Ford Taurus 2008–2009 problems by year and mileage
5th generation (D3) — renamed Ford Five Hundred
NHTSA data through 24 September 2026239 complaints, 215 with mileageMethod
Which year is yours? Tap it to see what breaks on it.
The 2008 Ford Taurus
Close- Median failure report
- 65,000 mi
- Complaints filed
- 175
- Recalls naming this year
- 1
Most reported on the 2008
- Transmission and driveline44 reports · median 82,000 mi
- Steering35 reports · median 46,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control32 reports · median 58,000 mi
1 recall campaign names the 2008: Air bags — frontal. Not every car in a campaign is affected — check the VIN at NHTSA. Recall repairs are free.
The 2009 Ford Taurus
Close- Median failure report
- 31,000 mi
- Complaints filed
- 64
- Recalls naming this year
- 0
Most reported on the 2009
- Engine and its cooling system18 reports
- Throttle and speed control10 reports
- Airbag system6 reports
Each tile shows the median mileage at which that model year’s failures were reported. The 2008 reports latest and the 2009 earliest, but part of that gap is age: the 2008 has had 1 more year on the road to accumulate mileage.
The short answer
“Is the 2008–2009 Ford Taurus reliable?”
- Median of reported failures
- 56,000 mi
- 90% of reports came by
- 139,000 mi
- Reports with mileage
- 215
- Recalls
- 1
Most reported
- Transmission and driveline20.5% of complaints · median 79,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control17.6% of complaints · median 73,000 mi
- Steering15.1% of complaints · median 47,000 mi
Documented problems
- Transmission (6F50)2008–2009
- Nameplate Boundary Caution2008–2009
Owners filed 239 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008–2009 Ford Taurus; the transmission and driveline leads with 20.5% of them, and half of the 215 that record an odometer reading came by 56,000 miles. A count like this can’t rate reliability on its own: NHTSA records what owners chose to report, not how many of each car were sold.
Failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 30,000 and 98,000 miles.
Before-you-buy checklist ↓At your mileage ↓Check this VIN — NHTSA ↗
How many miles does a 2008–2009 Ford Taurus last?
Complaint records can’t measure how long a car lasts; they show when reported failures happened. On the 2008–2009 Ford Taurus, half of the 215 complaints that record an odometer reading were filed by 56,000 miles and 90% by 139,000 miles.
14 reports came in past 150,000 miles and 1 past 200,000 — each one proof that a Taurus reached that mileage, not that it failed there.
Figure 1 · Ford Taurus 2008–2009 · 215 reports with mileage
Mileage at failure
Complaints per 20,000-mile bin, 0 to 200,000 miles, equal bins on a linear scale. Tallest bar = 42 complaints.
- Rest of the range
- Median
- 200,000+ — 1 complaints (0.5%), plotted separately
- 10%
- 4,500
- 25%
- 30,000
- Median
- 56,000
- 75%
- 98,000
- 90%
- 139,102
Show the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 0–20,000 | 39 | 18.1% |
| 20,000–40,000 | 42 | 19.5% |
| 40,000–60,000 | 32 | 14.9% |
| 60,000–80,000 | 17 | 7.9% |
| 80,000–100,000 | 33 | 15.3% |
| 100,000–120,000 | 20 | 9.3% |
| 120,000–140,000 | 11 | 5.1% |
| 140,000–160,000 | 12 | 5.6% |
| 160,000–180,000 | 7 | 3.3% |
| 180,000–200,000 | 1 | 0.5% |
| 200,000+ | 1 | 0.5% |
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain. Complaint counts reflect what owners reported and are not a measure of failure rate per vehicle sold.
What this can and cannot tell you: these are complaints owners chose to file, not a failure rate. Popular models accumulate more of them simply by being common. How this is built.
Common Taurus problems, and when they happen
Figure 2 · Ford Taurus 2008–2009
When each system fails
Bar spans the middle half of reports; the notch inside each bar is the median. Miles at failure on a proportional scale — equal distances are equal ratios, not equal miles.
- Engine and its cooling system29 reports11,0004,000–45,000Engine and its cooling system: 29 reports, median 11,000 miles, middle half 4,000 to 45,000 miles.
- Steering36 reports47,00035,000–87,000Steering: 36 reports, median 47,000 miles, middle half 35,000 to 87,000 miles.
- Throttle and speed control42 reports73,00028,000–106,000Throttle and speed control: 42 reports, median 73,000 miles, middle half 28,000 to 106,000 miles.
- Transmission and driveline49 reports79,00036,000–109,000Transmission and driveline: 49 reports, median 79,000 miles, middle half 36,000 to 109,000 miles.
- Engine26 reports85,00055,000–164,000Engine: 26 reports, median 85,000 miles, middle half 55,000 to 164,000 miles.
- Airbag system21 reports86,00058,000–130,000Airbag system: 21 reports, median 86,000 miles, middle half 58,000 to 130,000 miles.
- Electrical system17 reports96,00083,000–153,000Electrical system: 17 reports, median 96,000 miles, middle half 83,000 to 153,000 miles.
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it in “Where your car sits”
Ordered by median mileage, earliest first. The first 12,000 miles are shaded: that is the boundary this site uses between a manufacturing defect and ordinary wear, not a property of the world.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
All systems in a table
| System | Complaints | Share | Median | 25–75% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transmission and driveline | 49 | 20.5% | 79,000 | 36,000–109,000 |
| Throttle and speed control | 42 | 17.6% | 73,000 | 28,000–106,000 |
| Steering | 36 | 15.1% | 47,000 | 35,000–87,000 |
| Engine and its cooling system | 29 | 12.1% | 11,000 | 4,000–45,000 |
| Engine | 26 | 10.9% | 85,000 | 55,000–164,000 |
| Airbag system | 21 | 8.8% | 86,000 | 58,000–130,000 |
| Electrical system | 17 | 7.1% | 96,000 | 83,000–153,000 |
| Brakes | 13 | 5.4% | 83,000 | 74,000–113,000 |
| Suspension | 12 | 5.0% | 36,000 | 19,000–88,000 |
| Problems owners could not categorise | 12 | 5.0% | — | — |
System by system, in words
Complaints about this generation are not spread evenly across the vehicle, and the systems that generate the most of them do not all fail at the same point in a car's life. The median failure across all systems here is 56,000 miles; the figures below show which parts of the car run ahead of that and which run behind.
The transmission and driveline accounts for 20.5% of complaints (49 reports, 48 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 79,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 36,000 and 109,000 miles.
Throttle and speed control accounts for 17.6% of complaints (42 reports, 39 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 73,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 28,000 and 106,000 miles.
The steering accounts for 15.1% of complaints (36 reports, 34 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 47,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 35,000 and 87,000 miles.
The engine and its cooling system accounts for 12.1% of complaints (29 reports, 28 of them with a mileage figure), and it fails early — a median of 11,000 miles, well before the vehicle's overall median. Failures clustered this far below the rest of the car usually point to a design or manufacturing problem rather than wear, because wear does not selectively target one system on low-mileage examples. The middle half of these reports falls between 4,000 and 45,000 miles.
The engine accounts for 10.9% of complaints (26 reports, 24 of them with a mileage figure), and it fails late — a median of 85,000 miles, considerably beyond the vehicle's overall median. That pattern is consistent with normal service life rather than a defect, though it matters for anyone buying an example already near that mileage. The middle half of these reports falls between 55,000 and 164,000 miles.
The airbag system accounts for 8.8% of complaints (21 reports, 18 of them with a mileage figure), and it fails late — a median of 86,000 miles, considerably beyond the vehicle's overall median. That pattern is consistent with normal service life rather than a defect, though it matters for anyone buying an example already near that mileage. The middle half of these reports falls between 58,000 and 130,000 miles.
Known problems with the 2008–2009 Taurus
Transmission (6F50) 2008–2009
Early 6F50 torque-converter and internal solenoid complaints producing harsh shifts and shudder.
Nameplate Boundary Caution 2008–2009
The severe ZF CFT30 CVT failures associated with this body belong to the 2005-2007 Ford Five Hundred, which used the CVT; the Taurus-badged 2008-2009 cars do not have it. Do not attribute CVT failures to this generation.
Before you buy a 2008–2009 Taurus: the 3-minute check
Generated from 215 mileage-tagged complaints, 1 recall campaign, 2 documented problem areas. Print this page — the checklist survives print.
- Run the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. 1 campaign cover this generation; an open recall is a free repair you can make the seller's problem.
- Check transmission (6F50) on 2008–2009 cars. Early 6F50 torque-converter and internal solenoid complaints producing harsh shifts and shudder.
- Check nameplate boundary caution on 2008–2009 cars. The severe ZF CFT30 CVT failures associated with this body belong to the 2005-2007 Ford Five Hundred, which used the CVT; the Taurus-badged 2008-2009 cars do not have it. Do not attribute CVT failures to this generation.
- End with a pre-purchase inspection of this car. Aggregate data describes the population; the example in front of you has its own history.
For a buyer, failures on this generation are spread rather than concentrated: the middle half falls between 30,000 and 98,000 miles, with a median of 56,000. There is no single mileage threshold to watch, which means condition and maintenance records are more informative than the odometer.
On inspection, the transmission and driveline and throttle and speed control are where this generation's reports concentrate, so those are the areas worth a specific look. Throttle and speed control in particular shows a median failure mileage of 73,000, which gives a concrete number to compare against the odometer of any car you are considering.
None of this is a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection on the individual car. Aggregate patterns describe a population; the example in front of you has its own history.
Taurus problems by mileage: where your car sits
Type your odometer reading, or read the common mileages in the table. Your marker lands on the timing chart above and on the curve below.
| System | Middle half of reports, mi | At 60k mi53% below | At 90k mi70% below | At 120k mi85% below | At 150k mi93% below | At 200k mi100% below |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transmission and driveline | 36,000–109,000 | in window | in window | earlier | earlier | earlier |
| Throttle and speed control | 28,000–106,000 | in window | in window | earlier | earlier | earlier |
| Steering | 35,000–87,000 | in window | earlier | earlier | earlier | earlier |
| Engine and its cooling system | 4,000–45,000 | earlier | earlier | earlier | earlier | earlier |
| Engine | 55,000–164,000 | in window | in window | in window | in window | earlier |
| Airbag system | 58,000–130,000 | in window | in window | in window | earlier | earlier |
| Electrical system | 83,000–153,000 | later | in window | in window | in window | earlier |
Figure 3 · Ford Taurus 2008–2009 · 215 reports with mileage
Share of reports below each mileage
Share of mileage-tagged reports filed at or below each odometer reading. Steps rise only at bin edges, by exact counted shares.
- 60,000 mi — 53% of reports below
- 120,000 mi — 85% of reports below
- 200,000 mi — 100% of reports below
- Median — the staircase crosses the 50% line here
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it above
The staircase tops out at 100%: the remaining 0.5% of reports (1) came above 200,000 miles.
Nothing is smoothed or interpolated. Linear axis, same as Figure 1.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
2008–2009 Ford Taurus recalls (1)
NHTSA records 1 recall campaign covering vehicles in this generation. A recall means the manufacturer or the regulator concluded there was a safety defect or a standard was not met, and that a free remedy is owed to owners — including second and later owners.
Recall status is specific to the individual vehicle, not the model. Checking a VIN against NHTSA's lookup is free and takes under a minute, and it is the only way to know whether a particular car has had the work done.
Apr 2016 · 2008 · Air BagsAn improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
The 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…
What can happen. An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
The free 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…
Crashes, fires and injuries owners reported
What owners reported alongside the failure itself, out of 239 complaints against this generation:
- Crashes
- 28 (11.7%)
- Fires
- 8
- Injury reports
- 16
- Fatality reports
- 0
These flags are self-reported by complainants and unverified by NHTSA; one report can carry several flags, so the counts overlap and do not sum to a total. They are not adjusted for how many of these vehicles are on the road. No chart is drawn here on purpose: overlapping counts spanning very different magnitudes cannot be honestly encoded as lengths.
Taurus problems by model year
| Year | Complaints | With mileage | Median miles | Most reported | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 175 | 162 | 65,000 | Transmission and driveline (44) | 1 |
| 2009 | 64 | 53 | 31,000 | Engine and its cooling system (18) | 0 |
What Taurus owners reported
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the front driver's side seat belt had failed to unbuckle and was previously repaired. Additionally, the contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously rear-ended on several occasions, and the…
2008 · 142,000 miles · Airbag system
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Taurus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and making a turn, the vehicle became inoperable. The contact shifted into park and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated while reversing, she heard an abnormal sound. The check engine and several other unknown warning…
2008 · 85,000 miles · Transmission and driveline
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Taurus. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle stalled however, she was able to pull over and stop the vehicle. The contact stated that she noticed that the check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the engine temperature gauge was indicating…
2008 · 170,000 miles · Engine
the contact owns a 2008 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle swayed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the contact was informed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The local dealer was not…
2008 · 110,000 miles · Suspension
Built from 215 NHTSA complaints with mileage · snapshot 2026-09-26 · open data · how it is built
Other Taurus generations
- Taurus 1996–1999 767 reports with mileage, most about the transmission and driveline
- Taurus 2000–2007 5,014 reports with mileage, most about the suspension
- Taurus 2010–2019 1,252 reports with mileage, most about the steering