Steering shaft corroded causing steering to bind up when turning. Later model of same vehicle recalled for identical safety flaw. Recall should be expanded to include 2003 and all other years affected by this safety defect.
2003 Mercury Grand Marquis steering complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 28 of 28, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The vehicle was difficult to steer and a local mechanic diagnosed the lower steering arm as the problem. This was a recall but not for 2003 models? *tr /
Driving around a bend on a dark county highway in southern nj, no street lights. My headlights go out and wont come back on. Since my steering is stiff, I almost wrapped myself around a tree. Thank god, I have good brakes and driving on brand new tires on a dry road or I would be dead right now. My mechanic has always claimed that the stiff steering is a common problem & a manufacturing defect, but cost prohibitive for me to fix. When I took the car today, he said it was definitely the lighting control module ($600 part). He was unaware of the chronic problem that is happening as of late with the lcm's in 2003 marquis. I think you guys closed the case too early on the lcm's, the complaints boards all over the internet about this problem are increasing in frequency. Combined with extremely stiff steering, headlights going out randomly is a recipe for disaster.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds the steering malfunctioned and caused the vehicle to pull to the right. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the steering column intermediate shaft was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 132,000.
I purchased new tires today for this vehicle. Dealer advised having front end alignment checked due to wear patterns on tires. Brought the vehicle to my front end alignment shop and told then that there is "a flat spot when turning the wheel' the technician drove the vehicle and brought it into the shop to inspect the front end prior to doing any alignment work. The technician called the parts dealer and gave the VIN number and was told the availability of the oem and after market parts. After hanging up the technician stated that ford had previously recalled the 2003 grand marquis for the same issue, (lower steering shaft binding), but they couldn't find any open recall for this vehicle. I was quoted $270.00 for the part not including labor, alignment and tax. I believe this issue should be re-visited if it was originally a recall issue. Other than that I will have to pay the repair bill. And for the record, this is my 4th mercury grand marquis that I own and never in time that I have been the owner , this issue ever surfaced. Thank you.
I own a 2003 mercury grand marquis. My steering shaft is corroded and it is no longer safe to drive. I contacted my local ford dealer about the issue after realizing there was a recall on the same part but only to find out that the recall was for 2005-2011 . But when I go to buy the part. Its listed for years 2003-2011. I would like to know why 2003 was not on the recall?
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that the steering wheel became extremely hard without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the technician diagnosed that the flexible joints in the steering shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The current and failure mileage was 76,000. Dr
Vehicle has become increasing difficult to steer and requires manual strength to turn the wheel. At this time we are not able to drive the vehicle, the steering is too hard and would be too dangerous to drive. Doing research on this vehicle I have found that it is the same problem that other marquis' have experience and for which there is a recall. The current recall only applies to the years of 2005 to 2011. Calling the ford customer service department did not produce any help or results, only an apology that my car was not included in the recall. Ford should be required repair all marquis with this same problem or at the very least provide help for those who call their customer service department complaining of the same issue.
While driving approximately 30 MPH, the steering wheel attempted to seize while the contact was completing a turn. The vehicle was taken to a garage where the mechanic diagnosed that the lower steering shaft was binded and needed to be replaced. There was a recall on this but it did not include 2003 models.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering malfunctioned causing the steering wheel to become hard to maneuver. Also, the contact stated that the headlights would fail sporadically. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the technician diagnosed that the lower steering shaft was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 120,000 and the current mileage was 122,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the steering wheel attempted to seize while the contact was completing a turn. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the mechanic diagnosed that the lower steering shaft was binded and needed to be replaced. The contact referenced the federal safety agency campaign number: 13v385000 (steering) however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 140,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, the steering wheel malfunctioned and became difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who advised that the lower steering shaft malfunctioned due to corrosion. The dealer replaced the defective parts. The contact notified the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 50,972.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving various speeds, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact would have to lubricate the steering shaft each time the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed that the gear shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 75,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection where they stated that the lower and middle steering shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 111,890.
While driving the steering freezes up while trying to make a turn. I took it to colonial ford in plymouth, ma. And they informed me it was a defective steering shaft I check the recall list and my wife who has a 2010 exact same model is on the recall list for steering problems and my neighbors daughter who has a 2000 exact same model has the same steering problem and took it to sullivan brothers in kingston, ma. And they fixed it for free saying it was a recall item why would all three car have the exact same problem with the steering and yet ford only put a recall on the 2000 and the 2010, I do not understand why the 2003 in not on the recall list for the same problem.
Tl- the contact owns a 2003 mercury grand marquis. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH the steering wheel would not return to the normal position after making a right or left turn. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The technician stated the steering shaft was corroded. The technician lubricated the steering shaft and stated that if the failure continued the steering shaft would have to be replaced. The failure recurred about a month later. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000. Da
While making a turn at an intersection in my 2003 mercury grand marquis I felt a pop in my steering wheel ,which totally left the steering wheel spinning freely in my hands. Whatever broke was between the steering wheel and the firewall,because nothing moves under the hood. I was traveling about 15 to 20 MPH so I was able to stop before hitting a ditch.
Steering wheel mounted upside down. This places the airbag in the wrong position. Will be repaired today by dealer.
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