2012 Ford Mustang problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Air Bags (147) · Power Train (137) · Vehicle Speed Control (35)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Ford Mustang model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
307 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (7)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-16 · campaign 21E013000 · 249 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain air bag inflator and/or module replacement service parts that may have been used as part of a collision repair. The parts include certain driver-side air bag inflators and/or modules, designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang and Mustang GT500. It also includes certain passenger-side air bag inflators and/or modules designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang, 2010-2012 Lincoln MKZ, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion, 2010-2011 Mercury Milan, 2007-2011 Ford Ranger, an
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the frontal air bag, an inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Ford will notify dealers that purchased the affected parts, and dealers will provide replacement parts to purchasers, free of charge. The recall began March 18, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2021-02-16 · campaign 21V081000 · 1,067 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2005-2014 Mustang, 2004-2011 Ranger, 2009-2011 Mercury Milan, 2006 Ford GT, 2008-2012 Fusion, 2007-2010 Edge and Lincoln MKX, and 2009-2010 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. These vehicles may be equipped with a driver or passenger frontal air bag inflator used as a replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the frontal air bag, an inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver and passenger air bag module, and replace either the module or the inflator, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2019-01-07 · campaign 19V001000 · 782,384 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles and 2011-2014 Ford Mustang ve
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall 19S01.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2017-01-10 · campaign 17V024000 · 654,695 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012 Ford Fusion and Mustang and Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Ford is recalling certain 2009 Ford Ranger, Edge, Fusion and Mustang, Lincoln MKX, MKZ
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. Interim letters informing owners of the recall and that parts are not yet available began mailing March 1, 2017. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S01.
Power Train:automatic Transmission 2016-04-27 · campaign 16V248000 · 153,581 vehicles
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Ford F-150 trucks, 2012 Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, and Ford Mustang vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with an automatic transmission that may unexpectedly downshift to first gear, regardless of vehicle speed.
Risk: An unexpected downshift into first gear can cause the vehicle to slow down suddenly without warning and the rear tires may slide or lock, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the powertrain control module with updated software, free of charge. The recall began on September 19, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S19.
Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module 2015-05-28 · campaign 15V319000 · 1,018,622 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2005-2014 Mustang vehicles manufactured April 6, 2004, to June 21, 2014, and 2005-2006 GT vehicles manufactured February 20, 2004, to September 22, 2006. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver side air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on June 10, 2016. Even if interim repairs were performed under safety recall 14V-802, owners must bring their vehicles in for the final remedy. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S21. Note: This recall supersedes safety rec
Exterior Lighting:back Up Lights 2012-05-03 · campaign 12V190000 · 10,500 vehicles
Defect: FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011-2012 FORD F-150, 2012 EXPEDITION AND LINCOLN NAVIGATOR, AND 2012-2013 MUSTANG VEHICLES, FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NOS. 102, "TRANSMISSION SHIFT LEVER SEQUENCE, STARTER INTERLOCK, AND TRANSMISSION BRAKING EFFECT" AND 108 LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT. THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE A TRANSMISSION RANGE SENSOR (TRS) THAT WAS CALIBRATED OUT OF SPECIFICATION FOR REVERSE GEAR.
Risk: IF THIS CONDITION EXISTS, THE TRANSMISSION MAY NOT GO INTO REVERSE OR WHEN THE DRIVER PUSHES THE SHIFT LEVER IN THE REVERSE R POSITION AND THE VEHICLES TRANSMISSION DOES GO IN REVERSE, THE R MAY NOT ILLUMINATE ON THE DASHBOARD OF THE F-150, EXPEDITION, OR NAVIGATOR MODELS AND/OR THE BACKUP LAMP ON THE REAR OF THE F-150, EXPEDITION, NAVIGATOR, OR MUSTANG VEHICLES MAY NOT ILLUMINATE. THESE CON
Fix: FORD WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE TRS AS NECESSARY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 11, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332.
Service bulletins (62)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-29 · 25H05 S1 · Other
harvest program 25h05 – supplement #1 certain 2011-2021 model year vehicles software verification harvest program
Unknown Or Other 2026-02-24 · SSM 54601 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
ford and lincoln vehicles equipped with wired keyless entry keypad systems and accessory wireless keyless entry keypad systems may or may not come with a wallet card containing the master code. unlike the integrated wired keypad, the accessory wireless keypad master code cannot be retrieved from the
Unknown Or Other 2025-11-19 · 25H05 · Other
this is a proactive investigation program by ford motor company to inspect a limited number of affected vehicles that are customer-owned. ford is voluntarily conducting this program to evaluate the software currently installed on one or more electronic modules in the affected vehicles.
Unknown Or Other 2024-10-10 · SSM 53040 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
while performing a transmission repair on some 2012-2024 ford and lincoln vehicles, a transmission seal kit may be on backorder due to supply chain interruptions.
Equipment 2024-04-24 · SSM 52476 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
all accessory stick-on keyless entry keypads come with a wallet card containing the master code. if the accessory keypad was factory installed, this card will be placed in the glove box and should be handed to the vehicle s owner during initial delivery. unlike the integrated (wired) factory keypad,
Engine And Engine Cooling 2024-03-06 · SSM 52334 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some 2011-2024 mustang and f-150 vehicles equipped with a 5.0l engine may exhibit a tick tap and/or typewriter ticking noise at idle after an engine oil change. it is often referred to as typewriter noise because of its similarity to the sound of a mechanical typewriter. the noise in question may be
Showing the 6 most recent of 62 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-04-29 · Air Bags“i am the owner of a 2012 ford mustang gt currently located in kuwait. my vehicle has an open takata airbag safety recall, which is a life-threatening defect. i contacted the authorized ford dealer in kuwait and ford middle east, but both refused to perform the recall repair, stating that the vehicle is a “gray market import” and not eligible. th…”
2025-06-09 · Visibility:rear Window Wiper/Washer:motor · 56,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 ford mustang. the contact stated while driving at various speeds, the front windshield wipers independently activated. there were no warning lights illuminated. additionally, the contact stated that the front windshield wiper fluid reservoir failed to drain the excess water as intended. the local dealer was contacted; howeve…”
2025-06-05 · Unknown Or Other“down shifting in to first and reverse problems nothing wrong with transmission …”
2025-03-17 · Air Bags“i bought the car on dec 20th 2024. the dealership informed me of the recall and turned off the passenger side airbag. i returned to the dealership as scheduled about 2 weeks later. when i went to pick up my car after work the service center said they couldn't fix the problem because the airbag didn't exist and sent me on my way. i tried calling the…”
2025-02-08 · Vehicle Speed Control“speedometer went to zero while driving and seemed to be in neutral. could not accelerate. also low fuel warning light came on when i had a full tank. after car was shut off and restarted speedometer seemed fine for about 1 mile, then self accelerated. now continues to read zero and can not accelerate unless i restart engine. …”
2024-10-16 · Power Train“transmission seems to lose power while driving, the car will barely pull itself but the rpms increase if i accelerate. this has happened several times while driving and occasionally there are dash lights lighting and speedometer/gas gauge doesn’t work but that doesn’t happen every time. when it happens i pull over and shut it down and restart and i…”
2024-09-17 · Visibility/Wiper“windshield wipers turn on randomly and will not stay on when switch is on, also sprays washer fluid on windshield randomly and wipers do not work making it a very dangerous driving hazard…”
2024-05-13 · Power Train · 180,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 ford mustang. the contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle started stalling. the contact pulled over to the side of the road; however, the vehicle failed to restart. the vehicle was towed to the dealer and was diagnosed with transmission range sensor failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the contact d…”
2024-02-20 · Vehicle Speed Control“recently started having erratic shifting issues. will downshift randomly out of nowhere while driving. sometimes will just be stuck in 1st gear and won’t go anywhere until i pull over and shut off/start up again. dangerous because i never know when it will do it. might seem like everything is fine and then all of a sudden, it downshifts and loses …”
2023-11-16 · Power Train“the transmission down shifted to first gear and the rear tires locked up. skidding on the highway.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.