Problems · by component
1996 Lincoln Mark Viii exterior lighting problems
77 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 1996 Lincoln Mark Viii cite exterior lighting, 73% of all 106 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
77
73% of all complaints
Crashes
2
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
Reported by owners
What owners say about the exterior lighting
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS POOR VISIBILITY WHEN DRIVING THE VEHICLE AT NIGHT. THE HEADLIGHT LENSES HAD A CONSTANT FILM, WHICH AFFECTED THE LOW BEAMS. THE CONTACT CLEANED THE LENSES SEVERAL TIMES AND CHANGED THE BULBS, BUT THE VISIBILITY REMAINED POOR. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TO BE TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR FURTHER INSPECTION AND REPAIR. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150,000.”
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HEADLIGHTS WERE VERY DIM AND CAUSED POOR VISIBILITY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER, BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 112,000. UPDATED 07/07/14*LJ THE CONSUMER STATED THE DRIVER WAS UNABLE TO BEYOND 50 FEET. THE REFLECTIVE PART INSIDE THE HEADLIGHTS WERE COMPLETELY BLACK. THE LIGHT BULBS WERE REPLACED THE FAILURE PERSISTED. UPDATED 05/28/2015 *JS”
“TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII. THE VEHICLE HAS HIGH INTENSITY HEADLIGHTS, BUT ONE HEADLIGHT IS BRIGHT WHILE THE OTHER IS DIM. IN 2007, THE PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT WAS REPLACED AND NOW THE DRIVER SIDE LAMP NEEDS REPLACING. FORD NO LONGER MAKES THE PART AND COULD NOT PROVIDE INFORMATION ON HOW IT COULD BE OBTAINED. THE PURCHASE DATE WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 40,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 39,000. UPDATE 04-02-08 *BF”
“THE HEADLIGHTS ON THESE CARS (GENERATION 1 LINCOLN MARK VIII, 1993 TO 1996) ARE AWFUL AND IT IS VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND REPLACEMENTS-THE REFLECTIVE COATING ON THE INSIDE DETERIORATES, THE OUTER LENS GETS YELLOW AND DULL-DIFFICULT, ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE AT NIGHT, ESPECIALLY LOW BEAMS-FORD SHOULD MAKE GOOD ON REPAIRS FOR THESE MODELS, THERE ARE THOUSANDS ON THE ROAD, ALL ARE A HAZARD TO THE OWNER AND TO OTHER DRIVERS. *TR”
“I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER OF A 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII EQUIPPED WITH LUMINARC HIGH INTENSITY HEADLIGHTS. THE VEHICLE HAS 56,089 MILES. THE DRIVER'S SIDE HEADLIGHT HAS FAILED AND APPARENTLY IS NO LONGER SERVICEABLE. THE MANUFACTURER'S DESIGN DID NOT ALLOW FOR THE SIMPLE REPLACEMENT OF A LIGHT BULB BUT INSTEAD REQUIRES THE REPLACEMENT OF THE ENTIRE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY AT A COST OF APPROXIMATELY $900.00 PLUS LABOR PER SIDE. 97 AND 98 MODELS ARE DESIGNED FOR SIMPLE BULB REPLACEMENT AT A COST OF APPROXIMATELY $260.00 PER BULB. WHILE INVESTIGATING THE FACILITATING OF HEAD LIGHT REPAIRS FOR MY AUTOMOBILE I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT HEAD LIGHT ASSEMBLIES FOR 1996 MODEL CARS ARE OBSOLETE AND REPLACEMENT BULBS FOR 1997-1998 MODEL CARS HAVE BEEN ON BACK ORDER FOR APPROXIMATELY SIX MONTHS AND ARE NOT DUE TO BE AVAILABLE FOR ANOTHER 3-4 MONTHS. MY INTERNET RESEARCH HAS LED ME TO AN UNKNOWN NUMBER OF OWNERS IN SIMILAR PERIL. WE ARE ALL SCRAMBLING FOR SOLUTIONS TO KEEP OUR AUTOS ON THE ROAD BOTH SAFELY AND LEGALLY. INTERNET SEARCHES FOR USED PARTS (LINCOLN CUSTOMER SERVICE ACTUALLY REFERS YOU TO PRIVATE USED PARTS DEALERS RATHER THAN SUPPLY PARTS THEMSELVES), POSSIBLE NEW PARTS AND…”
“THE HEADLIGHTS ON MY 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII ARE TERRIBLE, I'VE OWNED THE CAR FOR 8 YEARS AND HAVE REPLACED THE BULBS WITH VARIOUS AFTERMARKET BULBS AND NOTHING INCREASES THE HEADLIGHT POWER. *JB”
Showing 6 of 77 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.