Tl* the contact owns a 1998 ford mustang. Immediately after the vehicle was purchased, it was inspected by an independent mechanic. The mechanic diagnosed that the ignition wires and engine needed to be replaced. The mechanic also diagnosed that the vehicle needed to be properly aligned. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 112,000.
1998 Ford Mustang engine problems
41 complaints (17% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 107,000. 2 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 41
- of this car's complaints
- 17%
- typical mileage
- 107,000
- crashes
- 2
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Engine: gasoline15
- Exhaust system: manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe10
- Engine5
- Cooling system3
- Exhaust system: emission control2
- Exhaust system2
- Engine: gasoline: belts and associated pulleys2
- Cooling system: radiator assembly1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
0k-25k
25k-50k
50k-75k
75k-100k
100k-125k
125k-150k
150k-175k
175k-200k
200k+
Ford Mustang engine problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 1998 Ford Mustang engine
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi?s analysis showed, it is possible for a spark plug to detach from the engine cylinder threads in the subject vehicles.however, odi?s analysis of 474 complaints describing such incidents found only a very few alleged any safety-related consequences.none of these showed any evidence of a serious safety consequence.given the large population and relatively long exposure time of the subject vehicles, the complaint analysis indicates that the risk to motor vehicle safety from the alleged defect is very low.in view of the foregoing, it is unlikely that the federal safety agency would issue an order for the notification and remedy of the alleged defect at the conclusion of the investigation requested in the petition.therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize the federal safety agency?s limited resources to best accomplish the agency?s safety mission, the petition is denied.
DP05005
What 1998 Ford Mustang owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Intake manifold developed a crack in the housing under the thermostat. This was reported as tsb 97m91.
I recently purchased a 1999 ford mustang with a 1998 used engine installed into it. I only had 1 real problem with it and it was my exhaust. I had that fixed and ran great for the next day. Less then 36 hrs after the exhaust was fixed and after sitting for about 15 hrs or so, which was from around 9:45 pm friday the 21st to around 12:30 to 1:00 pm on the 22nd of august. A neighbor came pounding on our door telling us our car was on fire!!!! He also stated that he heard what sounded like someone was trying to start it from a distance. Well we don't have a remote starter for this car, it only unlocks the car and trunk, does not start it. We believe it was electrical in nature and need to find out what happened as I only had liability ins. And now I have lost my car and have nothing...... I have pictures of my car just melting away, the entire front of it. I loved this car, I wasn't even finished paying for it. I still owe $1395 on it and I only had it for about 7 months. Fire marshall is still investigating it. I believe he said it possibly started on the passenger side where there was a box above the tire area with wires in it. What were these wires, what were they for as I couldn't see anything matching that description on a 1998 engine image...??? This was the first and only real problem we had, the engine light was always on from the time of purchase, seller did fix but light came back on in about 1 week and was on until fire.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving any speed, antifreeze leaked heavily from the vehicle. A private repair shop inspected the vehicle and determined that the intake manifold was cracked. Also, while driving 75 MPH, there was a clicking noise heard, and the hood raised slightly as if it was not shut properly. The contact pulled over and shut it again. The repair shop was unable to determine the cause of that problem.
Dt: 1998 ford mustang. The consumer states the air intake manifold has cracked. The engine started smoking and the vehicle was running hot. The engine coolant would run out. The vehicle has been looked at by a mechanic and the vehicle has not been fixed. The consumer called ford. There was a class action lawsuit, if the settlement goes through it will be appealed. Therefore, ford was not doing anything about the problem.
Check engine light remains on. Was told faulty head gasket. Losing coolant with no visable leaks. Estimated $1200.00 repair at least. With the number of complaints regarding the ford 3.8 c.I. Engine why have there been no recalls for the mustang unlike the tauris? (same engine)
Consumer states that the plastic intake manifold cracked. As a result, the coolant leaked onto the engine.
Consumer smelled antifreeze. Looked under the hood and discovered a cracked intake manifold. The vehicle was not operable.
While driving vehicle overheated on its own. Vehicle hesitated while accelerating, then stalled. Consumer was unable to restart vehicle, and had the vehicle towed to dealer. Mechanic determined that the intake manifold needed to be replaced. This vehicle was not recalled by VIN or under warranty. Consumer informed the mechanic that part number f8a2-9424-bc, notification #97m91 for intake manifold was recalled. Mechanic insisted that recall was not for this vehicle.
While driving the vehicle at 60 MPH started to smell anti-freeze. When I checked the engine compartment. I found that the left side of the plastic, intake manifold had cracked an was leaking anti-freeze. Contacted dealer, they wanted $580 for a new manifold plus labor to put it on. I feel that if a manufacture puts an intake manifold on on of thier vehicles it shoud last for the lifetime of the vehicle and should not have cracked, I think this is poor enginering, and should be replaced free of charge by the dealer, since ford has replace all police vehicle intakes.
Questions about the 1998 Ford Mustang engine
Does the 1998 Ford Mustang have engine problems?
Owners have filed 41 complaints about the engine of the 1998 Ford Mustang, 17% of all its complaints, more than any other problem.
At what mileage do 1998 Ford Mustang engine problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 107,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 1998 Ford Mustang engine?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Ford Mustang have bad engine?
The Ford Mustang model years with the most engine complaints are 1995 (341 complaints), 1994 (162 complaints) and 1996 (84 complaints).
Other 1998 Ford Mustang problems
Brakes 33Fuel system 30Steering 22Transmission 21Acceleration 18Seat belts 18Suspension 16Airbags 15Electrical 12Seats 9Tires 9Body 8Visibility 6Lights 4Locks 4Wheels 2
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