1996 Mercury Tracer review from North America

Drivers side automatic seat belt got stuck in track around 140,000miles.

Passenger side automatic seat belt got stuck in track around 145,000 miles.

Check engine light came on recently and my mechanic checked it with his computer and found it "needs" an idle air control valve. I haven't bothered to change it yet because it is still intermittent. Occasionally, not very often, you turn the key and it turns over without starting immediately. I simply stop and restart the cranking process and it always starts instantly the second time.

This car has been very reliable other than the seat belts.

I hadn't used the car for a couple weeks and it had rained everyday for the past two weeks. The front brakes became rusty and stuck on (and the rims got very hot). I drove it anyway and it did come out of it within a few hours. I was taking a long trip through a very hilly/mountainous area the first day. Then I used the car to tow a 4'x8' trailer to help someone move furniture. Anyhow, I just checked my mileage today and I was AMAZED! I was expecting 20 to 25 MPG because of the brake issue and the heavily loaded car and trailer, but to my surprise I got 32.8 MPG on my last tank!!! This is with the automatic transmission. Today I also did change the front calipers and expect 35 MPG or better (if I don't use the trailer) next time! By the way, I am still running the original spark plugs and wires. However, I did change the air filter to a K&N (expensive but worth it) and I always use synthetic oil (expensive but worth it) when I change the oil.