One problem related to steering gear box has been reported for the 2002 Mercury Mountaineer. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2002 Mercury Mountaineer based on all problems reported for the 2002 Mountaineer.
The front end gear box has gone bad and now needs to be replaced. It makes a loud noise and sounds like the tires are ready to pop off. I just replaced the rear end last November 2006 ,and now having this problem with the vehicle again.