We have had to replace the rotors twice on this car in three years, non of which was covered by the manufacturer warranty. Also due to the bad brakes we had to put four new tires on at 36K miles (they should have lasted 50K miles at least). Additionally we had about $700 worth of engine work at 50K miles. Most recently this car left us stranded at midnight with a broken starter.
In summary I would NEVER buy another FORD again. There is a reason people say FORD stands for (Fix Or Repair Daily). Save your money and your sanity and buy a different car. The only nice thing I can say about the car is that is comfortable to ride in.
It is a comfortable ride.
The rotors on my 2001 Taurus warped after every HARD stop (i.e. deer in the road type stop). Installing ceramic pads resulted in slightly less responsive brakes, but I have not had to replace rotors since... even after hard stops.
I suspect you are over-extending the under-engineered brake rotors with your braking habits using the conventional brake pads.
Maybe the reason why you are having so many problems with your car is because you do not take care of it?
Fords are just like any other car if you take care of it they last, but if you don't then they go down the crapper.
I see this all the time. A person is unhappy with his car and submits a long list of things that have gone wrong. Another person with the same car who has had few problems says something like, "Well, you must not have taken care of your car else you would not have had all those problems." Come on now?! Look at number of unhappy customers of the Taurus. Are they all just not taking care of their cars?
Look at the review of some of the Japanese models and even the better made American cars. Do people who buy these cars just happen to treat them better. I suspect something else is going on. The fact is, the post 95 Taurus is junk. These are legitimate complaints.
The real problem are these jokers who constantly excuse cars and blame the owners and by doing so, are enabling Ford, GM and other American manufacturers to keep on producing wallet vacuums. We as Americans need to quit defending lousy quality just because it is American made.
What I am calling for is tough love. If we had done this decades ago, instead of blindly buying American just because it was, then maybe GM would still be the top automobile producer in the world and, Ford would not be in the fix it's in today.
One last thing. Come on Ford! Really make quality Job One. I pledge to help. I pledge to complain loudly and incessantly if you make a mistake. I pledge to give you the second chance I wouldn't give a foreign manufacturer. And lastly, I pledge to always root for your success.
A former and future Ford customer.
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