2003 Mercury Marauder problems & reliability
60 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2003 Mercury Marauder. Last verified Aug 8, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
4 complaints report injuries (4 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting → | 16 | 27% |
| Power Train → | 11 | 18% |
| Suspension → | 10 | 17% |
| Electrical System | 6 | 10% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 6 | 10% |
| Unknown OR Other | 6 | 10% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 5 | 8% |
| Tires | 5 | 8% |
| Steering | 4 | 7% |
| Air Bags | 3 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 18 reported components →Mileage when problems occurred
Among the 43 complaints that included a usable odometer reading, the median reported incident mileage was 49,517 miles (middle 50% between 15,779 and 86,900 miles).
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“I'm having issues with the headlights. When you try to use the bright lights the headlights go out. It seems my issue would fit under the lcm recall for 2003-2005 mercury grand marquis. When you enter the vin it shows no recalls. I'm hoping this is an oversight since the marauder is a version of grand marquis.”
Exterior Lighting · filed Nov 1, 2017
“Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercury marauder. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 15v861000 (exterior lighting); however, the parts to do the repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer (levittown ford…”
Exterior Lighting · filed Oct 3, 2017
“15s39 this vehicle recall has been on my cat for almost a year. According to this website safercar.gov the remedy is available but when you take it to ford it is not. This vehicle has had this recall with no remedy for a year! This is a safety issue and needs to be addressed. It has destroyed the value of the car. Its…”
Exterior Lighting · filed Nov 7, 2016
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
11 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2003 Mercury Marauder. The 10 most recent:
Some 2000 and newer Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white dust. Panel…
TSB 19-2026 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 7, 2019
Engine misfire with diagnostic trouble code (dtc) pewee, p0302, p0303, p0304, p0305, p0306, p0307, p0308, and p0316. *tt
06513 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2006
Cosmetic cracking of lower control arm bushing sleeve. *mj
17545 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 2004
Anti-lock brake system (abs) light on with diagnostic trouble code (dtc) c1222 (speed wheel mismatch). *tt
17492 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2004
Moisture in the headlamps. *tt
16906 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 1, 2003
Fuel gauge that comes off full too quickly or reads lower than the actual fuel tank level (electronic or analog cluster). *tt *jb
16712 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2003
Erratic headlamp operation in autolamp mode. *tt *jb
16698 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2003
Power steering lower assist at low speeds / steering light feel at higher speeds. *tt
16663 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 2003
Fuel gauge reading that fluctuates or reads lower than the actual fuel tank level. *tt
16639 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 2003
Hesitation/stumble during the first 2 minutes of operation following a cold start. *tt
16428 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 1, 2002
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 2003 Mercury Marauder in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2003 Mercury Marauder?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Among complaints with usable mileage, the median reported incident mileage was 49,517 miles. This does not predict when a particular vehicle will develop a problem.