There are 30 owner-reported steering complaints for the 1988 Ford Taurusin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
POWER STEERING HOSE ARE TO CLOSE TO ENGINE MANIFOLD THREE TIMES THEY MELTED CAUSING FLUID TO BE LOST AND STEERING FAILURE ONE TIME A HOSE BROKE CAUSING A FIRE THE HARNESS HAD TO BE REPAIRED THE POWER STEERING PUMP WAS REPLACED TWICE BECAUSE OF FLUID STARVATION THE HOSE WERE PLACED AWAY FROM MANIFOLD AFTER GREAT EXPENSE SOME ONE COULD HAVE SERIOUSLY INJURED ARE KILLED BECAUSE OF THIS
TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN SLIPPING SINCE OWNING VEHICLE. ALSO FUEL PUMP FAILED TWICE, AND POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED ONCE. *AKE
REPLACED ENGINE MOUNTS, ALSO REPLACED REAR SPRINGS AND RUSTED FRONT SPINDLES. *AK
I HAVE SERVICE RECORDS DOCUMENTING ALL FAILURES AND I SEE FROM NUMEROUS WEBSITES THAT OTHER TAURUS CUSTOMERS ARE FURIOUS AT MANY PROBLEMS OF THIS CAR. ADVERTISING BY FORD SEEMS ALMOST FRAUDULENT AND BASED ON NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS REPORTED TO THEM I BELIEVE THIS CONSTITUTES DELIBERATE FRAUD. THOSE OF US WHO HAVE INTEGRITY HAVEN'T PASSED OUR LEMON CARS ON TO OTHER POOR IGNORANT SOULS BUT THE ENTIRE OWNERSHIP PERIOD OF THIS FORD TAURUS HAS CAUSED ME TO SUFFER SEVERE DEPRESSION AND STRESS AND HAS CAUSED INJURY ON AT LEAST TWO OCCASIONS. I'M AT THE POINT OF JUST DONATING THE CAR TO CHARITY FOR PARTS BUT I INTEND TO BECOME VOCIFEROUSLY INVOLVED IN LAWSUIT AGAINST FORD. NO WONDER THE TAURUS IS NO LONGER THE BEST SELLING CAR IN AMERICA. BUT I THINK IT'S YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO GET FORD FOR THIS. THEIR BEHAVIOR IS UNACCEPTABLE. NO SAFETY DEFECT MENTIONED. *AK
PARKED VEHICLE AND STEERING COLUMN CAUGHT ON FIRE AND TOTALED CAR. *AK
CAR WAS PARKED AND CAUGHT ON FIRE. POWER STEERING RETURN LINE WAS LEAKING AND STARTED FIRE. *AK
FAILURE OF THE STEERING COLUMN, THE HIGH PRESSURE LINE IS LEAKING FLUID, CAUSING LOSS OF POWER STEERING. CONSUMER CONTACTED THE DEALER AND THE DEALER HAS REPLACED THE LINE . *AK
TIE ROD ENDS FAILED SIX TIMES.
THE STEERING LOCKED UP WHILE TURNING. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT
POWER STEERING HOSE LEAKED FLUID RESULTING IN FIRE.
FLUID LEAK IN ONE OF THE HIGH PRESSURE, POWER STEERING HOSES, CAUSING FIRE.
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE SWERVED TO THE LEFT LANE INTO A ROAD DIVIDER, POSSIBLE DUE TO DEFECT IN STEERING MECHANISM. TT
THE SUBFRAME MOUNTING BOLTS PULLED OUT AND CAUSED THE CAR TO LOSS STEERING WHILE DRIVING. TT RECALL 93V106, HOWEVER CONSUMER'S VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED BECAUSE IT WAS TOO OLD. *SLC
POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED THREE TIMES. *DH
WHILE DRIVING TIE ROD BROKE, LOSS CONTROL OF CAR. TT
STEERING LOCKUP WHILE DRIVING SPEED 10MPH,IMPACT 12:00 POSITION. TT
TIE RODS/DRAG LINKS FAILED.
TIE ROD ENDS FAILED. *AK
TWO POWER STEERING LINES RUN PARALLEL; ONE LINE HAS A FITTING WHICH RUBS AGASINST OTHER LINE, CAUSING STEERING FLUID TO LEAK. *AK
REPLACED TIE RODS. *AK
Showing 1–20 of 30 complaints
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026