2010 Mercury Milan Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2010 Mercury Milan most often describe two things: the power steering assist cutting out, sometimes while driving, and a brake pedal that sinks toward the floor after ABS activation. Many complaints link the brake symptom to the ABS hydraulic control unit covered by a recall that some owners say their car was not included in. Engine and throttle-related complaints (stalling, reduced power, a wrench light) are also common and usually appear past 70,000 miles.

1. 1
   Steering

   Power steering assist cuts out

   • 256 complaints (26%)
   • median 93,000 mi at 7.5 yrs old (205 state mileage)
   • 17 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,800 (median of 31 quotes)
   • filed 2011–2026

   Owners describe a 'Power Steering Assist Fault' or 'Service Power Steering' message, followed by steering that needs heavy effort or briefly feels locked. In many cases restarting the car restores assist, and in others the assist does not return. Complaints say dealers diagnosed a failed steering gear or rack and quoted repairs in the range of one to two thousand dollars, and that the dealer or manufacturer declined assistance because the VIN was not covered by a recall. Reported from roughly 15,000 to 220,000 miles, often within the first few starts after the message appears and sometimes while driving at 30-45 mph.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Start the car and watch for a power steering warning on the message center, and ask whether the steering gear or EPAS unit has ever been replaced. A service bulletin notes a lower-cost remanufactured steering gear is available for these cars and that steering noise diagnosis procedures were updated, which is worth asking about.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Riding down the road and the wheel instantly locked up on me stating in the message center of the car power steering assist fault service power steering service power steering now and service advancetrac caused a accident and now my car cause so much money to fix. I lost control because the wheel stop turning.”

   NHTSA complaint #11341608, filed 2020-07, 220,000 miles

   “I drive a 2010 Mercury Milan. I've had no problems whatsoever within the last three years driving this vehicle. Yesterday (01/21/21) & without warning the service power steering message popped up on my dash board just as I made it to the store. I turned my car off and back on and had no power steering. I could not turn the wheel at all!! My car isn't drivable right now. I hope there's a recall on this vehicle. I just paid the vehicle loan off days ago.”

   NHTSA complaint #11387647, filed 2021-01, 157,000 miles
2. 2
   Brakes

   Brake pedal sinks to the floor after ABS

   • 158 complaints (16%)
   • median 62,450 mi at 5.1 yrs old (132 state mileage)
   • 13 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $500 (median of 42 quotes)
   • filed 2010–2026

   Owners report the brake pedal going almost to the floor, especially after ABS engages on slick or icy roads, leaving longer stopping distances or requiring the parking brake to stop. Some say the pedal stays soft afterward, and that repairs involved the ABS hydraulic control unit or control module. Several complaints state their VIN was outside the ABS recall date range, and some mention parts were unavailable. Reported mostly between about 55,000 and 240,000 miles, often after ABS activation in wet, icy or snowy conditions.

   Recall 19V9040001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask whether the ABS hydraulic control unit recall (19V904) was performed and check the build date, since complaints describe 2010 cars outside the covered range. Press the pedal firmly with the engine running and confirm it holds rather than creeping down.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When pushing on the brake pedal the brakes, at times, do not grab as they are supposed to. I've pushed the pedal to the floor and kept moving. This does not happen all the time, but it is reoccurring. This event has happened to me at lest three times.”

   NHTSA complaint #11302098, filed 2020-01, 124,500 miles

   “When braking to slow down or get to a stop the brake pedal pressed down but the car didn't seem to stop as quick as it should have. A while later, when having to brake quickly, the car hit another vehicle infront of it. The accident took place on a city road. No police report was filed because the other car's bumper had minor damage unlike my car which the front & hood of has substantial damage.the repair estimate for me was about 4k dollars which is higher than I can afford.”

   NHTSA complaint #11373887, filed 2020-11, 56,000 miles
3. 3
   Engine

   Stall, reduced power or wrench light

   Mentioned in 5 of 60 sampled complaints

   Complaints describe a wrench or warning light on the dash, a sudden drop in speed, rough running or a stall, sometimes at highway speed, with normal operation after a restart. Owners report dealers replacing the battery without a cure, and other diagnoses pointing to the electronic throttle body or throttle body components. Most often reported between roughly 70,000 and 165,000 miles, sometimes during highway driving.

   4 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask if the throttle body has been replaced or the PCM reprogrammed, and whether any wrench or check engine codes were stored. A service bulletin describes intermittent loss of RPM with codes P2111 or P2112, so a scan for stored codes before purchase is worthwhile.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When driving at high speeds on the freeway there is a jerk in the car, the triangle warning light comes on that says pull over when safe, the engine shuts off, and we can no longer accelerate. We pull over, turn off the car, and then turn it back on.”

   NHTSA complaint #11324675, filed 2020-05, 104,000 miles

   “When driving the vehicle a wrench emblem appeared on my dash warning panel. This has happened twice before. In the last instance the vehicle then dropped speed from 45 MPH to 5 MPH and ran very roughly. I then pulled the vehicle to the curb and turned off the engine. I restarted the engine then drove home with no issue. I checked my owners manual and found the indicator was a throttle linkage malfunction. I brought the vehicle to a ford service center. They replaced my battery but this did not alleviate the issue. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11404114, filed 2021-03, 78,000 miles

Buying note. These cars are old enough that repair history matters more than mileage: ask for records on the steering gear and the ABS hydraulic control unit, and verify recall status by VIN rather than model year. A pre-purchase inspection that scans for stored codes and checks the brake pedal feel would catch most of what owners describe.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.