What breaks most · 2000 to 2018 model years
Keystone Cougar problems by year
Owners have filed 121 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Keystone Cougar across model years 2000 to 2018. Three years stand out: 2004 for tires complaints, 2007 for tires complaints and 2008 for tires complaints. The quietest years are 2000, 2001 and 2009.
- Years to check closely: 2004, 2007, 2008
- Fewest complaints: 2000, 2001, 2009
- Complaints on file
- 1212000 to 2018, all trims
- Worst year
- 200426 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 34 fires · 2 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 5kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 63Across 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 2 | Equipment and infotainment (1) | |
| 3 | 0 | 1 | Equipment and infotainment (1) | |
| 6 | 0 | 1 | Tires (2) | |
| 6 | 0 | 2 | Equipment and infotainment (3) | |
| 26 | 1 | 3 | Tires (20) | |
| 7 | 0 | 3 | Tires (4) | |
| 6 | 0 | 4 | Body and structure (2) | |
| 9 | 0 | 6 | Tires (4) | |
| 9 | 1 | 3 | Tires (5) | |
| 4 | 0 | 3 | Body and structure (3) | |
| 9 | 1 | 4 | Tires (4) | |
| 9 | 0 | 7 | Tires (3) | |
| 5 | 0 | 2 | Body and structure (3) | |
| 6 | 0 | 2 | Body and structure (3) | |
| 4 | 0 | 4 | Exterior lighting (2) | |
| 4 | 0 | 3 | Unknown or other (2) | |
| 4 | 0 | 2 | Suspension (2) | |
| 2 | 0 | 7 | Electrical system (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 4 | Brakes (1) |
What fails on the 2004 Keystone Cougar
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tires | 77% |
20 | 1 | — |
| Equipment and infotainment | 19% |
5 | 0 | — |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 4% |
1 | 0 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 4% |
1 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 4% |
1 | 0 | Shop all suspension parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
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.
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 Keystone Cougar years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2004, 2007, 2008 carry the most filings on the Keystone Cougar. The 2004 alone has 26 complaints, led by tires.
What is the most common Keystone Cougar problem?
On the 2004 model year, the most-reported component is tires with 20 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Keystone Cougar problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Keystone Cougar complaints that include mileage is about 5,000 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.