MERCURY Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 MERCURY MARINER HYBRID. WHILE DRIVING AT 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED AND THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE COOLANT PUMP NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V526000 (HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000.

I WAS DRIVING TO WORK AND A LIGHT CAME ON WHICH I HAVE NOT SEEN BEFORE AS WELL AS TWO CONSOLE MESSAGES THAT READ "SERVICE POWER STEERING NOW" AND "SERVICE ADVANCETRAC." MY STEERING BECAME NOTICEABLY HEAVIER AS I DROVE AND THEN COMPLETELY LOST POWER STEERING AS I PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT. I HAD TO STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PARKING LOT AND SLOWLY WITH GREAT EFFORT I WAS ABLE TO ANGLE THE CAR INTO A PARKING SPOT. THERE WERE NO NOISES. I TOWED THE VEHICLE TO A NEAR BY AUTO SHOP AND THEY DIAGNOSED A FAULTY ELECTRIC POWER STEERING AND QUOTED ME $1750 FOR REPAIR.

WHILE AT COLLEGE MY SON CALLED AND SAID THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT IN HIS CAR. TOOK IT TO A REPAIR SHOP WHICH REFERRED ME TO A DEALER SINCE THEY WHOLE STEERING GEAR SYSTEM HAD TO BE REPLACED AND THE COMPUTER WOULD HAVE TO BE PROGRAMMED. THIS IS GOING TO BE BETWEEN 1800-2500 REPAIR. I FOUND THIS SITE AND IT SEEMS TO BE A MODEL WIDE ISSUE. I AM HOPING THAT THE RECALL ON THE 2011 AND 2012 WILL BE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE THE 2010.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 MERCURY MONTEREY. WHILE DRIVING AT 45 MPH, THE VEHICLE INADVERTENTLY WENT INTO NEUTRAL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE TORQUE CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 129,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

A REPAIR SHOP TOLD ME THAT MY ENGINE WAS LEAKING COOLANT THAT COULD MAKE THE ENGINE RUN HOT AND FAIL. AFTER DOING SOME ONLINE RESEARCH, I FOUND THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THESE VEHICLES AS FORD USED A CHEAP PLASTIC PART WHICH EASILY CRACKS AND ALLOWS COOLANT TO LEAK. THE LEAK ALSO AFFECTS OTHER PARTS OF THE ENGINE CAUSE THEM TO PERFORM IMPROPERLY. FORD IS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM BUT HAS FAILED TO ISSUE A RECALL DESPITE THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND THE RISKS TO THE CONSUMER.

MY VEHICLE SOMETIMES STALLS IN MOTION OR IT WILL SUDDENLY JERK FORWARD WHEN ACCELERATING. THIS INCIDENT ALSO OCCURS WHEN ACCELERATING TO HIGH SPEEDS, SUCH AS GETTING ON THE FREEWAY. THE SPEED VARIES AS IT HAS ALSO OCCURED IN TOWN DRIVING. IT HAS GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE THE ONLY WAY TO FIX THIS PROBLEM IS TO TURN OFF THE ENGINE AND THEN TURN IT BACK ON.

THE ENGINE CRADLE/FRAME SUPPORTING THE ENGINE & TRANSMISSION AND SUSPENSION AND STEERING ASSEMBLIES FAILED DUE TO EXCESSIVE CORROSION CAUSING THE REAR MOUNT AT THE BODY CONNECTION ON BOTH SIDES TO SEPARATE AND DROP ABOUT 3" CAUSING A LOSS OF STEERING. THE DROP OF THE CRADLE AND ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION PULLED DOWN ON THE STEERING SHAFT UNIVERSAL JOINT UNDER THE DASH CAUSING THE STEERING TO BIND UP AND ALSO CAUSING THE ENTIRE STEERING AND SUSPENSION GEOMETRY TO FAIL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT GARAGED, WAS PURCHASED NEW BY ME, WAS NOT IN INVOLVED IN ANY FLOOD DAMAGE, WAS NOT IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO SALT WATER AND THE UNDERCARRIAGE WAS SPRAYED EACH TIME I FREQUENTLY WASHED THE VECHICLE. THE ENGINE CRADLE IN ADDITION TO THE REAR MOUNT FAILURE HAS EXTENSIVE RUST AND CORROSION THRUOUT THE STRUCTURE. AS SOMEONE WHO PAYS ATTENTION TO MY VEHICLE I BEGAN TO NOTICE RUST/CORROSION ON THE ENGINE CRADLE ABOUT 5 YEARS AFTER PURCHASING THE VEHICLE AND HAVE SEARCHED THE INTERNET FOR SIMILAR COMPLAINTS WITHOUT FINDING ANY. I'M WIRTTING THIS AFTER FINALLY SEEING A COMPLAINT ON A 2001 FORD TAURUS CRADLE/FRAME FAILURE AND THINK THIS DANGEROUS CONDITION SHOULD BE MADE PUBLIC. THANKFULLY I WAS GOING AT A SLOW SPEED AND WAS ABLE TO VEER THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. HAD I BEEN TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEED THE EVENT WOULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC NOT ONLY TO ME BUT OTHERS ON THE ROAD ALSO. LOVED MY VEHICLE IT RUNS GREAT AND WAS LOOKING FOWARD TO MORE MILES WITH IT, UNFORTUNATELY THE REPAIR WOULD BE A MAJOR UNDERTAKING AND EXPENSE AND MY SABLE IS TO HEAD TO THE JUNK YARD ON A FLATBED.

WHEN SLOWING DOWN FROM HIGHWAY SPEEDS, APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH, I TAPPED THE BRAKES TO DISENGAGE THE CRUSE CONTROL, AFTER MAKING MY EXIT IN TO A RESIDENTIAL AREA THE CRUSE CONTROL TRIED TO RESUME MY LAST RECORDED SPEED WITHOUT ME PRESSING ANY OF THE CRUSE CONTROLS. THE CAR REACHED ABOUT 50MPH IN A 35MPH ZONE AND THE RPM'S SPIKED TO ABOUT 5000 BEFORE I HAD TO MANUALLY TURN OFF THE CRUSE CONTROL.

A FEW MONTHS AGO, THE SPEAKER FOR THE REAR PARKING AID AND CROSS-TRAFFIC WARNING SYSTEM BECAME MUFFLED, FOLLOWED BY RANDOM FLASHING OF TWO DASH WARNING LIGHTS READING CHECK REAR PARK AID AND CROSS TRAFFIC SYSTEM FAULT. THE BASIC WARNING SYSTEMS STILL FUNCTIONED. AT A SERVICE VISIT TO MY FORD DEALER, THE COMPUTER CODES WERE READ AND SYSTEM REBOOT WAS PERFORMED. AS THE DEALER INVOICE STATES, IF LIGHT COMES BACK ON WILL NEED PARKING AID MODULE AND SPEAKER $567.00 PLUS TAX. DRIVING AWAY FROM THE DEALER THAT DAY, THE WARNING LIGHTS DID COME BACK ON, AND A WEEK LATER, THE TWO SYSTEMS STOPPED WORKING ALTOGETHER, LEAVING JUST THE CONSTANT BACK AND FORTH OF THE TWO WARNING LIGHTS. (THESE WARNING LIGHTS ALSO NEGATE THE DASHBOARDS COOLANT TEMPERATURE GAUGE.) A CALL TO THE FORD CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER CONFIRMED THAT NO RECALLS WERE ACTIVE FOR THIS PROBLEM, AND AS I KNEW, THE CAR WAS OUT OF WARRANTY.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 MERCURY MONTEREY. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING SERVICED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE THIRD ROW SEAT DID NOT LATCH DUE TO SEVERE CORROSION ON THE REAR DRIVER SIDE WHEEL WELL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V081000 (SEATS). THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 156,000.