"How reliable is the 2002 Ford Taurus?"

"Based on 1756 NHTSA complaints, the 2002 Ford Taurus has a median complaint mileage of 80000 miles. The most common issue is SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:COIL SPRINGS."

"What are common problems with the 2002 Ford Taurus?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2002 Ford Taurus is SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:COIL SPRINGS, accounting for a significant portion of the 1756 total complaints filed."

2002 Ford Taurus: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 1756 complaints

1756

Total Complaints

80,000mi

Median Mileage

SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:COIL SPRINGS

Top Issue

104

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

57,000 25th Percentile

80,000 Median Mileage

108,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:COIL SPRINGS

402

SUSPENSION:FRONT

296

SUSPENSION

155

SUSPENSION:REAR

109

SUSPENSION:REAR:SPRINGS:COIL SPRINGS

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

STRUCTURE

TIRES

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD

Severity Assessment

104

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHILE PUMPING FUEL INTO VEHICLE WITH ENGINE OFF A FIRE STARTED IN ENGINE COMPARTMENT. LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENTARRIVED AND EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE. WHILE BEING TOWED FIRE RESTARTED AGAIN WITHIN ENGINE COMPARTMENT, FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED AGAIN BY LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENT. FEEL FREE TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER..."

"WAS TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 45MPH WHEN ANOTHER VEHICLE CAME OUT AND CAUSED A T-BONE COLLISION. PASSENGER'S SIDE AIR BAG DIDN'T DEPLOY. PASSENGER WAS INJURED WITH SIX BROKEN RIBS/AN INJURED HAND, AND WAS HAVING TROUBLE BREATHING. THE PASSENGER HAD SEAT BELT RESTRAINTS ON. NO CONTACT HAS BEEN MADE..."

"THE CAR WAS OPERATING UNDER SUNNY DRY CONDITIONS. TEMPERATURE WAS AROUND 60 DEGREES. THE ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING, CAUSING SHUTDOWN OF ALL POWER RELATED DEVICES INCLUDING STEERING AND BRAKES. THE TAURUS SEEMS TO BE MORE DIFFICULT THAN MOST CARS TO STEER WITHOUT POWERED ASSISTANCE. I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH T..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28