2004 Mercury Monterey problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Power Train:automatic Transmission (123) · Power Train (56) · Structure:body (13)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Mercury Monterey model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
272 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (2)
Seats 2013-03-07 · campaign 13V081000 · 196,667 vehicles
Defect: Ford is recalling certain model year 2004-2007 Freestar and Mercury Monterey vehicles manufactured from March 24, 2003, through November 7, 2006, equipped with a third row seat and originally sold in, or currently registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. The third row stowable s
Risk: In the event that the vehicle is crashed into from the rear, an unlatched seat may increase the risk of personal injury.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will install new third row seat latch striker mounting brackets, free of charge. The recall began on March 28, 2013. Owners may contact Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center at 1-866-436-7332.
Power Train:automatic Transmission:torque Converter 2012-01-09 · campaign 12V006000 · 206,452 vehicles
Defect: FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2004 AND 2005 FORD FREESTAR AND MERCURY MONTEREY VEHICLES. THE TORQUE CONVERTER OUTPUT SHAFT MAY FAIL.
Risk: THIS CONDITION RESULTS IN A SUDDEN LOSS OF MOTIVE POWER WITH NO WARNING, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Fix: FORD WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE TORQUE CONVERTER FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 9, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332.
Service bulletins (60)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Engine And Engine Cooling:exhaust System:manifold/Header/Muffler/Tail Pipe 2016-09-21 · SSM 46085 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the powertrain control/emissions diagnosis (pc/ed) manual has been revised for diagnosing electronic throttle bodies (etbs). the etc_act and etc_dsd pids should not used to diagnose possible etb concerns. the ids has a limited refresh rate when reading these pids and cannot display quickly enough to
Seats:mid/Rear Assembly 2016-04-21 · TSB160069 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
safety recall 13s01 - corrosion on sheet metal that supports 3rd row seat latch strikeers - requests for recall service action
Seats 2016-04-21 · 16-0069 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
for 2004-2007 freestar or monterey vehicles safety recall 13s01 has been issued for vehicles that are operated in high corrosion areas for an extended period, where the sheet metal that supports the folding 3rd row seat latch strikers could experience corrosion and may compromise the mounting point
Seats 2014-09-09 · TSB-14-0166 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
ford/mercury: safety recall regarding sheet metal support for folding 3rd row seat latch strikers can experience corrosion and will compromise mounting point causing seat to move. model 2004-07 freestar, monterey. *pe
Seats:mid/Rear Assembly 2014-08-11 · TSB-14-0144 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
ford/mercury: sheet metal supporting folding 3rd row seat latch strikers will experience corrosion and compromise mounting point for forward portion of 3rd row seat, if vehicle is operated in high corrosion areas for extended period. model 2004-2007 freestar, monterey. *pe
Engine And Engine Cooling:engine 2007-06-25 · 071011 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
advanced traction control system - short duration activation. *kb
Showing the 6 most recent of 60 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-02-03 · Electrical System:instrument Panel:speedometer/Odometer · 361,749 mi“odometer fraud. the contact purchased a 2004 mercury monterey. it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. the vehicle was a dealer sale. at the time of purchase, the mileage was 223,476 and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 361,749.…”
2024-08-19 · Unknown Or Other“reported on third seat on 2004 mercury monterrey premier van was recalled , also air bags was recalled and also on wheel of vehicle was recalled in which i want to see if i can take my vehicle and have it inspected and keep my vehicle on the list if any recall and thank you .?…”
2024-05-02 · Power Train · 104,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. the contact stated that while driving through a drive thru, the vehicle independently shifted into neutral and was unable to shift into the intended gear. the automatic transmission warning light illuminated. the vehicle was towed to the residence. a dealer was contacted back in 2012 who confirmed that the …”
2021-09-08 · Vehicle Speed Control:accelerator Pedal · 184,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. the contact stated while driving approximately 60 mph, the brake pedal was depressed however, the vehicle failed to respond, and the vehicle continued to accelerate. the driver manually shifted gears to slow the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that the return …”
2020-12-10 · Power Train · 93,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. the contact stated that while her husband was driving 45 mph, the vehicle stalled upon depressing the accelerator pedal. the check engine light was illuminated on the instrument panel prior to the failure. due to the failure, the vehicle was initially towed to an independent mechanic and then to newton …”
2020-11-30 · Unknown Or Other · 180,000 mi“well i didnt know how to go about this but around august 2020 my grandson just got out of knee surgery we was driving up to limestone new york when all of a sudden my vehicle started smoking and it stopped moving so i costed off the road we was on the highway when it happened so we sat there and there was alot of transmission fluid everywhere …”
2019-09-20 · Structure:body · 126,000 mi“lower control bolt that mounted to subframe rusted threw frame . if not caught on time the tire would seperate i took the vechicle to a wedler for temperary repair. but unfortanley the design on the subframe has holes so it allows water to enter and cause frame to rust! alert when braking you may experience clunking that is the lower control arm bo…”
2019-05-28 · Suspension · 92,650 mi“thursday may 23 2019. driving down the road and my van just cut off. i was able to restart the van and get into a parking lot. i sat for a bit and tried it again. it started. but i had no power to go forward or reverse the transmission was just gone. absolutely no warning or anything like this had happened. no service engine light .. i was on a cit…”
2019-01-02 · Power Train · 100,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. while driving 65 mph, the rpms increased, but the vehicle decelerated to approximately 20 mph. also, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately …”
2018-04-18 · Power Train“tl* the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. while driving 45 mph, the vehicle stalled and the check engine indicator illuminated. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be repaired. the vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. the manufacturer and dealer were not notified of …”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.