NHTSA Complaint #10490377 — 2002 FORD TAURUS

FIRST INCIDENT OF THROTTLE CABLE BECOMING STUCK AND CAUSING ACCELERATION TOOK PLACE WHILE MERGING ONTO I-25 FROM UNIVERSITY BLVD IN DENVER, CO. ACCELERATED TO HIGHWAY SPEED (60 MPH), HOWEVER, ONCE THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS NO LONGER DEPRESSED, THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE UP TO APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH. EXITED INTERSTATE AT COLORADO BLVD AND HAD TO APPLY HEAVY PRESSURE TO BRAKE PEDAL AS THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO TRY TO ACCELERATE. RPM'S WERE ABOUT 5,000 WHILE STOPPED, AND ONCE BRAKE PEDAL WAS RELEASED THE VEHICLE ONCE AGAIN ACCELERATED WITHOUT HE ACCELERATOR BEING DEPRESSED. RPM'S ONCE AGAIN CLIMBED WHEN VEHICLE WAS PUT IN PARK. UPON TURNING THE VEHICLE OFF AND INSPECTING THE ENGINE, IT WAS DISCOVERED THE THROTTLE CABLE HOUSING WAS BROKEN AND THE THROTTLE CABLE HAD COME LOOSE. TEMPORARY REPAIRS WERE MADE USING A HOSE CLAMP, HOWEVER, THE ACCELERATION HAS OCCURRED NUMEROUS TIMES (AT LEAST ONCE EVERY FEW MONTHS) SINCE THE FIRST INCIDENT. THE CABLE HOUSING HAS DEGRADED FURTHER, PROMPTING FIXES TO BE MADE TO THE THROTTLE CABLE WHENEVER AN INCIDENT OCCURS. *TR