2001 Sable won't move forward

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My wife was driving our 2001 Mercury Sable when it made a noise like tire popping. Said it quit driving forward but would go reverse. Tow truck driver said front passenger tire was locked up. Of course I was out of town on fishing trip.
Any thoughts what it might be?
 
I should have added it is the one with around 165,000 miles on it and experienced no slipping or signs of a transmission issue going on.
 
Tranny.
I had both calipers freeze/lock-up on me in 1978. Couldn't move forward at all. Those were the early years of front disc brake systems.
 
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Sounds like either a caliper seizing up or CV axle broken... I'd lean towards it being a CV axle.
 
Yea, but he didn't say how well it moved backwards. She could have been sitting on an incline and it just rolled back. Granted, all wives are different, but mine gives crap descriptions of car problems all the time, or just doesn't tell me about them until the thing blows up.

I'd still bet on CV axle.
 
This one is original and backs up normal no issues just not moving forward.

And yes my wife usually wait until I find it when there is a problems she never realizes that there was a flat tire or something is pulling funny.
 
I bet the differential inside the trans blew up. Could have a pin that's striking the case, that's acting as a check valve and can still roll backwards.
 
Originally Posted by ctechbob
Yea, but he didn't say how well it moved backwards. She could have been sitting on an incline and it just rolled back. Granted, all wives are different, but mine gives crap descriptions of car problems all the time, or just doesn't tell me about them until the thing blows up.

I'd still bet on CV axle.



Yeah exactly... No mention of moving backward freely or what exactly the deal was... Could have been on a hill.. .

But I bet it could well be what Max said it was the differential.. .
 
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Originally Posted by atikovi
Were the transmission problems cured by 2001? I remember most early Tauruses needed a transmission after only 60,000 miles.


The early failures were cured by the 4th gen which was 2000-2007. The lockup torque converter went on mine, but that was with over 200k on it. The spline got even weaker after 2003. Be curious as to what it is, it's not a very common failure.
 
Transmissions are a lot more expensive than CV half shafts . So , with my luck , it would be the transmission .
 
Does the speedometer go up when you put in gear and try to move forward? Does the engine rev up and spin freely or does it bog down like it would if you were pressing the gas while holding the brake on?
 
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