2011 Mercury Mariner problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Power Train (20) · Steering (19) · Vehicle Speed Control (15)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Mercury Mariner model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
68 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (3)
Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump 2016-10-26 · campaign 16V777000 · 329,265 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2010-2012 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured February 26, 2009, to April 29, 2012, and 2010-2011 Mercury Mariner vehicles manufactured February 25, 2009, to December 12, 2010. On vehicles with a 3.0L engine, the Fuel Delivery Module (FDM) may crack, causing a fuel leak.
Risk: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source increases the risk of a fire.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the FDM flange with one that has a redesigned fuel supply port, free of charge. Remedy parts are currently unavailable. Interim notices were mailed to owners on December 13, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S41.
Suspension:front:wheel Bearing 2015-06-03 · campaign 15E045000 · 576 vehicles
Defect: The Timken Company (Timken) is recalling certain aftermarket front wheel bearings, part number 510072, sold from January 22, 2015, to May 21, 2015, to be used as service parts on 2001-2012 Ford Escape, 2001-2011 Mazda Tribute, and 2005-2011 Mercury Mariner vehicles. The affected wheel bearings have incorrect dimensions of a 42mm bore, 76mm outer dimension, and 39mm width, instead of a 42mm bore, 78mm outer dimension and a 45mm width.
Risk: Use of an incorrectly sized wheel bearing can adversely affect the braking and steering of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Timken has begun notifying distributors who will offer purchasers replacement wheel bearings, free of charge. The recall began on May 21, 2015. Owners may contact Timken customer service at 1-866-984-6536.
Steering:electric Power Assist System 2014-05-29 · campaign 14V284000 · 740,878 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2008-2011 Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner vehicles manufactured August 18, 2006, through September 11, 2010. The affected vehicles have a steering torque sensor that may not be able to properly detect driver steering input. As a result, the system could remove the Electric Power Steering (EPS) assist.
Risk: If power steering assist is lost, greater driver effort would be required to steer the vehicle at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the power steering control module (PSCM) and the instrument cluster module, free of charge. If a vehicle shows a history of a loss of the torque sensor signal or fault codes relating to the PSCM when the vehicle is brought in for the recall remedy, the affected components will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began on July 18, 2014. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall
Service bulletins (27)
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:emission Control:catalytic Convertor 2020-06-03 · DOR-M9J4S-07 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
these skus are exhaust manifolds with catalytic converters. the customer communication requested return of unsold inventory due to a loss of carb certification. these skus can no longer be sold as they do not meet carb standards, but parts on vehicles are not effected.
Engine And Engine Cooling:exhaust System:emission Control:catalytic Convertor 2020-06-03 · DOR-M3J3F-07 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
these skus are exhaust manifolds with catalytic converters. the customer communication requested return of unsold inventory due to a loss of carb certification. these skus can no longer be sold as they do not meet carb standards, but parts on vehicles are not effected.
Visibility:glass, Side/Rear 2019-08-09 · SSM 48130 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2010-2020 vehicles may exhibit distorted glass with a subtle orange peel pattern or streaking etched into the surface. this is caused by hydrofluoric acid which is used in some car wash solutions as a cleaning agent. hydrofluoric acid can attack the glass and cause visual distortion and/or disc
Power Train 2019-05-10 · SSM 47976 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
on vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission it is imperative that the converter pilot hub be greased with motorcraft multi-purpose grease spray xl-5-a even if grease was not applied from the factory. also verify that the engine/transmission alignment dowel pins are present as well as the eng
Equipment 2017-01-24 · SSM 46332 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
replacing the original equipment sync/navigation system with either an aftermarket sync/navigation kit or modifying original sync/navigation parts to provide additional features is not recommended nor supported on any ford, mercury or lincoln vehicle. only approved genuine ford accessories or origin
Service Brakes 2016-10-17 · SSM 46132 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2008-2017 ford/mercury/lincoln vehicles equipped with sync may generate a vhr that identifies a concern with the brakes and suspension category indicating service is required due to a brake system warning lamp being illuminated. if the park brake was applied when the vhr was gathering data from
Showing the 6 most recent of 27 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-05-19 · Steering · 96,000 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering became inoperable with no warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the steering shaft port sensor had failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufa…”
2026-03-27 · Suspension“my dealer says my subframe needs to be replaced, and controll arm at a cost of 3600 dollars, i don't understand why my subframe needs to be replaced, i've owned cars for as long as 20 yrs and never had that problem. this sounds like a manufacturers problem. …”
2026-02-11 · Fuel System, Gasoline“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a strong fuel odor inside the vehicle. in addition, the contact stated that the fuel odor was noticeable all the way to the rear seat. the vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the contact was informed that the tools needed to perfo…”
2025-01-24 · Steering · 141,968 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that while attempting to make a turn from a complete stop, the steering wheel became significantly difficult to turn. the contact was able to turn the vehicle by using physical force. the contact stated that the failure persisted. the vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer, where it was di…”
2023-09-22 · Fuel System, Gasoline · 116,000 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power and failed to accelerate above 10 mph. the contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, after which the vehicle stalled. after restarting the vehicle, the vehicle briefly returned to normal functionality,…”
2023-07-05 · Steering · 125,000 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated while entering a fast-food drive-thru, the power steering warning light illuminated, and the steering wheel became difficult to turn. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. a dealer was not contacted. upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with nhtsa campaign number: 14…”
2023-01-21 · Steering“while my wife was driving the vehicle, the power assisted steering failed and produced a "power assist fault code" on the display. the car became too hard for a 74 year old woman to be able to steer. i took the car to the ford dealer near me who confirmed it was the steering torque sensor had failed and needed to order in one and would cost $600 to…”
2022-06-24 · Steering · 200,732 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that the steering wheel was difficult to turn. the contact stated that the steering wheel was spinning in circles. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the…”
2022-02-25 · Steering · 140,000 mi“the contact owns a 2011 mercury mariner. the contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel became difficult to turn in either direction. after turning off the vehicle and restarting the engine, the vehicle would operate normally. the vehicle was taken to and independent mechanic who diagnosed that the steering shaft torque…”
2021-10-13 · Fuel/Propulsion System“the fuel system is not working properly.i’m scared to drive it anymore.i can’t even put gas in it.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.