2003 Ford Mustang Convertible Engine cooling Problems
- Complaints
- 7about this part
- Share
- 20%of 35 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 3,500miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 7 complaints about the engine cooling of the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible, 20% of the 35 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 3,500 miles.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“The most recent being just a few days ago, my vehicle will sometimes have a problem in which it stalls while moving at a slow speed while a gear is not engaged. The car is a 2003 svt Ford mustang cobra convertible. A call to Ford's svt division had no solutions. Many people that I know with the same car are experiencing the exact same problem. It has occurred to me 4 times. Thank you so much!”
NHTSA complaint #10014135, filed 2003-04, 10,000 miles“2003 Ford mustang cobra convertible stall when depressing the clutch on occasion. I have contacted the dealer, but they insist that their is not much than can do about it. They have tried to re-flash my computer, but the problem came back.”
NHTSA complaint #10018688, filed 2003-05, 2,000 miles“I purchased a brand new 2003 Ford mustang cobra convertible in placentia, ca and was very excited to have my first mustang. I am 32 and married with two children ages 13 and 5 so our other car is a minivan. In the end, as you will see in this description, this was the worst purchase I have ever made in regards to a vehicle. After around 7,000-9,000 miles ( I would have to pull the paperwork as I am at work now) the car over-heated on the freeway and during the overheating the car shut down forcing me to lose power steering and the car began to drift left in to the other lane. …”
NHTSA complaint #10136505, filed 2005-09, 5,000 miles“Svt cobra is intermittently stalling while the clutch is fully depressed and decelerating to a stop. This intermittent stalling occurs most frequently at idle. The vehicle has stalled at least ten times in the first 1174 miles of ownership. Occurs with greater frequency in warm weather while the engine is hot. Two service departments checked the engine and one reset the idle controller. They could not reproduce the condition, however, the stalling persists with no change in symptoms. …”
NHTSA complaint #10000934, filed 2003-01, 800 miles“2003 svt Ford mustang cobra convertible keeps stalling at stop with clutch fully depressed, does it most while running air conditioning during hot weather, the car has less than 1000 miles on it and has stalled 7 times, once nearly rear-ending the car in front of me due to no power steering or brakes. Our local dealer has had several complaints (same) and has me scheduled to go in late july to reflash the computor though it hasn't made much difference on other friends cobras. Please help !!!!!!”
NHTSA complaint #10025378, filed 2003-07Engine cooling: other model years
Other parts of the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible
7 complaintsSuspension
5 complaintsSeat belts
3 complaintsVehicle speed control
3 complaintsAir bags
2 complaintsBrakes
2 complaintsEquipment
2 complaintsOther or unknown
2 complaintsSeats
2 complaintsSteering
2 complaintsEngine
1 complaintsFuel system
1 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology