Problems · NHTSA complaints
2000 Mercury Sable problems
Owners filed 465 complaints about the 2000 Mercury Sable with NHTSA between Jan 2000 and Apr 2020. The most-cited component is suspension (158).
Complaints
465
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
35
Reported by owners
Fires
8
Reported by owners
Injuries
22
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
Complaints by component
One complaint can cite several components
- Suspension158
- Vehicle speed control70
- Service brakes, hydraulic61
- Exterior lighting53
- Air bags34
- Power train31
- Engine and engine cooling25
- Electrical system23
- Visibility13
- Seat belts12
- Tires10
- Structure8
- Fuel system, gasoline8
- Equipment6
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 9, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
When complaints were filed
Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
42
54
57
52
70
51
23
27
17
15
13
13
5
9
3
6
1
2
1
3
1
View as table
| Model year | Complaints filed per calendar year |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 42 |
| 2001 | 54 |
| 2002 | 57 |
| 2003 | 52 |
| 2004 | 70 |
| 2005 | 51 |
| 2006 | 23 |
| 2007 | 27 |
| 2008 | 17 |
| 2009 | 15 |
| 2010 | 13 |
| 2011 | 13 |
| 2012 | 5 |
| 2013 | 9 |
| 2014 | 3 |
| 2015 | 6 |
| 2016 | 1 |
| 2017 | 2 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2019 | 3 |
| 2020 | 1 |
Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.
Top problems in owners’ words
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
Suspension
158 reports2 crashes1 related recall
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCURY SABLE. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE HANDLED POORLY AND WAS UNSTABLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENTIRE SUSPENSION WAS FAULTY AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE LOCAL DEALER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. THE VIN WAS INVALID.”
Vehicle speed control
70 reports18 crashes
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCURY SABLE. WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING AND THE RPMS INCREASED TO 500 OR MORE. THE LOCAL DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE ISSUE AND DID NOT ASSIST. THE CONTACT WAS REFERRED TO NHTSA. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 116,000.”
Service brakes, hydraulic
61 reports12 crashes1 related recall
“TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCURY SABLE. THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL, BUT THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE. IN ADDITION, THE RPM'S INCREASED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT HER VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 02V266000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:PEDALS AND LINKAGES). THE CONTACT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPAIR COSTS. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 120,000.”
Exterior lighting
53 reports1 fire3 related recalls
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCURY SABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE BRAKE LIGHTS CONTINUOUSLY FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 157,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 159,000.”
Air bags
34 reports11 crashes
“MY DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING MY 2000 MERCURY SABLE AROUND A CURVE TO THE LEFT WHEN THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO SLIDE TO THE LEFT CAUSING HER TO LOOSE CONTROL AND STRIKE 2 GUARD RAILS,2 VEHICLES TRAVELING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION AND THEN HEAD-ON INTO A STONE RETAINING WALL. VEHICLE WAS SEVERELY DAMAGE AND MY DAUGHTER SUFFERED A MINOR HEAD INJURY. THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY EVEN AFTER STRIKING THE WALL HEAD-ON. WE ARE CONCERNED THAT THE REAR COIL SPRINGS WERE DEFECTIVE, RUSTED AND MAY HAVE CAUSE HER TO LOOSE CONTROL AND THE REAR-END OF THE VEHICLE TO SLIDE TO THE LEFT. 1 WEEK PRIOR TO VEHICLE CRASH/INCIDENT, THE REAR END OF THE VEHICLE SLID TO THE LEFT ON DRY PAVEMENT WHILE TURNING TO THE RIGHT. VEHICLE TIRES WERE FAIRLY NEW AND IN GOOD CONDITION. PLEASE REVIEW THE 2000 MERCURY SABLE FOR DEFECTS IN THE REAR COIL SPRINGS AND THE AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT FAILURE. *TR”
Power train
31 reports3 crashes1 fire
“THE TORQUE CONVERTER IN THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. THE VEHICLE STOPPED DEAD IN THE STREET. I WAS ON A SIDE STREET AT THE TIME AND NOT ON THE HIGHWAY. I CALLED 4 TRANSMISSION REPAIR SHOPS IN THE ST. CHARLES, MO AREA FOR PRICING. THEY WERE ALL AWARE OF THIS DEFECT BUT FORD DOES NOT HAVE A RECALL AND WILL NOT OFFER ANY TYPE OF SATISFACTION FOR THE REPAIR. IF I HAD BEEN TRAVELING AT A HIGHER RATE OF SPEED, ON A BUSY STREET OR HIGHWAY, AN ACCIDENT WOULD HAVE OCCURRED. I THINK THIS IS DEFINITELY A SAFETY HAZARD. I DON'T KNOW THAT ANY OTHER CONSUMERS HAVE COMPLAINED BUT A SURVEY OF TRANSMISSION REPAIR SHOPS WOULD SURELY REVEAL THE EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM. *TR”
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 9, 2026
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.