My 2002 Mercury Mountaineer V8 AWD had experienced the same ongoing problem. Brought into Ford certified dealership with complaints of clicking and grinding in the front end. Warranty company paid over $1500 to have repaired. Repairs involved the drive shaft. I just recently pain over $400 to have similar work done after vehicle was experiencing same clicking and grinding. Something to do with ball bearings and front hub assembly. Car was still making same noises until front end apparently disengaged temporarily. Didn't realized car was in rear wheel drive only until back tires were spinning in the snow. As of 3 days ago the car is undriveable due to sever grinding, binding, and clicking. Still owe over $10,000 on the vehicle and doesn't seem fair to have to keep repairing the same on going problem. This part of the vehicle has never functioned properly. Even after Ford repaired, still had some degree of binding and clicking which got progressively worse over time. Any help would be greatly appreciated. 1st repair was don't on 5-11-07.

- East Wareham, MA, USA