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Mercury Sable Problems
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Comments
The car, otherwise runs well. It "feels" best at 80 MPH, the car is heavy and can take a hit if need be. I have all the amenities and enjoy each and every one of them.
Question: What model is your '00, and do you have any problems with windy conditions pushing you around? My GS has no rear stabilizer bar, but one Edmund's poster had the same problem with a '99 LS, which does have one. If the '00 is better, I may look for a program car.
Thanks.
HOWEVER: Just moved back from Texas and noticed SIGNIFICANT improvement on mileage from ALL my vehicles (93 Colt Vista, 97 Transport, 97 BMW motorcycle). They are all getting 3 to 5 MPG better in Ohio than Houston, TX. Must be the heat.
Traded in the Transport on the Sable Wagon. (You can have my 93 Colt Vista when you pry my cold dead fingers from it!!!!) No where near the room, but we were downsizing. Looked at a lot of other vehicles, ultimately came down to fuel economy, safety, seating/cargo, and price. Got the Ford S Plan price, so the Sable won hands down there. Didn't want the LS because of all the problems I am reading about on the Duratech. Happy so far. I will continue to post as the mileage rolls up.
It now seems the seats are different & the Dealer & Ford will not replace the hard seats. Also, the lumbar when turned tightens the bottom of the bucket seat & the entire back of the seat; making the car undrivable...
Dealer & Ford, @ 800 #, will not replace the seats...
Does anybody have a suggestion? Need Help...
Thanks - Steve
Everyone drives differently, I have a heavy foot. It is not the mileage that bothers me as much as the power loss. I bought this car because for the first time I needed something bigger than a sports car or sports sedan. This car was my first choice over a minivan or SUV for obvious reasons, power with decent mileage and at least handling similar to a car. Some power was lost after the reprogramming, shifts are smoother but second gear feels like you hit a puddle of jello. As a result the heavy foot takes over and the MPG suffers. I did take it back after approx. 1300 miles were on the new software to have it checked. No errors. I guess it is either a go or no-go test they perform. Of course I can live with the way it runs now but somewhere closer to how it ran before would be better. Think I'll roll the bones and let you know what happens.
My 99 Sable LS has light on the side of the
doors, but they never light up! Are they real
lights or just red reflective plastic covers? The
manual does not have this info.
Also, the manual says the delayed accessory
should work up to 10 minutes, but when I turnes the
key to off position, the window power only works
about 40 seconds, very annoying at gas station.
How is your sable?
Thanks in advance!
Henry
I've been reading many posts regarding the backfire "bug" and how to have it fixed. I found out a little too late and witnessed the results. Here is a link to a jpg photo which shows the aftermath. This was a nasty jolt to hear on a quiet Sunday morning!
http://www.geocities.com/bigbang9999/backfire.jpg
2000 Taurus and all is well. Performance,
shifting, acceleration are as good or better than
before the PCM reprogram. My only complaint is that it took 2 1/2 weeks to get the part in due to backorder from supplier - new air intack manifold that cracked open on backfire (see below).
Here was a previous post I made on a Sable and
Taurus discussion:
I've been reading many posts regarding the
backfire "bug" and how to have it fixed. I found
out a little too late and witnessed the results.
Here is a link to a jpg photo which shows the
aftermath. This was a nasty jolt to hear on a
quiet Sunday morning!
http://www.geocities.com/bigbang9999/backfire.jpg
Any suggestions as to how to get some action without using substitute (off-brand)parts?
Has anyone heard of this problem or had it on their Sable?? Any input would be appreciated.
Anybody have similar experiences? I need some help with figuring out what remedies I may have with Ford or how much to trust the local dealer.
Prior to owning this car I had a Cougar. The Cougar was loaded with electrical type problems:speaker volume reduced on the left side, eventually quit playing completely; door locks, interior lights; key less entry; etc.
I now have the Sable which is starting with the same type of speaker problem; the door ajar light remains on even though all doors are secure, causing the interior lights to remain on and drain the battery (I have disconnected the lights since I have been waiting to take the car in since Dec14--Jan 8 is first available date); power locks unlock themselves after I lock them.
Other than these type of bothersome problems I like the car and it performs well mechanically.
Has anyone else had these types of problems? Should I just get rid of the car now?
It could also be a slow leak around the filter (not tight enough) or the drain plug (same thing). I had a similar problem once and it turned out to be a "loose" filter. I lost about a half quart before I noticed the problem.
Thankyou, ALex
At 50K miles the cranny just died while I was on the freeway. Went through all the hoops, even got up to Jacques office (through a contact of mine), beck I'm even a shareholder. Gave me the form letter response "Sorry..."
Cost me $2600 for a new cranny. Had a 1994 Taurus and the cranny died at 64K miles. I love the designs of FoMoCo, but after this experience and lack of regard for loyal customer satisfaction, I will never, ever buy a FoMoCo product again!
Oh, I also have the clunking noise in the front (almost sounds like severe rubbing/vibrating) and was told that it was the ABS kicking in by Lincoln dealer. Yeah, right!
The cost of $1047.06 about gave me a heart attack. (that's just the part uninstalled). Has anyone else run across this? Now the mechanic at the merc. dealership tells us the tranny was a problem and could go any time. I was lead to believe the American cars had come a long way baby! Selling my 3 ford products and saying hello to Honda and Toyota.
good luck
I am thinking of trading before I get "stuck"..
months ago. After having it serviced my technician told me that the fuel lines were clogged. I was in such a hurry that forgot to
ask reasons for the clogging.
Has any of you guys experienced what I just described? My Merc has the duratec engine, it's an LS Premium station wagon.
I am the very dissatisfied ex-owner of a '95 Taurus GL (same car basically as the Sable)..loaded out with premium JBL sound, leather, sunroof, 3.8 L V6, all the buttons and options..nice car. But for all those of you who have come here to learn potential problems for these cars, without a doubt here is what you will encounter:
1. Head gasket will blow. (Ford acknowledged this..they fixed it but kept my car four days and treated me with total disinterest) cost: nothing but inconvenience and a blood pressure rise.
2. Crazy speedometer problem as mentioned below. Goes kookoo over 40 mph. Ford said a bulletin was put out on this problem, and it was due to faulty speedo design. Would they fix it for an out of warranty car though (46,000 miles)? Nope. cost: $400 plus two days without car.
3. Transmission will die on you after 60,000 miles. This is a problem that I was warned about by a former Taurus owner, but not believing it would happen to me, (after all this is one of the most popular best selling cars, to be this popular surely the car isn't this notorious for bad trannies right?? ) I continued full speed ahead, damn the torpedoes!! Well, the torpedoes hurt. Cost: About $1,800 at an independent mechanic.
All this plus various little things, like anything from the sunroof switch panel coming unglued from the headliner to the auto climate controls dying, made my ownership experience a dismal and trying one. It was ALWAYS something breaking or going wrong. The local dealer repeatedly treated me not as a customer, but as if they were doing me a favor by fixing my piece of crap car. Even the Ford corporate customer service line was no help..in effect they very politely told me to go screw myself.
I traded this scourge in my garage for a '98 Toyota Camry LE and have been extremely happy and trouble-free ever since. Ford made no effort to help me, but I will not do them a favor by recommending their trash to anyone. There may be some of you out there with better Ford experiences, hats off to you, but those who are wary...take a lesson from this weary traveler and salute the old Ford as you pass on by.
I asked how this could have happened. He said it is a problem in Sable 3.0 engines but it is partially our fault because we did not get the antifreeze changed often/ever. We have always had routine maintenence done on time and assumed that everything was being maintained. The mechanic said that CA is lawsuit happy so places don't do maintenance you don't specifically ask for. Does this make any sense to anyone?? I don't know what needs to get done- that's why I bring it in!
The mechanic charged nothing for the advice.
Who's fault is this? Ours? Mercury? Our old mechanic?
What the heck do I do now? Sell? trade? Fix?
Chili