What breaks most · 1990 to 2011 model years
Ford Crown Victoria problems by year
Owners have filed 2,753 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Ford Crown Victoria across model years 1990 to 2011. Three years stand out: 1992 for brakes (hydraulic) complaints, 1997 for engine and cooling complaints and 1996 for engine and cooling complaints. The quietest years are 2009, 2008 and 1990.
- Years to check closely: 1992, 1997, 1996
- Fewest complaints: 2009, 2008, 1990
- Complaints on file
- 27531990 to 2011, all trims
- Worst year
- 1992310 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 197134 fires · 184 injuries · 17 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 89kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 139Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 7 | 3 | Electrical system (10) | |
| 55 | 8 | 4 | Air bags (11) | |
| 310 | 18 | 9 | Brakes (hydraulic) (71) | |
| 182 | 14 | 9 | Powertrain and transmission (43) | |
| 190 | 21 | 7 | Speed control and throttle (28) | |
| 250 | 15 | 12 | Steering (99) | |
| 276 | 13 | 12 | Engine and cooling (81) | |
| 287 | 9 | 11 | Engine and cooling (84) | |
| 117 | 3 | 10 | Engine and cooling (29) | |
| 133 | 6 | 8 | Engine and cooling (23) | |
| 82 | 6 | 10 | Engine and cooling (19) | |
| 51 | 9 | 7 | Air bags (9) | |
| 56 | 8 | 5 | Electrical system (8) | |
| 233 | 16 | 7 | Exterior lighting (84) | |
| 129 | 2 | 3 | Exterior lighting (75) | |
| 176 | 13 | 6 | Exterior lighting (91) | |
| 44 | 8 | 3 | Steering (21) | |
| 44 | 4 | 4 | Steering (22) | |
| 40 | 11 | 3 | Steering (20) | |
| 37 | 5 | 2 | Steering (12) | |
| 5 | 1 | 2 | Steering (2) | |
| 15 | 0 | 2 | Steering (6) |
What fails on the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 23% |
71 | 0 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 17% |
52 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 15% |
48 | 0 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 13% |
39 | 7 | Shop all speed control and throttle parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 11% |
33 | 1 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 9% |
29 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 7% |
22 | 0 | Shop body and structure parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 7% |
21 | 0 | Shop exterior lighting parts for the 1992 Ford Crown Victoria |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Antilock brakess activated on their own, this happened twice, vehicle pulls bad during this time. Happens for about 5 to 10 minutes then release, no mechanical correction been done to correct this problem.
-
While checking the oil in the car, we noticed a crack in the intake. I was wondering if there has been a recall for this problem like with the firebird intake recalls.
-
My intake manifold began leaking approximately 2 days after i bought it,6 months later it's leaking in a second location. *nm
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Ford Crown Victoria years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1992, 1997, 1996 carry the most filings on the Ford Crown Victoria. The 1992 alone has 310 complaints, led by brakes (hydraulic).
What is the most common Ford Crown Victoria problem?
On the 1992 model year, the most-reported component is brakes (hydraulic) with 71 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Ford Crown Victoria problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Ford Crown Victoria complaints that include mileage is about 89,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.