NHTSA Complaint #713661 — 1994 FORD TAURUS

MY WIFE HAD BROUGHT THE CAR INTO THE FORD DEALER (STAR FORD) THE PREVIOUS OCTOBER BECAUSE THE CAR HAD STALLED AND DIED IN AN INTERSECTION. NOTHING WAS FOUND TO BE WRONG. SHE HAD IT IN AGAIN FOR STANDARD SERVICING AND COMPLAINED ABOUT IT RUNNING ROUGH BUT NOTHING COULD BE FOUND WRONG. MY WIFE WAS DRIVING MY DAUGHTER TO SCHOOL WHEN THE CAR STARTED TO OVERHEAT AND RUN ROUGH. SHE MANAGED TO DRIVE IT TO A REPAIR SHOP. THEY DIAGNOSED IT AS A BLOWN HEAD GASKET. WE CONTACTED FORD SINCE MY WIFE HAD PREVIOUSLY RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THEM STATING THAT DUE TO REPORTED PROBLEMS WITH HEAD GASKETS THEY WERE EXTENDING THE WARANTY UNTIL THE END OF 1997 OR 60,000 MILES. WE MISSED IT BY A MONTH AND A HALF, OR 5,000 MILES, AND THEY WOULD DO NOTHING TO HELP US OUT. WE HAD THE CAR REPAIRED BUT THIS PAST WEEK, ON OCT. 14 THE NEW HEAD GASKET BLEW. BASED ON THIS EXPERIENCE AND HUNDREDS OF OTHER LETTERS THAT I HAVE READ ON VARIOUS INTERNET WEB SITES, IT SEEMS OBVIOUS THAT SOMETHING IS DEFECTIVE WITH THIS PARTICULAR MOTOR. ALTHOUGH IN MY CASE, WE HAD NO DANGER INVOLVED WITH THE BREAKDOWN, WE WERE LUCKY TO BE DRIVING IN TOWN WITHIN CLOSE PROXIMITY OF HELP. FORD HAS APPARENTLY NOT DONE ANYTHING TO REMEDY THIS PROBLEM FOR THE OLDER MODELS LIKE MINE OR EVEN NEWER MODELS. I CALLED THEIR SERVICE TECHNICIAN NUMBER STATING MY CONCERN THAT SHOULD I REPAIR THE CAR AGAIN AT CONSIDERABLE COST, IT WOULD PROBABLY NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. I INDICATED THAT MY ONLY RECOURSE WAS TO TRADE THE CAR IN AND LET THE PENDING PROBLEM END UP BEING SOME OTHER UNSUSPECTING PERSONS BURDEN. I AM RELUCTANT TO DO THIS BUT ALL FORD COULD SAY WAS THAT IT WAS UP TO ME, THEY COULDN"T DO ANYTHING.