I own a 1999 Mercury Cougar. I just bought the car in January of 2003 with 32,000 miles on the car. Two weeks after purchasing the car the alternator died, which is a common problem with this car, and the dealership replaced the alternator. But two or three weeks after that, my power sunroof broke, which is also a very common problem, and because the car was not under warranty anymore it cost me over $1200 with labor to fix. I have since learned that there are many Cougar owners that have had the sunroof break because the 1999 and 2000 Cougar were made with plastic rails that easily break. The 2001 and 2002 Cougar were made with metal rails and work fine. The parts that you order now for the 1999 and 2000 Cougar are metal, so my question is, why wasn't this a recall, and why should we all have to pay for a defective part that is very expensive and breaks only because it is poorly manufactured? when I bought the car I had no idea how much money I would have to put into fixing the stock parts, such as the alternator, sun roof, and fuel pump, and rear hatch door, which are also very common problems.

- Philipsburg, PA, USA