Your vehicle report
1999 Ford Mustang
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 213
- Received Jan 1999 to Apr 2021
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Airbags fail to deploy in crashes30 complaints · 14% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Seat belt fails to latch or retract16 complaints · 7.5% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Brake pedal sinks due to leaking lines15 complaints · 7.0% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #00V349000Vehicle 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.
- Recall #99V250000Vehicle 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.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 50 crashes, 2 fires, 22 people injured, 2 deaths.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 18 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
Brakes
Electrical & lights
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 35 |
| 2000 | 55 |
| 2001 | 52 |
| 2002 | 20 |
| 2003 | 12 |
| 2004 | 10 |
| 2005 | 6 |
| 2006 | 2 |
| 2007 | 4 |
| 2008 | 2 |
| 2009 | 1 |
| 2010 | 1 |
| 2011 | 5 |
| 2012 | 0 |
| 2013 | 1 |
| 2014 | 2 |
| 2015 | 1 |
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 213 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbags fail to deploy in crashes | 30 | 14% | – | |
| Seat belt fails to latch or retract | 16 | 7.5% | – | NHTSA recall #99V250000 |
| Brake pedal sinks due to leaking lines | 15 | 7.0% | – | |
| Parking brake fails to hold or release | 13 | 6.1% | – | NHTSA recall #00V349000 |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 12 | 5.6% | – | |
| Vehicle rolls backward out of park | 9 | 4.2% | – | |
| Tires blow out or tread separates | 8 | 3.8% | – | |
| Headlights dim or fail at night | 6 | 2.8% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 6 | 2.8% | – | |
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 5 | 2.4% | – | |
| Cruise control fails to disengage | 5 | 2.4% | – | NHTSA recall #99V062001 |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 4 | 1.9% | – | |
| Steering wheel shakes violently at highway speed | 4 | 1.9% | – | |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 4 | 1.9% | – | |
| Rear door latch fails to open or close | 3 | 1.4% | – | |
| Vehicle catches fire from wiring | 3 | 1.4% | – | |
| Check engine light comes on repeatedly | 3 | 1.4% | – | |
| Axle breaks while driving, wheel detaches | 3 | 1.4% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #00V349000October 30, 2000434,000 vehicles affected
parking brake: conventional
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.
This could result in unintended vehicle movement and a vehicle crash without prior warning.
Remedy
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.
NHTSA recall #99V250000September 20, 199925,306 vehicles affected
seat belts: front: anchorage
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.
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.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect the lap and shoulder belt assemblies. Assemblies with julian date codes of 200 through 223 are suspect and will be replaced.
NHTSA recall #99V062001March 30, 1999898,739 vehicles affected
vehicle speed control
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.
If the cruise control is used and this condition is present, a stuck throttle could result, which could potentially result in a crash.
Remedy
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.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 1999 Ford Mustang.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN