2005 Ford Taurus Problems
- Complaints
- 774filed with NHTSA
- Median mileage
- 90,000miles, 701 complaints with mileage
- Recalls
- 0campaigns on record
- Trend
- FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
- NHTSA crash rating
- —overall rating starts with 2011 models
- EPA fuel economy
- 19 mpgcombined, 3.0L 6-cyl FWD · 17 city / 23 hwy
Sources: NHTSA records for the 2005 Ford Taurus (complaints, recalls, investigations), NHTSA crash tests, EPA fuel economy. Report an error
What owners report
Owners of this model year most often describe sudden or unintended acceleration, frequently tied to the cruise control cable and throttle body; complaints range from a stuck accelerator pedal to engine RPMs rising to around 4,000 while braking or in neutral. A second, smaller cluster involves loss of drive or a sudden transmission failure, usually reported past 60,000-100,000 miles. Many acceleration complaints were filed on vehicles well past 70,000 miles, and several describe recurring symptoms after throttle or cable repairs.
- Vehicle speed control
Unintended acceleration / stuck throttle
- 604 complaints (78%)
- median 95,000 mi at 7.9 yrs old (552 state mileage)
- 24 mention a crash, fire or injury
- owner-quoted repair $874 (median of 16 quotes)
- filed 2005–2023
Owners describe the car speeding up with no pressure on the accelerator, often at 20-65 mph or right after shifting out of park, with engine RPMs climbing to around 4,000. Shifting into neutral usually made RPMs rise further, and several say braking was difficult until they shut the engine off. Mechanics cited a cruise control cable jamming or binding at the throttle body and, in some cases, a sticking throttle body; a number of owners say the problem returned after cable or throttle repairs, and some dealers told them they could not duplicate the fault. Reported across a wide mileage range, roughly 36,000 to 170,000 miles, and often on vehicles with no previous throttle work.
What to check: Ask whether the cruise control cable and throttle body have been inspected or replaced, and test whether cruise control engages and releases smoothly. Have a mechanic check cable routing at the throttle body for binding before buying.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“My 2005 Ford Taurus accelerated abruptly at an intersection at 4000 RPM. If a car had been in front of me it would have hit them. The car was able to get through the intersection and into a parking lot. The car was towed and as the tow truck driver started the car it revved up again and he was able to stop it in time. It is currently at my mechanic in pompano beach florida.”
NHTSA complaint #10465144, filed 2012-07, 93,000 miles“Hello, I have recently purchased a used 2005 Ford Taurus. The problem is that the car accelerates without me touching the gas pedal, this is a very dangerous problem especially with snow and ice on the ground. I noticed it happens when I take my foot of the brake at stop signs, the car will start to accelerate very suddenly reaching speeds up to 40mph until I step on the brake.”
NHTSA complaint #10489078, filed 2012-12, 70,000 miles - Transmission and drivetrain
Transmission / transaxle loss of drive
- 80 complaints (10%)
- median 88,000 mi at 7.0 yrs old (77 state mileage)
- 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
- owner-quoted repair $1,800 (median of 10 quotes)
- filed 2005–2018
Owners report the transaxle suddenly acting as if in neutral with no warning light or noise, leaving only park and neutral, sometimes while driving at highway speed or turning through an intersection. Several had the transmission or torque converter rebuilt or replaced. Some also describe the car revving and losing speed, or refusing to move from a stop while still in drive. Mostly reported between about 63,000 and 133,000 miles, often without prior symptoms.
What to check: Check transmission fluid level and condition, and ask for any service or rebuild records. During a test drive, listen for slipping or delayed engagement and confirm all gears engage.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“Transaxle going out with no signs of problem. While driving and making turn transaxle went out while in the middle of turn in middle of intersection. Was lucky not a lot of traffic and parking lot close enough where I could coast into safely. No gears except park it was like all other gears was neutral. I am going to have transaxle replaced or rebuilt.”
NHTSA complaint #10298965, filed 2010-01, 133,325 miles“While driving down the road in our 2005 Ford Taurus it suddenly sounded as if our car was in neutral. After coasting down a hill and into a parking lot we discover that our car will not go into any gear. We had the car towed and now are going to have to figure out how to pay to replace the transmission.”
NHTSA complaint #10321219, filed 2010-03, 78,453 miles - Vehicle speed control
High idle / revving on startup
- 147 complaints (19%)
- median 95,000 mi at 7.7 yrs old (133 state mileage)
- 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
- owner-quoted repair $724 (median of 6 quotes)
- filed 2008–2020
Owners report RPMs jumping to 3,000-4,000 immediately after starting or when returning to drive, requiring hard braking or neutral to keep the car controllable. Some say tapping the accelerator briefly brings revs back down, and the behavior recurs intermittently. Reported from very low mileage up to about 120,000-150,000 miles, in everyday city and stop-and-go driving.
What to check: Start the engine and watch the tachometer for a high or hanging idle, and check that the throttle returns freely by hand with the engine off.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“Started recently, when I start the car the rpms rev way up. Past 3000. While driving I constantly have to ride the break or put it in neutral. I literally can drive miles at 45 MPH and never touch the accelerator pedal. It would shoot up past 3000 rpms . This car's going to kill someone.”
NHTSA complaint #11330729, filed 2020-06, 150,000 miles“The car revs to 3 RPM's on start. Eventually, it may kick down. As you start off, reverse or drive, the car chugs and has jumped back 3 ft while I was backing up. It may stall at stop sign/red light. It chugs at each slow down and start. Very dangerous. It is necessary and very dangerous and unnatural, but left foot on the brake and right on the gas is mandatory. Also very dangerous. Parking lots are hazardous, as is my parking at home. …”
NHTSA complaint #10808253, filed 2015-12, 93,033 miles
Buying note. Have any 2005 Taurus checked by an independent mechanic for throttle body condition and cruise control cable routing before purchase, since unintended acceleration is the most common complaint for this year. Also confirm transmission service history and test cold-start behavior, as both engine and transaxle complaints are common at higher mileage.
Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.
NHTSA recorded 774 consumer complaints for the 2005 Ford Taurus. 701 of the complaints include a mileage, and 11% of those were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the median is 90,000 miles. Of all complaints, 40 involved a crash, 10 a fire, 28 an injury, 2 a death, according to the filers. NHTSA lists 0 recall campaigns and 29 technical service bulletins for this model year.
Not compared (before 2008). Model years 2008–2023 of the same vehicle that have at least 25 complaints are compared, and a model needs at least 3 of them.
Which parts are reported most
Complaints can name more than one part, so the counts add up to more than the total. Select a part to see its complaints, recalls and bulletins.
- Vehicle speed control529 68%
- Transmission and drivetrain123 16%
- Engine68 8.8%
- Fuel system41 5.3%
- Engine cooling40 5.2%
- Brakes36 4.7%
- Electrical system28 3.6%
- Air bags27 3.5%
- Other or unknown26 3.4%
- Body and structure22 2.8%
Also reported: Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors) (12), Steering (7), Suspension (7), Equipment (4), Exterior lighting (4), Latches, locks and linkages (4), Seat belts (4), Tires (3), Electronic stability control (1), Forward collision avoidance (1), Wheels (1).
Example complaints
Vehicle speed control: “This issue occurred about 4 months ago when driving normally. Then, today we were driving up a hill and it started to accelerate without me pushing the gas pedal. The only way to get it to stop was to put it in park and turn the car off but, kept occurring when I turned the car back on. Putting it in neutral did not work.we were in the middle of our city.”
NHTSA complaint #11118939, filed 2018-08, 88,000 milesTransmission and drivetrain: “My daughter was driving down the road going 35 MPH, when there was sudden acceleration and the pedal got stuck. The engine was at about 4,000 RPM. There was no traffic, so she was able to pull over and shut the car off, however, it was extremely difficult for her to brake. This is the second time this has happened, and we recently had the transmission and the accelerator wiring replaced.”
NHTSA complaint #10684061, filed 2015-02, 92,000 milesEngine: “When driving my 2005 Ford Taurus or parked wirh engine operating, it hesitates and accelerate on its own. I have taken it to a Ford dealership and after several hundred dollars for a fuel injection system cleaning, I was told they could not duplicate the problem. This issue has been going on for several years now.”
NHTSA complaint #11114917, filed 2018-07, 69,000 milesFuel system: “I have a 05 Ford Taurus with the same exact symptoms as the previous year Taurus had wich lead to a recall. My cruise control cable will come off the throttle body holding the throttle open and revving at 4 grand when pit in neutral to resolve the issue. After a week of disputing with the car dealership, they finally fixed it at no charge.”
NHTSA complaint #10681962, filed 2015-02, 130,000 milesMileage when problems were reported
11% of the 701 complaints with a mileage were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the middle half falls between 65,000 and 110,900 miles.
Complaints by year filed
Trend: falling. Complaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2005 Ford Taurus. Frontal results are shown driver / passenger; rollover shows the star rating and NHTSA's estimated risk of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
| Version | Overall | Frontal | Side | Side pole | Rollover |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taurus · sedan (side air bags) | not rated | 4 / 5 | — | — | — |
| Taurus · sedan | not rated | 4 / 5 | — | — | — |
Ratings before the 2011 model year come from an older, less demanding test and are not comparable with ratings for 2011 and later.
Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (5-Star Safety Ratings), nhtsa.gov/ratings.
Fuel economy and running cost
EPA ratings for each 2005 Ford Taurus version. Annual fuel cost is the EPA's estimate at its current fuel prices for 15,000 miles a year (55% city driving).
| Version | Engine | Transmission | City | Hwy | Comb. | Fuel / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taurus FWD | 3.0L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | 18 | 25 | 20 | $3,350 |
| Taurus Wagon FWD | 3.0L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | 17 | 23 | 19 | $3,550 |
| Taurus Wagon FWD | 3.0L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | 17 | 24 | 19 | $3,550 |
| Taurus FWD | 3.0L 6-cyl · flex-fuel | 4-speed automatic | 17 | 25 | 20 | $3,350 |
| Taurus Wagon FWD | 3.0L 6-cyl · flex-fuel | 4-speed automatic | 17 | 24 | 19 | $3,550 |
Source: U.S. EPA and Department of Energy, fueleconomy.gov. Ratings are for comparing vehicles; real-world mileage varies with driving and conditions.
Recalls and investigations
NHTSA lists no recall campaigns for the 2005 Ford Taurus in the data used here. A recall can apply to some vehicles of a model year and not others, so check a specific vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA investigations
Technical service bulletins
TSBs are manufacturer notes to dealers about known repair procedures. They are not recalls and do not by themselves mean a vehicle has a fault. 29 on record; the latest 10 are shown.
- 10177863Jul 13, 2020Body and structure. This article supersedes TSB 19-2026 to update the vehicle model years affected. Some 2000 and newer Ford/Lincoln/Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns…
- 10156863Feb 7, 2019Equipment, Body and structure. Some 2000 and newer Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white…
- 10155551Feb 7, 2019Body and structure. Some 2000 and newer Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white…
- 10109070Sep 21, 2016Engine cooling, Engine. The Powertrain Control/Emissions Diagnosis (PC/ED) manual has been revised for diagnosing electronic throttle bodies (ETBs). The ETC_ACT and ETC_DSD PIDs should not used to diagnose possible ETB…
- 10021460Apr 27, 2007Engine cooling. 3.0l 4v - mil on - with multiple coil dtc codes.
- 10022203Dec 6, 2006Transmission and drivetrain. Extended warranty coverage for vehicles with hard start when operating on e85 fuel, powertrain control module (pcm) calibration. Warranty extended for 10 years or 100,000 miles which ever comes…
- 10019807Apr 29, 2006Electrical system. Tenths digit not displayed on odometer after 10,000 miles/kilometers.
- 10019913Jan 1, 2006Electrical system. Flex fuel - long crank/hard start.
- 10019382Jan 1, 2006Engine cooling. Camshaft tick noise - 3.0l 4v engine only.
- 10018749Nov 14, 2005Engine cooling. Spark knock, hesitation above 3000 rpm, loss of power, misfire, and possible engine damage due to detonation and pre-ignition - 3.0l-2v vulcan gas/ffv.
Other model years of the Ford Taurus
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | Crash ★ | MPG | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 18 | 101,500 | 2 | 5 | 21 | — | Rising |
| 2018 | 52 | 52,000 | 4 | 5 | 21 | 11 · Fewer | Rising |
| 2017 | 44 | 32,000 | 4 | 5 | 21 | 21 · Fewer | Rising |
| 2016 | 86 | 58,482 | 4 | 5 | 21 | 33 · Fewer | Rising |
| 2015 | 281 | 68,500 | 6 | 5 | 23 | 93 · More | Falling |
| 2014 | 229 | 73,000 | 5 | 5 | 23 | 79 · More | Falling |
| 2013 | 585 | 83,950 | 9 | 5 | 22 | 100 · More | Stable |
| 2012 | 79 | 41,493 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 50 · Typical | Falling |
| 2011 | 187 | 63,500 | 4 | 4 | 22 | 90 · More | Rising |
| 2010 | 204 | 46,500 | 3 | — | 22 | 92 · More | Falling |
| 2009 | 64 | 31,375 | 0 | — | 21 | 43 · Typical | Falling |
| 2008 | 175 | 65,406 | 1 | — | 22 | 47 · Typical | Falling |
| 2007 | 149 | 83,000 | 0 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2006 | 318 | 86,000 | 2 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2005 | 774 | 90,000 | 0 | — | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2004 | 375 | 94,000 | 1 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2003 | 1,223 | 78,000 | 3 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2002 | 1,426 | 80,471 | 3 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2001 | 1,037 | 72,500 | 9 | — | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2000 | 1,195 | 70,000 | 8 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1999 | 874 | 70,000 | 5 | — | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1998 | 545 | 87,000 | 2 | — | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1997 | 770 | 84,324 | 3 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1996 | 825 | 95,000 | 6 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1995 | 1,205 | 91,700 | 5 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1994 | 923 | 94,269 | 4 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1993 | 1,557 | 105,000 | 6 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1992 | 681 | 101,377 | 5 | — | 21 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1991 | 649 | 96,929 | 4 | — | 21 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1990 | 381 | 100,000 | 6 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1989 | 562 | 95,373 | 5 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1988 | 333 | 110,000 | 5 | — | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1987 | 255 | 66,673 | 8 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1986 | 101 | — | 8 | — | 20 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
All Ford Taurus model years · Best and worst years by complaints
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2005 Ford Taurus?
Owners of this model year most often describe sudden or unintended acceleration, frequently tied to the cruise control cable and throttle body; complaints range from a stuck accelerator pedal to engine RPMs rising to around 4,000 while braking or in neutral. The issues reported most often: Unintended acceleration / stuck throttle; Transmission / transaxle loss of drive; High idle / revving on startup.
How many NHTSA complaints does the 2005 Ford Taurus have?
NHTSA recorded 774 consumer complaints for the 2005 Ford Taurus as of Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
What part of the 2005 Ford Taurus is reported most often?
Vehicle speed control is named most often, in 529 complaints (68% of the total), followed by transmission and drivetrain with 123.
Has the 2005 Ford Taurus been recalled?
NHTSA lists no recall campaigns for this model year in the data used here. To check a specific vehicle, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What gas mileage does the 2005 Ford Taurus get?
The EPA rates the 2005 Ford Taurus (Taurus Wagon, 3.0L 6-cyl) at 19 mpg combined, 17 city and 23 highway, with an estimated annual fuel cost of $3,550 at 15,000 miles a year. Other engine and drive versions are rated differently.
At what mileage are problems with the 2005 Ford Taurus reported?
Among the 701 complaints that include a mileage, the median is 90,000 miles and the middle half falls between 65,000 and 110,900 miles; 11% were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles.
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Crash ratings are from NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program. Fuel economy is from the EPA and DOE (fueleconomy.gov).
Complaint counts come from NHTSA’s public complaint database; we count each complaint once. The source records for this vehicle are on nhtsa.gov. Scores and trends are our own summaries of that data, described in the methodology. This page is not legal, safety or repair advice: for a specific vehicle, check its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and ask a qualified mechanic. See an error? Tell us.