Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (headlights, tail lights, turn signals, interior lights).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2001 Ford Taurus owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. While attempting to place the vehicle in drive, the gears would not shift and the brake lights would not activate. There were no warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact was experiencing the same failure as listed in NHTSA campaign number: 04V106000 (exterior lighting). The contact, a mechanic, reached out to the dealer to purchase parts for the repair, but the dealer refused. The contact was informed that he would have to bring the vehicle in for the repair to be performed. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 75,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. While driving various speeds or while the vehicle was parked, the brake lights remained illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing the same symptoms as listed in NHTSA campaign number: 04V106000 (exterior lighting). The vehicle was taken to camelback Ford (1330 e camelback rd, phoenix, az 85014, [phone]), but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 30,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the brake lights illuminated continuously while the brake pedal was not being depressed. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 04V106000 (exterior lighting). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000.
Tl contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the vehicle's battery was completely dead. He tested the battery and alternator and they were fine. He jumped the vehicle and noticed that the brake lights were not functioning. He called the dealer and they advised him of a part that he needed to repair the vehicle. When the contact went to pick up the part from the dealer, he noticed that it was a recalled part. At that point, he discovered NHTSA recall number 04V106000 (exterior lighting:brake lights:switch). The dealer stated that his vehicle was excluded from the recall and he would have to pay for the repair. The vehicle remains at the dealer. The current and failure mileages were 91,097.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact stated after the vehicle was turned on it failed to shift out of the park position. The contact also stated by depressing the brake pedal the failure was temporarily resolved. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic who confirmed the brake switch should be replaced. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was notified and confirmed the VIN did not qualify for NHTSA campaign 04V106000 (exterior lighting:brake lights:switch). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 105,000 and the current mileage was 106,000.
Tl contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. While driving approximately 65 MPH on normal road conditions, the cruise control failed to activate. The brake lights also remained on when the vehicle was in operation and stationary. The failures occurred intermittently. NHTSA campaign id number 04V106000, exterior lighting:brake lights, switch is related to the failure; however, the VIN was excluded from the recall. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 99,000 and the current mileage was 99,900.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The brake light stayed lit when the engine was off. The Ford dealer replaced the stop lamp switch harness. The contact stated that recall#04V106000 was issued for the same failure. However, the manufacturer stated that it did not include this vehicle due to the VIN. The contact has the repair invoice. The current and failure mileage were 66,000. Update 4/23/07 the tensioner and belt was replaced
Tl contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the brake lights remained illuminated even after the vehicle had been turned off. The dealer stated that the booster and deactivation switch failed. The dealer and manufacturer stated that her VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign id number 04V106000 (exterior lighting: brake lights: switch). The current and failure mileages were 150,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that the brake light illuminated causing his battery to drain. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 04V106000 (exterior lighting). The approximate failure mileage was 108,800.
Tl contact owns a 2001 Ford Taurus. While the contact was driving, he was informed by another driver that the brake lights on his vehicle were not working. The contact did not notice any differences in the vehicle prior to the failure. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealer. The speed was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 103,000.
Related recalls
Exterior lighting › Brake lights › Switch
Certain passenger vehicles are being recalled to correct a problem with a malfunctioning stop lamp switch and/or associated wiring. This malfunctioning could render the stop lamps inoperable or cause them to stay on all the time. This could cause confusion to a following driver, which could lead to a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will remove the stop lamp switch and associated wiring assembly and install a newly designed stop lamp switch and wire assembly. Owner notification is expected to begin on April 5, 2004.
Exterior lighting › Tail lights › Switch
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with adjustable pedals. If the grease from the adjustable pedal assembly enters the stop lamp switch, it can contaminate the contacts leading to carbon build up, and potentially, a short circuit.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the brake lamp switch and wipe down the adjustable pedal assembly to remove excess grease. Owner notification began March 22, 2001.
Exterior lighting › Back up lights
Vehicle description: passenger sedans with factory or dealer-installed deck lid spoilers with LED center high mounted stop lamps (chmsl). Vehicles produced with spoilers were manufactured from March 1 through October 31, 2000; and vehicles with spoilers installed by dealers were manufactured from January 1 thorough December 30,…
Remedy: Dealers will install a jumper/resistor assembly at the spoiler that provides an electrical resistor to ground and corrects the chmsl and brake-shift interlock conditions. Owner notification began March 19, 2001.
NHTSA investigations
Brake light switch failure
Ford conducted a recall in March, 2001 to correct a defect affecting the brake light switch in my 2000 through early-2001 taurus and sable vehicles equipped with power adjustable pedals (recall 01v-078).rq03-008 was opened to investigate complaints concerning the remedy and scope of 01v-078.odi's analysis identified concerns with post-repair failures in recalled vehicles,failures in my 2001-02 vehicles with…
Headlight complaints in other Taurus years
Frequently asked questions
How common are headlight problems on the 2001 Ford Taurus?
NHTSA has 30 complaints about the lights of the 2001 Ford Taurus, 3% of the model year's 1,037 complaints. The component named most often is brake lights › switch (10 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Ford Taurus headlight problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 04V-106 (switch, Mar 2, 2004); NHTSA recall 01V-078 (switch, Mar 12, 2001); NHTSA recall 01V-048 (back up lights, Feb 28, 2001). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2001 Ford Taurus headlight problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 99,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 2 injuries to lights problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.