Problems · NHTSA complaints

2005 Ford Mustang problems

Owners filed 868 complaints about the 2005 Ford Mustang with NHTSA between Feb 2005 and Aug 2025. The most-cited component is air bags (284).

Complaints
868
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
40
Reported by owners
Fires
8
Reported by owners
Injuries
35
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Air bags284
  2. Electrical system283
  3. Fuel system, gasoline80
  4. Vehicle speed control66
  5. Structure64
  6. Fuel/propulsion system35
  7. Power train32
  8. Engine and engine cooling31
  9. Parking brake30
  10. Engine23
  11. Suspension23
  12. Exterior lighting20
  13. Equipment18
  14. Service brakes12

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 27, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
200569
200632
200723
200849
200935
201053
2011102
201261
201341
201454
201557
201662
2017125
201875
20197
20202
20213
20224
20235
20244
20255

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Air bags

284 reports21 crashes1 fire6 related recalls
“The contact owns a 2005 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that during inclement weather, water was entering the cabin of the vehicle through the passenger’s side glove box. The contact stated that due to the failure, mold had developed throughout the vehicle on the carpet, doors, and interior seats. The contact's husband also discovered that water had entered the computer module after inspecting the vehicle and the module was removed. The contact stated that the vehicle was inoperable after several repairs and several battery replacements. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact called the dealer and was referred to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 87,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 20, 2025Electrical system, Air bags, StructureODI 11643908

Electrical system

283 reports3 crashes4 fires
“The contact owns a 2005 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH on a rainy night, the headlights started flickering. The contact stated that upon exiting the freeway, while driving 30 MPH, the headlights completely turned off and the hazard lights were inoperable. The contact drove to the nearest gas station and turned off the vehicle. The contact stated that upon attempting to restart the vehicle, the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 170,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 22, 2024Electrical system, Exterior lightingODI 11626876

Fuel system, gasoline

80 reports
“The contact owns a 2005 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while her husband was attempting to fuel the vehicle, the fuel tank was unable to be fully fueled. The contact stated that either the nozzle would shut off prematurely or gasoline would be prevented from flowing into the fuel tank. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent, but by late 2024, the fuel tank could no longer be filled, and the vehicle was placed in storage. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer prior to being placed in storage, and the contact was informed that the fuel tank needed to be replaced. The contact was made aware of Technical Service Bulletin Number: 05-15012; however, the vehicle was not covered under warranty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 5, 2025Fuel system, gasolineODI 11678583

Vehicle speed control

66 reports14 crashes
“I WAS PULLING OUT OF WORK ONTO A BUSY STREET WHEN CAR WENT INTO IDLE MODE BECAUSE OF THE THROTTLE BODY DRIVE BY WIRE SYSTEM.THERE WAS NO INDICATION ANYTHING WAS WRONG OR ABOUT TO GO WRONG. GOD WAS REALLY LOOKING OUT FOR ME ON THIS PARTICULAR DAY BECAUSE THE CARS THAT WERE ON THIS BUSY ROAD WASN'T IN A HURRY LIKE THEY NORMALLY ARE AND I AVOIDED A (T-BONE)COLLISION. IT REALLY SCARED ME AND I HAVEN'T DROVE THE CAR ANYMORE AND IT'S FOR SALE. I THOUGHT IT SHOULD BE REPORTED AND I WILL TELL WHOEVER BUYS THE CAR WHAT HAPPENED UPFRONT. I'M NOT WILLING TO RISK IT DOING THE SAME THING AGAIN. I SWITCHED THE KEY OFF AND STARTED THE CAR BACK UP AND DROVE IT 40 MILES HOME WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS AND IT WILL NEVER BE DRIVEN BY ME AGAIN.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Aug 7, 2020Vehicle speed control, Unknown or otherODI 11343952

Structure

64 reports2 crashes1 fire
“Ford did issue a recall for several issues for my car, including but not limited to, problems when filling gas tank with evaporative purge system as well as cavitation of the fuel pump in high heat conditions, the doors not closing all the way or handles remaining open( not flush with rest of door) when door is shut, driver's side door trim/bezel around power window switch making buzzing sounds when stereo is in use, as well as ticking sounds coming from motor during operation and various creaks and sounds from front suspension when cornering and going over uneven terrain, and the transmission, the 5r55s, has the known hard shift into gear caused by bad servo. I have reached out to the dealers in my area regarding these issues and even though my car is the correct model and year for the service recall bulletins and has the exact issues described there in, I am told that the vin on my car is not covered even though it is clearly suffering from equipment that exhibits all the same problems listed in the recall. I feel the responsibility to perform and pay for these repairs should fall on the manufacturer, not i, the customer.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 25, 2025Power train, Structure, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11638493

Fuel/propulsion system

35 reports1 crash2 fires
“Filling gas tank is a nightmare, the first batch of the newly remodeled vehicle. When filling it it'll pump for 3 seconds and then click off and shoot gas out because it thinks it's full so you have to click it on the lowest possible setting. It's a 16 gallon tank and if it's completely empty the first eight gallons will pump fine anything over that because of the way the tank is shaped is where the airlock is and that's when you can barely touch the gas lever before it clicks off and shoots gas up It takes me 20 minutes to fill up so anything before the half a tank mark will fill normally but once it's over half a tank is when the problem arises. From all of the forums that I've looked at for this new remodeled 2005 year this was a common problem and the mustangs built for the first 6 months and judging by the belt date mine was in March so far well within the first 6 months. When I pulled out the extra gas that dripped onto the ground caught on fire so I had to jump out and luckily I had a fire extinguisher in my trunk but that was terrifying because I'm at a gas station and the whole thing could have went up in flames.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Dec 27, 2023Fuel/propulsion systemFire reportedODI 11561978
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 27, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.