1999 Ford Mustang Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Mustang years
- About as many complaints as other years 17th of 32 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 3 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 213 complaints with NHTSA about the 1999 Ford Mustang. That ranks 17th out of 32 Mustang model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is air bags (32 complaints, 15%), typically at around 87,500 miles. Complaints mention 50 crashes, 2 fires, 22 injuries. There are 3 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
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- 213owner complaints
- 3safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 50complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 1999 Ford Mustang problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Bags | 32 | 15% | 87,500 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 31 | 15% | 59,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 25 | 12% | 25,000 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 25 | 12% | 134,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 22 | 10% | 58,000 | — | — |
| Parking Brake | 21 | 10% | — | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 19 | 9% | 34,500 | — | — |
| Tires | 11 | 5% | 105,000 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 10 | 5% | — | — | — |
| Steering | 10 | 5% | — | — | — |
| Seats | 9 | 4% | 111,000 | — | — |
| Structure | 9 | 4% | — | — | — |
| Suspension | 9 | 4% | 96,000 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 8 | 4% | — | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 7 | 3% | 60,000 | — | — |
| Visibility | 4 | 2% | 53,396 | — | — |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 3 | 1% | 80,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 3 | 1% | — | — | — |
| Equipment | 2 | 1% | 31,689 | — | — |
| Engine | 1 | 0% | 75,000 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Other | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 1 | 0% | 177,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
1999 Ford Mustang recalls (3)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Parking brake:conventional
Problem: Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with manual transmissions. If a vehicle is parked with the parking brake not fully applied and not in first gear, as directed in the owner guide, and the self adjustment pawl subsequently skips one or two teeth, the vehicle could move on some grades.
Risk: This could result in unintended vehicle movement and a vehicle crash without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers will modify the parking brake control and install a plate or over-bracket to the control to lock the self adjust mechanism in position following adjustment.
Seat belts:front:anchorage
Problem: Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The seat belt retractor may have a pin shaft in the switchable elr/alr mechanism that is incorrectly formed. In some circumstances, the switching mechanism could become nonfunctional, preventing the seat belt webbing from being extracted from the retractor. It is also possible that malfunction of the mechanism could prevent the belt from being switched into the alr mode. The elr mechanism is not affected by this condition.
Risk: If the mechanism malfunctions and does not allow the webbing to be extracted, the lap and shoulder belt could not be worn by a vehicle occupant. In the event that the mechanism does not allow the alr mode to be engaged, the operator may be unable to properly install a child seat in that seating position.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the lap and shoulder belt assemblies. Assemblies with julian date codes of 200 through 223 are suspect and will be replaced.
Vehicle speed control
Problem: Vehicle description: certain 1997-1999 rhd explorer equipped with 4.0l ohv/sohc engines and cruise control built from may 29, 1996 through march 4, 1999; 1998-1999 explorer/mountaineers equipped with 4.0l ohv/sohc or 5.0l engines or 1998-1999 rangers equipped with 2.5l, 3.0l ffv/efi or 4.0l engines and cruise control built from january 5, 1998 through march 4, 1999; 1998-1999 mustangs equipped with 3.8l, 4.6l 2-valve or 4-valve engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999; 1999 f250/f350/f450/f550 (over 8,500 lbs.) trucks equipped with 5.4l or 6.8l engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999; and 1999 f-53 stripped chassis equipped with 5.4l or 6.8l engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999. A cruise control cable can interfere with the speed control servo pulley and not allow the throttle to return to idle when disengaging the cruise control.
Risk: If the cruise control is used and this condition is present, a stuck throttle could result, which could potentially result in a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the cruise control cables. At the present time, the replacement cables are not available. Customers are being advised not to use the cruise control system until a replacement can be made.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Spark plug ejection from cylinder head (DP05005) — opened Sep 22, 2005, closed Jan 4, 2006.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
Ii was putting my car in park and the air bags inflated and to gas like smell came from the bags.
I have having issues with wiring. Wide shield wipers don't work, multiple head lights are out and dome light stays on sometimes
My vehicle started moving when i parked in a 30 degree incline.
It was late summer, close to early fall 2017. My two sons, ages 17 and 15, had just gotten out of football practice and were getting into the 1999 mustang to come home. (my 17 year old son, matthew, had been driving for quite awhile, and had no traffic infractions or violations yet either, nor does…
My seat belts do not function well. Sometimes, they retract very slow, lose and sometimes they do not even retract. Also, sometime they get stuck. When i brake hard, they stuck and too tight....on the other hand sometimes they are very lose and doesn't stay tight to my chest, same is the case with…
Other Ford Mustang years
← 1998 Mustang · 2000 Mustang →
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Mustang | 8 | 5 |
| 2025 Mustang | 19 | 6 |
| 2024 Mustang | 84 | 12 |
| 2023 Mustang | 15 | 6 |
| 2022 Mustang | 50 | 9 |
| 2021 Mustang | 55 | 6 |
| 2020 Mustang | 120 | 8 |
| 2019 Mustang | 150 | 6 |
| 2018 Mustang | 195 | 3 |
| 2017 Mustang | 267 | 6 |
| 2016 Mustang | 379 | 5 |
| 2015 Mustang | 438 | 11 |
| 2014 Mustang | 359 | 3 |
| 2013 Mustang | 271 | 5 |
| 2012 Mustang | 469 | 6 |
| 2011 Mustang | 466 | 4 |
| 2010 Mustang | 261 | 5 |
| 2009 Mustang | 181 | 5 |
| 2008 Mustang | 347 | 5 |
| 2007 Mustang | 615 | 5 |
| 2006 Mustang | 424 | 5 |
| 2005 Mustang | 705 | 5 |
| 2004 Mustang | 116 | 1 |
| 2003 Mustang | 145 | 1 |
| 2002 Mustang | 118 | 0 |
| 2001 Mustang | 173 | 1 |
| 2000 Mustang | 311 | 2 |
| 1999 | 213 | 3 |
| 1998 Mustang | 236 | 4 |
| 1997 Mustang | 176 | 2 |
| 1996 Mustang | 246 | 3 |
| 1995 Mustang | 602 | 5 |
See all Ford Mustang problems by year, every Ford model, or the Ford VIN decoder.
Similar Ford models
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 1999 Ford Mustang?
Owners most often report air bags, engine and engine cooling, power train problems. The top one, air bags, accounts for 32 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 1999 Ford Mustang?
Yes, 3 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 1999 Ford Mustang a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Mustang model years, the 1999 has about as many complaints as a typical year. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.