I just purchase a used 2004 Mercury mtnr...everytime I set the cruise control the cars lights come on and gauges and the vehicles turns off I have to wait several minutes before it restarts.

- Lawrenceville, GA, USA

Driver sets cruise control at 35mph vehicle speed is at 35mph for about 90 secs. Suddenly vehicle's warning lights come on. (service engine soon. Battery alert. Low oil pressure alert, and temp. Alert ) vehicle loses all power. No brakes, steering locks up, no power. Driver (by the grace of god) brings vehicle to side of road right before a T in the road. Vehicles at the intersection can be traveling at 45mph. There was a school bus approaching as well. Driver turned on hazard lights. Driver phones husband. He had our 15 year old son (who was with me) check belts. They were intact. He then asked me if I had used the cruise control. I then remembered that this had happened to my husband several times when we had first bought the vehicle. Since then he has not set the cruise control for less than 40mph. Obviously I had forgotten that. I got back into the vehicle and turned on the engine and all was well. This morning, I called the Ford dealership where we had purchased the vehicle. The service manager recalled that they had serviced a Ford Explorer one other time with the same problem. He said that there was not any record of a manufacturer recall. I told him that I wanted to make a report, as I knew that the situation yesterday could have resulted in a serious accident if I had lost power any closer to that intersection. He told me to make a report here. (by the way, I do not know what oem means concerning the component I listed. I even tried to look it up in tmy owners' manual and on the help portion of your website. I just left it marked "no." ).

- Port Orchard, WA, USA