Car was parked in the driveway. Had not been running or started in over a week. Spontaneously caught fire and burned up. Vehicle is totaled and our garage and front fascia received fire and water damage.
1998 Lincoln Navigator engine problems
19 complaints (10% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 135,000.
- owner complaints
- 19
- of this car's complaints
- 10%
- typical mileage
- 135,000
- crashes
- 0
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Engine8
- Engine: gasoline3
- 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+
Lincoln Navigator engine problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 1998 Lincoln Navigator 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 Lincoln Navigator owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 lincoln navigator. The contact stated that after adding fuel to the vehicle smoke emitted from the engine compartment followed by a thermal event. The failure was not diagnosed nor was it repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. ..updated 07-17-13 *bf the consumer stated after pumping gas a strange clicking noise was heard on the driver's side. The drivere turned the vehicle on and off with the same result. Smoke then emerged from the hood. A fire started on the passenger's side. A thump was heard and the vehicle began to leak fluids.. The fire went out. The vehicle was towed to dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. Updated 07/24/2013
Spark plug blew out at 45 MPH w/o warning. Took to dealership and got back next day. 2 days later, engine light on, was told by same dealership that I had faulty vacuum hoses. More money spent. Now ABS light is on after changing all front end brake components. Also dash lights stay on even with all other lights are off.
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 lincoln navigator. The contact stated that while stopped at a traffic stop, the vehicle caught on fire without warning. The fire department was called to extinguish the fire and the vehicle was destroyed. The fire department advised that the fire had originated from the engine and ruled the fire as a mechanical failure. A fire report was filed and available. There were no injuries. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure and the current mileage was 119,000. The VIN was unavailable.
The common blown spark plug problem for ford engines.
Number 8 cylinder ejected spark plug.
Spark plug explosion on cylinder #3 in my 1998 ford 5.4l v8.
On 14 june 08, my mother's 98 lincoln navigator caught fire while parked in my garage, it burned my garage and there was enough damage that I was moved out of my house. I filed a claim with ford and they denied my claim because they stated that nc law states that they don't have to cover a vehicle if it is over 6 years old.
I was driving and smoke started to fill the 1998 lincoln navigator while pulling over flames started coming from the hood and from under the vehicle. I could see fire on the ground behind me. I pulled over and jump out just in time to see flames inside the vehicle and the whole thing burned.
I drove from maine to mass. Approx 170 miles, we stopped at my boyfriends mothers house for 20 min. I got back in my car started it up and it had a horrendous noise under the hood. It sounded like a motorcycle was in my engine. I did not feel safe to drive it anywhere. We had to have it towed home and our mechanic told us the bad ...awful news and the expense. I have a blown spark plug and need a helicoil resulting in a new motor or mine being taken apart (which one is cheaper) I am a single mom and cannot afford to replace the part as I have a $350 a month payment on this vehicle!!! Fortunately this happened while we were parked and starting it up and not somewhere on the mass or maine interstate. Contacting ford hasn't worked, I just got a generic email acting like this is news to them yet I can find documentation all over the internet from people with the same issue!!!!
Questions about the 1998 Lincoln Navigator engine
Does the 1998 Lincoln Navigator have engine problems?
Owners have filed 19 complaints about the engine of the 1998 Lincoln Navigator, 10% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 1998 Lincoln Navigator engine problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 135,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 1998 Lincoln Navigator engine?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Lincoln Navigator have bad engine?
The Lincoln Navigator model years with the most engine complaints are 1999 (24 complaints), 2006 (22 complaints) and 1998 (19 complaints).
Other 1998 Lincoln Navigator problems
Tires 48Suspension 25Steering 22Electrical 21Acceleration 18Transmission 16Wheels 15Brakes 9Body 8Visibility 8Airbags 6Lights 3Fuel system 1Locks 1Seat belts 1Seats 1
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