2010 Ford Mustang Problems

What owners report

Owner complaints on this model year are dominated by the Takata driver and passenger frontal airbag recalls, where the recurring theme is owners being told parts are not yet available and, in a few cases, warning lights or pop noises continuing after the recall work. The next most common themes are bubbling and peeling paint on the aluminum hood, sudden or unintended acceleration concerns reported to dealers, and manual-transmission shifting complaints, most often on low-mileage cars. Reported mileages are broadly spread, from a few hundred miles to well over 100,000.

1. 1
   Air bags

   Airbag recall parts unavailable / airbag warning light

   Mentioned in 13 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe receiving Takata recall notices for the driver and passenger frontal airbags and then being told by dealers that replacement inflators are not in stock, with no estimate of when they will be. Some report that the airbag warning light stayed on after the recall service was performed, and others describe a popping sound from the center of the dash on start-up that they associate with the recall. A few complaints involve airbags that did not deploy in a rear impact, or that deployed with no impact. Reported across a wide mileage range, roughly 13,000 to 115,000 miles, most often after a recall notice was received.

   Recall 15V319000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 16V384000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 18V046000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 19V001000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 21V0810003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether both driver and passenger inflators have actually been replaced under the recalls, and get paperwork rather than a verbal assurance. Check that the airbag warning light goes out after the bulb check on start-up.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Takata recall: Ford notify me a year ago of tis recall. In a recent call to Ford customer service I was told that the parts are still not available. The car is not safe to drive in its present condition.”

   NHTSA complaint #10861165, filed 2016-04, 24,000 miles

   “Bought a 2010 Mustang gt500 convertible on feb 18 2010. Since then I have had two of the same issues with problems shifting the transmission to second gear and fifth gear. It is in the shop now for the second time trying to fix this problem. Also, in march, my vehicle was struck by a car from the rear with no airbag deployment. The car was in the Ford service shop getting the transmission checked before the work was done on the car to fix the rear bumper. (the transmission had an issue before the wreck). …”

   NHTSA complaint #10346129, filed 2010-07, 12,800 miles
2. 2
   Vehicle speed control

   Unintended or sudden acceleration reports

   • 21 complaints (8%)
   • median 58,301 mi at 5.4 yrs old (19 state mileage)
   • 4 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2009–2021

   Owners describe the car accelerating on its own, often at low speed in parking lots or from a stop, with the brake pedal applied but the vehicle continuing to move. In some accounts the brake and throttle seemed unresponsive at the same time until the car was shifted to neutral or shut off. Dealers are reported to have found no stored codes or to have said the car was not covered by a recall. Reported from a few thousand miles up to high mileage, in the sample mostly between about 13,000 and 72,000 miles, at both parking-lot and highway speeds.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: During a test drive, check that the throttle returns cleanly when released and that the pedal is not obstructed by floor mats. Ask whether the throttle body or accelerator pedal sensor has been replaced, and whether any diagnosis was done for a surging complaint.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “On oct 27, 2014 I was traveling out of town onto our local highway. As I accelerated from 40 MPH to the 65 MPH speed limit the gas pedal continued to rapidly depress to the floor sending me up to 80 MPH until I depressed the clutch. At that point the engine RPM skyrocketed, so I turned off the car, applied the brakes and pulled off to the side of the road. It was a frightening experience! …”

   NHTSA complaint #10689605, filed 2015-02, 21,300 miles

   “I was on interstate 59 north. I pressed the brakes, they were locked up. Car began to accelerate on its own. Neither would function. Before attempting to engage the emergency brake, I put the car into neutral, attempting to slow it and distance myself from any traffic that was nearby. Once I put it in neutral, it began to slow, accelerator and brakes unlocked, allowing me to come to a stop on the side of the road. Called Ford, they've towed it to a local dealership. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10627409, filed 2014-08, 43,086 miles
3. 3
   Body and structure

   Paint bubbling and peeling on aluminum hood

   • 12 complaints (5%)
   • median 50,127 mi at 5.0 yrs old (11 state mileage)
   • filed 2010–2018

   Owners describe bubbles forming on the hood, sometimes followed by the paint flaking or peeling away, and several say the bubbling started with no obvious stone chips or rust source. Complaints mention that the hood is aluminum and that a repaint alone may not stop it returning. Some also report the hood scoop working loose from the hood panel. Typically noticed on cars a few years old, reported from roughly 1,000 to 45,000 miles in the sample, with several owners noting it appeared while the car was still low-mileage.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Inspect the hood closely in good light for small bubbles along the edges, scoop surround and leading edge. If paint has already been repaired, ask what was done and whether the panel was replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My hood (and I have noticed very many hoods) the paint is bubbling up and peeling at first I thought it was done by the mechanics. I punched it up on the computer and saw many complaints about it. I was waiting for some kind of recall. My car is now 5 yrs old but I have gone over 100,000 mi. Ford is blowing this off. They must be aware of this problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #10783277, filed 2015-10, 45,000 miles

   “My Mustang is only 6 years old, mint condition, only 21,800 miles on it currently. Paint is bubbling on the hood, about to start peeling off. After researching this today, I've learned that this is apparently a problem on multiple Ford models, including and beyond the Mustang, and spanning many model years. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10862328, filed 2016-04, 14,100 miles
4. 4
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Manual transmission hard to shift, grinding, popping out of

   Mentioned in 5 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners of manual cars describe difficulty engaging second, third, fourth or reverse, a grinding or knocking noise while shifting, and the shifter shaking or trying to jump out of gear. Complaints mention clutch and slave cylinder replacement, shifter pin work and throttle body replacement, with the problem sometimes continuing after repair. Reported mostly on very low-mileage cars in the sample, from around 200 to 18,000 miles.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Drive the car through every gear from cold and warm, including reverse, and listen for grinding or a knocking shifter. Ask whether the clutch, slave cylinder or shifter components have been replaced and whether any repair resolved the complaint.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I purchased a 2010 Ford Mustang v6 coupe and have had several transmission issues. The hydrolic clutch has been replaced, the slave cylander, throttle body unit, and thermostat have been replaced. My car has difficulty shifting from 1st to 2nd gear, and reverse. I have to coast the car and re-engage the clutch while shifting back and forth to get it into reserve. My transmission sounds like its grinding and the shifter makes a knocking noise. When shifting the car likes to jump foward. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10455416, filed 2012-04, 18,000 miles

   “The contact owns a 2010 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle would make a grinding noise when shifting gears to first and fourth. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, who diagnosed that the pin and shifter needed to be replaced. The failure continued. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, who stated that the transmission, the solenoid, and main computer needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but offered no assistance. The vehicle was repaired. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10418054, filed 2011-08, 200 miles

Buying note. Confirm in writing that both airbag inflators have been replaced under the applicable recalls before buying, since parts availability has been a recurring complaint. On a test drive, check the hood paint for bubbling, work the manual gearbox through every gear, and look for damp carpets or musty smells in the cabin.

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.