2004 Mercury Sable Owner Guide 3rd Printing - Page 206

Maintenance and Specifications checking the VIN, look for the engine type identifier (8th character). If your vehicle is an FFV, then the character will be labeled as a "2". If you operate your vehicle 50% or more of the time on ethanol, you should follow a different maintenance schedule. See the Scheduled Maintenance Guide for more information. If you are experiencing a rough or rolling idle after start-up with the outside temperature above 27° C (80° F), the idle should improve within 10 to 30 seconds. If the problems persist below this temperature, see your dealer or a qualified service technician. Cleaner air Ford endorses the use of reformulated "cleaner-burning" gasolines to improve air quality. Running out of fuel Avoid running out of fuel because this situation may have an adverse affect on powertrain components. If you have run out of fuel: • You may need to cycle the ignition from OFF to ON several times after refueling, to allow the fuel system to pump the fuel from the tank to the engine. indicator may come on. For more information on the • The Service engine soon indicator, refer to the Instrument Cluster chapter. Fuel Filter For fuel filter replacement, see your dealer or a qualified service technician. Refer to the scheduled maintenance guide for the appropriate intervals for changing the fuel filter. Replace the fuel filter with an authorized Motorcraft part. The customer warranty may be void for any damage to the fuel system if an authorized Motorcraft fuel filter is not used. ESSENTIALS OF GOOD FUEL ECONOMY Measuring techniques Your best source of information about actual fuel economy is you, the driver. You must gather information as accurately and consistently as possible. Fuel expense, frequency of fill-ups or fuel gauge readings are 206 2004 Sable (sab) Owners Guide (post-2002-fmt) USA English (fus)