Engine and transmission are very quiet and vehicle runs like new. Styling still looks good...for a mini-van. Very good seat flexibility and can hold a 4x8 sheet of plywood. Nice enough that your not embarassed to take your wife to dinner in it. People who should buy it want a nicely styled van which is not huge, packing reasonable our 3 kids have no problem fitting in, and the benefit of having an easily maneuverable van outweigh the awkwardness of a big bulky van.

Some engine/computer problems, mostly attributed to the Ford engine controller coupled to the Nissan engine. 3.0L engine does not same power as competitors (wish I had the new 3.3), and fuel economy is disappointing (25 MPG trip when new, barely 20 MPG on trip now. Seats in and out are a workout, but I''m not too bothered as they are well made sturdy seats, with good padding when in use.

A much better vehicle than ever really recieved recognition for. A good performer with impressive interior materials and exterior paint quality, and an overall very solid feel after 8 years (and 3 kids) in service.

Manifold bolts broke. Repaired under warranty which had been extended for this problem. Having problems with exhaust emissions coming in through heater ventilation. Anyone have this problem?

Appearance,drives like a luxury car, outstanding comfort and convenience. I like the fact that the Villager is lower to the ground than most mini-vans and easier for me to get into. I drive my Villager to AKC Dog Shows all over the USA and find the comfort, dependability, and convenience excellent in hauling from 5-6 Tibetan Spaniels and all of my dog show equipment. Too, I enjoy having the option of un-loading my dog crates and equipment at the show-site and/or hotel/motel upon arrival for the weekend; converting my Villager into a luxury four-seater, by using my four leather Captain''s Chairs; and taking my friends out to dinner! Sure beats having to cook meals in a motor-home all weekend, as many of my fellow exhibitors do! Gets great mileage, too. I''m a piano teacher, and know what a good sound-system is. The Mercury Villager Estate passes my "concert hall" expectations for playing my CDs,tapes, and listening to music on the FM/Stereo radio,as I travel! I love the extra rear door on the driver''s side in my 2001 Mercury Villager Estate. This is my first Villager with this important improvement. The seats on a track in the Mercury Villager is especially important to me, and is

Could use a little more room for cargo,and find the covering in the cargo area slightly easier to scratch than more rugged Dodge/Plymouths were,which I drove previously for the same purpose.

This is my third Mercury Villager to buy new, use until paid out, or until my Mercury Extended Warranty expires! I have kept these mini-vans on the average of five years each, with from 70,000-100,000 miles each. I have never had any significant problems with any of them,and would definitely buy another one! Before I bought my first new Mercury Villager, I drove two new mini-vans made by Dodge/Plymouth for five-seven years each, with a similar warranty and mileage history. I like the appearance, comfort, and "feel" of the Mercury Village best! I never look seriously at replacing my Villager with another brand! Looks like now, I''ll have to try the Villager''s foreign-made counterpart; the Nissan Quest! I''ve heard that Ford is dis-continuing the Mercury Villager in 2003.

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Dodge/Plymouth Caravan mini-vans (2)

I think my summary just about covered 1/4 of them.

I had a recall on the PCV valve, the ONLY major recall for Villagers, from 1989 - present, and it was completely paid for by Mercury.....Needless to say, I didn''t even change my opinion when most other vans have had 15 or more major recalls on average....remember the "rear-gate latch" recalls on minivans???, It didn''t happen to the Villager.

Well, what''s there to say?, this van has been the best product I have ever used....It has standard options in the 1996 model that the expensive 2002 models even rival, it looks good!, smooth ride, low maintenence, the best power and acceleration I have EVER seen in a minivan....(I can even beat most cars!), wonderfully comfortable, It lasted (and sustained very minimal damage) in a major accident and still runs great today, low MSRP, long vehicle life, looks GOOD (can you believe they have had the same body style since 1989??, can''t beat that!, I wouldn''t want to drive one of those ugly aerostars or caravans back then, Mercury was well ahead of time when they designed the Villager), (oh yeah and I broke down once after being hit in the rear-end at 75 mph, yeah, afterwards I just waited for the police, filled out all the forms, and drove my van right over to the insurance company, WITHOUT A PROBLEM. By the way, I don''t know how I can repay the makers of the villager for thier great design..I could have been killed, the van that hit me just cruched right up, my van held up extremely well, if you want proof, I''ve got pictures)Everything about this vehicle has been great...Even my trade-in value is unchanged by the accident because of the safety rating of the Villager, I pressure EVERYONE to buy a Villager, Mercury is not making a new Villager next year, so hurry!

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Ford Windstar - Good, but falls apart. Ford Aerostar - Monster, but looks ugly. Caravan - Never buy one of these PIECES OF SH*T Mazda MPV - expensive parts for the times it constantly breaks down.

Reliability, power adaquate, good handling, comfort and practicality.

Paint starting to chip, lack of sliding door on drivers side, mileage (23mph), front seats a bit stiff on long trips.

This has been the best vehicle I have ever owned. I now have 260,000 miles on the original engine and transmission. The only major repairs I''ve done are routine such as timing belt & water pump, a CV boot, and the exhaust system. Otherwise, I''ve taken this skiing to Oregon, trips to LA, Tahoe and where ever. I couldn''t have asked for a better vehicle.

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1st mini-van

Easy to drive...drives like a car. Love the 6 changer cd player.

The ac can tend to have an almost moldy smell. The rear ac and heat would work on and off and finally just quit for good. This was due to a faulty switch...$400 to repair. The fuel pump went out at 70,000 miles..$400 to repair. The Villager emblem is falling off-$26.

This minivan has been a pleasure to drive. The only thing I miss is not having a 4th door. I can''t believe it took till 99 to put on the drivers side door. I bought this car used in 99 with 50,000 miles on it. It now has 74,000 miles and I am selling soon since I want a fourth door.

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Mazda mpv

None

Exhaust manifold bolts breaking off...gaskets blow...told $800 to drill out and replace manifold bolts (dealer) ...also told this is "a very common problem with the villager" (dealer). My villager was a good vehicle during the warranty period/milage...it knew when to act up.

Our Villager was good while it lasted...would have been best if made in the 60s or 70s ...when most cars gave up at around 100K miles.

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Have driven Ford products since 1978...heard they won''t recall for the bad bolts, so....time for a change!!!!

Great looks, quite, Estate''s handling package w/16" tires holds the road as well as many cars I have driven well. Interior flexibilty is a plus though rear seat is typically in the center position for wheel chair access to the rear. Mileage basically 17/24 as advertised.

Where do I start: 1) melted (4) headlight harness terminals. 2)Sporatic but severe problem with lift gate rattles pops and clicks. Is an issue with plastic wedges and latches. Dealer trying to fix. 3) Rear quarter windows rattle when open 4) LH sliding door-rear latch has severe rattle on washboard road surface. No adjustment, no fix. 5) Excessive body waves and dents from factory. Not visable until vehicle repainted and buffed (due to being keyed). Factory paint is somewhat of a satin finish. Defects not noticeable upon purchase (would never have purchased this vehicle had dents been visable). 6) Front cloth seats developed deep visable creases after a few 1000 miles. Ford''s fix is it is normal for this vehicle...... 7) lower dash and hard door trim plastic very easy to scratch. I''ll stop here. In 30 yrs of driving I have owned all Ford/Mercury products with excellent results, however, this may be the last one. As much as I love to look at and drive, the problems are out weighing the fun.

Looked at several minivans to replace our totally reliable but rusting 1989 Aerostar (165,000 miles). Because our son utilizes both manual and power wheel chairs, we needed a van that could accomodate either one and still have room for occational luggage. (dispise full size vans). With the 1999 Villager being lengthened 5" over previous models and having a 2" taller inside lift gate opening than other vans we looked at, the Villager was perfect. In Estate Green/Harvest Gold it is one of the best looking vans on the road. Unfortunately, it has been plagued with problems. Some are inherent design issues, others-poor workmanship.

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1989 Aerostar

view of road.controls laided out nice.very easy to do normal maintance

feels like a tincan,you can lean on body panels and push''em in with no problem,im afraid if a kid on a bicycle hit me i would have $3,000 worth of damage! fit&finish for 1996 sucked!rear 3rd row seat dont come out thats dumb.

got a used LS fully loaded,leather,sunroof,CD, with 68,000 highway miles on it,smooth roads its great,dont like bumps,65+ its noisy,but in a 1,000 NY miles so far its been great

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astro>sucked..aerostar>sucked

I found a Web Site which that supplied me with a TSB for the 1994 Villager which alerts the dealers of a possible flaw to the crankshaft which occurred during the making of the vehicle. Strength: for my Court Case

Ford knew about the flaw but did not contact the owners to have this corrected. What is the point of issuing these Special Bulletins, if nothing is done about it? Why didn't Ford do a recall? "Quality Is Job 1"? I don't think so!!!

This vehicle was very impressive until last week. To make a long whinny story short, it broke down on me during our family vacation to the lake. Everything was going well, when without warning, the engine stopped and the dash lights came on. Eventually I got a tow to the lake and then to the Kamloop's Ford Dealer. I receive a call 2 hours later and was advised that the crankshaft was broken. This appeared impossible because I had kept up all the serving up to snuff with Ford and that the van only had 85,895 kms.
The service manager contacted Ford Canada and explained the rare and unusual circumstances but I was denied any financial assistance because the warranty has expired. This will cost me in the area of $6000.00 Cdn. and I have an 8 hour round trip to make when the vehicle is repaired.

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First van I have owned and have nothing to compare with but I have never ever heard of a crankshft breaking on any other vehicle.