Mercury Mountaineer Maintenance and Repair

kswank

My check engine light came on in my 2000 mountaineer about 3 weeks ago. I have filled the tank several different times with gas so I don't think it is the Ford gas cap thing. I think it is with the os sensor as the vehicle has baout 60,000 miles on it. Can someone tell me where to find the o2 sensors on it? Thanks.

intmik

Anyone know where the computer box is on a Mountaineer?

nvbanker

I'm not sure, but I'd check behind the kick panels in the way back - the side the Air Conditioner isn't on, which I think is on the driver side, so check the passenger side first.

merc50

i belive it is located in the fire wall right behind the tranny dipstick

merc50

my 2000 mouintaineer w/ 302 and all wheel drive has daul exhaust with no mufflers just cats . says it is running rich in bank number 2 which is odd because last time it was the bank 1 that was rich.my exhaust is real suety and black now and it has been missing and has a stumble to it at 1500 rpms. i had the plugs wires fuel filter and pcv valve replaced about 5000 mi. i have 120000 mi on it and only recently have had this bad of problem.it also has a k and n a/f brand new.i have had older cars that the timming chain or belt ws bad and they popped through the exhuast and this also sometimes does this but not on a reg. basis like a timming chain .i was told the o2 sensor by my parts store and to be honest i think i know more about cars than they do abnd i just dont think they have much experience.can anyone help me that has experienced this prob? is it the o2 sensor map sensor coil packs or timming i dont want to buy the parts store but they want me to .it also reminds me of the mass air flow sensor that i had go out on a firebird but this does not make it die just stumble.it idels fine most of the time but acts the fool when driving or beginning to take of and going down the road no matter if it is hot or cold.the dauls have been on it since 80000 miles. thanks for any info

glade8er

I have a well maintained 03 Mountaineer. Tire have less than 25,000 miles and the wheel ailgnment is good. I have roar coming from the front end the noise remains that same no matter what the speed. This noise is even more ntoiceable when I make a left hand turn. When I turn to the right it is not as noticeable but still there. Anyone have any ideas????

fmota

Bought a 2003 mountaineer 6 months ago (Premier -V8). Recently I noticed some oil spots on the driveway, maybe an inch or 2 in diameter. However, the spots are not towards the front end......they appear to be right by the rear wheels. Almost in the center, between the 2 rear wheels. Lets just say I'm not a mechanically inclined person whatsoever.....but I normally try n search on the internet to atleast get some idea of what the problem maybe....so when I take the care for repairs, I have some background info so to not get totally taken by the mechanic. Any ideas/suggestions would be greatly appreciated....thanks !

arsenal1

I had this probelm too ( I think). Mine was an axle seal and needed replacement on the driver side. My local mechanic fixed it of $270 while the dealer wanted $700 to repair both. I've put 20,000 mile on since. We now have 87000 on our 02.

lwoar

I have some problems in my 97 Mountaineer with the antenna.
Due to the cold weather it was frozen and I pushed it down. Now i can hear the motor but the mast does not move. Somebody can help me?

nvbanker

You need a new mast, not expensive, even from the dealer. Easy to install, directions come with it.

lwoar

thanks

buffalovan

I my 97 mercury mountaineer towed to a repair shop yesterday because an entire pulley or "bearing" fell off under the hood and broke the belt. He is charging $192 for the repair. Does that sound reasonable? He is just replacing one pulley and one belt? What do you guys think?

jfinn4680

Ive had my mountaineer in the shop now 4 times for it dropping off while im driving with my foot on the gas and it will just stall out at random. The dealership can't find anything but this is getting to be a bit of a hassle. Has anyone heard of this happening?

crusin1

YES!!! I have a 2003 Mercury Mountaineer and I have the same problem! It stalls out usually when I come to a stop. Not all the time, yet often, maybe twice a month. Very annoying, and I've at it in to get looked at and nothing. Now I'm having problems with the AC, dealer says it's $1500 to fix the broken motor. My father has the same car same year and the same problem! Call the customer service # and report your problem! They say that's the only way they know about issues people are having with their vehicles is for owners to call and have their complains documented! 1-800-521-4140.

mtnmtn05

my 05 mountaineer merc.v6 headlamps are alittle low, how do i adjust. I need to raise them a tab.where is the 4mm nut under the hood?? can't find it , help.

rodandkyn

Hi,
I have a 2002 Mountaineer. When filling with gas, I have to trickle the gas in or the gas pump will kick off. I checked the filler and vent hose for obstructions....none. I then bypassed the evap solenoid (I believe) and evap canister (both located w/n a couple inches of each other at the rear of the gas tank)....and that seemed to work. Would this be a culprit of the canister or solenoid?

When the solenoid and canister are connected, I can blow in the end of the vent hose connected up by the fill neck and air easily passes into the tank, so I was confused how the vent hose could be getting restricted.

Thanks.

sstampe

My 1997 Mountaineer doors will not lock or unlock when pressing on the door lock switch on the driver's side door panel. The doors will all lock from the passinger side switch; but will not unlock. Otherwise, all the doors will lock and unlock properly, ie with the key and manually. Where can I find a diagram that will show me where to look for the problem(s)?

mnpaul

Did you get your issue resolved? I have a 2002, same issue. Very frustrating.

tom140

I have an 06 mountaineer and having the same problem, been in shop twice and found nothing. just stalls while driving, not often once or twice a month. Has anyone resolved this issue?

mnpaul

Hi,

I posted this on my message thread this weekend.

I put 1 bottle of Gumout Fuel Cleaner (From Target) and once it worked through it (it stalls a lot when it's working apparently) I have not had 1 stall in 3 days with about 200+ miles. My 2002 Mountaineer has 87K miles on it and it was stalling on the freeway at 70+ mph. Ford dealer could not find anything wrong with it!

Good Luck

jcakabenny

If your vehicle is stalling at idle, you may need to clean or replace the Idle Air Control Valve. It is accessible on the top of the engine. If you choose to replace it, you must get it from the dealer, as the stores I called did not carry this part. I believe I paid about $90. I cleaned mine a few times but the issue kept repeating, once replaced I have not had a stall at idle for over a year. Hope this helps...

jacksocd

Any advice appreciated! thanks!

rodandkyn

Hi jacksocd....

The filter is deep up under the front passenger's side, right inside of the running board and straight across from the transfer case. It's protected and hid by a small shield with a larger, silver heat shield (that runs diagonally) in front of that.

You first need to relieve the fuel line pressure by depressing the bike tire valve located on the fuel rail on top of the engine under the big black cover that covers the whole engine. There are only 4 nuts that hold the big cover on, and once you remove those, remove the hose @ the back of the cover from it's hose guide and the cover will be free to be removed. Then you'll see the tire valve in front of you on the right side sticking up from a metal tubing line. There should be a black valve cover on top of the valve. You'll need to have a rag ready when depressing the valve since a good amount of gas will be relieved and it's under considerable pressure. Be sure the engine's not real hot when you do this just in case gas spills on the engine.

Once the pressure is relieved and you've jacked up the passenger's front side of the car, crawl under and try to locate the two fuel lines coming from the tank at the rear of the vehicle. The filter is located just past where they make a 90 degree turn.

You'll need to remove the diagonal, silver heat shield first. There should be 2 bolts on one end, and I think 1 on the other. Once it's removed, you should see a small cover that has two hex nuts with the filter being on the back side of this cover.

Once it's removed, you'll notice there is only one line going to the engine and two coming from the gas tank. The fitting for the engine side requires a special tool that's readily available at any checker auto, advanced auto, type of store. When you get the fuel filter from the store, get the tool too so you can be sure you get the right size of tool. There's a latch that first has to be popped up that is hooked on the end of the fitting facing the filter. It just pops up then the special tool clasps around the nipple of the filter and pushes into the fitting.....towards the line going to the engine. As you squeeze the tool together around the nipple of the filter, push the fuel line away from the filter and it should just push right off.

The tank side lines are a different fitting and don't require any special tool, but they're a bit of a pain to figure out since the way to release them is not readily visible. Use a very small screwdriver and put it in the trough of the maroon tab that should be facing you and pry the tab out. That will release a tab that should then be free to hang down. This has to be first released so you can then push it back up through the fitting where it has been clamped in place around the nipple of the fuel filter. It should pop through the top side of the fitting, and you can reach up and feel when it is protruding up. Once it is, the fitting should be free from the filter and the line can be pulled off of the filter.

Be aware that gas WILL run out of the hoses, so you don't want your face or anything electrical right under the lines. It only takes a couple minutes for them to completely quit dripping after the short section of gas line has emptied.

The new filter goes on in reverse order, and the fittings push right back onto the nipples of the filter. You should definitely feel a 'click' on the engine side of the filter when you push the line back on, and the gas side lines need to be pushed well onto the filter nipples before pushing the clasps back down and latching back the maroon tab.

Write back if this doesn't make sense or if you have any more ?'s.........

bruceybeee

Usually when you see oil in that region it is a leak in the rear differental. I would try to see if it is the access bolt seal (inexpensive). If not it is a leake in the diff housing (more expensive)

bruceybeee

common, slide the gas pump a few times in and out. This happens because the air pressure in the tank triggers the shut off switch in the pump. Sliding the pump in and out some will release the pressure so the shut-off system won't falsly activate.

kevin52

how do i change transmision oil? There is no dipstick. what is the proceedure on oil and filter change

jennap

Our '99 Mercury Mountaineer starts fine, idles fine, the engine revs okay when in park BUT when you put it in drive or reverse and push on the gas it stalls. We just got a full tank of gas yesterday and I'm wondering if there may be water in the fuel. I was going to buy Dry Gas and/or Gumout to see if those would help but wanted to see if anyone had a different idea. Thanks for your help! (By the way, it's been about 20 degrees here lately and my daughter's been driving the vehicle pretty close to empty!!)

mnpaul

Hi Jennap,

Minnesota here---so very cold and very similar issues with stalling as you probably saw in my discussion threads. The Gummout worked well initially, but after 4-5 tanks of gas, the stalling started again.. I added a bottle of HEET and once it worked through the stalling ended. Now I am adding a bottle every other FULL tank of gas, and so far, its curing the stalling blues. We are thinking that there is a condensation build up in the fuel line or tank (no auto expert here) but the simple solutions seem to be working the best :-)

Good luck!
Paul

jennap

Thanks Paul! I bought a bottle of K100 fuel treatment today and put it in. While the vehicle now goes it still wants to stall when intially starting off. It seems that as long as you don't press the gas too hard it works okay. Does yours do the same thing? Any info you can give is much appreciated. Thanks so much and good luck with yours, also!!

brucelee3320

sstampe! I was wondering did u get that problem fixed with u're locks, because i'm having similar problems out of my locks. I use the master button on the driver door to lock my doors and they all don't lock. The driver side is the only one that want lock. And when I try to unlock my doors they all will unlock except for the passenger side. I have a 99 Mountaineer.

wtd44

I have a 2002 V8 Premier. I have been dreading messing with the tranny fluid, now that I have 31K miles on the rig. For the last 5.5 years, I have considered what to do when the 30K point would arrive, knowing that the maintenance schedule in the owner's manual calls for replacing the tranny fluid. I decided to talk to a local trans shop that has a great reputation and has done some (Chrysler Turbo LeBaron) tranny work for me in the past. I also talked to the local Merc dealer. I decided to go with the dealer, feeling that If problems arose after the work, they would be hard pressed to get out of it! They told me that all I really needed was a flush and cleaning, with replacement of the fluid. When I inquired about possibly changing the filter(s) they said not to do it. They said the filters are expected to go 100K miles before a change would be advisable. They used a BG product during the "cleaning" phase of the flush, and then used 16 quarts of synthetic fluid. I have only put some 500 miles on it at this post-service point, and everything seems perfect. I hope it stays that way. It is my opinion that the auto tranny used in this series of vehicles should not be neglected! Git'er done!

phxmerc

I have a Check Engine Light illuminated and an intermittent misfire. My OBD II tester flagged a misfire on #3 cylinder. Mileage is 70K. I have replaced Plugs - Wires - Coils - Injectors and have checked for and found no vacumn leaks. After all of this, my problem still exists. Any and all input would be helpful and appreciated.

dmears

I have a 2006 Mountineer with 42000 miles on it and the Instrument Cluster went on it and my child was stranded in MA. I had to spend $500 for parts and labor because my bumper to bumper warranty was up at 36,000. The service at the Ford dealership in Great Berrington MA was horrible. Has anyone else seen this electrical problem in any of their vehicles before?

swo_dog

My door ajar light started coming on intermittenly at first and now constant. Now the interior lights as well as lights under the side mirrors will not turn off even when the engine is turned off. Any ideas what might cause this problem?

najswife

We have a 2004 Mountaineer and have the same issue...our interior lights now go off after 4 mins...however, now in addition to this issue - the seat memory controls on the driver side door are inoperable....this past weekend...the door ajar light came on...then extinguished...and 24 hours without using the car the battery is dead? When you jump the battery the car runs well...

Did you have service for the door ajar issue...

My concern is that our warranty is up....and I would like to know the cause rather than the dealership tell me what is wrong with the truck

mike420

I had the same problem... It has to do with the door latchs.. spray some wd40 or brake cleaner into the door latch and take a screwdriver.while holding the door handle open jiggle the screwdriver in the door latch for a while. this should cure the problem..

meemee

2004 mountaineer/36,000 miles
extreme noise when shifting-discovered the entire pumpkin housing twists when shifting from drive to reverse. Any info or help?
denise

arod5

Hi, has anyone ever change a fuel injector. it seems I have a bad fuel injector. I feel a slight tug when I push on the gas pedal. It seem the fuel is not flowing through. I was thinking of changing out the fuel filter, but a friend of mine was in my car and said he had the same problem. And it was his fuel injectors not flowing correctly. I tried injector cleaners and nothing improved. Let me know if anyone had a similar problem. I have a 2002 AWD Mountaineer.

mcrumbliss

Did you ever recieve an answer concerning the location of the o2 sensor?

sin143

I bought this car in 2004. Replaced the transmission under warranty in 2006, this weekend the car is stalling at 20-30 miles. Has anyone had this problem? I called around some shops and they quoted 1600-3K to getting it fixed?? Are they recalls for this kind of stuff. Please let me know because how can a car go thru a transmission every 2 years. I have accrued a lot of miles on the car but it's not like I am an aggressive driver.
Can everyone complain so we can all get justice once and for all....

NKS969

Here's a good one. Fords' TSB 08-21-11 addresses the need to match tire circumferences so as to not destroy the transfer cases. However, while it addresses the '97 through '08 Explorer it bypasses the Mountaineers in the '01 year particularly. The problem has been found to be a problem w/the 5.0 AWD '01 Mercury Mountaineer (that have only two tires replaced after normal wear, forward or rear) by causing a wheel speed transducer to 'tell' the transmission that it needs to be in AWD when it doesn't and therefore violently vibrating loose a flange case pinch nut and allow the aft drive shaft into the drive case to 'float' and then the interior of the transfer case self destructs. Mis-matched tires of different manufacturers could be of different 'circumference' yet retain the same tire 'size'. This difference can cause the internal destruction of the transfer case gearing. The costs can average in the $1900.00 to $2,300.00 range. Ford has not updated its' TSB as of yet. Anyone have this unpleasent experience yet?

NKS969

Was the replacement trans from Ford and NEW or was it a re-man? What did your warrenty specify as to the replacement and did you take it to a DIFFERENT Ford dealership (one that did not install the trans) and have them T/S the stalling?

mtnman1

My wife has been telling me that every once in a while she will put our '04 Mountaineer AWD V8 in reverse to back out of our garage it will make a loud noise like you have just backed into something. I could never get the same thing until this afternoon. I went to back out and went about 4 feet and it made like a boom sound or it felt like the transmission locked up and it came to a sudden stop. It was as if I had shifted the transmission into park while I was moving without stopping first. I applied the brake and shifted it into drive and drove forward a couple of feet and back into reverse and it was fine. Is this a problem with the transmission, rear end, or possibly the parking brake after it sat in the garage engaged for two days?

NKS969

Have you recently had any tires changed/replaced? Also, have you looked at the transfer case?

mtnman1

We did have identical sized AT Tires put on in early December, but this problem has been occurring since mid summer. I was looking at my Maintenance records and noticed that I have not had to tranny fluid changed for 30,000 miles. Had it changed at 13,000 miles for free when it was under warranty because the Seloniod was replaced by the Dealer that I purchased it from. I think I'm going to look into having the transmission flushed and new fluid added. I am also going to speak to a former Lincoln-Mercury Service Manager that now works as an Service Advisor over at our local Firestone since the car dealership closed it's doors. I developed a good relationship with him because I had 100% of my maintenance done at that dealership until it closed. Now I take it to Firestone for my routine maintenance needs. He might be able to give me some insight on the possible problem without having to tow the company (Ford) line. He also owns the same year Mountaineer that I have.

NKS969

When you talk to your friend at Firestone, since he's an ex-Ford dealership guy, could you ask him about my problem too as it relates to tire circumference and trashing the transfer case? I also had identical tire sizes put on the back of my '01 but it was the difference in manufactures that made the difference w/the tires' circumference and that difference turned my transfer case to mush. He might be familiar w/the Ford TSB on the subject (I wrote about it in a previous posted message). If he knows of anyone who might have direct contact w/Ford engineering I would like to email him.

mtnman1

Spoke to the guy and he told me that it could be several different reasons. Could be the Transfer Case, could be something binding in the transmission, could be the front differential. He said it would be best to take it to Ford and let them run the diagnostic on it. He said they can't do it at Firestone and since it doesn't happen much it would be tough even if he took a look at it to venture a guess. That is unless it happened to do it when he looked at it. As far as the Circumference he told me that the only way that could screw up something is if one of the tires was different than the other three.

NKS969

I already took it to a Ford dealer and they told me that due to the previous company putting a slightly different tire circumference on the back two (larger than the front ones that were left on) when they changed out the pair, that that caused the transfer case to self destruct. What I was asking was if your mechanic knew of any TSB or other documentation that would include an '01 Merc. Mntr. AWD when it mentions wheel circumference as it relates to a transfer case. My delema is that the TSB from Ford on the subject does not include the '01 year! It includes '97 through '09 but skips '01. Why I don't know. But the mechanics I've spoken to here say they just don't have any documentation on it that they KNOW of but DO know that a different tire circumference as opposed to the front ones will destroy a transfer case, and that's what happened to me. So, if ya see/hear/talk to anyone on the subject, please ask around if ya remember. Thanks.

rogerandretti

Is there a fuse for the Power Windows?I have had the annoying electrical problems like door ajar and having to turn interior lights off, but now my Power Windows have stopped working. Owners Manual DOES NOT describe a fuse for Power Windows.It does however describe a Circuit Breaker for the power windows. When I took the CB out my radio stopped working. When I put it back in, the radio worked, so I'm thinking the CB isn't the problem.

wtd44

I was recently advised that Mountaineers of the vintage of mine (2002) have a tendency to need rear wheel bearings when the mileage gets up, say, around 70K or so. Any opinions out there on this matter?

walterd

I had the same problem on my '97! It turned out to be a heat shield on the exhaust pipe that had broken loose at a weld!

If you can get under your car. Tap the exhaust with a RUBBER mallet lightly and the rattling noise can be heard. Start under the hood and work your way back.

I took it to a muffler shop and they cut it off. Unless you do some serious off roading or deal with icy roads, the heat shields under the car are useless.

$20!