1998 FORD TAURUS Complaints

VEHICLE HAD BEEN IN REPAIR SHOP FIVE TIMES FOR TRANSMISSION WORK. TRANSMISSION WAS REPAIRED TWICE AND REPLACED THREE TIMES. *AK

WHILE DRIVING THE BRAKES FAILED AFTER THE PEDAL BECAME SOFT WHEN DEPRESSING. THIS CAUSED EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE. CONSUMER MANAGED TO PULL OVER, AND HAD VEHICLE TOWED TO DEALERSHIP, BUT PROBLEM WAS NOT RESOLVED. *AK

REAR MIDDLE SEAT BELT STRAP ON 1998 FORD TAURUS SEDAN WAS NOT SECURED BY MINOR OCCUPANT WHILE EXITING VEHICLE. BELT WAS OUTSIDE VEHICLE WHEN VEHICLE STARTED MOVING AND WAS RUN OVER BY VEHICLE REAR TIRES CAUSING REAR WHEEL TO LOCK AND SKID ON PUBLIC STREET. *LA

SMOKE BEGAN COMING OUT OF VENTS WHEN AIR CONDITIONING WAS TURNED ON. IF I TURNED IT OFF AND WAITED A FEW MINUTES, THE AIR CONDITIONING WOULD WORK AGAIN. THIS HAPPENED EVERY TIME I TRIED TO USE THE AIR CONDITIONING. IN SEPTEMBER, WHEN I TRIED USING THE HEATER, IT DID NOT WORK. I CHANGED THE THERMOSTAT AND HAD ENGINE COOLING SYSTEM FLUSHED. HOWEVER THIS STILL DID NOT RESOLVE MY PROBLEM. I CONTACTED MY LOCAL FORD DEALERSHIP,. THEY INFORMED ME THAT THIS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE 98 TAURUS. THE ENGINE COOLANT FORD MAKES YOU USE CLOGS THE SYSTEM AND TURNS THE COOLANT INTO SLUDGE. THE ONLY THING YOU CAN DO IS TO REPLACE THE HEATER CORE. THEY ALSO STATED THAT ON AVERAGE I WILL HAVE TO REPLACE THE HEATER CORE EVERY OTHER YEAR. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. *LA

WHEEL RIM ON DRIVER'S SIDE TIRE WAS CORRODED, CAUSING AIR TO LEAK FROM THE TIRE. DRIVER TOOK VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR WHEEL RIM REPLACEMENT. *AK

WHILE DRIVING, THE RIGHT REAR TIRE TREAD SEPARATED. *AK ALL 4 TIRES BLEW OUT AT HIGHWAY SPEED.*TS *JB

TURN SIGNALS WOULD ONLY WORK AT TIMES. SOMETIMES THEY WOULD START TO BLINK/ILLUMINATE. THEN, STOP BEFORE THE TURN WAS COMPLETE, AND SOMETIMES THEY WILL NOT BLINK AT ALL. THIS WAS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM ON MANY LATE 1990 FORDS. *AK

HEATER ABRUPTLY STOPPED WORKING WHILE DRIVING LAST WINTER. SINCE THEN THE COOLING SYSTEM HAS BEEN FLUSHED 6 TIMES. EACH TIME IT WILL WORK FOR A WEEK AND THEN IT STOPPED AGAIN. THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO A DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY REPLACED THE BLEND DOOR MOTOR, CHARGED $230 FOR IT AND IT DID NOTHING. IT WAS GIVEN A "CHEMICAL FLUSH" FOR $125 WHICH DID NOTHING. THEN THE DEALERSHIP INFORMED ME THAT IT WOULD NEED THE HEATER CORE AND BLEND DOOR REPLACED. I WAS TOLD BY ANOTHER DEALERSHIP THAT THIS WAS A SERVICE BULLETIN IN THE FIRST PLACE AND THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE THE OTHER WORK AT ALL. APPARENTLY THIS WAS A KNOWN PROBLEM ON THE TAURUS FROM 96 ON. I FOUND A LOT OF PEOPLE ON THE INTERNET COMPLAINING ABOUT THE EXACT SAME THING AND WAS TOLD THAT THE NHTSA HAD ADVISED FORD IN 96 OR 97 THAT THEY SHOULD PROBABLY RECALL THE CARS FOR THIS PROBLEM WHICH CAUSES THE DEFROSTER TO NOT WORK AND THEREFORE MAKES IT DANGEROUS TO DRIVE AT ALL IN THE WINTER. APPARENTLY FORD DID A " CUSTOMER SATISFACTION" RECALL WHICH EXPIRED IN 99 BUT WAS NEVER DONE ON MY CAR (I BOUGHT IT USED IN 2000). I CALLED FORD TO ASK WHY THIS WASN'T A RECALL SINCE FROM WHAT I HAVE FOUND IT EFFECTS ALL TAURUSES FROM 96-99 AT LEAST. THEY TOLD ME THAT IT WASN'T A SAFETY ISSUE SO IT WOULDN'T BE A RECALL. I SUBMITTED THAT IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE SINCE YOU CANNOT SEE OUT OF THE WINDSHIELD IN THE WINTER AND SINCE WHEN OURS STOPPED WORKING WE WERE ON I-70 BETWEEN ST. LOUIS AND KANSAS CITY DURING A SNOWSTORM AND HAD TO STOP BECAUSE WE COULDN'T SEE. THIS IS A $1300 REPAIR THAT FORD KNEW ABOUT FOR A LONG TIME, I THINK THEY SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR IT. *LA

POSSIBLE CAM FAILURE RESULTING IN TOTAL ENGINE LOST IF NOT FOR ALL FOUR CAMSHAFTS WELDED THIS DAY FOR THE COST OF $600. *LA

WHILE DRIVING AND WITH NO WARNING THE DOOR AJAR LIGHT COMES ON INTERMITTENTLY. CONSUMER HAS MADE CONTACT WITH THE DEALERSHIP. *AK