FaultScore

Worst years for a Ford Crown Victoria

Owners have filed 3,978 complaints about the Ford Crown Victoria with NHTSA across model years 1980 to 2011. More of them are about the engine & cooling than anything else.

Avoid

1996 Ford Crown Victoria

358 complaints — the highest FaultScore of any year, mostly engine & cooling.

Cleanest on record

2010 Ford Crown Victoria

14 complaints — the lowest FaultScore of the graded years.

Every Ford Crown Victoria year, graded

The grade compares each year against the rest of this model's own run — never against another car. Click any bar or row to open that year's report.

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded
Year Grade Complaints Crashes Fires Median miles Most reported
2011 B 32 3 0 37,002 Steering
2010 B 14 4 0 135,000 Steering
2009 C 59 8 3 91,609 Steering
2008 C 64 13 7 97,000 Steering
2007 C 76 10 1 103,000 Steering
2006 C 68 18 0 108,230 Steering
2005 D 240 17 2 80,000 Lights
2004 C 175 4 6 91,000 Lights
2003 D 303 19 6 95,171 Lights
2002 C 71 11 3 50,000 Electrical System
2001 C 70 11 2 80,000 Engine & Cooling
2000 C 103 7 3 86,158 Engine & Cooling
1999 C 174 9 5 80,584 Engine & Cooling
1998 C 138 3 9 89,000 Engine & Cooling
1997 D 340 10 20 86,000 Engine & Cooling
1996 D 358 17 21 108,000 Engine & Cooling
1995 D 318 22 14 95,500 Steering
1994 D 252 27 17 112,000 Brakes
1993 D 247 18 18 114,800 Transmission & Drivetrain
1992 482 22 29 103,500 Brakes
1991 70 9 5 Airbags
1990 58 7 9 Electrical System
1989 86 3 22 117,000 Electrical System
1988 49 2 13 Electrical System
1987 48 2 15 94,000 Electrical System
1986 35 1 16 Electrical System
1985 24 1 9 Electrical System
1984 8 0 2 Electrical System
1983 8 0 0 Electrical System
1982 4 0 2 Electrical System
1981 2 0 0 Fuel & Propulsion
1980 2 2 0 Seat Belts

What breaks on a Ford Crown Victoria

Across every model year on file. Follow a row for that part's complaints and the year it was worst.

Engine & Cooling 469 11.8%

Worst in 1997

Steering 440 11.1%

Worst in 1995

Lights 400 10.1%

Worst in 2005

Worst in 1992

Brakes 376 9.5%

Worst in 1992

Suspension 320 8.0%

Worst in 1996

Worst in 1992

Worst in 1996

Worst in 1993

Worst in 1992

Airbags 122 3.1%

Worst in 1994

Body & Structure 103 2.6%

Worst in 1992

Wheels 86 2.2%

Worst in 2003

Seat Belts 73 1.8%

Worst in 1988

Exactly what failed on a Ford Crown Victoria

The named sub-assemblies behind those complaints, across every model year.

Automatic Transmission 112 13.2%
Gasoline 106 12.5%
Manifold/Header/Muffler/Tail Pipe 91 10.7%
Linkages 90 10.6%
Engine 88 10.3%
Hoses, Lines/Piping, AND Fittings 79 9.3%
Switch 78 9.2%
Headlights 73 8.6%
Lower Ball Joint 67 7.9%
Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip 67 7.9%

Complaints filed over time

Every complaint about every Ford Crown Victoria, by the month it reached NHTSA.

Jan 1995 peak 101 Aug 2026

Ford Crown Victoria problems by state

Where owners filed from. Heavier states are usually just bigger markets, but a part that fails in heat or salt shows up here first.

Compare the Ford Crown Victoria

Side by side on complaint history. Remember that raw totals track how many were sold as much as how good they were.