1994 Mercury Cougar Transmission Problems

TRANSMISSION FAILURE, NUMEROUS TIMES. *JB

NHTSA ID

10177947

Incident

Sep 7, 2004

Mileage

69,000 mi

I BOUGHT A 1994 MERCURY COUGAR VIN# [XXX]. I WAS THE SECOND OWNER AND IT HAD ONLY 29K ON IT BACK IN JULY 1997. WELL MY TRANSMISSION WENT OUT BEFORE 68K AND THE COUGAR IS RATTLING APART. I HEARD LATER THAT THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE 3.8 MOTOR FOR THE BLOWER BY WHICH I'M HAVING NOW BUT BEING OVER 100K THEY SAID IT HAD TO BE BY A CERTAIN DATE AND UNDER 100K BUT I WAS NEVER TOLD OR NOTIFIED. FOUND OUT FROM A MECHANIC FRIEND. DON'T KNOW WHAT I CAN DO ABOUT IT. I HAD TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION COMPLETELY BECAUSE THE LOW END SHIFT PLATE WAS FAULTY ON THOSE MODELS TOO. ENGINE KEEPS GETTING HOT AND BURNING OFF RADIATOR FLUID. *JB UPDATED 07/16/2012 *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

10157491

Incident

Jun 15, 1999

Mileage

68,500 mi

THE TRANSMISSION ON MY VEHICLE WAS REBUILT IN OCTOBER 2001 @ 120000 MILES BECAUSE IT JUMPED OUT OF GEAR DURING ACCELERATION AND WOULD NOT ENGAGE. SINCE THE REBUILD, THE CAR HAS CONTINUED TO HAVE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS SUCH AS SELF-ACCELERATION WHEN CURSE CONTROL IS ENGAGED, SLIPPING OUT OF GEAR AND NOT REENGAGING, OR DOWNSHIFTING DURING ACCELERATION. THE CAR HAS BEEN TAKEN INTO THREE DIFFERENT TRANSMISSION SHOPS EACH BEING UNABLE TO DUPLICATE OR CORRECT THE PROBLEM. THE CAR HAS NOT BEEN TO A FORD DEALERSHIP BUT, HAS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED. I WOULD LIKE TO KEEP THE CAR AS A WORK VEHICLE, NOW @ 137K MILES, BUT REFUSE TO CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPAGE.*AK

NHTSA ID

10049564

Incident

Dec 10, 2003

Mileage

120,000 mi

AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION REPAIRED THREE TIMES & NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED AGAIN. HELP P.S NO ONE TAKES BETTER CARE OF A CAR THEN ME. *AK

NHTSA ID

10025918

Incident

Nov 14, 1996

WHEN THE CAR IS COLD, THE TRANSMISSION DOES NOT RESPOND TO MODERATE TO EXTREME ACCELERATOR PEDAL DEPRESSION. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF I AM IN FIRST OR 4TH GEAR OR THE SPEED. THE ENGINE IS SLOW TO RESPOND IN RPMS WHEN I ASK FOR IT, THEN GOES TO 2,000, THEN TO 3,000, BUT WITH NO CHANGE IN VEHICLE VELOCITY. THE CAR RESPONDS RELATIVELY WELL WITH LIGHT, INCREASING DEPRESSION TO THE PEDAL, BUT NOT TO ANYTHING THAT WOULD CAUSE A DOWN SHIFT. THE PROBLEM GOES AWAY AFTER 8 MILES OR SO OF CITY DRIVING. *JB

NHTSA ID

10014006

Incident

Apr 3, 2003

Mileage

110,000 mi

AT 23922 MI. (10/28/1997) DEALER REPLACED TRANSMISSION FLUID TO "FIX" RUMBLE STRIP EFFECT WHEN ACCELERATING AT 35-40 MPH (1.5-2 RPM). FLUID AGAIN CHANGED AT 53591 (02/13/2001) TO TRY TO FIX SAME PROBLEM. TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AGAIN AT 63677 (2/27/2002). A SMALL LEAK WAS MENTIONED BY MECHANIC. THE RUMBLE SOUND HAS NOW BEEN REPLACED WITH THE TRANSMISSION NOT ENGAGING...THE ENGINE REVS, BUT NO ACCELERATION BETWEEN 40-50 MPH. THE PROBLEM IS INTERMITENT. THIS COULD LEAD TO A REAR-END COLLISON. CANNOT RELY ON CAR!*AK

NHTSA ID

762243

Incident

May 17, 2002

TRANSMISSION CAN JUMP OUT OF GEAR WHENEVER CONSUMER SLOWS DOWN OR IS GOING AT SPEEDS ABOVE 50 MPH. CONTACTED DEALER, AND DEALER SAID THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG. BUT WHEN TAKEN VEHICLE TO A INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, HE NOTED THAT TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REBUILT.*AK

NHTSA ID

888144

Incident

May 14, 1999

REPORTING VEHICLE WOULD INTERMITTENTLY SLIP OUT OF GEAR AND RE-ENGAGE. DEALER/MANUFACTURER WERE NOT CONTACTED AT THIS TIME. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK

NHTSA ID

871558

Incident

May 15, 1996

NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVEVEHICLE. *AK

NHTSA ID

721242

Incident

Aug 15, 1998

THE CARS ENGINE HAS BEEN REPLACED(SO THEY SAID) ON JULY 1997 AND NOW THE ENGINE IS GONE AGAIN. THE SPEED CONTROL DOES NOT WORK. WE HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE BRAKES 4 TIMES ALREADY. THE DOOR ON THE DRIVERS SIDE THE WINDOW SOMETIMES DOES NOT WORK THE WINDOWS ARE POWER AND WILL NOT GO UP OR DOWN.ALSO THE TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN REPLACED ALSO THE CAR HAS TIRE VIBRATION THANK YOU THIS CAR IS NOW BROKE DOWN AGAIN AND WE STILL ARE MAKING PAYMENTS I CALLED THE DEALER ON 4-5-2000 AND THEY SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR LOOKING AT OUR CAR PROBLEMS. *AK

NHTSA ID

721108

Incident

Jan 30, 1997

DEALER REPLACED THE TRANSMISSION IN 1996 WITH A LITTLE OVER 20,000 MILES ON THE CAR. AT LESS THAN 60,000 MILES, I BEGAN HAVING TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THE CAR SHUDDERS VERY VIOLENTLY WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED. I DO NOT FEEL THAT THIS IS VERY GOOD WORKMANSHIP ON THE PART OF THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY. I HAVE ALWAYS OWNED FORD VEHICLES AND NEVER HAD A PBLEM SUCH AS THIS. I AM VERY UNHAPPY. THERE IS NO WAY UNDER NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS SHOULD THIS CAR BE ON ITS SECOND TRANSMISSION, LET ALONE TO BE HAVING PROBLEMS AGAIN. I DO NOT FEEL THAT I AM SAFE DRIVING THIS VEHICLE WHEN AT ANY TIME, THE TRANSMISSION COULD COMPLETELY GO OUT. I HAVE ALL OF THE PAPERWORK FROM STIVERS LINCOLN MERCURY CONCERNING THE FIRST REPLACEMENT.

NHTSA ID

713489

Incident

Sep 11, 1999

WHEN DRIVING, TRANSMISSION HAS A HARD SHIFT FROM 1ST TO 2ND GEAR AND SHUDDERS.

NHTSA ID

712594

WHILE DRIVING CAR WILL INTERMITTENTLY JUMP TO A LOWER GEAR . THIS HAPPENS AT ANY GIVEN TIME. *AK

NHTSA ID

848261

Incident

Mar 21, 1999

INTERMITENT "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT. WHEN SACN IS HOOKED TO CAR, IT SHOWS NO CODE IN MEMORY. UNABLE TO RESOLVE. IN MEMORY

NHTSA ID

711567

Incident

Sep 2, 1998

INTERMITTENTLY WHEN VEHICLE IS IN OVERDRIVE, IT WILL JUMP OUT OF OVERDRIVE TO NEUTRAL. THE DEALER HAS INSPECTED THE VEHICLE SEVERAL TIMES AND COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *YC DEALER HAS REPLACED THE MLP SENSOR, TURBINE SPEED SENSOR, 1-2 ACCUMULATOR PISTON AND SPRING, SOLENOID VALVE, MAIN CONTROL VALVE BODY, SOLLENOID ASSEMBLY, SWITCH ASSEMBLY, AND VONVERTER ASSEMBLY. SERPENTINE BELT WAS REPLACED. *SLC

NHTSA ID

844425

Incident

Jul 23, 1996

WHILE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY VEHICLE WOULD NOT SHIFT INTO GEAR, RESULTING IN SLOW SHIFTING AND HESITATION. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED THE DEALER, DEALER STATED TRANSMISSION NEEDED REPLACING. *AK

NHTSA ID

846116

Incident

Aug 1, 1999

DEALER SHIP SOLD ME THIS CAR KNOW IT HAD A PROBLEM BECAUSE I HAD MADE THEM AWARE OF IT. UNLESS THEY AGREED TO FIX THE PROBLEM OF SHUDDERING WHILE ACCEL AT 40 MPH AND AGAIN AT 80 MPH THAT I WOULD PURCHASE THE CAR. A WE OWE FORM WAS MADE OUT AND APPROVED BY MANAGER. THE CAR DEALERSHIP HAD FIXED EVERYTING BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT PART AND AGREED TO DO SO. TO THIS DAY I AM TOLD THEY CAN NOT FIND A PROBLEM WITH THE TRANY AND WILL NOT PUT ANYMORE MONEY INTO THE CAR. HAD TO RETURN CAR SEVERAL TIMES FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. I AM TAKING A LETTER TO THE DEALER ON JULY 24, 1999 IN REGUARDS TO SITUATION. I F CAR DEALERS ARE NOT GOING TO BACK UP THEIR WORD TO INSURE OUR SAFETY AND AGREEMENTS THEN WHO DO WE TRUST TO SELL US A CAR. I WILL GET A ATTORNEY INVOLVED IF THEY DO NOT WISH TO PROCEED TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION THAT IS FAULTY AND WAS MADE AWARE OF IT BEFORE AND AT TIME OF PURCHASE. I HAVE WITNESS AND COPY OF WE OWE AND ALL WORK ORDERS THAT WERE PROCESSED ON THE CAR IN CASE OF NEEDING FOR COURT DOCUMATION. PLEASE DO NOT DRIVE A CAR OFF A LOT UNTIL YOU ARE TOTALY SATISFIED WITH YOUR LARGE INVESTMENT. I AM A SINGLE MOTHER WANTING RELIABLE SAFE TRANSPORTATION FOR MY FAMILY. IS THIS THE WAY FORD LINCOLN MERCURY WANTS DEALERS TO TREAT THEIR PRODUCTS AND CUSTOMERS ? IF YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS FOR ME ON THIS YOU MAY CONTACT ME AT [email protected]. THANK YOU FOR HEARING ME OUT.

NHTSA ID

709096

THE COUGAR AT ALL TIMES REFUSES TO UPSHIFT FROM 1ST GEAR TO THE NEXT HIGHER GEAR UNLESS YOU RELEASE THE GAS PEDAL AT 3,000 RPM, AND THEN REAPPLY GAS THAT SEEMS TO ALLOW THE GEARS TO CHANGE. THIS ALSO OCCURS WHEN I AM TRYING TO USE THE PASSING GEAR, THE CARS TRANSMISSION WINDS UP USELESS I AGAIN RELEASE TRHE GAS AND THEN RE-APLY IT. THAT IS NOT A VERY SAFE SITUATION. *AK

NHTSA ID

708866

Incident

Jul 15, 1999

TORQUE CONVERTER WAS REPLACED AND FAILED AGAIN CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO LOOSE POWER TO THE DRIVE TRAIN. NLM

NHTSA ID

546094

Incident

Feb 1, 1997

VEHICLE AT 50 MPH GOES INTO NEUTRAL, ENGINE REVS FAR BEYOND NORMAL RANGE, BUT VEHICLE DOES NOT PICK UP SPEED. THIS HAPPENS ERRATICALLY. AT 20K MILES (WHEN PROBLEM FIRST DEVELOPED) DEALER HAD US REPLACE TRANSMISSION FLUID, THIS DID NOTHING FOR THE PROBLEM. NOW DEALER SAYS WE NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION BECAUSE TRANSMISSION IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. *AK

NHTSA ID

705875

Incident

Apr 19, 1999

I HAVE HAD TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED NUMEROUS TIMES BECAUSE THE TRANSMISSION STUDDERS. THAT DOES NOT SEEM TO FIX THE PROBLEM. BUT NO ELSE CAN TELL ME WHAT I SHOULD DO.

NHTSA ID

704120

TRANSMISSION FAILURE. ALSO FRONT BRAKE ROTORS/PADS AND CALIPERS FAILED. IN ADDITION, DEALER REPLACED REAR DRUMS/SHOES AND REAR CYLINDERS.

NHTSA ID

781797

Incident

Sep 1, 1998

TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL IN THE FALL OF 1996. IT WOULD SHUDDER SHIFTING INTO OVERDRIVE AND ONCE IN OVERDRIVE IT SHIFTED OUT OF GEAR ON IT'S OWN. JANUARY 1997 THE DEALERSHIP SAID THE PROBLEM WAS THE TORQUE CONVERTOR AND THAT THEY WOULD REPLACE AS IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. 6 MONTHS LATER THE TRANSMISSION STARTED HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM AGAIN. SEPT 1997 I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP AGAIN. THEY COULD NOT FIND ANY PROBLEM WITH THE TRANSMISSION. NOW JAN 1999, THE CAR IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE AND IS CONVENIENTLY PAST THE 12 MONTH/12000 MILE WARRANTY PERIOD ON THE REPLACEMENT PART. ON THE INTERSTATE LAST WEEK, MY WIFE WAS GOING 70 MPH AND THE CAR SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL AND WOULD NOT GO BACK INTO OVERDRIVE. A SEMI ALMOST RAN INTO THE REAREND OF THE CAR. BOTH THE DEALERSHIP AND FORD REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE PROBLEM, EVEN THOUGH I BROUGHT THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE SEPT 1997 WHILE IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. IN 1997 THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME FORD WAS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM WITH THE 1994 TRANSMISSIONS. LOOKING AT THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS ON YOUR WEBSITE, I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THIS PROBLEM. NOW I'M STUCK WITH AN $1800 REPAIR BILL.

NHTSA ID

702019

Incident

Mar 1, 1995

TORQUE CONVERTER FAILED CAUSING THE CAR TO SHUDDER WHEN SHIFTING FROM 2 TO 3RD, AND 3RD TO 4TH. PROBLEM REPAIRED, BUT OTHER TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS OCCURRED LATER. *ML

NHTSA ID

701336

Incident

Nov 3, 1998

TRANSMISSION TORQUE CONVERTER FAILED.

NHTSA ID

781600

Incident

Nov 1, 1998