FaultScore

Worst years for a Mercury Monterey

Owners have filed 550 complaints about the Mercury Monterey with NHTSA across model years 1968 to 2007. More of them are about the transmission & drivetrain than anything else.

Avoid

2004 Mercury Monterey

346 complaints — the highest FaultScore of any year, mostly transmission & drivetrain.

Cleanest on record

2007 Mercury Monterey

12 complaints — the lowest FaultScore of the graded years.

Every Mercury Monterey year, graded

The grade compares each year against the rest of this model's own run — never against another car. Click any bar or row to open that year's report.

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded
Year Grade Complaints Crashes Fires Median miles Most reported
2007 A 12 0 0 116,107 Transmission & Drivetrain
2006 A 54 0 0 78,655 Transmission & Drivetrain
2005 B 136 2 0 74,004 Transmission & Drivetrain
2004 C 346 2 10 85,000 Transmission & Drivetrain
1968 2 0 0 Electrical System

What breaks on a Mercury Monterey

Across every model year on file. Follow a row for that part's complaints and the year it was worst.

Worst in 2004

Worst in 2004

Worst in 2004

Electrical System 23 4.2%

Worst in 2004

Seats 20 3.6%

Worst in 2004

Acceleration & Cruise Control 17 3.1%

Worst in 2004

Brakes 15 2.7%

Worst in 2004

Fuel & Propulsion 13 2.4%

Worst in 2004

Steering 9 1.6%

Worst in 2004

Other & Unspecified 9 1.6%

Worst in 2004

Suspension 7 1.3%

Worst in 2004

Wheels 7 1.3%

Worst in 2004

Stability & Traction Control 7 1.3%

Worst in 2004

Airbags 6 1.1%

Worst in 2005

Exactly what failed on a Mercury Monterey

The named sub-assemblies behind those complaints, across every model year.

Automatic Transmission 181 76.7%
Torque Converter 21 8.9%
Body 17 7.2%
Instrument Cluster/Panel 3 1.3%
Hatchback/Liftgate 3 1.3%
HUB 3 1.3%
Accessory Scissor/Screw/Bottle Jack/Lift 2 0.8%
Control Module (Tcm/Pcm/Tecm) 2 0.8%
Switch 2 0.8%
Manual Transmission 2 0.8%

Complaints filed over time

Every complaint about every Mercury Monterey, by the month it reached NHTSA.

Dec 2000 peak 19 Feb 2026

Mercury Monterey problems by state

Where owners filed from. Heavier states are usually just bigger markets, but a part that fails in heat or salt shows up here first.

Compare the Mercury Monterey

Side by side on complaint history. Remember that raw totals track how many were sold as much as how good they were.