1989 Mercury Tracer 2 door hatchback review from North America
"A great first car"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
This has been my first car, a hand-me-down.
The first thing that went wrong was the alignment.
At 126k miles, my alternator went bad.
At 128k miles the radiator and water pump blew up.
At 133k miles, the front axle broke.
At 134k miles, the air conditioner went bad (there are no parts still made for this).
Since 122k miles the piston rings have been wearing and you get white smoke pluming out the rusted tail pipe.
The car still runs well despite the dying pistons and rings.
General comments?
I think the performance is much better than anyone would ever think. There aren't any after-market performance parts that I know of. Though considering that this is a Mazda engine, I would expect there to be. All in all, pretty ricey for a pseudo-American car.
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All 1989 Mercury Tracer reviews
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| First year of ownership | 1995 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2001 |
| Engine and transmission | 1.6L SOHC I-4 Automatic |
| Performance marks | 6/10 |
| Reliability marks | 9/10 |
| Comfort marks | 9/10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 5/10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 6/10 |
| Distance when acquired | 80000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 135000 miles |
| Date of Entry | 20th January, 2001 |