1999 Ford Crown Victoria Problems

What owners report

Owners of this 1999 Crown Victoria most often write in about coolant leaks from a cracked composite intake manifold and about loose or fractured front-end parts — ball joints, tie rod ends and steering shaft bolts. Complaints also cover exterior lights cutting out, premature rear brake wear and hubcaps coming loose. Many reports arrive between roughly 40,000 and 100,000 miles, and some describe the coolant loss appearing gradually before a gauge spike or overheating.

1. 1
   Suspension

   Front-end wear: ball joints, tie rod ends, steering

   • 18 complaints (13%)
   • median 70,000 mi at 6.1 yrs old (9 state mileage, few)
   • filed 1999–2015

   Complaints describe ball joints fracturing or wearing out quickly, tie rod ends coming loose or separating, and bolts backing out of the upper control arm or steering shaft. Owners report wandering or lunging steering, and in one case loss of control while driving; repairs were done by dealers and independent shops, with some owners saying the dealer replaced ball joints, the pitman arm or steering shaft bolts during unrelated service. Mileage in the sample ranges widely, from about 24,000 to 186,000 miles, with several reports in the 55,000-85,000 mile range.

   Recall 98V322000

   What to check: Have a mechanic inspect ball joints, tie rod ends and control-arm fasteners on a lift before buying, and ask for any service history on front-end parts.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I own a 1999 Ford Crown Victoria sedan. I recently discovered, that one of the bolts connecting the upper control arm to the frame, was missing the nut to secure it and it had backed itself out of the mounting bushing. The bolt had backed out about 2.5 inches when I discovered it. This left only one bolt holding the upper control arm to the car's frame. The car has only 24,000 miles on it and was recently purchased used,at a local dealer. The car is in excellent condition, except for the bolt problem. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10039509, filed 2003-09, 24,108 miles

   “-the contact took the 1999 Ford Crown Victoria to the Ford dealership for an unrelated service. The dealership stated that the contact had problems with the bolts in the steering shaft. The technician replaced them. The contact felt that this was a major safety problem. The current and failure mileage were 81,865. The dealer also replaced the right front ball joint when the car was being repaired. The pitman arm was replaced. Update 5/4/07”

   NHTSA complaint #10187667, filed 2007-04, 81,865 miles
2. 2
   Engine cooling

   Cracked plastic intake manifold / coolant leak

   • 11 complaints (8%)
   • median 90,700 mi at 7.5 yrs old (8 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2003–2017

   Owners describe a sweet coolant smell, the check-engine light coming on, and coolant disappearing without an obvious puddle. Several say a mechanic found a crack in the composite intake manifold, sometimes with coolant seeping toward a spark plug well on the passenger side or from the rear of the manifold. Complaints mention quotes near several hundred dollars for replacement, and some note the dealer declined warranty coverage because the car was out of warranty. Reported from about 38,000 to 140,000 miles, often noticed first as a faint coolant odor rather than a sudden failure.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Check coolant level and look for white residue or a sweet smell around the manifold and thermostat housing, especially on the passenger side. Ask whether the intake manifold has already been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I began noticing problems with my 1999 Crown Victoria in early 2005. My check engine light kept coming on and it kept using a lot of coolant. A Ford technician told me during a recent repair that it needed another intake manifold and that it would cost me $800 to fix it at the dealership. I asked him if it was covered under any warranty and I was told no. The other night I was driving down I-35 headed towards dallas when the high temperature gauge started going off. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10166257, filed 2006-08, 91,400 miles

   “Under normal driving conditions at approximately 25 MPH I began to smell a sweet burning scent that I quickly recognized as coolant. I pulled over & inspected the engine compartment. The first thing I observed after removing the plastic facia from the top of the engine was a crack in the water temperature sensor housing right in front on the top passenger side of the intake manifold. I was less than a block from my home so I drove home and had it towed into harvey's auto the next day. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10618158, filed 2014-08, 39,450 miles
3. 3
   Exterior lighting

   Exterior and dash lights cutting out

   • 12 complaints (9%)
   • median 95,347 mi at 9.1 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2000–2023

   Owners report headlights, tail lights, turn signals and dash lights going dark intermittently while driving, sometimes for a minute or more before coming back on; a few mention that turn signals, hazards and tail lights stopped working entirely while headlights still functioned. Some complaints describe replacing the lighting control module or light switch more than once, and one describes a burning smell near the dash and brake lights not working. Mostly reported between about 74,000 and 155,000 miles, with failures described as intermittent and speed-independent.

   What to check: Test all exterior lights, turn signals, hazards and dash illumination, and ask whether the lighting control module or headlight switch has been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When driving on the interstate at 75 MPH the exterior lights as well as the dash lights shut off. They then came back on after about a minute and a half. The lights intermittently shut off and come back on at random. I can be on the interstate or on a city street. I can be going forward or backwards when this happens. This is a huge safety issue.”

   NHTSA complaint #11189980, filed 2019-03, 155,000 miles

   “Burning smell under dash)when brake pedal and/or door was open. Eventually, I couldn't start the car as the 'brake lights' would not come on. I called the Ford dealer in a rage that they had idiot lights for everything else,. And as far as I knew, hand signals were still legal, they told me to turn the ignition 1 click, put the car in neutral, then I would be able to start the car. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10185869, filed 2007-03, 80,584 miles
4. 4
   Engine cooling

   Spark plugs blowing out of the cylinder head

   Mentioned in 4 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe spark plugs ejecting from the cylinder head, sometimes damaging the coil pack and the threads in the head, with repairs quoted in the low hundreds of dollars each time. One complaint mentions a fire when fuel vapor met the coil pack after a plug blew out, and another describes sudden loss of power on the highway that led to cylinder head or engine replacement. Reported from roughly 23,000 to 147,000 miles; some owners describe it happening repeatedly over years of ownership.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether any spark plug threads have been repaired and whether inserts were installed; a pre-purchase inspection can check for a plug that sits loose or shows thread damage.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “(1) driving on interstate highway car engine suddenly lost power while changing lane. Was almost hit from behind but luckily the other car was able to stop. (2) the engine in my car, '99 Ford Crown Victoria, had blown a spark plug. (3) repair involved changing the cylinder head in the engine or replace the whole engine that I opted to do. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10082609, filed 2004-07, 139,771 miles

   “I have 2 Crown Victoria sedans and both have spit spark plugs out of their respective cylinder heads. I am neither amused by these occurrences nor satisfied when I spoke with Ford customer service. Listed below is the last time this incident occurred - the 4th blown plug.”

   NHTSA complaint #10222542, filed 2008-03, 146,875 miles
5. 5
   Brakes

   Rear brakes wearing faster than the front

   Mentioned in 4 of 60 sampled complaints

   Complaints describe rear brake pads wearing down much faster than the fronts, along with brake fade, a low pedal, vibration when slowing from highway speed, and pulling to one side on damp roads. Owners say the dealer inspected the system, found no malfunction and called the behavior normal, leaving the uneven wear unexplained. One report at about 22,000 miles; other brake complaints come from lower-mileage cars with no mileage stated.

   What to check: Ask for recent brake service records and have pad thickness measured front and rear; uneven rear wear is easy to confirm during an inspection.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Intertia fuel cut-off activated after rumble strips and a pothole while on interstate exit ramp. Dealer replaced front disk pads that were mismatched and occasionally caused loss of control during moderately hard braking. Steering wheel makes creaking noise that could/possibly be a sign that air bag circuit may not function reliably if needed.”

   NHTSA complaint #702951, filed 1999-02

   “When applying brakes on a damp road vehicle pulls to the left. Manufacturer states that this is a normal condition.vehicle will be checked by dealership. Please provide any further information.”

   NHTSA complaint #860677, filed 2000-04

Buying note. On a car this age, the front-end and coolant-system items matter most: budget for a pre-purchase inspection that checks ball joints, tie rod ends and the intake manifold, and confirm which recalls and service bulletins have already been applied. Lighting and brake complaints are worth testing directly on a test drive.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.