2009 MERCURY MARINER Complaints

STARTED THE CAR LIKE NORMAL WENT TO LEAVE FROM MY PARKING SPACE WHEN STEERING WHEEL WOULD NOT TURN FREELY. DROVE THAT WAY TO WORK (THOUGHT IT WAS ICE IN SYSTEM DUE TO A SNOW STORM) CALLED MY MECHANIC BUT WHEN I WENT BACK AND STARTED THE CAR AGAIN IT WAS FINE, IT DID NOT OCCUR AGAIN FOR A WEEK. ONE DAY AS I WAS DRIVING IT STARTED HAPPENING WHICH NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE. READ A POST THAT IT HAPPENED TO SOME OTHER PEOPLETHIS IS A REAL SAFETY HAZARD, I HAVE A KIDS AND GRANDCHILDREN THAT RIDE WITH ME I WILL NOT PUT THEIR LIVES ON THE LINE. *TR

POWER STEERING STOPS WORKING WHILE DRIVING. IF YOU STOP SHUT OFF CAR THEN RESTART POWER STEERING WILL WORK FOR AWHILE. FORD HAS NO RECALL ON THIS PROBLEM. SUGGESTED FROM FORD DEALERSHIP WAS TO REPLACE STEERING COLUMN AT $1400.00. THIS IS NOT AN INTERMITTENT ISSUE AND EFFECTS 2008,2009, 2010 FORD AND MERCURY VEHICLES. AFRAID TO DRIVE CAR. *TR

WHILE WAITING AT A STOP SIGN TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN, MY STEER WHEEL JERKED IN MY HAND AND SEEM TO LOCK. WHEN THE TRAFFIC CLEARED, I TRIED TO MAKE THE TURN AND THE STEERING WHEEL HAD DEFINITELY LOCK, MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO TURN AND STEER AND PLACING ME IN A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. I STOPPED THE CAR AND TURNED IT OFF WHILE IN TRAFFIC. WHEN I RESTARTED THE CAR THE STEERING HAD UNLOCKED. MY CAR WAS IN AN ACCIDENT A MONTH PRIOR TO THIS INCIDENT AND I HAD BODY WORK DONE, HOWEVER THE DEALERSHIP AND THE INSURANCE COMPANY BOTH STATED THAT THIS WAS NOT A RESULT OF THE ACCIDENT. THE STEERING ON THE 2009 MERCURY MARINER IS ELECTRONIC AND FAILED TO OPERATE PROPERLY. THE ENTIRE STEER COLUMN HAS TO BE REPLACE AT MY EXPENSE. *TR

DRIVING HOME FROM WORK THE CAR WENT INTO "LIMP MODE", PULLED OVER TO SIDE OF ROAD, CALLED FOR TOW AND HAD CAR TAKEN TO SHOP FOR DIAGNOSTICS AND REPAIR. SHOP DETERMINED IT WAS FAULTY THROTTLE BODY ( THERE WERE OVER 700,000 ORDERS FOR REPLACEMENTS ON WEBSITE AT THIS TIME)PART WAS ON BACKORDER---CAME IN, WAS REPLACED AND I PAID THE BILL OF $720.60 FOR PARTS, LABOR, TOWING AND TAXES. I GOT LETTER FROM FORD THAT PART IS NOW A RECALL ITEM SO I TAKE THE BILL TO KERRY FORD IN CINCINNATI, OH AND THEY TAKE ALL OF MY INFO AND SEND ME A CHECK FOR $167.85 AND TELL ME TOO BAD FOR NOT HAVING WORK DONE AT FORD STORE, THAT'S ALL I AM GOING TO GET. THIS DOES NOT EVEN COVER THE COST OF THE PART ALONE. SO AS A STRANDED MOTORIST, I WAS SUPPOSED TO THINK OF A FORD DEALERSHIP FIRST INSTEAD OF SAFETY FIRST AND GETTING MY CAR REPAIRED. *TR

THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOOSES POWER AND ACCELERATOR IS UNRESPONSIVE. THIS FIRST OCCURRED WITH APPROXIMATELY 33,000 MILES WHILE STILL IN WARRANTY AND DEALER REPLACED THROTTLE BODY. VEHICLE WAS FINE UNTIL NOVEMBER OF 2013 WITH ABOUT 80,000 MILES. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE VEHICLE GOES DOWN TO IDLE SPEED AND WITH NO POWER, IT'S VERY HARD SOMETIMES TO GET TO THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD WITH ONLY COAST CONTROL OF VEHICLE. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL ISSUE AS I'M AWARE OF THE MANY OTHERS HAVING SAME PROBLEM. I'M MAKING THIS COMPLAINT TO TRY AND HAVE THIS ISSUE RESOLVED BEFORE SOMETHING TRAGIC HAPPENS AND ALSO TO DOCUMENT THIS SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

WHILE DRIVING, THE VEHICLE STARTED LOSING POWER AND THE WRENCH LIGHT CAME ON; STOPPED AND HAD A HARD TIME CRANKING BUT WAS ABLE TO GO ON. 2ND TIME PULLING ONTO A BUSY STREET, SAME INCIDENT, ABLE TO GET TO CENTER LAN AND RECRANK THIS TIME SURGING FORWARD BUT GAINED CONTROL AND WENT ON, VERY UNNERVING SITUATION, SCARED TO DRIVE LONG DISTANCES. *TR

CAR ENGINE STOPPED WHILE DRIVING AT A LOW (10-20 MPH) SPEED. SECOND TIME THIS HAPPENED. FIRST TIME ON 2011 REPLACED THROTTLE BODY THEN. IT HAPPENED AGAIN 12/31/2013. FORD SERVICE SAID THROTTLE BODY NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AGAIN. *TR

WHEN PULLING UP TO A STOP SIGN THE CAR JUST STOPPED NEXT TIME COMING OFF INTERSTATE TO STOP THE VEHICLE KINDA OF LUNGED THE NEXT TINE IT JUST TRIED TO STALL HAD TO PUT IN NEUTRAL AND KEEP FOOT ON GAS TO KEEP IT RUNNING. *TR

WHILE DRIVING THE MARINER AT 45 MPH ON A BUSY STREET, THE ENGINE WENT INTO LIMP MODE, LOST ALL ACCELERATION AND SLOWED TO 5 MPH. I WAS NEARLY REAR-ENDED BY THE TRUCK BEHIND ME AND WAS FORCED TO PULL UP ONTO A SIDEWALK, DAMAGING MY TIRE. PULLED THE CODES ON THE CAR AND GOT A P111 CODE. DID SOME SEARCHING ON THE INTERNET AND FOUND THAT THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE AND AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD. I WAS VERY HAPPY THAT I WAS THE DRIVER, AND NOT MY 16 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER!!! THIS IS THE SECOND SAFETY ISSUE WE HAVE HAD WITH THIS CAR IN THE LAST MONTH -- EARLIER THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT, AGAIN WITHOUT ANY WARNING IN TRAFFIC. *TR

I WAS DRIVING MY 2009 MERCURY MARINER AND SUDDENLY LOST THE ABILITY TO ACCELERATE. A WRENCH LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON MY DASH AND THE ONLY THING I COULD DO WAS COAST TO A STOP. PUSHING THE GAS PEDAL DID NOTHING. I WAS ABLE TO VERY SLOWLY GET THE CAR TO A PARKING LOT (IT MOVED AT AN IDLE SPEED, BUT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE OTHERWISE). WHEN I GOT TO THE PARKING LOT, I TURNED THE CAR OFF. AFTER WAITING A FEW MINUTES, I TURNED THE CAR BACK ON AND IT SEEMED FINE. I TOOK IT TO A FORD DEALERSHIP AND THEY DIAGNOSED IT AS BEING A PROBLEM WITH THE THROTTLE BODY, WHICH THEY ENDED UP REPLACING. THIS ISSUE OCCURRED ON 12/10/2013 ON A 2009 MERCURY MARINER THAT I PURCHASED NEW IN NOVEMBER OF 2008. IT HAD APPROXIMATELY 69,000 MILES ON IT WHEN THE INCIDENT OCCURRED. I WAS DRIVING AT A SPEED OF ABOUT 40 MPH WHEN IT HAPPENED. IN SEARCHING THE INTERNET, I FOUND THAT THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM. THERE ARE NUMEROUS NEWS REPORTS, FORUM AND BLOG POSTINGS, AND YOUTUBE VIDEOS OF PEOPLE EXPERIENCING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE THROTTLE BODY ON THEIR ESCAPES AND MARINERS. I ALSO FEEL THAT IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE. HAD I BEEN ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THIS OCCURRED, I VERY LIKELY WOULD'VE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. (I WAS ACTUALLY JUST ABOUT TO ENTER THE HIGHWAY WHEN THIS INCIDENT OCCURRED.) *TR