2009 Ford Taurus X problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Structure:body (2) · Steering (2) · Trailer Hitches (1)
Safety recalls (1)
Air Bags:frontal 2016-04-26 · campaign 16V247000 · 695 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Ford Flex, 2008 and 2010-2012 Ford Taurus, 2008-2009 Ford Taurus X, 2008 Mercury Sable, 2009 and 2011 Lincoln MKS vehicles. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Risk: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the driver's frontal air bag module, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on June 13, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C06.
Service bulletins (7)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-02-24 · SSM 54601 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
ford and lincoln vehicles equipped with wired keyless entry keypad systems and accessory wireless keyless entry keypad systems may or may not come with a wallet card containing the master code. unlike the integrated wired keypad, the accessory wireless keypad master code cannot be retrieved from the
Equipment 2024-04-24 · SSM 52476 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
all accessory stick-on keyless entry keypads come with a wallet card containing the master code. if the accessory keypad was factory installed, this card will be placed in the glove box and should be handed to the vehicle s owner during initial delivery. unlike the integrated (wired) factory keypad,
Suspension 2021-03-17 · RFI20210317_810- · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this sku is a control arm. the customer communication requested return of unsold inventory to inspect the bushing orientation. if the bushing orientation is incorrect, it will prevent installation of the product. if the problem is not corrected, the product will be unusable.
Fuel System, Gasoline 2016-04-28 · 15R02 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
in some of the affected vehicles that are operated in high-corrosion environments associated with road salt use, moisture and salt may become trapped under the fuel tank mounting reinforcement brackets at the four corners where the fuel tank is attached to the vehicle. over time, corrosion under the
Electrical System:software 2011-04-01 · SIS-21841 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
comm-trans lund: some 2009-2011 models may have the air bag inicator flashing with a stored trouble code. this is a software problem. *rm
Service Brakes, Air:antilock 2011-03-01 · AS-21769 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
ford: if there is an intermittent lack of power, surge, or hesitation while driving the brakes will override acceleration. *rm
Showing the 6 most recent of 7 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-06-11 · Unknown Or Other“front subframe (also referred to as k-frame, engine cradle, crossmember) rusted through forming large holes in two locations which could cause failure of the front subframe during operation. locations mirror each other, are at the forward-facing side of the cross member just in from the point where the crossmember connects to the side beams of the…”
2023-05-01 · Trailer Hitches · 190,000 mi“the contact owns a 2009 ford taurus x. the contact stated while driving 70 mph and hauling a trailer, the tow hitch detached from the vehicle, causing the passenger’s side of the trailer to collapse. no one was injured. the contact was able pull over on the side of the roadway with the driver’s side of the trailer still attached to the vehicle. the…”
2019-07-05 · Power Train · 100,000 mi“have a small power steering leak that turned out to be a racket pinion issue. i've talked to a few people with the same car and they have also had the same issue. small leak in the same area that turned out to be the racket pinion needing replaced. you can really see the leak when parked.…”
2018-06-23 · Steering · 269,000 mi“steering suddenly becomes very difficult like the power steering failed. it intermittently has power assist and the fluid level is good. i was told this a well known problem that is more common in the 2008 model. diagnosis indicated the rack and pinion and/or gearbox is bad. it's a very dangerous situation when it suddenly cannot be controlled. …”
2016-03-11 · Air Bags · 190,000 mi · 💥 crash“tl* the contact owns a 2009 ford taurus x. while driving approximately 40 mph, the contact's wife struck a deer. the front end of the vehicle was damaged. the air bags did not deploy. there were no injuries and a police report was not filed. the contact drove the vehicle home and contacted the insurance company. the contact stated that the insuranc…”
2015-11-06 · Tires“on sept 23, 2015 we purchased a set of definity tires from pep boys. we were told they were made by cooper tires. we tried to register the tires in order to get a recall notice and they are unable to be registered as they were made in taiwan. we have contacted pep boys and they will not change the tires for american made ones. they said that th…”
2014-08-05 · Engine · 20,000 mi“the incident date, vehicle mileage and vehicle speed are all guesses as i am not sure of that information. when i am driving the car, it will just stop working and slows down to a snails pace and the lights on the dashboard come on the way they would if you didn't turn your car on all the way. the short term solution each time has been to turn off …”
2014-03-29 · Structure:body · 39,300 mi · 💥 crash“while pulling into parking space at very low speed with right foot on brake petal, car accelerated up and lurched forward hitting parked vehicle in front. had to apply brake harder to get vehicle in park to stop acceleration. *tr…”
2014-03-22 · Service Brakes · 35,000 mi“while turning into traffic, the car suddenly decelerates as if someone is putting on the brakes, or more like the car is dropped into the lowest gear possible. after the car is brought to a complete stop it resumes normal operations. this happened three or four times. the dealer couldn't find the problem. i pointed out a service bulletin in referen…”
2013-12-16 · Steering · 62,000 mi“suddenly wouldn't turn to the right when stopped, got increasing difficult from stopped position. the faster the vehicle would go the more the steering would loosen up. makes intersections very dangerous and impossible to maneuver. pulled shoulder muscle trying to steer out of the intersection. *tr…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.