Airbag complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (front, side and curtain air bags, sensors and inflators).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
My husband was driving our 2005 Mercury Mountaineer and he was going less than 20 miles per hour on a main street and got in a accident the woman stopped short and he rear ended her. The car totalled up buckled up air bags never inflated they came out completely deflated. Issue with this car also is the electric driver window dies out mechanic could not figure out bought new motors still wouldnt open electric switches they thought it was fully electronic they where going to re wire very expensibe but car was totalled. Car horrible on gas also. Have pictures of delated air bags both driver and passanger
On December of 2007, I drove into my garage at a slow speed. I applied the brakes to be able to park the SUV. The car would not stop until it hit the inner wall of the house. The air bag did not go off after the impact.. Took the car in after repair to front of car was done. The dealer's service department could not find anything wrong. 01/10/08 on June 17, 2008, my husband was parking the car to let me out to go to the doctor's office, the SUV would not stop until my husband put the SUV in park and shut the engine off.
My son was driving to work on August 6, 2015. Something happened, and he ran off the road and hit a tree. At that point the airbag cover flew totally off, instead and falling down as it is supposed to. The cover itself gashed my sons forehead from left to right, and he lost his right eye. This is a terrible accident. The airbags came out so fast that they had burn marks on them. These airbags were supposed to save peoples lives instead of mangling their faces. Someone needs to be responsible for this horrific act....01/04/17
My 2004 Mercury Mountaineer accelerated on it's own as I was pulling into a parking space. The vehicle made a roaring sound. My foot never left the brake pedal and I could not stop it. I jumped the curb, went over a grassy area, over the sidewalk and did not stop until I hit a concrete building at approximately 25-30 miles per hour. It caused significant damage to the building and to the car. Airbag did not deploy. I have had the body damage repaired and my auto insurance has paid over $3,000 for that. My husband took it to our nearest Ford dealer where they ran a diagnostic and it showed an electronic malfunction. They said the throttle body assembly needs replacing. The technician did not give us a print-out and said he couldn't find it when we checked back later. We contacted Ford motor company to see if they would pay for the replacement because our insurance would not. …
Faulty airbags: on November 3, 2015 at approximately 0540, the side curtain (both driver side and passenger side) airbags exploded in my 2003 Mercury Mountaineer without cause while I was traveling 55 MPH on a major/busy state highway. The explosion of the airbags hit me on my left side causing neck strain and temporary hearing loss to the left ear. I was the only occupant in the vehicle. I was able to safely drive to shoulder of road (I don't remember how I got there), luckily no cars were around me at the time. The explosion also caused the driver side window to fall from its casters and was unable to close window (and the passenger side rear window no longer works). The air in the curtains would not dissipate and I remember not being able to breath well. There was a chemical in the air and do to the curtains, it was difficult to get out of the car. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Mercury Mountaineer. While driving approximately 25 to 30 MPH, the front driver and passenger side air bags deployed without warning. The contact sustained lacerations to the left cheek that required medical attention. The air bag light remained illuminated and flashed a code thirteen. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 120,000.
Tl* the contact owned a 2002 Mercury Mountaineer. While driving, the vehicle slid on ice. The contact lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a ditch. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact sustained head, chest, lower and upper back, abdominal, and neck injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 250,000.
While driving to work one morning all I here was ding ding ding od/off started flashing . Sec later check transmission light came on now when I drive putting foot on the paddle to go it will idle up I release and it will shift n go. Aamco saying that I need a rebuilt tranny that's bs with all what I have been reading it's just a rip off I don't have $3500 to get this fix. Now seeing not once not twice so many complaints I read that people paid for 2 or more tranny for the vehicle's and nothing is been done about it. And the Ford deals knows about it..... Do a human being has to lose their life before Ford dealer's can own up to there responsibility? If they was in our shoes they would want the same thing vice verse they say u reap what you sow. Please please please help up just fix our transmission that's all.. …
Related recalls (1)
Air bags › Side/window
Vehicle description: 4-door sport utility vehicles equipped with side air bags. The subject vehicles have a revised level side crash sensor that could deploy the side air bag if the ignition key is in the "run" position and the seatbelt webbing is forcibly extracted from a locked retractor with a jerking motion.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the side crash sensors with a revised design that will reduce the likelihood of an unexpected side air bag deployment.
NHTSA investigations
Mis-assembled airbag clockspring
In July 2001, Ford issued a special service message announcing that some air bagclockspring devices May produce noise when the steering wheel is turned full left or right.Ford was aware that some clocksprings May have been improperly installed.the improper installation May also cause an open circuit and the air bag warning light to illuminate.starting with vehicles produced in September 2001, Ford adding length to…
Frequently asked questions
Which Mercury Mountaineer years have airbag problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2002 (20), 1999 (14), 2004 (12), 2000 (9) and 2003 (9) model years. Airbag complaints make up 5% of all complaints for the 2002.
Is there a recall for Mercury Mountaineer airbag problems?
Yes — 1 recall, including 00V-179 (side/window, Jul 5, 2000). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Mercury Mountaineer airbag problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 89,000 miles; 15% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the frontal (29 mentions), followed by the side/window (7).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.