1996 Mercury Villager Body and structure Problems
- Complaints
- 25about this part
- Share
- 13%of 188 total for the year
- Median mileage
- —not reported
- Trend
- StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 25 complaints about the body and structure of the 1996 Mercury Villager, 13% of the 188 complaints for this model year.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“The locks on my Villager operate erratically. They will lock automatically, when they are unlocked they may immediatly relock themselves and sometimes the cause the door to jam. I saw this information reported on cbs 11 tv in dallas just this week and my van does exactly as the vans they were showing on the report. This problem has been happening for about a year, and is worse during warm weather.”
NHTSA complaint #749666, filed 2001-08“Passenger and sliding door locks failed to engage or disengage with or without keyless entry system or internal locking system used. I have had the sliding door locks actuator changed at my expense. The passenger door lock actuator needs to be replaced also. Actuators emit a grinding sound when keyless entry system or internal locking system is engaged and takes several (5) times to engage or disengage.”
NHTSA complaint #743713, filed 2001-04“The doors will lock automatically with the key in the ignition or not. We had a baby in the car and the doors automatically locked. This has been a problem since 35,000 miles recently ford told us their was a recommend fix - service message 11243 because of numerous complaints but it is not a recall. As a safety professional I think this is outrageous - potential entrapment of small children without adequate escape mechanism ( not breaking the window) is a concern.”
NHTSA complaint #726381, filed 2000-08“My Mercury Villager has a problem in which the sliding passenger door pops open if I hit a bump in the road. This occurs even if the doors are locked.”
NHTSA complaint #716703, filed 1999-12“This vehicle has been in to 3 different dealerships since we have had it (3 years). Door's will lock at any time running,off,or no keyless (key fob) opperation. After about $500 in repair charges I went to a different dealer only to find that a TSB had been issued and have it fixed now with replacing the master switch on the drivers side door. From talking to the sevice manager they have seen this problem on many vans like this, this is a small town dealer. To bad the other dealerships that we tried didn't keep up with the TSB's it took longer for resolution and the warranty is long gone. …”
NHTSA complaint #752172, filed 2001-09Body and structure: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 2 | 11% |
| 2001 | 1 | 5% |
| 2000 | 5 | 7% |
| 1999 | 11 | 6% |
| 1998 | 12 | 14% |
| 1997 | 21 | 17% |
| 1996 | 25 | 13% |
| 1995 | 16 | 4% |
| 1994 | 7 | 3% |
| 1993 | 24 | 6% |
Other parts of the 1996 Mercury Villager
36 complaintsLatches, locks and linkages
28 complaintsFuel system
25 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
21 complaintsAir bags
14 complaintsBrakes
12 complaintsSeat belts
10 complaintsSteering
9 complaintsVehicle speed control
9 complaintsEquipment
8 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
8 complaintsOther or unknown
7 complaints
← All problems reported for the 1996 Mercury Villager
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 29, 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