Your vehicle report
1989 Ford Taurus
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 562
- Received Jan 1995 to Mar 2017
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Seat belt fails to latch or retract125 complaints · 22% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Vehicle catches fire from wiring98 complaints · 17% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Engine suddenly shuts off while driving24 complaints · 4.3% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #98V323000Vehicle description: passenger vehicles originally sold or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, nebraska, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virgnia, and wisconsin. The rear lower subframe mount plate nut can experience stress corrosion cracking if subjected to long term exposure to road salts. This can result in fracture and loss of the structural integrity of the subframe mount attachment. Detachment of the body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe, which supports the engine and transmission, allows the rear corners of the subframe to drop.
- Recall #92V113000The rigid mounted safety belt buckles are defective in three ways. First, a fastened safety belt buckle will not unlatch when the release button is depressed. This results from interference between the buckle ejector finger and the buckle tongue window. The second defect is the safety belt buckle may not latch. The third possible defect is that the tongue may be retained by the buckle, but it may not be latched sufficiently to provide occupant protection.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 17 crashes, 86 fires, 20 people injured, 1 death.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 20 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
Brakes
Electrical & lights
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 1995 | 86 |
| 1996 | 132 |
| 1997 | 76 |
| 1998 | 98 |
| 1999 | 78 |
| 2000 | 37 |
| 2001 | 20 |
| 2002 | 11 |
| 2003 | 10 |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2005 | 1 |
| 2006 | 1 |
| 2007 | 1 |
| 2008 | 1 |
| 2009 | 0 |
| 2010 | 4 |
| 2011 | 0 |
| 2012 | 0 |
| 2013 | 0 |
| 2014 | 0 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 1 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 562 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seat belt fails to latch or retract | 125 | 22% | – | NHTSA recall #92V113000 |
| Vehicle catches fire from wiring | 98 | 17% | – | |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 24 | 4.3% | – | |
| Ignition key sticks or will not turn | 18 | 3.2% | – | |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 17 | 3.0% | – | |
| Front brake rotors warp and wear early | 14 | 2.5% | – | NHTSA recall #91V134000 |
| Frame rusts and corrodes through | 13 | 2.3% | – | NHTSA recall #98V323000 |
| Tie rod ends break or come loose | 13 | 2.3% | – | |
| Power steering rack leaks fluid | 12 | 2.1% | – | |
| Head gasket leaks coolant into engine | 12 | 2.1% | – | |
| Rear door latch fails to open or close | 9 | 1.6% | – | NHTSA recall #92V065000 |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 9 | 1.6% | – | |
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 9 | 1.6% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 9 | 1.6% | – | |
| Steering wanders or pulls at highway speed | 7 | 1.3% | – | |
| Power steering cuts out while driving | 7 | 1.3% | – | |
| Coil springs break and puncture tires | 6 | 1.1% | – | |
| Tires blow out or tread separates | 6 | 1.1% | – | |
| Fuel pump fails and engine stalls | 6 | 1.1% | – | |
| Air conditioner blows hot air or fails | 6 | 1.1% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #98V323000December 16, 19982,697,000 vehicles affected
structure: frame and members
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles originally sold or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, nebraska, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virgnia, and wisconsin. The rear lower subframe mount plate nut Can experience stress corrosion cracking if subjected to long term exposure to road salts. This Can result in fracture and loss of the structural integrity of the subframe mount attachment. Detachment of the body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe, which supports the engine and transmission, allows the rear corners of the subframe to drop.
If both rear corners drop, steering would become suddenly very difficult, affecting vehicle control and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will install subframe rear mount bolts, reinforcement plates, and plate nuts.
NHTSA recall #92V113000August 17, 1992565,000 vehicles affected
seat belts: front: buckle assembly
The rigid mounted safety belt buckles are defective in three ways. First, a fastened safety belt buckle will not unlatch when the release button is depressed. This results from interference between the buckle ejector finger and the buckle tongue window. The second defect is the safety belt buckle may not latch. The third possible defect is that the tongue may be retained by the buckle, but it may not be latched sufficiently to provide occupant protection.
An insufficiently latched or unlatched safety beltincreases the risk of injury to seat occupants in the event of a sudden stop oraccident. If the safety belt buckle will not unlatch, it will not allow theoccupant to get out of the vehicle in an emergency situation.
Remedy
Ford will replace the rigid mounted safety belt buckles with end release safety belt buckles designed to prevent latch problems.
NHTSA recall #92V065000May 11, 1992654,000 vehicles affected
wheels
Children Can accidentally lock themselves in the footwell area of the rear-facing third seat, or in the storage compartment in station wagons not equipped with an optional third seat. Once the compartment is closed it cannot be opened from the inside.
There is a danger of air deprivation, hyperthermia,and/or panic response to a child who has locked himself or herself into thecompartment, with the possibility of asphyxiation.
Remedy
Replace the self-latching assembly currently used in the rear storage compartment with a latch assembly that Can only be closed with a key.
NHTSA recall #91V134000August 6, 1991325,000 vehicles affected
service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: disc: rotor
Front disc brake rotors of the subject vehicles may experience severe corrosion if operated in areas where calcium chloride and sodium chloride are used extensively.
Severely corroded rotors may fracture or separate nearthe inner edges of the brake discs resulting in reduced braking effectiveness,higher than normal pedal efforts, loud grinding noises, and moderate pulls whenthe brakes are applied. Reduced braking effectiveness may increase minimumstopping distances, possibly resulting in an accident.
Remedy
Replace front brake rotors with full cast front brake rotors.
NHTSA recall #91V036000March 4, 1991278,000 vehicles affected
seats
The power seat switch wiring is routed over rather than under the front seat support brace, allowing damage by seat cushion spring ends when seat is occupied.
Power seat switch wiring insulation may become abraded,or punctured, and an electrical short could occur that could result in a firein the seat cushion material.
Remedy
Revise routing of power seat wiring to prevent damage from seat cushion spring contact.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 1989 Ford Taurus.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN