Symptom Checks
WARNING: This page does not describe the selected car, but rather 32 other vehicles, including the 2002 Mercury Sable, 2002 Mercury Mountaineer, 2002 Mercury Grand Marquis, 2002 Mercury Cougar, and 2002 Lincoln Town Car. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.
A snap noise may be due to secondary ignition arcing. On Coil On Plug (COP) models, check condition of spark plug boots. On all other models, check secondary ignition system. Go to TEST JB, step 1) under SYSTEM TESTS in SELF-DIAGNOSTICS - EEC-V - GASOLINE & NGV article.