Two problems related to steering tie rod assembly have been reported for the 2001 Ford Taurus. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2001 Ford Taurus based on all problems reported for the 2001 Taurus.
Strange sound from front right tire in terms of loud squeaking when going over bumps and rolling road. Took car to dealer. It was found to have a broken tie rod at the front right end. However they also found the right rear coil spring was broken. The broken spring had cut a deep groove into the inner sidewall of the tire. I had the broken spring and tie rod replaced by the dealer under the terms of my extended warranty but they were not obligated to pay for the tire. I paid for a new tire. On the way home a loud hammering sound now came from the right rear tire area when riding over bumps. Took car back to dealer and he found that the right rear strut was ruined due to the broken coil spring and replaced it. The dealer said the left rear spring was good and did not need to be replaced. My main concern is not that I was not covered for cost of the replacement tire but rather that this broken spring be allowed, by design to ruin a tire that can result in an accident. A new spring can still break and puncture the tire. I now have to spend my own money as soon as my warranty runs out (in a few weeks) to replace the coil spring on the left rear side. If these things were not designed right or made right, we should at least be told to change them after a certain number of miles rather than wait for a failure to occur and risk a tire blowout.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact started the ignition and heard a loud noise coming from the steering wheel. There were no warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and they stated that the failure was related to the steering wheel rubbing against the steering column. The vehicle was repaired for the malfunction. Recently, the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for identical failures on a separate occasion. The noise level was more intense. The technician stated that the failure was related to the driver side tie rod end. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 43,700 and current mileage was 62,441. Updated 09/24/08 updated 09/26/08.