2009 Ford Taurus

Early-defect pattern

35.1% of complaints about the 2009 Ford Taurus came in its first year of service — a higher share than 99% of the 212 2009 model-years on record. That points to problems present from new rather than wear. The most-reported system is engine cooling (18 complaints), typically at 9 mo or about 4,000 miles.

Complaints: 77
Median age at failure: 2.8 yr
Median mileage: 37,000 n=63
Crash / fire / tow: 15.6% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Engine cooling 1,400 mi 5 mo in service

ON 2 OCCASIONS ABOUT A WEEK APART, DRIVING 40 MPH, DOWN HILL, COASTING (FOOT OFF THE GAS COMPLETELY), WHEN ENGINE SHUT OFF. FIRST TIME STALLED IN R LANE AND I WAS ABLE TO RESTART. SECOND TIME I RESTARTED ENGINE WHILE MOVING. WILL TAKE TO DEALER. *TR

Engine cooling 890 mi 6 mo in service

ON ONE OCCASION, DRIVING 40 MPH, SLIGHTLY DOWN HILL, COASTING, WHEN ENGINE SHUT OFF. RESTARTED ENGINE WHILE MOVING, AFTER SHIFTING TO NEUTRAL. TOOK TO DEALER, NO DIAGNOSTIC CODES FOUND IN COMPUTER. *TR

Engine cooling 12,194 mi 9 mo in service

ACCELERATING FROM 30 TO 40, A/C ON, ALL DASHBOARD LIGHTS CAME ON, ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING, ABLE TO SHIFT TO NEUTRAL AND RESTART ENGINE. *TR

Other Taurus model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2009 Ford Taurus

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

Other Taurus model years

How to read this