2003 Mercury Sable Seat belts Problems
- Complaints
- 5about this part
- Share
- 2%of 201 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 60,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 5 complaints about the seat belts of the 2003 Mercury Sable, 2% of the 201 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 60,000 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“No accident, but the seat belt on the driver's side has started latching only on sporadic occasions. It doesn't latch more times than it does latch. The are times when you have successfully latched the seatbelt, it will come unlatch end while the car is moving. This has now been occurring for about a month.”
NHTSA complaint #10789818, filed 2015-11, 290,000 miles“Contact states: while driving with passengers, child safety seat with passenger in tow pulled the seatbelt across herself. This became entangled around the passengers neck causing great discomfort. Concerned occupents try to free and disengage seat belt attachment with every effort the seat belt becomes tighter and slack is disappearing choking the child. Fortunately the child was freed with the help of a pocket knife, child had to be cut out of the restraint. Child substained deep tissue bruising as diagnosed by doctor. The dealer repaired the seat belt.”
NHTSA complaint #10119824, filed 2005-05, 42,000 miles“The contact owned a 2003 Mercury Sable. While driving 35 MPH, another vehicle collided with the contact's vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy and the seat belt did not lock, which forced the contact to strike the steering wheel during the crash. The contact sustained a concussion, back, and neck injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home and then towed to a junk yard. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 100,000.”
NHTSA complaint #10948477, filed 2017-01, 100,000 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10014138Jun 7, 2005Safety belt retraction speed.
- 10012954Feb 21, 2005Safety belt web stop button service.
Seat belts: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 1 | 1% |
| 2004 | 3 | 6% |
| 2003 | 5 | 2% |
| 2002 | 3 | 1% |
| 2001 | 12 | 3% |
| 2000 | 12 | 3% |
| 1999 | 20 | 8% |
| 1998 | 9 | 5% |
| 1997 | 21 | 9% |
| 1996 | 10 | 3% |
| 1995 | 4 | 1% |
| 1994 | 7 | 2% |
| 1993 | 8 | 1% |
| 1992 | 5 | 1% |
| 1991 | 4 | 2% |
| 1990 | 12 | 7% |
| 1989 | 44 | 18% |
| 1988 | 8 | 6% |
| 1987 | 8 | 11% |
| 1986 | 6 | 13% |
Other parts of the 2003 Mercury Sable
47 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
30 complaintsVehicle speed control
28 complaintsBody and structure
20 complaintsEngine cooling
19 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
19 complaintsBrakes
14 complaintsExterior lighting
12 complaintsElectrical system
10 complaintsAir bags
8 complaintsEngine
8 complaintsFuel system
7 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2003 Mercury Sable
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology