Faults:

Air conditioner compressor went 1 1/2 years ago and too costly to fix.

Auto transmission has a leak where transmission intersects engine - also too costly to fix.

Rattle in dash on passenger side when floor vents are used for heating car.

An unknown liguid leaks down the rear bumper after fill up at gas station.

Keyless entry only works if you aim key fob at front window and are no more than 2 feet away from car.

Oxygen sensor just replaced at 75K.

Water leaks through trunk lid and into trunk.

General Comments:

I purchased this car due to the good value I thought I was getting in a 2 year old used car.

Right from the get go the car was problems within 2 weeks of bringing it home. Without getting into the horrible dealership experience (at my local Ford dealer), the car needed numerous trips to the dealership for minor repairs which, luckily, were covered under the extended warranty as the car was a'qualified certified' used car.

The little V6 is gem on the highway, but lacks torque for city driving (unless the overdrive is turned off).

An amazing feature to this car is that when the a/c is used, it actually increases the car's performance by acting like a mini-supercharger, but can be dangerous as the car acts completely different when the a/c is on - car also like to lurch forward at stoplights when a/c is on (when the a/c was working).

Parts seem to be hard to come by for this car and are very expensive as many parts need to be specially ordered, but do seem to get to the dealership pretty fast.

The seats in the LS model are excellent and the interior has a very 'upper-class' look to it.

However, after owning this car since 2000, I am ready to trade it in. I can't bare the thought of going through another summer with no a/c, but I must as I am still paying off this car until the end of the year.

A/c and transmission leaks are way too costly to repair. Hence, when the payments end, so will my time with this car.

Faults:

Front brakes wobble lightly on hard braking, but operate at an acceptable level.

Some of the power windows don't operate from the driver's master switch, but all work with their own corresponding switch.

Power mirror switch does not operate the mirrors.

Some dash lamps are out.

Trunk doesn't pop up using remote latch or key. Must be physically lifted after being unlatched.

Fan works using air conditioner, but air conditioner itself doesn't work.

Power steering pump is covered in oil.

Lower timing belt idler catastrophically failed at 265,000km, so one cam skipped a tooth. I just replaced the timing belt and its 3 idlers, the spark plugs, the valve cover gaskets and serpentine belt for $C320 parts and did it myself. It would have been over a grand at a dealer - but beware - with the variable timing exhaust cam, this operation is a bear! and not for the faint of heart.

Check engine light was coming on intermittently before above maintenance, but went off upon startup - runs good now! Still have to adjust low idle speed after this overhaul.

Engine speed increases on its own after hard acceleration. (What is the specific problem here, as I have seen this pop up in other's reviews frequently? "Solenoid" or "transmission" isn't a part - it is a general statement - I want to be able to fix it!!) Please reply on this to: ProtectedBySmithAndWesson@hotmail.com with "Mercury" in the subject line. (Thanks)

General Comments:

I consider most of the above as general maintenance items. If you had 165,000 miles on you - you wouldn't look or perform half as good as this car!!

I can deal with the air conditioning compressor not working and will find out soon why it is not working. (Probably just worn out at this point)

Ditto with the power steering pump - it works fine and is quiet, so if it works, don't fix it!!

I have a new mirror and window switch, but still have to install them. Will also get new bulbs in dash before long.

Overall, we love this car! It is my son's first, but for what we paid for it it looks and handles well, has plenty of jam for a 4 cylinder and gets great gas mileage and is comfortable to drive! What more could you ask for in an econo-car? No rust, no paint problems. I have driven lots of different cars, and I would own more of these; but looking at other people's reviews, I would want to know the history of the car.