Tl*the contact owns a 1996 mercury sable wagon. The contact stated the vehicle had been parked on sept 10,09 at 3:30, the next day, at 6:30 pm the vehicle caught fire. The vehicle was engulfed in flames. There were no injuries. The fire department extinguished the fired and stated that it was as electrical fire. A fire report is available if needed. The manufacturer was not notified. The insurance has not advised the contact if the vehicle was destroyed or not. An insurance adjuster will provide the findings as soon as possible. The failure mileage was 140,000. Updated 10/20/09 *cn the consumer stated the transmission was replaced twice. Updated 10/23/09.
1996 Mercury Sable: complete transmission failure
10 of the 302 complaints about the 1996 Mercury Sable describe complete transmission failure.
- owner complaints
- 10
- of this car's complaints
- 3%
- recalls
- 3
Is there a fix? There are 3 recalls and 40 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Complete transmission failure by model year
What owners say
Car is a 1996 mercury sable, VIN [xxx], with a defective transmission. Car would lunge and jerk as car would slow and then re-accelerate (such as going into and out of a curve in town, or approaching a red light that changed to green before the car completely stopped.) car was first worked on 9/9/1999, at which time the car had 28,156 miles on it. The dealer replaced a sensor under warranty. The symptoms again started occurring about a year later. When serviced on 5/15/2001, the dealer could not find the source of the problem. Finally, the transmission failed in april 2002. The transmission was replaced 4/24/2002 with less than 47,000 miles on the car. The car had an extended warranty from ford. At the time of the failure, the warranty had expired for time (greater than 5 years) but not mileage. However, the car was covered by the warranty (time and mileage) during both the september 1999 and may 2001 services. Had the fault been properly diagnosed at either time while still under warranty, my contention is that the transmission would not have failed. I currently have the transmission. The gearing system has notches in the teeth. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
I have a number of worries with my vehicle. The following are: when playing the radio/tape deck, you hear a loud buzzing noise coming through the speakers even if the radio is turned down; when steering from left to right you'll hear a cranking noise coming from the front end of car; car does not absorb bumps at all, it rocks, makes knocking noise coming from somewhere near wheels; when driving on highway at a speed of about 50-70 MPH, car will sway, like a wind is blowing it away; feul sensor will float, you can not count on it to tell you how much gas you have; trunk hood flips up in the air so fast and hard, I have stunted my fingers before on it; the doors on the car have a sharp edge to it, if you don't stand back when opening the door, it can gash your leg; wind shield are a blind spot, to long, wipers are so strong they vibrate the car, unusually strong; back window on left side (passenger) will not roll up, or roll down sometimes; assembly of light moldings/fixtures in back of car are off(not evenly lined up), so is the leveling of trunk lid; car jumps when starting it up, like it's ready to pull off, even when your foot is on the brake; when moving the gears the car makes a knocking noise, and jumps also; brake light comes on and goes off at times; car loses power at times, even after the transmission was replaced in february, 2001; keyless alarm system is sensitive, sometimes a inconvience, if you pick keys up and touch the panic, or trunk release button it can be set off in the house, behind a brick wall.
A clutch plate within transmission broke in 3 places. Transmission needs to be replaced. But, manufacturer is not providing or selling new transmission because it keeps failing.
The transmission failed causing the vehicle to roll out of park and the vehicle will not go over 30 MPH because the high gears were broken. Nlm
When stopping at a light and taking off again the car takes a few seconds to move. When it does move, vehicle jerks forward hard enough to cause whiplash. Dealer says the vehicle needs a new transmission.
Dealer replaced transmission. , then changed computer settings, fuel mileage cut by 1/3.
Automatic transmission failed.
Control module for transmission failed, causing vehicle to slowly accelerate, also replaced transaxle.
Premature transmission failure.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Groan/buzz/vibration when the gear selector is in park with the vehicle parked on an incline
- New transmission cooler flusher - service tips
- Torque converter clutch not engaging when commanded and/or diagnostic trouble codes P0741 or P1744 stored...
- Some vehicles may exhibit a groan/buzz/vibration when the gear selector is in park
- Some vehicles may exhibit a park pullout clunk noise when shifting from park to another gear position
- Brake shift interlock
- Information regarding the new transmission cooler flusher- service tip
- Some vehicles equipped with AX4S transaxle, may exhibit a harsh 2-3 downshift may occur when coasting...
Related recalls
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- The automatic transmission park pawl shaft may not be free to rotate as intended. If the park pawl shaft does not rotate, it would prevent the park pawl from engaging the park gear when the shift lever is in the park position.
- Risk
- This condition could result in the vehicle rolling as if in neutral with the shift lever in the park position.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the park pawl shaft rotation and those shafts with restricted rotation will be replaced with a shorter shaft that will not restrict rotation.
Recall number 96V176000 · Recall details
Power train: automatic transmission: gear position indication (PRNDL)
- What is wrong
- The park pawl abutment bracket has a sharp edge which can cause the parking pawl to hang up and not engage the park gear. This would allow the vehicle to move even though the gear shift indicator shows that the vehicle is in park.
- Risk
- Unintended and unexpected vehicle movement can result in personal injury and property damage.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the park pawl abutment bracket.
Recall number 96V166000 · Recall details
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- The park pawl shaft was improperly positioned when the roll pin that retains it was installed during transmission assembly. If the shaft was not properly positioned, the roll pin may not have lined up with the groove in the shaft and have been crushed at assembly. Also, a burr could have been raised on the shaft.
- Risk
- This could result in the park pawl occasionally not engaging when the transmission selector lever is placed in the park position. This could result in the vehicle rolling as if in neutral if the vehicle operator does not apply the parking brake.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the park pawl shaft roll pin. If the roll pin is damaged, both the roll pin and the park pawl shaft will be replaced. In addition, owners will be reminded to fully apply the parking brake, in addition to placing the transmission in park.
Recall number 96V086000 · Recall details
Questions about the 1996 Mercury Sable transmission failure
Is complete transmission failure a common problem on the 1996 Mercury Sable?
10 of 302 owner complaints about the 1996 Mercury Sable (3%) mention complete transmission failure. The model year with the most reports is 1991.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 1996 Mercury Sable?
There are 3 recalls and 40 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 1996 Mercury Sable
Jerking 14Stalling 11Headlights 8Overheating 8Sudden acceleration 8Engine failure 7Slipping 7ABS 6Check engine light 6Fire or smoke 6Fuel pump 6Power steering loss 6Grinding brakes 5Door locks 5Seat belt 5Steering noise 5Won't shift 5Wipers 5
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