Steering complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Mercury Sable. While driving in reverse, the steering wheel seized without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the power steering pump failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was later taken to hennessy Ford Lincoln atlanta (located at 5675 peachtree industrial blvd, atlanta, ga 30341, [phone]) where it was diagnosed that the power steering system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the repair fees. The manufacturer was notified of the failures and referred the contact to NHTSA. The approximate failure mileage was 43,000.
Steering froze up and could not turn to left / was hard to steer and then when trying to turn left could not do it, had to make right hand turns. Took it to the Ford dealer I bought the car from (2015) they said there was no recalls and had to replace the steering gear/ cost ,me $600.00 there were no complaints on the car fax of trouble. .bought the car in nov 2015 and had to have steering fixed in June of 2016. Today I went to see if there was any recalls lately and found 51 complaints about this car and a lot of them were for steering and power train. Don't you think this should be a recall. Going to look for a new car and not a Ford
Traveling down road, heard a loud noise, and lost control of car. Car is one year old and has 30,000 miles. Car pulls to the right and slams into guard rail. $4000 of body and suspension damage. Car sent to local Ford dealer where purchased from. Dealer instructed to retain all suspension parts by me and the insurance appraiser. Dealer conveniently loses the steering knuckle which from my initial investigation appeared to have been the cause of the accident(I have high res. Digital photos of the part). The pa state police deemed the cause of the accident mechanical failure. Driver was stiff and sore with serious emotional issues due to accident that she had no control over. Still do not have car back after 3 weeks(repair was supposed to take 8 days). No one has stated that Ford is going to make this right. …
While driving the vehicle in neighborhood situations or other situations the vehicle accelerates on its own beyond the on the desired speed this causes the car to be difficult to control and very difficult to stop increases the stopping distance needed to avoid an accident to stop at a red light or stop sign it also causes the engine to race even when placed in neutral. Recently why stop at a stop sign the car was pushing it south forward so hard I had a hard time keeping it stop and it actually moved me beyond the stop sign into a oncoming traffic. Extremely dangerous situation there will b fatalities if this is not corrected. This spontaneous acceleration even allows me to drive up hills without having my foot placed on the gas car will not slow down or stop easily. …
Tl contact owns a 2003 Mercury Sable. While attempting to depress the brake pedal and place the vehicle into drive, the contact's foot struck the accelerator pedal instead. The vehicle accelerated forward at a fast pace. The contact feels that the accelerator and brake pedals are too close together and could cause a crash when pressed incorrectly. He called the manufacturer and was advised to have the vehicle inspected. While driving 25 MPH, the contact had to slam on the brakes in order to avoid a crash. He noticed that the steering column failed intermittently, but was able to drive the vehicle safely to his destination. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop and inspected by a technician, who stated that he does not work on steering failures. The contact was instructed to take the vehicle to a dealer. The vehicle has not yet been inspected and no repairs have been performed. …
I went to leave from a local park on a Saturday evening, but my vehicle would not move out of park. I had to call a tow truck. The tow truck driver showed me a trick how to get the vehicle to start, by turning the ignition key ever so slightly and then trying to move the shifter to neutral. Once in neutral I started the vehicle and drove home. After driving the vehicle for almost a week by starting in neutral, I was stopped on the following Friday by police. I was informed that I didn't have any working brake lights. I drove home and looked on the internet if there were any recalls on this vehicle. Well, there was a recall done in 2004 (NHTSA action number: rq03008), but I was informed by Ford motor company that my vehicle based on its VIN was not apart of the recall. I requested to speak to a supervisor and was instructed that someone would contact me on that following Monday. …
In motion the car wants to keeps accelerating even when you hit brake. And will stay the speed you are going or go faster. And you don't have to keep pushing accelerated. From start the rpms go straight to like 5 to 6 to 7 rpms and takes about 30 sec to idle down. I have tried everything to fix it. It just won't fix!.... My power steering pump is brand new my rack and pinion is brand new. And my fluid still wants to over flow every time I get done driving it. I have tried everything to fix it can't and it's so hard to turn. Just not safe car at all I have put money in to fix all of this and it hasn't changed anything. They just keep messing up. The both of them. And the acceleration is very very dangerous. Cause the brake won't even slow you down. In motion and it happens in motion. And the rpms ramp up happens when just turning it on. …
2002 Mercury Sable gs - 103,000 miles, never been in a collision, always maintained by the book. On April 2, 2010 at 8:00 am, I was pulling forward out of my parking spot when a loud thud and a grinding noise stopped me from going any further. This was a total surprise as nothing about the previous day's driving hinted at an suspension/steering problem. After checking behind both front wheels, I found that the left front coil spring had snapped and a plastic piece had been broken by the impact. No tire damage occurred. I was just pulling out of a parking spot so speed was less than 10 MPH by the time the noise forced me to stop. Had this happened at speed I would surely have lost control of the car. The Sable was taken away on a flatbed truck and cost about $1300.00 to repair using new parts. …
Frequently asked questions
Which Mercury Sable years have steering problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1996 (36), 1999 (33), 1997 (19), 2008 (16) and 2001 (7) model years. Steering complaints make up 12% of all complaints for the 1996.
Is there a recall for Mercury Sable steering problems?
No. NHTSA lists no steering recall for any Mercury Sable model year. A widespread problem may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin, so ask a dealer.
At what mileage do Mercury Sable steering problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 67,000 miles; 34% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the hydraulic power assist system (30 mentions), followed by the rack and pinion (24).
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.