Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||||
| 5204 | 12/01/1998 | 615336 | Power steering noise when turning and reduced power steering assist at low speeds. *tt | 01/13/2001 | |
| STEERING - LINKAGES | |||||
| 99219 | 10/18/1999 | 6089673 | This bulletin mentions that the workshop manuals do not contain a procedure for inspecting the pitman arm ball joint for wear. *tt | 02/11/2000 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 05/25/2000 | 2 | 04/01/2000 | |
| Steering is very hard to control, it goes where bumps and dips take you. car will jump all over the road. steering has constant pull to left with lots noise. also steel to steel slamming noise. steering colum inside car moves. dealers look make some adjustments,say found no problem. but problems continue. i returned for repeat preformance. very rough ride front and rear . electrical problems surfacing, lights flickering,dash,dome headlights etc., engine cut out as if i turned it off and then came back on each time ihave been sitting still, talk about a dangerous driving situation! again the dealer checks it out finds no problem says they cant always find a problem until it happens and they have the car when the problem occurs. alot of good thats going to do driving down the highway at 60mph with 5 kids in the car!!! the air conditioning doesn't cool well at first they said no problem the weather got very hot ,they set an appointment. they found low pressure replaced low prssure clutch switch. i took the car in again for poor front end and steering control now adding to the list aloud slamming together of 2 pieces of steel coming from the left front tire area either going over bumps or dips i can't tell which because it happens randomly. the solution, the dealer checks the right side! so the car goes back again . *ak | |||
| 1 | 10/01/1999 | ||
| At time when driving at highway speed steering power assist worked intermittently, causing poor vehicle steering control/ steering become very difficult, resulting in vehicle pulling to either left or right . consumer has contacted dealer. dealer has disconnected the speed sensor which corrected the problem. *ak *slc | |||
| STEERING - GEAR BOX (OTHER THAN RACK AND PINION) | |||
| 10/09/2002 | 3 | 01/01/2099 | |
| I have been having problems with 'dead' spot in my steering, causing me to oversteer. i took the car to a goodyear service where they adjusted some part on the gear box. this helped, but continued to oversteer the vehicle. i returned to the shop again and purchased four (4) new tires, aligned the front end all all four wheels. again the adjusted the gear box due to my complaint. i drove over to sarasota where i was not satisfied with the way the car was steering and i returned to another goodyear store where i was advised the gear box is 'condemned' and has to be replaced. my car now 'wanders' all over the road and i must fight to control the vehicle in a straight line. i have owned many cars over the years and have talked to several mechanics who advised me that this is not common and must be a defective gear box installed on the vehicle. i feel mercury should replace the gear box at their expense, not mine as this is a safety feature that should not occur. mr | |||
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||
| 1 | 10/01/1999 | ||
| At time when driving at highway speed steering power assist worked intermittently, causing poor vehicle steering control/ steering become very difficult, resulting in vehicle pulling to either left or right . consumer has contacted dealer. dealer has disconnected the speed sensor which corrected the problem. *ak *slc | |||
| STEERING - LINKAGES | |||
| 07/17/2005 | 78643 | ||
| Backing up the tie rod fell down, steering impossible | |||
| STEERING - LINKAGES - TIE ROD ASSEMBLY | |||
| 05/13/2007 | 103000 | 1 | 06/09/2006 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 1999 mercury grand marquis. while backing out of the driveway at 1 mph, the outer left front tie rod detached. no prior work was done to the vehicle. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who stated that the outer tie rod end detached due to lack of grease. the dealer replaced two inner and outer tie rod ends and two adjuster sleeves. the engine size was unknown. the current and failure mileages were 103,000. the consumer stated the tie rod was worn out from the inside due to lack of grease. updadated 06/08/07. *jb | |||
| 03/02/2005 | 90000 | 1 | 05/01/1999 |
| While driving 30 mph front driver's side tie rod fell off. as a result, the steering wheel was unable to turn in either direction. the cause has yet to be determined. *ak the original tie rod end was assembled with no grease and could not be greased. *bf *nm | |||
| 12/30/2004 | 54000 | 1 | |
| While parking at a low speed, the front right tie rod fell off. the consumer had the vehicle towed. the dealership repaired the tie rod. *jb...other tie rod on left side was about to fall off and the other two were badly worn. no place to grease, so it mudt be life time. *ak | |||
| 1999 | 1 | ||
| The consumer took the vehicle in for an oil change and the mechanic stated that the left tie rod needed to be replaced because there was too much play in the tie rod. *nlm | |||
| 09/18/2000 | 2 | 10/23/1999 | |
| Front outer tie rod froze, causing driver to lose control of vehicle. dealer indicated rods were replaced at owner's expense.*ak the steering wheel became rubbery before the tie rod froze, and was hard to control. four weeks later, the lower ball joints failed. *yh | |||
| STEERING - WHEEL AND HANDLE BAR | |||
| 03/01/2002 | |||
| Ignition switch fails to turn over. dt | |||
| 12/01/2001 | |||
| When trying to put the key into ignition steering wheel locked up, and key was not able to be turned. contacted dealer, and dealer was not willing to do anything.*ak | |||
| 1 | 11/27/1998 | ||
| Consumer stated that the key will not turn in the ignition, the serring wheel locks up and has to be jerked before the key can be tuned. | |||
| 11/04/1999 | 5 | ||
| While making a right or a left turn the steering wheel would not return back. dealer has been contacted. *ak | |||