2006 Ford Taurus Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2006 Ford Taurus most often describe unintended or stuck acceleration — the gas pedal staying down or engine RPM rising on its own, sometimes with the car surging while braking. These reports span a wide mileage range and are usually intermittent. Other recurring themes in the sample are airbag warning lights or non-deployment, brake-related stopping complaints, and occasional electrical or cold-weather starting problems.

1. 1
   Vehicle speed control

   Stuck or unintended acceleration / high idle

   • 193 complaints (61%)
   • median 90,941 mi at 6.9 yrs old (172 state mileage)
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2007–2024

   Owners describe the accelerator pedal sticking or the engine revving without their foot on the gas, sometimes while parked, at stop signs, or around 30-55 mph. Many say the car keeps accelerating despite hard braking and that they had to shift to neutral or shut the engine off. Complaints mention that mechanics pointed to the throttle body, the cruise control cable, or the idle air control valve, and that cleaning or replacing parts often did not fully resolve it. Reported across a wide mileage range, from near-new to well past 150,000 miles, and typically intermittent rather than constant.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Have a mechanic inspect the throttle body, accelerator cable and cruise control cable attachment for sticking or binding. Ask whether the throttle has been cleaned and whether any related software or diagnosis work was done.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The throttle opened so that the car would pick up speed without my foot being on the accelerator. Then when I stopped the engine kept accelerating, so I put it into neutral and it was at about 4,000 RPM. I took my car to a garage and they cleaned the throttle and it was idling normally. Since then it has continued to happen intermittently.”

   NHTSA complaint #10639512, filed 2014-09, 58,000 miles

   “After exiting the freeway and attempting to slow down, the car became difficult to control and hitting the brakes slowed it down but was not stopping. With a red light ahead I put the car in neutral, to slow down but the engine begin to rev, I was able to pull into a parking lot where I put the car in park. Once the car was put in park, the throttle kept going and the RPM accelerated to just under 4000. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10515382, filed 2013-06, 89,480 miles
2. 2
   Air bags

   Airbag warning light or airbags not deploying

   • 26 complaints (8%)
   • median 75,000 mi at 6.5 yrs old (23 state mileage)
   • 10 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2006–2022

   Owners report the airbag warning light staying on, sometimes with the horn not working, and dealers describing a failed clock spring assembly. Other complaints describe airbags not deploying in a collision, a fractured airbag bracket, an intermittent passenger airbag-off light, and a powdery residue near the steering wheel housing. Mostly reported between roughly 50,000 and 75,000 miles, with a few at higher mileage.

   Recall 06V119000

   What to check: Check that the airbag warning light does not stay illuminated after startup and that the horn works. Ask whether the clock spring or airbag bracket has ever been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Recently started noticing a white powdery substance coming out of the area behind the airbag housing and running down the back of the steering wheel housing on both sides. With all the new data coming out regarding air bag failures, I am very concerned for my safety while driving this car. It should be handled/repaired by Ford at their expense. They know they have an issue with bad airbags and their customer's safety should be paramount!”

   NHTSA complaint #10651524, filed 2014-10, 76,000 miles

   “Tl-the contact owns a 2006 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving 5 MPH, the passenger and driver air bags failed to deploy when the front bumper of another vehicle crashed into the contacts front bumper causing the vehicle to spin and crash into a rock structure. The contact sustained eye injuries. A police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed and the manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 66,000. St”

   NHTSA complaint #10542066, filed 2013-09, 66,000 miles
3. 3
   Brakes

   Brake pedaling and stopping concerns

   Mentioned in 6 of 60 sampled complaints

   Complaints describe the brake pedal feeling ineffective or the car continuing to move despite firm pressure, often alongside an engine that is revving. A few owners report corroded metal brake lines leading to the rear brakes with a significant brake fluid leak. In some cases the brake issue was described after an acceleration event rather than on its own. Reported from about 50,000 to 130,000 miles, in ordinary city and highway driving.

   What to check: Have the brake lines inspected for corrosion and check for fluid leaks or a low reservoir. Confirm recent brake service records and that the pedal feels firm at a stop.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving eastbound, on a city street, approaching the intersection with a stop sign. When I pressed on the brakes, it didn't slow down. In fact, the car was going faster. So I put the car in park, hoping to slow it down, but it didn't work. Then I jumped the curb, hoping that would slow the car down, but it didn't work. I tried to avoid hitting a truck that was going northbound on the cross road, but I couldn't avoid is so I hit the truck.”

   NHTSA complaint #11014515, filed 2017-08, 68,000 miles

   “I was heading home in a 35 miles an hr zone, when suddenly, my gas pedal flattened from under my feet and my car started going faster. I tried breaking, but the car kept lunging forward even though I was on the breaks, the RPM also revved up to about 3000 even though I was still breaking. I pulled off the road and put it in park and it still sounded as if I was gassing it, so I shut it off and waited, then started it again, it revved, then the RPM dropped suddenly and was back to normal.”

   NHTSA complaint #10579477, filed 2014-04, 98,200 miles
4. 4
   Engine

   No-start or stalling in cold weather

   Mentioned in 4 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe the vehicle failing to start or stalling, sometimes with the theft indicator light coming on when it stalls, and long cranking in cold conditions. Complaints note intermittent stalling during turns and after restarts returning to normal, and in some cases shops were unable to reproduce the problem. Reported at low and high mileage alike, often in cold weather or during the first start of the day.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the vehicle has shown hard starting or stalling in cold weather and whether any PCM recalibration or fuel-system diagnosis was performed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I have had numerous instances where the car does not roll over or start. The latest problem occurred on 11/10/06. I was making a left hand turn at a busy intersection going approximately 30 miles per hour when the car just died in the middle of the intersection. Luckily, no accident occurred but this was a very dangerous situation and could have resulted in injury or even worse.”

   NHTSA complaint #10174464, filed 2006-11, 5,600 miles

   “The contact owns a 2006 Ford Taurus. He stated that in extremely cold temperatures the vehicle would not start. The theft light would illuminate whenever the vehicle stalled. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealer and there were no recalls. No repairs were made. The current and failure mileages were 125,000.”

   NHTSA complaint #10299004, filed 2010-01, 125,000 miles
5. 5
   Electrical system

   Instrument cluster and electrical faults

   • 37 complaints (12%)
   • median 82,500 mi at 7.1 yrs old (34 state mileage)
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2006–2021

   Owners report gauges on the instrument panel failing or reading incorrectly, battery and warning lights staying on, and power windows, wipers or the odometer display behaving oddly. Complaints also mention doors that will not latch or stay shut in cold weather and a door-ajar warning keeping the dome light on and draining the battery. Reported from around 30,000 to 145,000 miles, with some cold-weather door latch complaints.

   Recall 05V5200002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check that all gauges, warning lights, windows, and wipers work, and test each door latch, especially in cold weather. Ask whether the cluster or wiper motor has been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Periodically the passenger side airbag off light comes on. Also, passenger side door ajar on dashboard on all the time which makes dome light stay on and drain battery.”

   NHTSA complaint #11388524, filed 2021-01, 72,000 miles

   “In cold weather the door latches freeze and will not latch this is the second 2006 Ford Taurus I have owned that has done this. Has happened numerous times atleast 20”

   NHTSA complaint #11343563, filed 2020-08, 144,000 miles

Buying note. If you are considering this model year, take it for a test drive that includes stop-and-go traffic and a long hill to check for a sticking throttle or rising RPM, and have a mechanic inspect the throttle linkage, brake lines, and airbag warning system before purchase.

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.