, and drove it to the dealer for inspection. mechanic determined that the rear coil spring needed to be replaced. *ak

Vehicle : 2001 ford taurus ses. rear right coil spring broke and caused the tire to rupture. *la

While driving at a unknown speed,the consumer noticed a dragging noise coming from the rear end of vehicle. the vehicle was serviced and the problem was due to the left rear wheel coil spring. please provide any additional information. *nm

While at a stop front driver side coil spring failed. consumer managed to pull over, and had the vehicle towed. dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak

Suspension front shock absorber problems. *ak

When backing out of the driveway, the consumer heard a noise from outside of the vehicle. the consumer went to investigate the noise and noticed that the right front tire had blown. the consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealer. the mechanic informed the owner that the front coil spring had failed. please provide any further details. *jb

Car experiences vibration at highway speeds and has a rattle in the "front end". dealer inspected the vehicle and found the front end "link pins" to be worn. these pins attach the lower control arm to the frame of the vehicle and in turn, hold the front tires in position. these pins have been replaces twice on this particular vehicle. once at approx 21,000 miles and again at approx 56,000 miles. the dealer says they see this "a lot on the taurus" and state that ford has now changed the part due to excessive wear. this is a critical component as failure of this part could result in the front wheels coming off the vehicle (per the dealership). again - symptoms are front end vibration, which is not corrected by tire balance. *nm

While i was driving my 2001 ford taurus the left rear coil spring on the strut broke causing the left rear tire to deflate from the spring penetrating the tire sidewall!*jb

While driving 30 mph rear driver side spindle snapped, cutting the brake line. this caused the vehicle to have extended stopping distance which resulted in a roll over. consumer sustained neck and back injuries. *ak

While reversing, suddenly there was a crashing noise. upon exiting the vehicle the consumer noticed that the right side of the vehicle was lower than the left side. the vehicle had to be towed to a mechanic because vehicle can't be driven. the service man indicated that the rear coil spring was corroded and cracked. this resulted in the rear right side coil spring collapsing and lying against the tire. *la

The anti-sway bars on my ford taurus ses have come loose on three separate occasions. the bars came loose at 10,000 miles, 16,000 miles, and most recently at 50,000 miles. since the latest repair (at 50,000 miles) is now allegedly out of warranty the dealer want $140 to fix the problem again. and there is no guarantee that this problem will not continue to resurface. i argued with the dealer and the manufacturer (ford customer relations) that this is an ongoing problem and a defect, not a new problem. the bars should not be coming loose on their own. it is important to note that on the second repair attempt (at 16,000 miles) the dealer installed a special kit that they received from ford to fix this problem. this is evidence that the manufacturer and the dealer are aware of a generalized problem and that sway bars are coming loose on this car model (2001 taurus ses) and perhaps on many others that share the same sway bar design. nhtsa should investigate the safety issue involved in loose sway bars on the ford taurus. nhtsa should also investigate the attempt by ford and the ford dealers to make customers pay for repairs that never resolve the problem. if ford and the dealers are allowed to claim that this repair is out of warranty then all they have to do is sit and wait until the warranties expire and all defects become a customer-paid repair.*ak

The vehicle was parked over night, consumer found that front right tire was flat. vehicle was towed to an independent shop where the mechanic determined that the front spring coil cut the tire 180 degrees. the consumer would have to pay $950.00 to replace the coil spring, tire, and labor cost. *ak the vehicle was placed in reverse and there was a loud bang. the front left of the vehicle sunk down. the consumer found a broken coil spring and the tire was cut 360 degrees. *sc

The front left spring on my 2001 ford taurus broke and punctured the tire as i was backing out my garage in january of 2004. had to have it towed to the dealership where it was purchased and have the two front springs replaced and purchase a new tire. *la

Notification recall 04s17 safety exists in 2001 taurus, front spring rusted through and snapped off piercing the tire. *bf the consumer was told that her extended warranty did not cover the repair. the consumer saw a recall notice on the internet for the same problem and requested a refund. campaign id number : 04v332000. the consumer stated that ford used faulty parts that resulted in additional expenses . *tc several days later, the consumer received a safety recall in the mail after being told the coil springs were not on recall it was just a customer satisfaction issue. *jb

When applying the brakes the front end shook violently.*ak the dealer rotated and balanced all four tires. the dealer also replaced the front rotors and pads and adjusted the rear brakes. *nm

Front left coil spring broke while driving on ny thruway at 65 mph. car had to be towed for service. parts damaged included replacing the coil spring, the strut, axel, tire, and axel bearing. *la

We noticed the lower half of the car is covered with small rust spots 44000 miles. we do not have an estimate on fixing this problem. at 39000 miles we began experiencing a rattle under the right front passenger floor board. this has been inspected and nothing has been found so far, however the rattle continues to grow worse. just under 30000 miles the front brakes required replacment. new rotors and brake pads were installed, however within a weeks time the car was back in for more brake work. the pads were replaced by the shop, but the sqeaking has returned again.( we did not have the brakes repaired at the ford dealership, because we were told that this was not covered under warranty.) the fuel gauge reads erracticly between full and 1/4. i have made no attempt to have this fixed yet. the engine has developed a hard starting problem within the last few weeks. it will crank and not start. then after a couple of attempts, it will start but idle rough.

The rear right coil spring broke while the vehicle was parked in the driveway. upon attempting to reverse out of the driveway consumer felt the broken coil spring rubbing heavily against the rear right tire. consumer felt that the rear coil spring broke as described in the front coil spring recall 04v332000.*ak right rear tire was punctured.*ts

Consumer states that the front end cannot be ajusted, which causes the tire to wear excessively on the inside. dealer contacted,this is a common problem. mr

While driving anti- lock brake system failed when applied, almost causing an accident.contacted dealer.*ak the left front door wobbles when opening, consumer states the trunk lid would open while driving, consumer states rear of vehicle bottoms out when there are at least five people in the vehicle, the speakers were giving a bad reception.*jb

Vehicle vibrated violently when operated above 60mph or while coming to a gradual stop. dealer has been contacted. please provide furtehr details.*ak

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