Problems with 2003 Ford Taurus SUSPENSION

I was backing out of my parking space at work and i heard a loud noise and then fthe air wwnt out of my tire on the front driver side real. once the tire was removed it revealed a large gash in the side wall of the tire as a result broken coil.

Driver's side front coil spring broke and punctured tire. vehicle was thankfully parked when this happened. there was a recall no. 04v332000, for 1999-2001 models - curious why it stopped there? multiple online forums indicate this issue continued past 2001. photos available if needed.

On october 23 2019, i retained mavis discount tire to inspect my new york state registered 2003 ford taurus. mavis discount tire passed the vehicle, determining the vehicles condition complied with ny state safety standard of roadworthiness. 12/12/2019, after repairing the transmission at gorilla auto works, i was informed of a serious structural situation, control arm assembly "severely deteriorated". on january 20th 2020, i again referred the vehicle to caskinete ford carthage new york for further evaluation, at ford motor company standards, as was informed, that the control arm assembly was not repairable, at the present condition, did not meet new york state or federal safety standards, contrary to the original status, and inspection , issued 10/23/2019 mavis discount tire arsenal st. watertown new york. further evaluations, study revealed, that failure of this condition, underway, at us interstate average speed of traffic, potentially catastrophic incident would result, eminent risk of loss of life. per us agency standards, i have made all reasonable efforts to resolve this complaint with relevant state agencies, dmv. etc. additional efforts included relevant new york state political representatives, to include new york state senate. *please note the, possibly intentional omission by mavis staff, of the vehicles mileage. obtained by other records.

A strange grinding noise was coming from the passenger front tire area which was very noticable trying to back out of driveway, so pulled back in and looked to see what might be wrong. i noticed a burning rubber smell and that the wheel clearance was significantly less on passenger verse driver front tire. drove up onto ramps to look from beneath and could clearly see the end of the coil poking into the inside edge of the tire with a worn mark all the way around where it was pushing into the rubber. after carefully backing off ramps, it was jacked up and placed on jack stands, at which time it was clearly visible the coil spring was snapped in two. it is a miracle this was found before my sister drove 70mph on the highway she was about to. this would've certainly caused a blowout and potentially a fire, and at those speeds could've certainly been deadly.

Keep shutting off randomly while during in the city sitting at a traffic stop. doesn't start all the time. there's rattling and clunking noise under the front of the vehicle

I regret to report that my daughter-in-law experienced a catastrophic failure of 3 coil spring assemblies and a subsequent front driver side tire failure due to a puncture a few months ago while was driving at a low rate of speed in her parents' neighborhood in winona. fortunately no one was injured and she was able to pull the car into the driveway. we are thankful she wasn't driving at highway speeds on the interstate. the corrosion of the coil springs has been a known design problem for years. i have done some research and found that the 2003 model year is not on a recall at this time. however earlier model years of taurus have been recalled for this same issue in the past, so corrosion of the coils is a known problem. the car is a 2003 ford taurus, 73,663 actual miles, well-maintained, no visible external rust, garaged nightly. this car was purchased from the ford dealership in rochester, minnesota.

After the driving my car on april 22 (a friday), i parked the car for the evening. on april 23, 2016 (a saturday morning), i came outside to find my 6-mo.-old left front tire flat after sitting overnight. a friend took off the tire and it was discovered that the strut spring was broken. i had the car towed to my mechanic on april 25, where it was determined that the strut spring was indeed broken, and i had it replaced. research and talking with others brought to light a recall for this exact issue on vehicle years 1998-2001, however, other drivers were reporting the same problem with newer models of the same vehicles. this claim is for reimbursement of the cost of replacing only the broken left strut spring (a quick strut) and the tow to the garage.

When backing up from being parked, the front drivers side tire exploded and the front left corner of the car dropped. the cause was a broken coil spring which punctured my new tire. 74k miles. i am upset that the nhtsa has investigated this problem that has been occurring for 15 years with ford taurus' vintage 2000 through 2005 and concluded its not a safety issue because there have been "no serious injuries or deaths". previously i had three spring failures on another (2001) taurus. i had a front spring break and had both front springs replaced. one of the replacement springs broke two years later. both failures caused tire failures. shortly before getting rid of the 2001taurus, i noticed a rear spring had failed, but did not damage the tire. i do expect a few "serious injuries or deaths" to occur in the future because of this serious safety issue. it's too bad some of us will have to sacrifice our lives or limbs for the good of the rest of us. if such a dreadful thing happens, i feel nhtsa may be equally liable with ford for wrongful death lawsuits for not requiring ford to address this safety issue. in their investigation, nhtsa also mentions the relatively small number of complaints on this topic. that is because consumers do not know about filing a complaint with the nhtsa. i advise the nhtsa to request the number of replacement parts from ford along with parts suppliers such as advance and autozone. i would estimate millions of springs have been replaced for just the 2002 and 2003 model years. i'd bet my craft beer money on it. btw, the true cause of failure is that road dirt and salt causes the ball bearings in the mount to bind which in turn restricts the springs free movement. the spring does not rust, the binding of the ball bearings against the spring surface causes the failure. poor design causing a very dangerous situation if driving at highway speed.

On about 15 jan 2016, the driver'side side front coil springs broke. when it broke it punctured through driver'side side front tire. luckily the car was sitting in the driveway at the time the coil springs broke and no further damage or injuries were sustained, just the broken coil spring and puncturedrives tire. from my research there was a previous recall for the exact same issue on earlier model years of the ford taurus but not for the 2003 model year and after talking to ford customer care there are no existing recalls for this suspension issue.

We had several close calls where the car would not stop,and slide on dry pavement,and wet conditions . the car had new brakes, rotors, tires, but still would have trouble stopping, unfortunately my daughter was driving the car today,and hit another car. i just replaced the tires again a few months go, thinking the tires were the problem. i had several close calls myself, and i think there is a big problem with this car stopping. thank god nobody was hurt, but this could have been much worse. my daughter was going approximately 30 miles an hour, and she was on a city street, conditions were wet , but she had plenty of time to stop.

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that while parked, the coil spring fractured without warning. the failure recurred on one other occasion. the vehicle was taken to a dealer, who diagnosed that the strut assembly needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 60,479.

The front strut spring broke and punctured the front tire causing $462.55 worth of damage, all other years of the same make and model but a few, including this one were covered by a recall or warranty. a serious accident or fatality could have occurred if this were to happen at highway speed. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. while pulling out of the driveway at approximately 5 mph, a loud sound emitted from the front passenger side tire. the contact discovered that the front passenger side coil spring fractured and punctured the tire. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 130,000.

Takata recall: car stops not accurately and makes sound whenever applied the brakes, feeling some suspension issues as well as transmission issue, car is fully maintain and have under car fax report system.

Traveling in reverse at approximately 5 mph when front left (driver's side) suspension spring coil broke and punctured the tire. reference: investigation: #ea08018. *tr

The vehicle suffered a broken passenger side front suspension spring. it immediately cut through and deflated the front tire. it is luck that this happened at very slow speed, if it happened at highway speed, loss of control would have been likely. the broken coil spring "hooked" the tire and cut the tire on the inside sidewall a full 360 degree separating the inside of the tire from the tread surface. it was difficult to move the vehicle in a desired direction. it was easier to park the vehicle safely by backing up to the curb. i understand that earlier model year ford taurus' were recalled for the same type of spring failure. *js

While driving my 2003 ford taurus around a sharp turn the passenger front tire exploded . while trying to change tire to spare it was noticed that the cause of the explosion was a broken spring sticking in the sidewall . i had it replaced . a few months later i saw a piece of a spring in my driveway , when i looked at my car i found the piece of spring came from the drivers side of the taurus . then later that year at state inspection the mechanic found a rear spring broke . i had both rear springs replaced . all four springs replaced at my own cost. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that while reversing from a garage, a loud abnormal noise was heard from under the front end of the vehicle. the contact discovered that the front passenger's side coil spring was fractured and punctured the front passenger's side tire. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who discovered that all four coil springs were damaged and needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 144,000. updated 04/02/14*lj *tr

Put car in reverse to move the strut assembly broke the spring went thru the tire multiple times.a 90,000 mile tire that only had 1900 miles on them. i am the one owner of this car with reg maintenance with no warning or prevention of this happening. *tr

Son was backing car down driveway and heard a noise and felt front end sag. he got out and noticed that the drivers front tire was flat. tire was a year old and cut on inside of sidewall. took tire off and had it replaced at my cost. when trying to put it back on the car i noticed the broken spring. this is what caused the tire to blow. very sharp edge on spring facing tire. glad it did not happen at highway speeds or in tight area so as to avoid injury or accident. very inconvenient and an obvious metal fatigue issue. rust not noticeable. bought this car used from a dealer and i wish they had corrected this ongoing problem before selling the car again. looks like i will have to look at other manufacturers as this is the second major expense on a ford for problems they knew about but did nothing to correct or to help compensate customers for their expense or inconvenience.. *tr

Just bought the car and doing some routine service , oil change , brake inspection etc. noticed that the rear body mounts on the subframe had rust rot. and looking over the rest of the subframe noticed that the lower control arms on the front mount of both left and right sides were rotted out completely. the repair work is more than what i paid for the car. i can't even put the car on the road. it will not pass inspection. for a car that is only 10 years old the subframe shouldn't be rotted out like this.ford should give some kind of assistance with this problem. *tr

Coil springs had snapped and ripped open inside of a brand new tire on the drivers side.our daughter noticed a flat tire so she went to change it and took to a local garage and they said they never saw anything like this. so we thought maybe the tires were on recall. i checked on the web and found that a lot of '03 ford taurus owners are having the same issues with the coils snapping but there is no recall on the '03's. but there was on '01-'02 taurus,apparently same problem but ford will not stand behind product.yet today i see a recall on the speed control cable for '03 taurus due to deadly accidents. another item i need to get fixed.thought we bought a reliable vehicle for a college kid that puts on tons of miles. so disappointed in ford but thankful this was not a tragedy. *tr

As i was pulling away from the curb to go to work my car just suddenly stopped as if i had slammed on brakes and made a very loud noise. then the front drivers side tire went flat. i tried to back up back to the curb but it wouldn't move. a neighbor came to change the tire but couldn't get it off. then a piece of the coil spring fell onto the road and he discovered that the rest of the spring is in the side of the tire. there is no rust on the spring. i have owned the car for 5 years and it never gave me any indication that the spring was going to break such as bouncing, etc. what if i had been barreling down the interstate? now i'm scared to drive it even if i manage to afford to get it fixed! i've read hundreds of complaints for this same issue. maybe there is a product problem?? *tr

Front spring broke and uncoiled ,stabbing front tire. vehicle was parked so no strain on spring. if moving tire sidewall would have ripped open. no containment at all. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that while driving 5 mph in reverse, a loud bang was heard as the vehicle began shaking violently. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic for diagnosis. the mechanic stated the front driver's side spring was fractured. the vehicle was repaired. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 95,000. *tr

Backing out of driveway heard loud noise like something hitting metal and a pop. upon removing tire noticed jagged edge of coil sticking down and broken piece laying on ground. also large gash on inside of tire wall. *tr

While driving the car noticed a clunking feeling in front end. after approx one mile saw smoke and smelled burning rubber. turned around to get car home, and while sitting at stop light, front driver side tire exploded like a gun shot. car was towed to ford dealership and found "front left coil spring broke causing it to rub on tire causing burning rubber smell, smoke and tire to blow out". repair bill is approx $925. owner is 83 year old woman, and this is a very costly expense. recall 04v332000 does not extend to this vin although it is clearly the same issue. *tr

Minnesota: front drivers side coil spring broke and punctured tire while traveling at approx. 15 mph. replaced both front coil spring, strut assemblies. cost: $1183.20 included alignment + new tire install + balancing. about 4 months later right rear coil spring broke. $cost not known at this time. *tr

The front driver's side coil broke. when it broke, it ruined my tire. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that while reversing at approximately 3 mph, she heard a loud grinding noise and smoke emitted from the wheel well. the vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was diagnosed that both front struts and the front axle needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the approximate failure mileage and current mileage was 128,847.

Front coil spring broke and punctured tire. front of car dropped. very difficult to control and pull to side. i thought ford had fixed this problem as the previous recall was for earlier years. *tr

Just pulled out of my driveway, when car felt weird driving. got out and noticed it was a flat tire in the front drivers side. looked closer and realized my whole spring broke falling down the shaft and sliced my tire open. i now have to get it towed and fixed, i got to school and work full time and need a car. i did some research and there was a recall for the exact same problem on 98-01 taurus. im going to pursue filing a complaint with ford to get a recall on models after 01 as well. this could have been very dangerous if it happened on the highway. *tr

My son proceeded to back out of driveway and the strut coil spring broke puncturing the tire. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that while reversing, the front driver side strut coil spring failed and punctured the tire. the spare tire was installed and the vehicle was taken to a mechanic where the strut and coil spring was replaced. the manufacturer was not notified. the failure mileage was 152,000. the vin was not available.

Front drivers side spring broke & punctured tire. i am a single mother of three boys (9,5 & 6months) and had drove home on the highway going 65mph with all my boys in the car. i parked my car at home & went out later to retrieve some paperwork from my vehicle only to find out i had a flat tire. when the tire was removed to see what was wrong with it & hopefully just having the tire repaired, that is when we noticed that the spring had broke while the car was parked & punctured the tire. as you can imagine i was in shock, but was thankful that it had not happened while driving on the highway at 65mph shredding my tire & possibly causing a fatal accident. i have since researched on the internet only to find out that this has been an ongoing problem with a number of complaints that has been investigated and has still had no recall ! is it a matter of a certain number of deaths to occur before something is done ? it is a blessing that this has not happened yet & you would think that ford would want to keep in mind the safety of the people who buy their cars, by having a recall on the defective springs before someone is killed. there is no warning when this happens & i feel that it is unacceptable for ford to play with the lives of the people who buy their vehicles. i can tell you that this is a great financial set back for me & my 3 children & will think twice before ever buying a ford vehicle again knowing that the outcome could have been unforgivable. you can replace a defective part, but you cannot replace a life......! *tr

Drove car out of my driveway at low speed (less than 5 mph) when driver side front coil spring of my 2003 ford taurus broke and made approx. 8 inch tear in the tire. tire deflated instantly, could have been a very dangerous situation if it happened on the highway. *tr

Calipers front right f reb caliper remove and inspect and overhaul caliper front one side. brakes were grinding again which required that inspection which i find out that the same area in the brake system needs replaced. recomd, tie rod inner remove and replace tie rod end one side inner, ball joints lower front left remove and replace f ball joint one side, 2 brake hoses front. brake rotors front both needed replaced. suggested tires due to mileage also rubber valve stem. system failure- required. recd, brake fluid exchange with abs, and bleed brakes. ceramic disc brake pads pd598 both front. 03/02/2013 mil 151213. 3rd repair shop, replaced all four tires with warranty brakes and pads along with discs needed replaced for the 4th time. transmission flush due to leaking fluid. qt dex 3 proline. brake drums and shoes replaced. replaced brake fluid, tie rod end one side inner along with replace of the shaft seal remove and install f axle shaft assembly one side. tran's seal cr. cv axle replacement. ball joint replacement along with wheel cylinder rear both, brake service with rear brake drum. engine light off/ runs poor diagnostic, replacement of pcv valve assembly, replaced upper and lower intake manifold gasket remove and replaced pcv valve along with tune up package. relearn engine idle, rear brakes basic pc pkg, dorman rear right wheel and left cylinders. during these 3-4 repair shops cannot fix the cruise control to get the car to stop driving it self when above 30mph along with acceleration, back tail light right side shorts out continually. it is very difficult and very unsafe to control a vehicle that has had more than three or four repair shops try their hardest to fix a problem that apparently has some of these problems. i am with the belief that the brake system along the electrical system within the 2003 ford taurus ses dohc is unsafe for street use in the u.s. due to our standards here of motor safety. when put into gear the transmission jumps loud. *tr

On or about may 5th of 2012 the front passenger coil spring fractured. which then punctured a six month old tire. then not more than 50 days later, on aproximately june 20th of 2012 the drivers side front coil spring fractured and punctured the drivers tire which was aproximately seven months old. if this were to happen on the road on either occasion it could have easily led to one or more fatality. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated that the vehicle was parked when he heard a loud popping noise. the contact examined the vehicle and noticed that the front driver's tire was flat because a fractured coil spring pierced through the sidewall. the contact replaced the coil spring and noticed that the front passenger side coil spring was also fractured. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 150,000.

When driving down a public road the front driver spring broke before i could safely stop this in turn cut the tire ,this is a long standing problem with ford taurus, prior recalls, yet not corrected in latter model years this could have resulted in a fatal accident at higher speeds. *tr

Brought my car in for an oil change and the mechanic informed me that both of my rear coil springs are broken. not sure when this happened but notice a couple of weeks earlier that the back end of the car was sagging. *tr

Car sitting in driveway and we noticed a flat tire. upon further inspection the drivers side coil spring broke and was stuck in the tire. *tr

Front spring broke while in garage,puncturing front tire.local garage replaced both front struts,springs,and tire {1]. contacted local dealer to inquire about recall or warranty.they where not helpful. *tr

2003 ford taurus station wagon. consumer states while backing out of the garage the left coil spring broke sending a piece of broken coil into the tire causing it to rupture *tgw the consumer stated the entire coil and strut assembly had to be replaced. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated while driving 10 mph in reverse, the front drivers side coil spring broke and damaged the tire. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where they diagnosed the failure and stated that was a common problem with the coil springs. the vehicle was repaired at the owners expense. the failure and current mileage was 78,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford taurus. the contact stated while driving approximately 5 mph in reverse out of his driveway he heard a loud banging noise. after inspecting his vehicle he noticed that the front drivers side coil springs fractured and punctured the tire. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who advised him that the shocks, struts, the stabilizer links for the front driver and passenger side had all been damaged as well and needed to be replaced. the coils springs were repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and offered no assistance. the failure and current mileage was approximately 109,800.

Left front spring cracked/broke, shredded front left tire.

While backing up in my 2003 ford taurus ses, front driver side coil snapped and slashed tire. *tr

Coil spring busted, went into my tire. *tr

Driver's side coil spring snapped while sitting in the cold. thinking tire was flat moved car over a few feet in driveway and shard of metal from coil spring shredded inside of tire. this is our third taurus (also have an '01 and '02) that the same thing has happened to. *tr