Mercury Sable Visibility Problems
Owners have filed 165 complaints with NHTSA about visibility problems on the Mercury Sable across 12 model years. The 1996 model year has the most (27). The words owners use most often: “blower motor” (12% of reports).
- 165visibility complaints
- —median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 3mention an injury
- 2related recalls
- $640typical repair cost reported by owners
- 46%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Blower motor: mentioned in 20 of 165 complaints (12%)
- Windshield wipers: mentioned in 20 of 165 complaints (12%)
- Heater core: mentioned in 18 of 165 complaints (11%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical visibility repair on the Mercury Sable at $640, and half of them between $470 and $770.
Based on 9 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2001–2009), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do visibility problems happen?
Based on 56 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 165 complaints, 3 a fire, 3 an injury.
Mercury Sable visibility complaints by model year
| Model year | Visibility complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 Sable | 1 | 5% | 15,000 |
| 2005 Sable | 3 | 4% | 39,613 |
| 2004 Sable | 1 | 2% | 25,000 |
| 2003 Sable | 18 | 9% | 36,250 |
| 2002 Sable | 26 | 6% | 56,011 |
| 2001 Sable | 10 | 2% | 50,000 |
| 2000 Sable | 11 | 2% | 78,000 |
| 1999 Sable | 21 | 8% | 58,850 |
| 1998 Sable | 10 | 5% | 91,000 |
| 1997 Sable | 22 | 10% | 65,200 |
| 1996 Sable | 27 | 9% | — |
| 1995 Sable | 15 | 4% | — |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (2)
Visibility:windshield
Model years: 2002, 2003
Problem: Certain passenger vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 212, "windshield mounting." the windshields may potentially exhibit increased wind noise, water leakage, and squeaks and rattles.
Risk: Potential loss of windshield retention may also reduce occupant protection in the event of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace these windshields. Owner notification began on march 31, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford/mercury at 1-800-392-3673.
Visibility:windshield wiper/washer:motor
Model years: 2000, 2001
Problem: Vehicle description: passenger cars, sport utility vehicles, and light and medium duty pickup trucks. A switch located in the plastic cover of the wiper motor gear case could malfunction and overheat, potentially resulting in loss of intermittent wiper function, loss of wiper park function, complete loss of wiper function, or ignition of the plastic cover material. Switch malfunction is most likely to occur when the intermittent setting of the wipers is being used, or when snow or ice obstructs the blades from returning to the "parked" position at the bottom of the windshield. These vehicles were built at the following assembly plants: atlanta plant from 2/11/00 through 7/31/00; chicago plant from 2/14/00 through 8/4/00; kansas city plant from 2/26/00 to 9/4/00; kentucky truck plant from 2/18/00 to 8/31/00; michigan truck plant from 2/23/00 through 8/3/00; norfolk plant from 2/21/00 through 7/27/00; wayne stamping and assembly plant from 2/25/00 through 8/15/00; and wixom plant from 2/15/00 through 8/8/00.
Risk: Loss of visibility while driving increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the date code on the wiper motor. Motors built with the suspect time frame will have the wiper motor gear case cover replaced. Owner notification began august 20, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1-866-436-7332.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 mercury sable. The contact stated that the defrost feature for the front windshield did not work. The contact stated that the failure occurred every time the defroster was activated for the past three years. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent…
Heater/ac fan continuously stops working. I first replaced the motor resistor in august 2012. It worked for 2 weeks when it broke for the 2nd time. I went to fix it again, only to find out it stops working again after 2 more weeks.it is now october and the motor resistor broke 2x and now the motor…
Wire harness failure in rubber boots from body of car to rear lift gate on station wagon model. Insulation cracking and wire breaking completely in flexible rubber boot causes erratic behavior and ultimate failure of high brake light, back up lights, license plate lights, rear windshield wiper…
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury sable. The contact stated that water was leaking into the vehicle from the cap above the cabin filter, which caused the blower motor to fail. The contact referenced nhtsa campaign id number: 03v087000 (visibility:windshield) but did not confirm if the vehicle was…
Tl* the contact owns a webasto hollandia 600 sunroof. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign id number: 11v124000(visibility:sun roof assembly). Once she contacted the manufacturer, they advised her that the parts were on backorder and were unable to provided an estimated time of…
Frequently asked questions
Do all Mercury Sables have visibility problems?
No. NHTSA has 165 owner complaints about visibility for the Mercury Sable. Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the Mercury Sable visibility?
Yes: 2 safety recalls list visibility. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
How much does it cost to fix visibility problems on the Mercury Sable?
Owners report a typical cost of $640 (half paid between $470 and $770), from 9 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about visibility problems on the Mercury Sable?
The most frequent phrase is “blower motor”, in 20 of 165 complaints, followed by “windshield wipers” (20).
Other Mercury Sable problems
See all Mercury Sable problems.