2001 taurus sel having major problems need advice please
 

Hello All,
I am glad i found you guys!! I have been having a problem with my 2001 Ford taurus SeL DOCH.. I had my vehicle inspection done say on March 24th and it passed with no codes. Okay within a week after the inspection I was heading to my daughters dr appt. After driving about 15 miles to get there my car lost power. I had to pull over and checked to see what the problem was. I noticed my passenger side front brake was locked up. I tried to use a crow bar to pull it off the rotor but no luck. I drove it about 4 tenths of a mile to closes store so i could call AAA to get a tow. The car would not go over 20mph and even floored same thing and rpm's would not go over 2,000. The car made a rattling noise as well but did not over heat! They brought it to a reputable garage in town. The garage said my brake line was crimped and something about rust. They put new hoses on both sides and only charged me $40.. Well here is the fun part!! I got in my car the rattling was still there and same thing would not go over 20mph and rpms stayed around 2,000.. I went back to the garage and they had me pull it in the bay. Had me press the gas and obviously heard it. They jacked the car up in the front with the engine off and took a tool and was tapping under the front under my engine and could hear like coins in a can. They say my catalyst converter was broke in half. Now they are shopping around for the cheapest one they can find for me. Now when I bought this car 4 years ago I heard a rattling when starting it and after it would warm up it disappeared or would just be little to no sound. After a year I haven't heard it really just off and on, But the car drove okay I did notice it has lost power over the years tho. On the highway pushing 90 I could smell that sulfur smell but I was told you can smell your own that it is from a car in front of you. I get oil changes and use seafoam every 4k.. So my question is after doing searches people say tranny issues could also cause this. I checked my fluid and it was red. Before this happened I would do 70mph down highway and my rpms would be about 2600 doing up to 90 it would be around 3000-3100rpms. I am not a mechanic so have no idea if those readings are normal. I would hate to spend money on the converter and find out it was the tranny as well too. I am thinking maybe the converter got hot and crimped my line but surprised garage did not bring up this problem after fixing the brake hoses seeing they drove it across the street to park it. They are a decent garage and always have lots of work. The owner said he didn't put in rotors or calipers to run up the bill just drive it and see how that does. So I am looking to see if anyone had this problem or any suggestions at all. I can't do anything as the cars at the garage. It is just weird having it inspected and no codes and within a week or so this happens!! So can anyone please help with prior problems like this or thoughts like I said I can not afford to put in new converter and also have a tranny problem!! Thank you sorry such a long post just nervous as heck...

This is my own humble opinion.
That R/F caliper should without a doubt be replaced as well as the pads. Why?, when a caliper gets that hot as you explained the rubber seals and components have been destroyed or are very close to it. It is only a matter of time before it fails and then it could cost you a lot more when you need the brakes and they won't be there.
Brake lines rusting are a common problem if you drive on salted roads, no question there.
And, yes a converter can break apart internally,rattle and give no symptoms other than the noise, but eventually it will break apart into smaller pieces and block the flow of exhaust and result in a low power complaint. There are some things where you have a chance to choose what to do, but in this case as I see it you have very little choice. You presently or will soon have a car that won't do both, stop and go!

Hello and thank you for your opinion. The garage called me yesterday with my estimate. They are going to order my converter now that i okay it. Thy was nice and shopped around. He said that replacing the new converter and cleaning the other one with parts and labor was going to cost $525.00.. This is lower than I thought it would cost me! As you mentioned about the brakes that makes all sense to me. The good part of that is all I have to do is buy the parts and my friend can do that for me. I did read that it could cause rotor to warp. Do you think I should do drivers side as well? My friend did the brakes last summer just pads because he said my rotors where fine, but should I just get a pair of rotors and calipers? Thank you so much!!! I was afraid it was going to be the tranny but garage said no the converter would make it so I couldn't go over 20mph and 2,000rpm's. Makes me feel better with a opinion. God bless you and thank you again!!! thank you forum members for letting me part of the community!!! I want to fix things this summer like all new hoses and so on. Have tranny checked and put one in if i have to I love this car! But tranny probably what over 3 grand?

The folks on this forum are among the best and always welcome new members.
The temptation to do only one side with calipers etc is always there, but if they have never been replaced previously now is a good time to install rebuilt calipers, new rotors and pads. Many times the rotors do not wear evenly, they develop what we call a taper and when new pads are put up against tapered rotors bad things happen. The lower part of the pad is the only part contacting the rotor and it will wear where you cannot easily see it. Inspecting it from top it looks like there is plenty of material there when at the bottom of the pad it could be ready to start chewing the rotor.
Also , poor braking can be present until the pad wears enough to get full contact with the rotor. That is why most reputable shops will either have the rotors cut or replace them. Shortcuts where brakes are involved is a gamble at best.
Unless you are aware of some special problem with the trans ,relax, it could have a problem tomorrow or 5 years from now .
I would have to dust off my crystal ball to provide a different answer there and it really doesn't work too good !

Paul Polish: Hanky gave you spot on advise. Replace the brakes on both sides, calipers, rotors and pads. But don't go with the cheapest parts. I usually had good experience with Wagner products and not so good experience with Brakebest from O'Reilly's. I would be careful with any store brand now.
Also completely flush the brake fluid at this time. Brake fluid should be replaced every 3 years anyway and it is not expensive.
The tranny should get a service (change of fluid and filter) every 30000miles. My Windstar requires Mercon V fluid and I believe your Taurus has the same transmission. I specify Mercon V when I get the service done. My shop uses a generic base fluid and adds the additive pack that makes it a Mercon V equivalent. Your manual should tell you what you need or the shop has the information ready.
And I also agree with hanky's opinion that you drive and service your tranny until it dies.
Make it a habit to check the fluid level and check the places were you park for fresh fluid spots and puddles.
And hanky's best piece of advise? Relax!

Thanks for reminding to replace the brake fluid.

I got my car back and it runs better
 

Hi All,
I thank you for welcoming me. I got my car back yesterday and it was $525 for the new front converter and the back was clogged as well. The garage cleaned all the junk in the back one out because it is not hooked up to any sensors. I was nervous picking it up thinking it may not run, But it ran great!! I bought it used 4 years ago, and now all the rattling is gone from when I first got the car. The place I bought it from had a bad rep and I didn't find out till I bought it. Infact it failed inspection for a safety reason the inspector said it needed new struts. The guy didn't fix it till a month or more. I thought he had a couple months but thats emmitions only. Also the AC compressor was bad and he kept pushing it off. That winter the belt froze up and had to have that replaced and cost me $550. Anyways I took it up on the highway and tested my speeds and now it is faster take off and I don't have to give it half the gas I use to and the rpm's are 2 to 3 lines less than it use to be at speeds of 65 to 90. I believe that would save me on gas now. One time i got off the ramp and the wheel shook pretty moderatly.

As you folks said I am currently going to order new brake parts from advance auto and I am getting 2 Wagner rotors, The best break pads they have for $55 but they come with police something and hardware but says it is a exact fit for my car. I could get wagner pads but don't come with hardware or the police thing. So I not sure but the more expensive ones have the hardware and that police thing. Any advice on the pads would help not sure about the police thing? Also going to order the rebuilt calipers too. Cost me about $250 or so for all parts needed for brakes and my friend will put in this weekend for me so till then I will use car as less as possible!!

About the tranny and my concern is that on the regular roads it runs great but on the highway say if i give it the gas to pass a car sometimes the rpm's will go up to 5k but the car won't pick up much speed. If i let off and try again it will pick speed up and the rpm's won't go so high. So that said I have 120k on the car the fluids red but I am going to have it drained and put in a new filter. I think my friend can do that as well and i believe the store will take back the bad fluid too. Im not sure how to change brake fluid out so if anyone could let me know that would be a great help if my friend can do it when he is putting in all my new brake parts. He may know how but if not i can tell him thank you all once again!!! Great forums and have it in my favorites. I appreciate ALL the advice very much!! And Thank you for the kind words!!

good parts don't have to cost whole bunch. so as long as that car isn't a police car don't worry about that if your rotors aren't warped or so thin that they can't be turned you don't have to buy new ones. usually when a caliper sticks it's because someone didn't push the piston back all the way and strait using a c-clamp while the bleeder valve is open

You might be overdoing it with the pads if they are intended for police service. Wagner has some decent brake pads and hardware kits that may cost significantly less than the ones you are talking about.
Changing the brake fluid is as easy as bleeding the brakes. Since you will exchange the calipers bleeding needs to be done anyway. You simply keep pumping until new fluid comes out.

Grindman: hanky recommended replacing the caliper because it got severely overheated.

What you describe regarding the transmission is called slipping. Sometimes replacing the filter and fluid with the correct type of fluid can fix this. Sometimes it means the transmission needs to be replaced or rebuilt.

most people don't know how or why a caliper got stuck in the first place the only time I've had them stick is when someone else did the work and didn't use the c-clamp to push the piston back evenly and the first time you apply the brakes to stop in traffic it sticks and won't release that brake. now that it's gone bad and giving a bunch of problems the person must replace a few other parts as well. all i'm trying to say is that people can save a whole lot of money if they can go with quality used parts or rebuilt parts in which the salvage yards are full of. all one has to is go and look for them. I am not trying to start an argument either, nor am I trying to get someone into trouble by compromising their safety