Selling a junk Mercury Tracer
Any Tracer sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Mercury Tracer
NHTSA has 413 owner complaints on file for the Mercury Tracer, model years 1995 to 2000, the 417th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are air bags (64, 15%), engine and cooling (53, 13%), electrical system (50, 12%). 45 complaints involved a crash, 29 a fire, and 0 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 82,000 miles. The 1997 model year has the most complaints (181). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is air bags, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car after an accident: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Mercury Tracer by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 126 | Fuel system | 9 | 0 | 3 | — |
| 1996 | 15 | Seat belts | 6 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1997 | 181 | Air bags | 19 | 26 | 2 | 82,000 |
| 1998 | 57 | Suspension | 3 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 1999 | 32 | Electrical system | 8 | 2 | 1 | — |
| 2000 | 2 | Engine and cooling | 0 | 0 | 1 | — |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Mercury Tracer recalls
NHTSA lists 5 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for fuel system (2), air bags (2), seat belts (1). Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer. Before you sell, check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a buyer who plans to resell the car will.
- 1997 model year, seat belts (campaign 04E048000, Jul 2004): CERTAIN TRW DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELTS MANUFACTURED ON DECEMBER 6 AND 9, 2002, FOR USE AS REPLACEMENT EQUIPMENT FOR 1997 FORD ESCORT 4-DOOR AND STATION WAGON PLATFORM VEHICLES, FORD'S P/N F7CZ54611B09AAC. THE SEAT BELT ASS…
- 1997 model year, air bags (campaign 02V323000, Dec 2002): ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE INTEGRATED AIR BAG MONITOR (IABM) CAN BE CONTAMINATED WITH WATER OR OTHER LIQUIDS AND COULD EXPERIENCE INTERNAL ELECTRICAL SHORTING.
- 1995 model year, fuel system (campaign 97V145000, Sep 1997): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 1.9L ENGINES, BUILT AT THE HERMOSILLO ASSEMBLY PLANT AND ORIGINALLY SOLD OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN ARIZONA. CRACKS CAN DEVELOP IN THE FUEL TANK NEAR THE HEAT SHIELD …
- 1995 model year, fuel system (campaign 97V144000, Sep 1997): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 1.9L ENGINES, BUILT AT THE HERMOSILLO OR WAYNE ASSEMBLY PLANTS AND ORIGINALLY SOLD OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN NEVADA, FLORIDA, HAWAII, TEXAS, CALIFORNIA, LOUISIANA, G…
- 1995 model year, air bags (campaign 94V218000, Nov 1994): THE DRIVER SIDE AIR BAG MODULE CAN HAVE AN INADEQUATELY WELDED INFLATOR CANISTER.
What a Mercury Tracer is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk Tracer on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
How to sell a car after an accident 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
Junk car scams and how to avoid them Other Mercury models
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All Mercury models · All makes · Cash for junk cars by state
Questions people ask
- What is a junk Mercury Tracer worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same Tracer gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Mercury Tracer that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Mercury Tracer?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Mercury Tracer numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.