2006 Mercury Grand Marquis: common problems

Owners of the 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis filed 143 complaints with NHTSA, most often about air bags and vehicle speed control. Details by component below, with sources.

Key figures

Owner complaints: 143
involving a crash: 16

What fails most often

1 Air bags 26% of all complaints
2 Vehicle speed control 26% of all complaints
3 Seat belts 15% of all complaints
4 Steering 9% of all complaints
5 Service brakes 8% of all complaints
6 Fuel/propulsion system 8% of all complaints
7 Electrical system 6% of all complaints
8 Engine 6% of all complaints

Circle size and colour show each component’s share of NHTSA complaints. Schematic only, not a drawing of the exact model.

Air bags: 37 complaints (26% of all), 4 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Vehicle speed control: 37 complaints (26% of all), 8 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Seat belts: 22 complaints (15% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Steering: 13 complaints (9% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Service brakes: 12 complaints (8% of all), 3 of them with a crash reported by the owner.

Engines and transmissions

US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.

4.6 L · petrol · 8 cylnamed in 2 complaints
automatic, 4-speed

Drive: RWD

Symptoms owners describe

How many of the 143 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).

airbag warning light30 · 21%
seat belts28 · 20%
warning lights, check engine23 · 16%
rust, corrosion13 · 9%
unintended acceleration11 · 8%
smoke, burning smell, fire5 · 3%
steering or power steering problems5 · 3%
headlights and tail lights4 · 3%
A/C or heater3 · 2%
jerking, harsh shifts3 · 2%

Components owners complain about

Component	Owner complaints	involving a crash
Air bags	37	4
Vehicle speed control	37	8
Seat belts	22	1
Steering	13	1
Service brakes	12	3
Fuel/propulsion system	11	0
Electrical system	8	1
Engine	8	0
Structure	8	1
Exterior lighting	6	0
Powertrain	4	0
Visibility	4	0
Engine and cooling	2	0
Equipment	2	0

What owners report

Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.

Recently, on september 7th, 2015, the airbag warning light and chimes came on when I started the vehicle. The light continues to come on, the chime rings in 3 sets of 5 periodically.
Air bags · crash · 2015-09-21 · NHTSA complaint #10767127
The air bags failed to deploy. The front seat passenger was injured and received medical attention. The vehicle was destroyed. A police report was filed. The vin was not available. The failure mileage was 38,000.
Air bags · crash · 2015-04-17 · NHTSA complaint #10706270
I had an incident of unintended acceleration on my mercury marquis. I was braking for a stop when the engine suddenly started racing. I put my foot on the brake hard but the car still continued to move slowly until I hit the car in front of me.
Vehicle speed control · crash · 2015-02-10 · NHTSA complaint #10682440
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mercury grand marquis equipped with a michelin p225/60pr16 defender tire. While driving 70 mph, the rear passenger tire blew. The contact stated that the vehicle crashed into a guard rail. The contact and the driver sustained injuries but the contact could not recall the exact injuries.
Tires · crash · 2014-01-03 · NHTSA complaint #10558359
The contact stated that while driving 65 mph, the power steering assist failed without warning. The contact was unable to control the vehicle and lightly crashed into a guard rail. The contact was not injured.
Steering · crash · 2013-10-29 · NHTSA complaint #10549954
Tl contact owns a 2006 mercury grand marquis. While driving 10 mph, the vehicle lunged forward when the brakes were depressed. The failure felt as if the brake and accelerator pedals were being depressed simultaneously. The contact's wife also attempted to depress the brakes once and she struck a stop sign.
Service brakes · crash · 2007-10-16 · NHTSA complaint #10205836
2006 mercury grand marquis with brake pedal problems* the consumer stated the last time he experienced a problem with the brakes, an accident occurred. The consumer stated his foot became caught under the gas pedal.
Service brakes · crash · 2007-01-26 · NHTSA complaint #10181589
While in stop and go traffic driving at 20 mph the vehicle surged forward, while the brakes were applied and rear ended another vehicle. Seatbelts were in use; no injuries were sustained to the four occupants of the contacts vehicle, however the driver of the other vehicle sustained injuries.
Vehicle speed control · crash · 2006-05-04 · NHTSA complaint #10156813

When owners complained

NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.

20069
200710
20082
20094
20107
20117
20125
201312
201426
201517
201612
20178
20185
20196
20204
20212
20222
20231
20241
20252
20261

Comparison

By complaint count this model year ranks 2,746 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 7% most complained about).

On average one model year of the Grand Marquis has 117 complaints (34 years in the data). This year has 143, above average.

What to check before buying

Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
Seat belts. Belt pretensioners after airbag deployment, SRS codes.
Steering. Steering play, power assist, rack and tie rods after a wheel impact.

Other years of this model

Questions and answers

What are the most common problems with the 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis?

Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: air bags, vehicle speed control, seat belts. Total complaints: 143. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: airbag warning light (21%), seat belts (20%), warning lights, check engine (16%).

How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis?

NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.

Should I buy a 2006 Mercury Grand Marquis from a US auction?

Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.

Other 2006 models

Read also

Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.