Tl* the contact owns a 1994 mercury sable. While driving various speeds or idling, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact stated that the vehicle was able to restart after several attempts. The failure occurred on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 96,000.
The worst 1994 Mercury Sable problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Engine144
- Transmission95
- Electrical29
- Lights28
- Brakes26
- Visibility25
- Fuel system21
- Body20
- Acceleration19
- Suspension15
- Steering14
- Airbags10
- Seat belts8
- Tires6
- Seats5
- Wheels2
Specific symptoms reported on the 1994 Mercury Sable
Stalling 34Overheating 25Headlights 21Transmission failure 20Engine failure 17Jerking 11Fuel pump 10ABS 7Wipers 7Sudden acceleration 6Adaptive cruise 5Grinding brakes 5Coil spring 5Hesitation 5Slipping 5
Recalls 4
Structure: frame and members
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles originally sold or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, nebraska, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virgnia, and wisconsin. The rear lower subframe mount plate nut can experience stress corrosion cracking if subjected to long term exposure to road salts. This can result in fracture and loss of the structural integrity of the subframe mount attachment. Detachment of the body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe, which supports the engine and transmission, allows the rear corners of the subframe to drop.
- Risk
- If both rear corners drop, steering would become suddenly very difficult, affecting vehicle control and increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install subframe rear mount bolts, reinforcement plates, and plate nuts.
Recall number 98V323000 · Recall details
Exterior lighting: headlights: switch
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The headlights can flash intermittently as a result of the circuit breaker opening. The vehicle's headlights can go out for brief intervals.
- Risk
- Loss of headlights during vehicle operation can affect a driver's ability to navigate the roadway and reduce the visibility of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a headlight switch that incorporates a cricuit breaker of revised design and installation of a wiring harness connector and wiring, if needed.
Recall number 98V009000 · Recall details
Vehicle speed control
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: vehicles equipped with 3.8l engines and originally sold or currently registered in the following states: alaska, colorado, iowa, idaho, illinois, indiana, kansas, massachusetts, maine, michigan, minnesota, missouri, montana, north dakota, nebraska, new hampshire, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, south dakota, vermont, wisconsin, and wyoming. Water can accumulate within the speed control cable conduit. If enough water accumulates, it could freeze within a low area of the cable routing when exposed to a long term cold soak at temperatures at least several degrees below freezing.
- Risk
- Driver control of vehicle speed using the speed control system or the accelerator control system would be diminished increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will add a boot to the speed control cable.
Recall number 97V025000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling: cooling system: fan
- What is wrong
- These vehicles are originally sold or currently registered in the following states: alaska, iowa, minnesota, nebraska, north dakota, and south dakota. The vehicles involved are 1992-1994 tempo/topaz vehicles with 3.0l engines; 1994 tempo/topaz with 2.3l engines; 1992-1995 taurus/sable with 3.8l engines; 1994-1995 taurus/sable with 3.0l engines and 1992-1994 lincoln continental vehicles with 3.8l engines. During high winds, heavy, blowing and drifting snow, and low temperatures, the engine cooling fan can become blocked or frozen with snow. The fan motor may not rotate and could overheat.
- Risk
- This condition can cause smoke or flames from the fan and/or shroud, the fan electrical wiring, or the fan motor resulting in a vehicle fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install an electrical jumper harness containing an automatic resetting circuit breaker to protect the fan motor low speed circuitry from overheating.
Recall number 97V019000 · Recall details
See all 4 recalls for the 1994 Mercury Sable
Defect investigations
Front suspension spring
There is no summary currently available
RQ99017
Engine cooling fan fires
There is no summary currently available
EA96024
Headlight failure
Excessive heat in an improperly manufactured circuit breaker within the headlight switch caused that circuit breaker to open for time periods of varying length to cool off.opening of the circuit breaker in this manner interrupts electric current flow to the headlights, shutting them off.headlight outages have ranger from brief flickers (less than one second) to greater than 20 seconds.over time, the outages grow in length and duration because of heat-induced deterioration of the switch and associated wiring.recall 98v‑009 will apply to approximately 506,000 taurus, sable, mark viii, and continental vehicles produced from 1-dec.-92 through 30-sep-93 at the atlanta, chicago,and wixom assembly plants.87% of my 1992-1995 taurus/sable and 97% of my 1993-1995 mark viii warranty repairs (headlight switch replacement) involved vehicles built during the dec. 92 - oct. 93 build range.
EA96019
Engine cooling fan fires
In december 1995, ford recalled 119,313 vehicles in canada to remedy the subject condition in certain 1992-95 taurus, sable, tempo, topaz and continental vehicles.ford is aware of similar incidents occurring in northern regions of the united states, but maintains that the frequencies do not warrant a finding of an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety.
PE96033
Technical service bulletins for the 1994 Mercury Sable 103
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- Remote keyless entry (rke) - service tips. tt
- New transmission cooler flusher - service tips. 2003 escort and super duty f series included. tt
- Climate control a/c service tech tips. eh
- Lamp-brake-invadvertent disabling of brake shift interlock. mj
- Transfer service tips for the front wiper motor mount bracket and depressed park output arm. tt
- Some engine assemblies with aluminum cylinder heads repaired in-vehile have been found to leak coolant...
- Brake shift interlock. jb
- Some vehicles may exhibit heater core leaks. slc
- Information regarding transmission fluid usage charts. slc
- On some vehicles, engine oil may continue to leak from the engine oil pan gasket area after an engine oil...
1994 Mercury Sable fuel economy
Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.
| Engine | Drive | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.0L 6‑cyl | FWD | 18 | 27 | 21 |
| 3.8L 6‑cyl | FWD | 17 | 26 | 20 |
What 1994 Mercury Sable owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Need proof of total recall of this vehicle by ford motor company. I have a list of complaints, I need proof of the total recall of this vehicle. Vin # [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Manufacturer will not honor recall: severe corrosion of the rear lower retaining plates for the subframe assembly supporting the engine and transmission. Risk is detachment of body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe. Existing recall 98v‑323 addressed this problem in certain vehicles. My vehicle was of the year, make, and model covered by the recall, and has this problem, but ford is claiming that my VIN# does not make me eligible for the recall.
Tl*the contact owns a 1994 mercury sable. The contact drove over a pothole and the front strut broke on both sides. The vehicle was towed to a mechanic who stated that there was a related recall 94e036000 (suspension: front: shock absorber). The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in the recall. The vehicle was repaired. The current and failure mileages were 139,500. Updated 07/08/11*lj the vehicle was towed to a repair shop where the front strut had broken in half. The remaining struts contained stress cracks. Updated 07/20/11
Traveled approximately 120 miles from home. Upon arriving at the destination, I noticed the right rear tire was extremely low with as estimated 10 p.s.I. Air pressure remaining. Knowing that I had two previous tire blowouts on this vehicle due to cracked valve stems and occurring within the previous 4 months, I moved the valve stem slightly back and forth and noticed air escaping from the area where the stem seats against the aluminum wheel. I put some soap bubbles around the stem and confirmed that air was escaping from a crack in the valve stem. Reference odi #'s 10254187 and 10254189 as a reference on the previous two valve stem issues on same vehicle. Spare installed. Visited the tire dealership where the four new replacement tires were installed 2 years, 8 months and 26,068 miles prior. No punctures, tears or cuts were found anywhere on the tire tread or sidewall. The only known cause of the low tire was a cracked valve stem in the area where the stem seats against the aluminum wheel allowing air to exhaust quickly from the tire once the crack propagated to inside. A new valve stem was installed. The left rear tire valve stem was also replaced at this time to avoid a future problem. Cracked valve stem information; tr 413, eha germany.
Traveling at approximately 65 MPH when right front tire near instantly deflated causing total tire failure before the vehicle could be pulled to side of road. Tire sidewall was totally destroyed. Spare installed. Visited the tire dealership where the four new replacement tires were installed 2 years, 5 months and 23,911 miles prior. No punctures, tears or cuts were found anywhere on the tire tread or sidewall. The only known cause of the tire failure was a cracked (cut) valve stem (as documented by dealership) in the area where the stem seats against the aluminum wheel allowing air to exhaust quickly from the tire once the crack propagated to inside. A new tire was installed along with a new valve stem. Cracked valve stem information; tr 413, eha germany. This was the second time (within 900 miles) that a tire blowout occurred due to what appears to be a bad valve stem. Cracked valve stem was saved for reference.
Traveling at approximately 65mph when left front tire near instantly deflated causing total tire failure before the vehicle could be pulled to side of road. Tire sidewall was totally destroyed. Spare installed. Visited the tire dealership where the four new replacement tires were installed 2 years, 4 months and 23,032 miles prior. No punctures, tears or cuts were found anywhere on the tire tread or sidewall. The only known cause of the tire failure was a cracked valve stem in the area where the stem seats against the aluminum wheel allowing air to exhaust quickly from the tire once the crack propagated to inside. A new tire was installed along with a new valve stem. Cracked valve stem information; tr 413, eha germany.
Tl*the contact owns a 1994 mercury sable. The contact stated that her headlights would fail intermittently and then illuminate again. She noticed that the failure occurred in brief intervals and she smelled a burning odor. The dealer installed a new headlight switch and, consequently, the dashboard switch melted. The dealer stated that nothing could be done. Ford stated that her VIN was excluded from the federal safety agency campaign id number 98v009000 (exterior lighting:headlights:switch). The failure mileage was approximately 98,000.
Tl* - the contact has a 1994 mercury sable. The contact stated that he purchased a vehicle on the afternoon of 03/16/2007, and the following morning 03/17/2007 the vehicle would not work, and transmission fluid was pouring out of the vehicle. The contact stated that he could pour it in the top and watch it come out of the bottom. The contact was told by the dealer that they would come and get the vehicle repair it and charge him for it. The current and failure mileage were both 131,368 miles.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving at various speeds the engine stalls without warning. This occurs more often in warmer weather. The vehicle restarts only after cooling off for at least 30 minutes. It has been inspected on several occasions; however the problem could not be duplicated. After researching the problems with this vehicle the contact believes the pfi ignition module is over heating, causing the stalling.
Compare the 1994 Mercury Sable
Other model years
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Questions about the 1994 Mercury Sable
Is the 1994 Mercury Sable reliable?
Owners have filed 387 complaints about the 1994 Mercury Sable, 4.7 times a typical Sable model year.
What is the most common problem with the 1994 Mercury Sable?
Engine and cooling, with 144 complaints, typically around 85,000 miles. Next is transmission (95).
How many recalls does the 1994 Mercury Sable have?
4 recalls, covering structure, exterior lighting and vehicle speed control.
Was there a recall on the 1994 Mercury Sable engine?
Yes, 1 recall: 97V019000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Mercury Sable have bad engine?
The Mercury Sable model years with the most engine complaints are 1993 (356 complaints), 1992 (151 complaints) and 1994 (144 complaints).
What gas mileage does the 1994 Mercury Sable get?
Official estimates for the 1994 Mercury Sable range from 20 to 21 mpg combined. The most efficient version (3.0L 6-cyl, FWD) gets 18 city and 27 highway.
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