general problems of the 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis

Airbag warning light came on. Dealership said it was a faulty tensioner on passenger seatbelt. Cost over $800 to replace. 2 months later the warning light is on again. Now the drivers side seatbelt tensioner is bad. After websearches, I've found thus to be very common with this model/year vehicle.

In Feb, 2014, I originally had a minor crash when another driver was cited for reckless driving. His insurance paid for my damage. No airbags were deployed on either me, the driver, or my mother, the passenger. We were belted in. Recently, on September 7th, 2015, the airbag warning light and chimes came on when I started the vehicle. The light continues to come on, the chime rings in 3 sets of 5 periodically. The dealer that fixed the original damage, alan jay, ran a $55 diagnostic and stated the passenger seat belt pretensioner was open, and that this could have only occurred in an accident. I asked why the system did not respond the 1 1/2 years earlier when the accident occurred? alan jay did not have an answer, but stated my entire restraint system and airbags would not operate in any future crash, until I replace the passenger seat belt, which will cost $780. 00 alan jay Ford / Mercury said to contact national general insurance because "the pretensioner doesn't just go" that an accident had to have occurred to cause this. National general called me back today and stated this is untrue. There has been multiple complaints on the Mercury Grand Marquis airbag light activating and shutting down the restraint system and turning off the airbags for no cause. . Read more...

Paint started to peel in the front center of the roof, a small spot. I thought a stone or rock hit it. Then around the sides of the back windshield. This spring the hood started to peel also. First in one spot then in multiple spots. It starts by a bubble, then it pops and peels off in chips, which stick to the windshield at times. Then it starts to peel off in big pieces. At all times it peels down to the bare metal. It definitely appears that the affected areas(parts) are not primed. When driving you can see the paint start to lift off and let go. This problem seems it will not stop until the whole hood and roof are bare. Seat belt light does not go off when buckled. You can attempt to buckle and unbuckle multiple times it works and does not work. Some days there is no problem and other days it is an issue.

When parking a newly acquired used 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis at idle speed in a local shopping center, the engine accelerated and the harder I pressed the brake the faster the engine ran. To the extent the traction control activated and the wheels spun in place. The only way I prevented crashing into three parked was to shift the transmission into neutral with the engine racing. What apparently happened was my foot was not centered on the brake pedal and the pedal traveled to the point where I was also pressing on the accelerator. Evidently the travel distance of the brake pedal was so long I pressed on the accelerator pedal at the same time. I took the car to a Mercury dealer and was told this was a common problem, but he could not correct it because the brake and accelerator pedals were operating as designed. The dealers technician reported that my complaint was that the pedals seemed to close together. This may be true, but the problem in my mind is the travel distance of the brake pedal. I was also told Ford has not as yet issued a solution to this safety problem.