2000 Mercury Sable tow

To prevent the possibility of injuries, the fasteners for the cargo
area cover must be properly attached to the mounting clips on
the rear trim panels.
Do not place any objects on the cargo area cover. They may
obstruct your vision or strike occupants of the vehicle in the
case of a sudden stop or collision.
Rewinding the shade
With extended use, the cargo shade may lose its spring tension. If this
occurs, the shade must be manually rewound. This is a two-person
operation.
1. Remove the shade from the vehicle and extend it with the smooth
grain facing you.
2. Wrap the vinyl around the roller
tube twice. Tuck the edges of the
vinyl inside the end cap with each
wrap.
3. Fold the edges of the vinyl
towards the center, making sure
that the edges clear the end cap
slots. Use tape or a rubber band to
hold the vinyl to the left side of the
tube.
4. Push in the right end cap
(marked RH) about
1¤4of the total
length to disengage the clutch and
hold the end cap in while turning
the roller tube toward you 14 times.
5. Let go of the right end cap. The
clutch will now engage and stop the
shade from losing its spring tension.
6. Unfold the vinyl and place it into
the end cap slots.
Controls and features
58

To program the transmitters yourself:
²Insert a key in the ignition and
turn from 3 (OFF) to 4 (ON)
eight times in rapid succession
(within 10 seconds) with the
eighth turn ending in the 4 (ON)
position. The doors will
lock/unlock to confirm that
programming mode has been
entered.
²Within 20 seconds, program a remote transmitter by pressing any
button on a transmitter. The doors will lock/unlock to confirm that the
remote transmitter has been programmed. (If more than 20 seconds
pass before pressing a remote transmitter button, the programming
mode will exit and the procedure will have to be repeated.)
²Repeat the previous step to program additional remote transmitters.
The doors will lock/unlock to confirm that each remote transmitter has
been programmed.
²When you have completed programming the remote transmitters, turn
the ignition to 3 (OFF) or wait 20 seconds. Again the doors will
lock/unlock to confirm programming has been completed.
Replacing the battery
The remote transmitter is powered by one coin type three-volt lithium
battery CR2032 or equivalent. Typical operating range will allow you to
be up to 10 meters (33 feet) away from your vehicle. A decrease in
operating range can be caused by:
²weather conditions
²nearby radio towers
²structures around the vehicle
²other vehicles parked next to the vehicle
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Controls and features
62

Disarming the system
You can disarm the system by any of the following actions:
²Unlock the doors by using your
remote entry transmitter.
²Unlock the doors by using your
keyless entry pad.
²Unlock the doors or liftgate with a key. Turn the key full travel
(toward the front of the vehicle) to make sure the alarm disarms.
²Turn ignition to ON.
²Press the PANIC control on the
remote entry transmitter. This
will only shut the horn OFF when
the alarm is sounding. The alarm
system will still be armed.
Triggering the anti-theft system
The armed system will be triggered if:
²Any door, liftgate or hood is opened without using the door key or the
remote entry transmitter.
²The trunk is forced opened.
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Controls and features
65

To open up the seat:
1. Unlock the floor panel with the
key, then use the handle to fold the
floor panel toward the front of the
car.
2. Remove the cargo cover. The
cargo cover must be removed or the
seatback will not latch in the
upright position.
3. Lift the remote latch release on
the left side of the compartment
and fold the remaining floor panel
until it latches. Make sure the
seatback is locked in the upright
position.
To close the seat, make sure the safety belts are properly stowed, then
lift the remote latch release and push the seat down until it latches. Pull
up on the handle and push the floor panel into place.
Seating and safety restraints
77

When the adjust tongue of the lap/shoulder combination seat belt is
latched into the buckle, the tongue will allow the lap portion to become
shorter, but locks the webbing in place to restrict it from becoming
longer.
Before you reach and latch a combination lap and shoulder belt having
an adjust tongue into the buckle, you may have to lengthen the lap belt
portion of it. To lengthen the lap belt, pull some webbing out of the
shoulder belt retractor. While holding the webbing below the tongue,
grasp the tongue so that it is parallel to the webbing and slide the
tongue upward. Provide enough length so that the tongue can reach the
buckle.
To fasten the belt, pull the combination lap and shoulder belt from the
retractor so that the shoulder belt portion of the safety belt crosses your
shoulder and chest. Be sure the belt is not twisted. If the belt is twisted,
remove the twist. Insert the tongue into the proper buckle for your
seating position until you hear a snap and feel it latch. Make sure the
tongue is securely fastened to the buckle by pulling on the tongue.
The lap belts should fit snugly and as low as possible around the
hips, not around the waist.
Front and rear seat occupants, including pregnant women,
should wear safety belts for optimum protection in an accident.
Each seating position in your vehicle has a specific safety belt
assembly which is made up of one buckle and one tongue that
are designed to be used as a pair. 1) Use the shoulder belt on the
outside shoulder only. Never wear the shoulder belt under the arm.
2) Never swing the safety belt around your neck over the inside
shoulder. 3) Never use a single belt for more than one person.
Due to folding rear seats, sometimes the buckles and tongues toward the
center of the vehicle may be hidden by the rear edge of the seat cushion.
Pull them out so they will be accessible.
While you are fastened in the seat belt, the shoulder belt adjusts to your
movement. However, if you brake hard, turn hard or your vehicle
receives an impact of 8 km/h (5 mph) or more, the safety belt will
become locked and help reduce your forward movement.
Seating and safety restraints
87

²Recline the seat slightly (one or two degrees) from the upright
position.
Do not put anything on or over the air bag module. Placing
objects on or over the air bag inflation area may cause those
objects to be propelled by the air bag into your face and torso causing
serious injury.
Do not attempt to service, repair, or modify the Air Bag
Supplemental Restraint System or its fuses. See your Ford or
Lincoln-Mercury dealer.
Modifications to the front end of the vehicle, including frame,
bumper, front end body structure and tow hooks may effect the
performance of the air bag sensors increasing the risk of injury. Do not
modify the front end of the vehicle.
Children and air bags
For additional important safety
information, read all information on
safety restraints in this guide.
Children must always be properly
restrained. Accident statistics
suggest that children are safer when
properly restrained in the rear
seating positions than in the front
seating position. Failure to follow
these instructions may increase the
risk of injury in a collision.
Air bags can kill or injure a
child in a child seat.
NEVERplace a rear-facing child
seat in front of an active air bag. If
you must use a forward-facing
child seat in the front seat, move
the seat all the way back.
Seating and safety restraints
95

5. To put the retractor in the
automatic locking mode, grasp the
shoulder portion of the belt and pull
downward until all of the belt is
extracted and a click is heard.
6. Allow the belt to retract. The belt will click as it retracts to indicate it
is in the automatic locking mode.
7. Pull the lap belt portion across
the child seat toward the buckle and
pull up on the shoulder belt while
pushing down with your knee on the
child seat.
8. Allow the safety belt to retract to
remove any slack in the belt.
9. Before placing the child in the
seat, forcibly tilt the seat forward
and back to make sure the seat is
securely held in place.
10. Try to pull the belt out of the retractor to make sure the retractor is
in the automatic locking mode (you should not be able to pull more belt
out). If the retractor is not locked, unbuckle the belt and repeat steps
two through nine.
Check to make sure the child seat is properly secured before each use.
Seating and safety restraints
104

When parking, do not use the gearshift in place of the parking
brake. Always set the parking brake fully and make sure that the
gearshift is securely latched in Park (P). Turn off the ignition
whenever you leave your vehicle. Never leave your vehicle unattended
while it is running. If you do not take these precautions, your vehicle
may move unexpectedly and injure someone.
VEHICLE LOADING
Before loading a vehicle, familiarize yourself with the following terms:
²Base Curb Weight:Weight of the vehicle including any standard
equipment, fluids, lubricants, etc. It does not include passengers or
aftermarket equipment.
²Payload:Combined maximum allowable weight of cargo, passengers
and optional equipment. The payload equals the gross vehicle weight
rating minus base curb weight.
²GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight):Base curb weight plus payload
weight. The GVW is not a limit or a specification.
²GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating):Maximum total weight of
the base vehicle, passengers, optional equipment and cargo. The
GVWR is specific to each vehicle and is listed on the Safety
Certification Label on the driver's door pillar.
²GAWR (Gross Axle Weight Rating):Carrying capacity for each axle
system. The GAWR is specific to each vehicle and is listed on the
Safety Certification Label on the driver's door pillar.
²GCW (Gross Combined Weight):The combined weight of the
towing vehicle (including passengers and cargo) and the trailer.
²GCWR (Gross Combined Weight Rating):Maximum combined
weight of towing vehicle (including passengers and cargo) and the
trailer. The GCWR indicates the maximum loaded weight that the
vehicle is designed to tow.
²Maximum Trailer Weight Rating:Maximum weight of a trailer the
vehicle is permitted to tow. The maximum trailer weight rating is
determined by subtracting the vehicle curb weight for each
engine/transmission combination, any required option weight for trailer
towing and the weight of the driver from the GCWR for the towing
vehicle.
Driving
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