Problems with 2000 Ford Taurus VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

Part of the engine, top portion closest to the firewall on the passenger side of the vehicle, caught on fire while i was driving on a city street near my residence in lancaster, ca. i noticed the smoke emitting from under the hood when i came to a stop at the stop light.

Car fails to accelerate at times. gas pedal is depressed but engine does not seem to be getting fuel. after repeated attempts -- hitting accelerator -- engine will suddenly "catch" and lurch forward. seems to be a throttle problem, but ford dealer will not address. even though car falls in recall range for 2000-2003 tauruses with "sticky" throttles (recall was issued in 2013), dealer says it is "not on recall list." over 450,000 vehicles are -- but apparently mine is not one of them. seems like a very dangerous situation to me. you're driving in a 55 mph zone an suddenly your car slows to 20 mph no matter how hard you press the gas pedal. then after 20 seconds it suddenly takes off? not good. *tr

I was driving about 35mph and i let off the gas pedal and noticed the car was gaining speed. i then shifted in to neutral and the motor began to rev to 4k rpms. my throttle had got stuck. i tapped the pedal and got it to stop. turned around and proceeded to take it home and it happened again this time pushing me through a redlight.

Tl* the contact owned a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle suddenly accelerated independently without any warnings and the brakes failed to stop the vehicle. the contact attempted to regained control of the vehicle but it crashed into a ditch. the contact sustained back and neck injuries that required medical attention. a police report was filed. the vehicle was towed to salvage yard and deemed destroyed. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 136,000.

Another car pulled out in front of me and i had to slam on my brakes. when i tried to accelerate, my car suddenly sped up tremendously and i was barely able to stop the car using the brakes (the engine revved past 4 rpm!) i immediately put the car in park and turned it off. i tried to restart the car and it did the same thing (past 4 rpm!) the car had to be towed to the car dealership. even though there has been a recall for this exact issue...they said they will not honor it!!! although i was irritated that someone cut me off and almost caused a wreck, i look at it as a blessing in disguise. i was seconds away from getting onto 610 in houston rush hour traffic. can you imagine if that cable had snapped then and me car accelerated to a high rate of speed and i would be unable to stop?!?! *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that after having the vehicle serviced, the accelerator pedal was too close to the floorboard, making it difficult for the vehicle to accelerate. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer for a diagnostics. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure and current mileage was 162,000. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. while driving approximately 20 mph, the rpms suddenly increased. the vehicle then suddenly accelerated independently to 60 mph. the contact shifted into neutral and applied the brakes in order to stop the vehicle. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. there was a concurrent investigation under nhtsa action number: pe12033 (vehicle speed control:cruise control vehicle speed control:cables) that could have been related to the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 177,769.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated while trying to stop the vehicle and depress the brake the rpm's increased excessively causing sudden acceleration. the gear was placed in neutral and the contact depressed with force in order to stop the vehicle. the dealer was not notified of the failure. the manufacturer was notified and stated the vin was not included in nhtsa recall campaign 02v266000: service brakes, hydraulic. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 93,600.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that while attempting to make an u-turn he engaged the accelerator pedal and the vehicle lunge forward. the contact mentioned that the accelerator pedal became stuck. also, the contact stated that he had to engage the brakes and shift into neutral in order to stop the vehicle. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not available. the failure and the current mileage was 115,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that he attempted to decelerate while driving downhill in rainy weather when the rear end of the vehicle swerved and caused the contact to crash into a guard rail. the vehicle was towed to the contact's home and was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the contact did not sustain any injuries during the crash. the contact stated that the throttle control failed and caused the rear-end to lose control. the failure and current mileage was 172,455.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the brakes were applied and the vehicle unexpectedly accelerated. the vehicle was shifted into neutral and the brakes were applied to assist with stopping. the manufacturer had not been made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the failure mileage was 94,000 and the current mileage was 94,010.

From a speed of 20 mph, i began to apply the brakes to slow down for a stop sign and noticed that the vehicle speed continued to accelerate even as i was applying the brakes. i was able to bring the vehicle to a stop with great difficulty and when i released the brake, the vehicle surged forward without any pressure on the gas pedal. this same problem has happened a total of 10 - 12 times since the first incident. i have tried to drive this car as little as possible due to this problem and would really appreciate having ford correct whatever defective mechanical issue is causing this dangerous condition. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that while driving 55 mph, the accelerator pedal became stuck in a partially depressed position and the vehicle surged forward. the contact applied the brakes in order to release the accelerator pedal. the failure recurred intermittently. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 88,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford taurus. the contact stated that while driving 40 mph, the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning. the vehicle brakes were applied but the contact had difficulties with getting the vehicle to stop. the contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic but the mechanic could not diagnose a failure. the failure mileage was 169,000.

I was cruising on the freeway, as i approached my exit i began hitting the brakes and noticed the car was hardly slowing down. i continued to slam on the brakes attempting to get down to the off ramp speed limit until i realized it wasn't going to happen. i was rapidly approaching a busy intersection and before i could even think to put the car in neutral i had to turn quickly into a snowbank to avoid an even worse accident. i was terrified and i'm just happy no one was severely hurt or killed, my car suffered damage and the effects are still there. *tr