The 2002 Ford Mountaineer has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 955,732 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 18 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the power train. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
STRUCTURE04V4420002004-09-13955,732 affected
Defect
ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE LIFTGATE GLASS STRUT MAY BECOME DISENGAGED OR THE HINGE MAY FRACTURE ALLOWING THE GLASS TO FALL AND POSSIBLY BREAK.
Consequence
IF THE HINGE SHOULD FRACTURE, THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR THE GLASS TO FALL AND ULTIMATELY BREAK AND PERSONAL INJURIES COULD OCCUR.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL HAVE THE LIFTGATE GLASS STRUT BRACKETS AND GLASS HINGES REPLACED. FOR THE VEHICLES BUILT FROM AUGUST 1, 2000 THROUGH MARCH 3, 2002, THE DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE HINGES AND LIFTGATE STRUT BRACKET. ON VEHICLES BUILT FROM MARCH 3, 2002 THROUGH JUNE 23, 2003, THE DEALERS WILL ONLY REPLACE THE HINGES. THE…
Complaints by component
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
3
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:GEAR POSITION INDICATION (PRNDL)
2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
1
EQUIPMENT
1
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY
1
POWER TRAIN
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:TORQUE CONVERTER
1
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
1
STEERING:COLUMN
1
Total complaints18
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford mountaineer. The contact stated that the transmission gear shift lever on the column was fractured. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 183,000.”
“I have a 2002 ford explorer and have had to replace wheel bearings and have seen where many others on the internet as well as people I have talked to with the exact same model suv have had to replace their bearings as well. To me it seems if everyone has had to replace these bearing that there…”
“Tl*the contact owns a 2002 ford mountaineer. While driving 35 mph, the service engine light illuminated and has remained lit. The contact stated that once the reset button was pressed, it triggered the service engine light to illuminate. The dealer inspected the vehicle and was unable to find any…”
“Transmission started to shudder when shifting, had dealer power flush and fill transmission and reprogram pcm this fixed problem for 3 days, then problem returned. Have now been told that transmission needs to be replaced. Transmission can go out anytime so repairs have to be done at a cost of…”
“I had to have the transmission in my 2002 mercury mountaineer rebuilt the gears in the transmission went bad it cost me $1400 for parts and labor to have it rebuilt I bought this vehicle in march 2003 I contacted ford motor company on several occasions to see if there is some kind of defect in…”
“I had to have the transmission in my 2002 mercury mountaineer rebuilt the gears in the transmission went bad it cost me $1400 for parts and labor to have it rebuilt I bought this vehicle in march 2003 I contacted ford motor company on several occasions to see if there is some kind of defect in…”
“I had to have the transmission in my 2002 mercury mountaineer rebuilt the gears in the transmission went bad it cost me $1400 for parts and labor to have it rebuilt I bought this vehicle in march 2003 I contacted ford motor company on several occasions to see if there is some kind of defect in…”
“I had to have the transmission in my 2002 mercury mountaineer rebuilt the gears in the transmission went bad it cost me $1400 for parts and labor to have it rebuilt I bought this vehicle in march 2003 I contacted ford motor company on several occasions to see if there is some kind of defect in…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationPE04045 Opened 2004-06-02 · closed 2004-09-28
REAR LIFTGATE GLASS ASSEMBLY
COMPLAINTS REPORT FAILURE OF THE REAR LIFTGATE GLASS SUPPORT WHILE THE OPERATOR IS OPENING OR CLOSING THE GLASS.THE FALLING GLASS CAN STRIKE THE OPERATOR OR BYSTANDER.THE INJURIES REPORTED ARE BRUISES TO THE HEAD, NECK OR BACK, CUTS TO THE FACE, ARM OR HAND.ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2004, FORD NOTIFIED THE AGENCY THAT IT WILL…
InvestigationSQ01015 Opened 2001-12-12 · closed 2002-07-02
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2002 Ford Mountaineer as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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