26th Jun 2002, 13:42

I bought a 1991 Mercury Sable less than 2 years ago. When I purchased the vehicle, it had 55,000 miles on it. At 60,000 the transmission went and I had it rebuilt for $2100. Now at 80,000 miles it needs a new transmission again. I would not recommend that anyone purchase this vehicle or any Ford/Mercury.

3rd Aug 2002, 07:18

I have had my 1991 Mercury Sable for 3 years. My air conditioning compressor just went, I need a new transmission (it had one put in just before I bought it), the head had to be rebuilt and now it sits in my driveway and won't turn over. The car has 70,000 miles on it. My son has a 1985 Tempo with 55,000 miles on it that is more reliable than this piece of junk. Stay away from this car-you just pour money into it!

3rd Sep 2002, 16:49

Bought my 1992 Sable at 69,000 miles. A/C compressor went at 70,000. Head gasket failed at 72,000 (and it took the coolant system with it). My last car was a Ford Escort. Its head gasket blew at 55,000. No more Fords for me.

4th Sep 2002, 14:18

I bought my 1991 Mercury Sable with 74,000 miles on it. I drove the car 2,000 miles and the transmission went out.

Now the cheapest mechanic price on a new transmission is $1,500 because they have to take the front end out. I can't believe Ford is making low quality cars of this nature, especially in a luxury edition. I would recommend someone to think twice before they buy this car.

18th Sep 2002, 20:22

I bought a 1991 Sable 2 months ago. It had 162+ thousand miles. I'm a rural mail carrier and abuse my vehicles. I've had to replace the brake master cylinder, steering rack and pinion and power steering pump. It was general wear and tear problems (leaking mostly). I do have a engine check light that comes on after the engine warms up and goes off after I get up to speed. Any hints? Let me know. SWEBWOLFE6@AOL.COM.

28th Oct 2002, 17:49

Howdy.

I bought a '91 Sable GS with 140K miles on it as a 'beater' car last year. This one had been through 7 owners. I suspect that once a major component of the car failed, or maybe the second time it failed, the owner sold it to the next person. So, I'm number 8. The previous owner said he put about $4,500 into the car, investing in new drive train parts, transmission, valve job, A/C work, suspension, brakes, and the rest on account or gift certificate please! I'm replacing the engine, due to a head gasket breach the size of a baseball card. I'll probably not sell it though, my mother-in-law needs a car. Oh well, its only money. I wish I had enough to buy a real car like a new Pathfinder, but that's another post I guess. Obviously I'm preachin' to the choir here. Just venting - thanks!

Mike, mad in Mass...

5th Apr 2003, 21:30

I just traded an 87 Turismo that was falling apart as a down payment for a 91 Mercury sable. The only things I've found wrong so far

1) Back glass busted out (there was a replacement one in the backseat, they're FUN to install... gasketless).

2) The speedometer doesn't work, I use my Palm Pilot with GPS attachment instead.

3) The old-lady that owned it hit a post at like 5 mph, so the airbags are gone. No other problems from that.

4) The air doesn't work, needs a recharge... big deal. I'm gonna convert it.

I'm hoping it will last a long time, it's got less than 15,000 miles on it... not bad for 1400 bucks.

ryan_rester@yahoo.com

3rd Jun 2004, 18:25

Anyone remotely thinking of buying a 1989-1996 Ford Taurus needs to strongly think about a few things before even looking at it. These cars, regardless of engine, year, driving conditions, mileage, etc, have the WORST transmissions ever made by Ford. This exact transmission is used in Ford Windstars, also, which are heavily known for transmission failures. So if you actually buy one, be sure to have at least 5 extra transmissions in your back yard. It may make you look like a redneck, but hey, even driving one of these cars makes you look like the biggest redneck on the block. Next thing, do NOT be fooled by the seller when they tell you it has 10,000 ORIGINAL MILES on it. It does NOT have 10,000 miles on it. Depending on how many transmissions it has gone through, it either has 110,000 miles on it, or 210,000, or heck, maybe 310,000 actual miles. Ford was NOT expecting their car to ever even reach 100,000 miles since most of them did not at this age, so why should they put the 6th digit in the odometer? I've worked with cars for quite a few years, and I know for a fact that 85% of these are Lemons. The ONLY exception for this car is the engine. The 3.0 V6 that can come in these is the BEST engine EVER produced by Ford in history. Most 3.0s go well past 200,000 miles. I have only seen 1 fail in my life, and it had about 250,000 on it, not to mention we have owned several ourselves. Unfortunately, the engine does not make up for the transmission's weakness. That is all..

2nd May 2005, 20:36

I just bought an 88 mercury sable. When I start the car it makes an odd buzzing noise from the dash that only last about 15-20 sec. I think it has something to do with the a/c electrical in the dash, it also does not work. But my biggest concern is my auto transmission. It just went out. It slipped a time or two, but only when taking off. But now it sounds like a couple metal pinballs are bouncing around inside there. It won't move at all. Even in park it makes noise when the engine is on. Also when I had it pulled to my house with the engine off and the car in neutral, there was still a pin ball game going on inside there. Does any one have any knowledge on this and what I can do to fix it? Also how difficult is it to pull that trans any way. I have an 88 mercury sable, 3.0, auto transmission. Thanks, Gary. Please contact me at epicsling@yahoo.com.

29th Jun 2007, 17:51

I have owned a 1991 mercury sable station wagon since 1992 when I bought it with 30K miles on it. The above comments about the transmission and engine are correct. I am on my third transmission which is now broke, but the V6 has 240,000 miles and runs great. Other than the transmission, and an on and off fuel gauge, and a constant on check engine light it has had only normal problems.