Ford Taurus: Years to Avoid and Best Years to Buy
Ford Taurus: 9 model years scored from 1,544 NHTSA owner complaints and 43 recall campaigns. Worst year 2013, best year 2017.
Ford Taurus: which years to avoid
Across 9 scored model years the Ford Taurus ranges from 31/100 in 2013 to 93/100 in 2019 — a 62-point spread, so which year you buy matters more than whether you buy a Taurus at all. The weakest year’s complaints concentrate in Steering (296 of them).
Avoid: 2013, 2014, 2015 — scored below 45 on the complaint and recall record.
Safest years: 2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 — scored 70 or better.
Scored from NHTSA complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. How the score works · every car’s years to avoid.
Editor's note
Avoid the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Taurus, which score 31, 45 and 37 on 589, 234 and 269 owner complaints. Buy a 2016 to 2019, which score 83, 86, 85 and 93 on 80 or fewer complaints each, or a 2012 at 82, and accept that those scores rest on medium or low evidence. The 2013 facelift is where the record turns: Steering accounts for 296 of that year's 589 complaints and Fuel/Propulsion System for 98, and the campaigns match, with 15V340000 for the electric power assist steering on 2011 to 2013 cars, 13V227000 and 15V812000 for a cracking fuel delivery module and 16V621000 for the fuel pump on 3.5-litre turbocharged cars. Steering stays first on the 2014 at 67, and the 2015 adds Back Over Prevention at 52, covered by the rearview camera campaign 25V695000 on 2015 to 2019 cars. From 2016 no component reaches 26 in any year, and the 2016 has four campaigns with none safety-critical.
Read the guide
Used Ford Taurus and Flex: the years to avoid — written and signed by Adir Trabelsi, 2026-09-16.
How the Taurus changed, run by run
The federal record falls into 3 stretches of years that behave alike. A redesign shows up here as a step in the complaint rate that then holds.
2011–2012
Mean score 74/100, about 9 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Electrical System more than anything else (62 complaints). 5 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
2013–2015
Mean score 38/100, about 30 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Steering more than anything else (414 complaints). The record falls 36 points against the years before it. 8 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
2016–2019
Mean score 87/100, about 5 complaints per year on the road. Owners of these years complain about Back Over Prevention more than anything else (42 complaints). The record improves by 49 points against the years before it. 3 recall campaign(s) in this run touch fire, crash or stall risk.
Year-by-year data table
Best year in our data: 2017 (score 86). Worst: 2013 (score 31, AVOID).
| Year | Score | Verdict | Running cost / yr | NHTSA complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 93 | BUY | $4,660 | 15 | 2 |
| 2018 | 85 | BUY | $4,874 | 48 | 4 |
| 2017 | 86 | BUY | $4,992 | 44 | 4 |
| 2016 | 83 | BUY | $5,192 | 80 | 4 |
| 2015 | 37 | AVOID | $5,494 | 269 | 6 |
| 2014 | 45 | AVOID | $5,540 | 234 | 5 |
| 2013 | 31 | AVOID | $6,020 | 589 | 9 |
| 2012 | 82 | BUY | $5,555 | 78 | 5 |
| 2011 | 65 | CAUTION | $5,826 | 187 | 4 |
Running cost is fuel or energy plus the maintenance band midpoint for that car at its age today, re-priced to your country. Purchase price, insurance and depreciation are not included.
Photographs and every generation of the Taurus, through the years →
Taurus sub-models & family
Variants & trims on record
Body, powertrain and trim variants of the Taurus on the federal record. Variants folded into this nameplate are counted in this page's data; the rest have too thin a record for a page of their own yet.
What goes wrong on the Ford Taurus
Across every Taurus model year in our index, owners report these component groups most often. The cost beside each one is the representative repair for that group at a US independent shop, re-priced to your country.
- Steering467 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Electric power-steering rack or column motor replacement$1,020–$2,500
- Fuel/Propulsion System212 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Fuel pump or injector replacement$680–$1,620
- Electrical System198 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement$540–$1,310
- Engine186 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Cooling-system or timing-drive repair$1,040–$2,220
- Unknown Or Other152 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair$360–$940
- Back Over Prevention94 complaints across all Taurus years · typical job: Reversing camera or park-sensor replacement$420–$940
Flat-rate labour hours x local shop rate plus a parts band. An estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote. Formula.
FAQ
Which Ford Taurus years should I avoid?
On the NHTSA record the years to avoid are 2013, 2014, 2015 — each scores below 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. The 2013 is the weakest at 31/100, with its complaints concentrated in Steering.
What are the best Ford Taurus years to buy?
2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 all score 70 or better. The strongest is the 2019 at 93/100, on 15 complaints and 2 recall campaigns.
What is the most common Ford Taurus problem?
467 of the complaints filed against the Taurus across all its model years sit in the Steering group — more than any other component.
Compare with
Sources: NHTSA, EPA · Methodology · Updated 2026-10-04