1998 Mercury Mountaineer: problems, recalls and reliability
6 recalls and 236 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is tires (40% of complaints); the 2000 model year looks more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Aug 2003
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 236 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“Under my hood started smoking, I popped my hood to find flames under it. I had to get my kids out the truck and put the flames out with and extinguisher. That's when I noticed that my brake fluid reservoir was melted and so were the wires that connect to the cruise control switch. Not I am without a vehicle to get to work and get my children to school.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Nov 2017
“At this point all 4 door locks/latches are messed up. Both driver &passenger back doors won't open from outside or inside. Driver &passenger front doors won't open from outside unless open from inside first. Key won't unlock doors. Back glass on hatch door won't open. Back wiper broken. Back hatch wouldn't open untill I paid to have it fixed. I contacted the manufacturer they said my truck not on recall list & wanted me to pay to fix it. My truck has same issues as the ones being recalled. How do they determine which ones to recall?”Owner report · Structure · May 2015
“All of a sudden with no warning my interior dome lights, power windows and front and back windshield wipers didn't function. I was driving it started to rain and I could see very well without functioning wipers. I had to pull over to the side of the road. I figure that a fuse might have blown but when I checked all fuses they seem to be ok. I was reviewing a recall for a 1999 mountaineer for a gem problem. Although my vehicle is a 1998, could this problem be similar to the 1999 recall. It appears to have all the similar symptoms . Is it possible that my 1998 mountaineer has a recall for the same problem. Thank you *tr”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Feb 2014
Show 7 more owner reports
“At 2 am we smelled smoke and saw it coming from garage, when I opened garage door flames were coming out of front of car. My mothers car burnt and it is a total loss. We had to call fire dept. My garage was wrecked. My house has smoke damage. *tr”Owner report · Engine · May 2012
“Had a wreck coming down the mountain. Emergency brake didn't work ran into a tree and damaged a mailbox (related vehicle information: model year=1998, make=mountaineer , model=mercury ). *tr”Owner report · Tires · Feb 2012
“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 mercury mountaineer. The contact stated that while driving at 45 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The failure occurred on several occasions. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the tire rods, wheel bearings, and the tires needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 210,000.”Owner report · Suspension · Oct 2011
“Moved my truck to let another car out of the drive way. Pulled back in turned the truck off came in the house and heard a loud boom. Looked out the window and fire was shooting up by the wheel. *tr”Owner report · Structure · Apr 2011
“Tl* the contact owns a 1998 mercury mountaineer equipped with turbo tech radial a/sr tires, line size p235/75r15, dot number ut1tt2e4305. The contact was driving approximately 55 mph when a loud pop sounded from the exterior of the vehicle. The contact suddenly lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle flipped over twice and landed onto the center lane of the highway. The contact sustained a mild concussion and injuries to the knee, back and neck. A police report was available. The failure was caused by the rear driver side tire exploding. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to a salvage yard. The failure mileage was approximately 149,000.”Owner report · Tires · Jul 2010
“Tl*the contact owns a 1998 mercury mountaineer. Early in the morning, the contact smelled something burning and noticed that her vehicle was on fire. As a result, the garage and part of the house were burned. The fire department extinguished the fire and stated that it originated from the engine of the vehicle. The contact feels that this is a safety issue because severe injuries could have occurred. The mileages were unknown.”Owner report · Engine And Engine Cooling · Jul 2009
“1998 mercury mountaineer. The drivers door will not unlock from the outside with the key and most times will not open from the inside with the latch handle. I have heard that this problem exists with most 1998 - 2001 mercury mountaineers, ford explorers and ford rangers. In the event of an emergency such as a crash, I might not be able to get out of the vehicle. *tr”Owner report · Latches/Locks/Linkages · Jun 2009
When filing, owners marked a crash in 22 of these complaints and injuries in 29 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 6 campaigns
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: CERTAIN 1997-1999 RHD EXPLORER EQUIPPED WITH 4.0L OHV/SOHC ENGINES AND CRUISE CONTROL BUILT FROM MAY 29, 1996 THROUGH MARCH 4, 1999; 1998-1999 EXPLORER/MOUNTAINEERS EQUIPPED WITH 4.0L OHV/SOHC OR 5.0L ENGINES OR 1998-1999 RANGERS EQUIPPED WITH 2.5L, 3.0L FFV/EFI OR 4.0L ENGINES AND CRUISE CONTROL BUILT FROM JANUARY 5, 1998 THROUGH MARCH 4, 1999; 1998-1999 MUSTANGS EQUIPPED WITH 3.8L, 4.6L 2-VALVE OR 4-VALVE ENGINES AND CRUISE CONTROL BUILT FROM MARCH 2, 1998 THROUGH MARCH 4, 1999; 1999 F250/F350/F450/F550 (OVER 8,500 LBS.) TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH 5.4L OR 6.8L ENGINES AND CRUISE CONTROL BUILT FROM MARCH 2, 1998 THROUGH MARCH 4, 1999; AND 1999 F-53 STRIPPED CHASSIS EQUIPPED WITH 5.4L OR 6.8L ENGINES AND CRUISE CONTROL BUILT FROM MARCH 2, 1998 THROUGH MARCH 4, 1999. A CRUISE CONTROL CABLE CAN INTERFERE WITH THE SPEED CONTROL SERVO PULLEY AND NOT ALLOW THE THROTTLE TO RETURN TO IDLE WHEN DISENGAGING THE CRUISE CONTROL.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE CRUISE CONTROL CABLES. AT THE PRESENT TIME, THE REPLACEMENT CABLES ARE NOT AVAILABLE. CUSTOMERS ARE BEING ADVISED NOT TO USE THE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM UNTIL A REPLACEMENT CAN BE MADE.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: MULTI-PURPOSE PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 4.0L SINGLE OVERHEAD CAM ENGINES. THE ENGINE FUEL LINES CAN BE DAMAGED IF THE VEHICLE IS JUMP STARTED AND THE GROUND CABLE IS ATTACHED TO THE FUEL LINE BRACKET THAT IS LOCATED NEAR THE BATTERY. SINCE THE BRACKET IS NOT GROUNDED, THE STAINLESS STEEL FUEL LINE BRAID COULD ACT AS A GROUND POTENTIALLY OVERHEATING THE PTFE INNER LINER OF THE FUEL LINE RESULTING IN DAMAGE TO THE FUEL LINE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A WARNING LABEL ON THE FUEL LINE BRACKET ADVISING OWNERS NOT TO USE IT FOR A JUMP START GROUND. ALSO A REVISED BOLT WILL BE INSTALLED IN THE ALTERNATOR BRACKET TO PROVIDE A CONVENIENT JUMP START GROUND LOCATION.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES. THE SECONDARY HOOD LATCH MAY CORRODE AT THE LATCH PIVOT AND STICK IN THE OPEN POSITION.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A SECONDARY HOOD LATCH WITH COMPONENTS THAT ARE COATED PRIOR TO ASSEMBLY FOR IMPROVED LATCH PIVOT CORROSION PROTECTION.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 4.0L SOHC ENGINES AND STILL RETAIN THE ORIGINAL THROTTLE BODY (PART NUMBERS 97JF-9E926AB OR 97JF-9E926-AC). SOME OF THE ORIGINAL THROTTLE BODIES INSTALLED ALLOWED A GAP BETWEEN THE PLATE AND BORE TO BE BUILT TOO NARROW. THIS REDUCED CLEARANCE ALLOWED THE ENGINE DEPOSITS NORMALLY PRESENT IN THE THROTTLE BODY TO CONTACT OR BRIDGE THE GAP. IF THE ENGINE DEPOSITS BRIDGED THE GAP BETWEEN THE THROTTLE PLATE AND BORE AND THEN HARDENED, ON THE INITIAL APPLICATION OF THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AFTER THE ENGINE HAS COOLED, THE OPERATOR WOULD NEED TO APPLY ADDITIONAL FORCE TO THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL TO BREAK THE BRIDGE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ORIGINAL THROTTLE BODIES.
ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH HIGH BACK SEATS, THE UPPER BOLT ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE HIGH BACK SEAT, THAT ATTACHES THE SEAT RECLINER MECHANISM TO THE SEAT BACK FRAME, COULD FRACTURE. IF THE BOLT FRACTURES AND DOES NOT JAM IN THE SEAT BACK FRAME, THE SEAT BACK MAY RECLINE UNTIL IT MAKES CONTACT WITH AN OBJECT BEHIND THE SEAT, SUCH AS THE SECOND ROW SEAT CUSHION.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVER SEAT UPPER BOLT WITH A METAL SPACER AND BOLT. IN ADDITION, SEATS WITH TUBULAR BACK FRAMES WILL HAVE THE FULLY THREADED LOWER RECLINER BOLT REPLACED WITH A PARTIALLY THREADED BOLT. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON AUGUST 29, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673.
TIRE DESCRIPTION: FIRESTONE WILDERNESS AT, SIZE P235/75R15, PRODUCED AT THE DECATUR, ILLINOIS TIRE PLANT AND ALL FIRESTONE RADIAL ATX AND RADIAL ATX II TIRES, SIZE P235/75R15. OPERATION OF THESE TIRES AT LOW INFLATION PRESSURES, HIGH SPEED, AND IN HOT WEATHER, CAN CONTRIBUTE TO SEPARATION OF THE TIRE TREAD.
Remedy: THE REPLACEMENT/REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM FOR THIS CAMPAIGN EXPIRED ON AUGUST 29, 2001. HOWEVER, CUSTOMERS SHOULD CONTACT FIRESTONE CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-800-465-1904 FOR POSSIBLE ASSISTANCE.
Trouble codes owners mention
OBD-II codes that appear in NHTSA complaints about this car.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 1998 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Mountaineer by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 1998 Mercury Mountaineer reliable?
NHTSA has 236 owner complaints and 6 recall campaigns on record for the 1998 Mercury Mountaineer. The most complained-about area is tires (40% of complaints).
At what mileage do 1998 Mercury Mountaineer problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 85,500 miles or less.
Does the 1998 Mercury Mountaineer have open recalls?
6 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning vehicle speed control. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.