1998 Mercury Tracer Suspension Problems

“Rear coil spring fractured, without provocation, in my 1998 Mercury Tracer sedan. After speaking to 3 different independent shops and 2 different ford service departments, it was absolutely clear that ford/Mercury has a known material defect that they have chosen to ignore. Everyone concedes that these springs are failing at absurd rates but fomo co policy is to deny everything (despite what their own service technicians are admitting) catastrophic failures while driving frequently result in tire blowouts... …”

“The rear coil springs broke on my 1998 Mercury Tracer. When seeking a repair, I understand that this is a well documented problem with ford/Mercury models of this size (escort/Tracer/tempo). With rear springs broken, one can observe the rear tires of a car with these springs broken come off the road. With ford well aware of this design flaw in these autos, there ought to be a recall of these vehicles. I have only 47,700 miles on this car; I have now replaced a busted crankshaft pulley and the resistor associated with circulation system which could have started a fire. …”

“Consumer complained about having problems with a right tie rod and a right coil spring. He had taken vehicle to a repair shop and was told by a mechanic what was wrong with the vehicle. Vehicle was real dangerous to be driven. Manufacturer was not contacted at the time of this call. Dealer was contacted and replaced the damaged parts with the warranty. Vehicle had less than 30000 miles.”

“Consumer stated that first time 2 new tires were needed at 19,022 miles, mechanic said no problem with rear suspension, problem due to lack of rotation, second time 4 new tires were needed at 26,851 miles mechanic said problem with struts and coils for excessive tire wear. Repeated complaints to ford dealer ignored.”

“Dt: the contact took vehicle to dealer for regular maintenance, and the dealer discovered the rear passenger strut broke. Inside the strut was a piece of rubber. No repairs have been made.”