Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2006 Ford Taurus owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2006 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to make a left turn, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power before stalling. The vehicle continued to roll forward before the driver was able to bring the vehicle to a complete stop. Upon restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality; however, the contact stated that failure reoccurred three additional times. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the braking system. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 165,000.
I was driving eastbound, on a city street, approaching the intersection with a stop sign. When I pressed on the brakes, it didn't slow down. In fact, the car was going faster. So I put the car in park, hoping to slow it down, but it didn't work. Then I jumped the curb, hoping that would slow the car down, but it didn't work. I tried to avoid hitting a truck that was going northbound on the cross road, but I couldn't avoid is so I hit the truck.
Ford motor company sold my vehicle with a life-threatening design defect in the braking system. This design defect comprises a plastic cover over the stainless steel hydraulic brake lines where those lines pass from the front of the car to its rear beneath the driver side door. The ostensible purpose of the plastic cover is unknown to me, but its actual function is twofold. First, it traps moisture and road salt to cause rapid corrosion of the stainless steel brake lines, which corrosion eventually causes the lines to rust completely through, causing one or both lines to burst upon application of the brakes, resulting in sudden and complete brake failure. Second, the plastic cover hides that corrosion from view so that careful visual inspection does not reveal the corrosion problem. …
I was driving on the highway at approximately 80mph with the cruise control on when I decided to exit the highway to go to a gas station. At the time the light was green so I maintained speed but slowed gradually. The light turned yellow and I tried to speed up a little bit. The light quickly turned red. I slammed on the brakes hard as I possibly could but the vehicle didn't seem to slow and the engine RPM remained steady. I managed to slow the vehicle to around 35mph before having to take an evasive maneuver into a busy intersection through a red light. I struck one car and it spun me around hitting another car.
Brake line to rear brakes failed due to rust. All (all) brake fluid leaked out. The service brakes were totally inoperable. A large oil spot on the concrete driveway was the only warning.. No low fluid light is installed. This vehicle is non-ABS. Much to my surprise, this is a single reservoir system. Is this a safety issue? Mileage 103,000. It picked the best possible time to fail. Reported to Ford.
Tl* - the contact stated that while driving on the road he heard a release of air coming from under the vehicle. The vehicle did not have any brake pressure and the vehicle began to accelerate. The contact stated vehicle was involved in a collision with another vehicle. The road conditions were wet. There were two injuries as a result of the crash. Updated 1/29/2007 -
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Ford Taurus. While driving 20 MPH, the vehicle accelerated without warning. The brakes failed to respond when the pedal was depressed. The vehicle stopped upon turning off the ignition. The contact notified the manufacturer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000. Updated 06/14/16
On November 18, 2013, my niece was driving my 2006 Ford Taurus sel that was just purchased on June 25, 2013 and experienced what appeared to be some sort of mechanical malfunction with the accelerator. After driving on I-64, she was slowing down to get off the exit, but the car was speeding back up reaching almost 80mph. The brakes helped to slow the car down, but not completely stopping. Once it did come to a complete stop at the red light, she put the car in neutral and it caused the car rev up even more, like she was pressing the gas pedal and brakes at the same time. After letting the car sit for about an hour, she tried driving again, and it repeated the same process. The dealership (crossroads Ford in prince george, va) was called that I purchased the car from and my niece spoke with a service advisor. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Ford Taurus. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the brakes were applied and the vehicle did not respond to the brakes being engaged. The contact was able to finally stop the vehicle after repeated pressure was applied to the brakes. The vehicle was then shut off. Upon restart, the contact was able drive the vehicle as normal. The failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been made aware of the failure. The failure and current mileages were 178,000. ... Updated 08/15/12 the consumer stated the incident occurred again after the dealer made repairs. The dealer was unable to repair vehicle. Updated 08/16/2012
The car suddenly began to accelerate and was difficult to stop. I put it in neutral after I got to a place where I could park. The engine accelerated to 3000 RPM and I turned off the ignition. I attempted to start the car again and engine again rose to 3000 RPM. I checked to see that the accelerator was not stuck to the floorboard. Then started the engine again. Again it revved to over 3000 RPM so I pressed the gas pedal and then the idle returned to normal. Once I got on the freeway to return home the cruise control would not engage. I called the Ford dealership and they stated they were not aware of any recalls on 2006 Ford Taurus for acceleration problems.
Brake complaints in other Taurus years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2006 Ford Taurus?
NHTSA has 26 complaints about the brakes of the 2006 Ford Taurus, 8% of the model year's 318 complaints. The component named most often is antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2006 Ford Taurus brake problems?
No. NHTSA lists no brakes recall for the 2006 Ford Taurus, though it has 2 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2006 Ford Taurus brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 70,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 5 crashes, 0 fires and 3 injuries to brakes 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.