The contact owns 2002 Mercury Sable. The contact stated while driving, she heard a loud noise, and noticed the passenger front tire was flat due to the coil spring which broke in half and punctured the passenger front tire. The failure occurred while driving at a low speed into the driveway. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who replaced the front coil springs, the stabilizer link, and tire. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer would not assist with the repair, because the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign id number: 04V332000 suspension: Front: Springs: Coil springs. The failure and the current miles were 104,000.

- Grand Rapids, MI, USA

My wife entered our 2002 Mercury Sable wagon to go to work today. As she sat down in the car, the left front tire exploded. When we removed the tire to see what happened, it was apparent that the coil spring in the suspension had broken and a sharp point on the spring punctured the tire. The car was stationary when this occurred, thankfully.

- Jersey Shore, PA, USA

The contact owns a 2002 Mercury Sable. While driving approximately 5 mph the contact stated that it became difficult to control the steering wheel and then noticed the passengers front tire blew out. The contact inspected the vehicle and also noticed the front coil spring had broken. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated previously that the rear coil springs had also broken. The approximate failure mileage was 44,372.

- Fort Wayne, IN, USA

We were pulling out of a parking space, heard a "whoosh" and found the front right tire had deflated. Called aaa to have it pumped up or the spare put on. When the driver attempted to take the tire off, it was stuck. The coil spring had come loose and punctured the tire. The coil was sticking through the tire like a meat hook. We had to cut the rest of the rubber on the tire to release it. We had the vehicle towed and are awaiting the repair estimate. Doing research, it appears this is a long-standing problem on Ford vehicles, specifically the Mercury Sable and Taurus. Recalls on 1999-2001 models were not extended beyond those years, despite similar problems. We feel we were very lucky in this instance, as the previous day, we had a 230 mile business trip. It could have been a disaster at 72mph.

- Minneapolis, MN, USA

The contact owns 2002 Mercury Sable. The contact was traveling 30 mph when the front right coil spring broke on the vehicle. The failure occurred one year after the front left coil spring broke and punctured the left drivers side tire. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who confirmed that the coil spring was broken. The failure mileage was 75,300 and the current mileage was 75,450.

- Agawam, MA, USA

While backing out of a parking space, a front spring violently broke damaging the strut also. God only knows what would have happened if this was at highway speeds.

- South Bend, IN, USA

Backing out of my driveway I heard a loud clunk and the car wouldn't move. Discovered my left front tire was flat. Upon further examination, the spring coil had broken and popped the tire. Getting the tire replaced the mechanic told me that the back spring was broken also.

- Barrington, RI, USA

Front coil spring broke and blew through front driver's side tire had to have car towed. Had to replace broken front coil springs, struts and upper mounts and lower ball joints and the tire and a wheel alignment. Thankfully this happened when the car was parked. It was very scarey.

- Parma Hts, OH, USA

The contact owns a 2002 Mercury Sable. The contact stated that the front passenger side coil spring fractured and punctured the tire, ruining the brake hose and stabilizer link. The vehicle was towed to a local repair shop where it was repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who offered no assistance. The current mileage was 95,832 and the failure mileage was 95,554.

- Danville, OH, USA

Driving 15mph the front driver's side suspension coil (surrounding the strut) broke, it ripped the inside of the tire and severed the brake line. The car was unable to be driven or pushed because part of the coil was caught up inside the tire.

- Budd Lake, NJ, USA

While attempting to back out of my garage, the coil spring on the front driver side strut broke and shot into my front tire, puncturing and immediately flattening my tire. The spring was embedded in the tire so far that they were unable to remove the tire to put on the spare. The car had to be forced in reverse far enough back to be able to hook it onto the tow truck which shredded the front tire. Had to have front springs, struts, ABS speed sensor, alignment and new tire put on the vehicle. Very lucky that this incident happened in my garage and not out on the roadway.

- Mansfield, OH, USA

Around 7 months ago July,2010 my wife was attempting to back up her 2002 Mercury Sable and the passenger side front spring broke an went trough the side wall of the tire. Today Jan. 2011. I was attempting to back that same car an the driver side spring broke and ruined the tire an busted another part on the steering link. When is something going to be done about this.

- Wakeman, OH, USA

I am writing the NHTSA in order to warn of a dangerous, potentially fatal, hazardous condition on a Mercury automobile. To the best of my knowledge this condition has been addressed by a previous recall notice on earlier year models of the Mercury Sable but not on the year model that I own. I own a 2002 Mercury Sable. In February of 2010 I had a flat tire on my driver's rear side when pulling out of a parking lot. When I removed the tire I found that a spring had broken and punctured the side of the tire and had cut the tire in a circular motion causing a rapid expulsion of air. On January 1 of 2011 the driver's side front tire flattened while pulling out of a parking lot. The same thing had happened again. The spring had broken and punctured the side of the tire. After the second occurrence I searched the internet for information to see if others have had similar experiences and found NHTSA campaign id number 04V332000. Campaign id number 04V332000 exactly describes the conditions that I have on my vehicle. However, my vehicle is a 2002 Mercury Sable and the recall covers 1999-2001 and does not address the rear springs. Were these to occur at highway speeds this may have caused serious injuries or fatalities. This condition has the potential to cause loss of control to the vehicle and needs to be addressed by Ford Motor Company immediately in order to warn the public of this dangerous condition. Expansion of the recall should include the later year models and the rear springs of all vehicles that utilize these springs and engineering design. I purchased this vehicle used at a Ford/Mercury dealership and have never received a notice, recall or otherwise, concerning this condition.

- Harrodsburg, KY, USA

2002 Mercury Sable-left front coil spring failed and destroyed the radial tire at that location. Car has approximately 80,000 miles has been carefully maintained. Ford Motor Co. Says it is not covered under any recall. Car is at the shop for repairs which include replacing both coil springs and replacing damaged tire. Any other damage from this event is yet to be determined. This event took place December 27, 2010 @ approx. 01:00 P.M.

- Auburn, IN, USA

Front coil spring of my 2002 Mercury Sable broke and punctured a hole in the tire. Had to replace coil spring, strut, and sway bar links.

- Cortland, NY, USA

2002 Sable. Left front coil spring broke and punctured the tire when backing out of the garage. I had the local Ford garage replace both front springs and install the protective guard kit (used on the re-called vehicles) to prevent tire puncture if it happens again. This car was not re-called and Ford did not cover the cost; $400 not including the tire.

- Grinnell, IA, USA

The front driver side coil springs broke while I was backing from parking stall. It ripped a large hole in my brand new tire. When I inspected it, there was rust inside the fracture. I have not taken it to a dealer yet for repairs.

- Glidden , IA, USA

2002 Mercury Sable gs - 103,000 miles, never been in a collision, always maintained by the book. On April 2, 2010 at 8:00 am, I was pulling forward out of my parking spot when a loud thud and a grinding noise stopped me from going any further. This was a total surprise as nothing about the previous day's driving hinted at an suspension/steering problem. After checking behind both front wheels, I found that the left front coil spring had snapped and a plastic piece had been broken by the impact. No tire damage occurred. I was just pulling out of a parking spot so speed was less than 10 mph by the time the noise forced me to stop. Had this happened at speed I would surely have lost control of the car. The Sable was taken away on a flatbed truck and cost about $1300 to repair using new parts. Something needs to be done, I did research on this and it only affects 2002-2003 Sable/Taurus, irrespective of mileage. I believe this is complaint number 356 for this specific manufacturer's flaw.

- Shelton, CT, USA

The left front spring on my 2002 Mercury Sable broke on June 12, 2010. The car was in a parking lot at the time of the spring failure. The motor was running, but the transmission was in park. The broken spring punctured the tire. There is approximately 74,000 miles on the car.

- Rome, NY, USA

Broken front driver's side coil spring.

- Birmingham, MI, USA