1987 FORD MUSTANG — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 38 complaints · 5 recalls
Most-reported system: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM (17 complaints · 44.7%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 2
  • Fires 13
  • Injuries 3
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1986 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution ELECTRICAL SYSTEM appears in 17 of 38 owner complaints (44.7%) in this vehicle snapshot. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 17 complaints, 44.7% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 17 · 44.7% · 9 fire reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 5 complaints, 13.2% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 5 · 13.2% ENGINE: 3 complaints, 7.9% of reports ENGINE 3 · 7.9% · 1 fire reports FUEL SYSTEM: 2 complaints, 5.3% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 2 · 5.3% · 2 fire reports SEAT BELTS: 2 complaints, 5.3% of reports SEAT BELTS 2 · 5.3% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 2 complaints, 5.3% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 · 5.3% POWER TRAIN: 1 complaints, 2.6% of reports POWER TRAIN 1 · 2.6% SERVICE BRAKES: 1 complaints, 2.6% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 2.6% · 1 crash reports STEERING: 1 complaints, 2.6% of reports STEERING 1 · 2.6% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 31 complaints, 81.6% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 · 81.6% · 2 crash reports 11 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 17 44.7% 0 crashes · 9 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 5 13.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 3 7.9% 0 crashes · 1 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 2 5.3% 0 crashes · 2 fires
SEAT BELTS 2 5.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 5.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 1 2.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 1 2.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 1 2.6% 1 crashes · 1 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 81.6% 2 crashes · 11 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1995; the first recall shown was reported in Sep 1987. 1995-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1995-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1995-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1995-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 1996-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 1997-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2001-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Sep 1987 Apr 2020 Recall campaign 87V139000 ◆ Recall campaign 87V139000 Recall campaign 06E049000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E049000 Recall campaign 08E050000 ◆ Recall campaign 08E050000 Recall campaign 09E012000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E012000 Recall campaign 09E025000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E025000 Investigation PE89118 ● Investigation PE89118 Investigation EA89037 ● Investigation EA89037 Investigation PE90052 ● Investigation PE90052 Investigation PE91078 ● Investigation PE91078 Investigation PE91137 ● Investigation PE91137 Investigation PE93011 ● Investigation PE93011
  • Campaign 08E050000 was reported 4,851 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 09E025000 was reported 5,124 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q1 Owner reports 1
1995-Q2 Owner reports 3
1995-Q3 Owner reports 1
1995-Q4 Owner reports 1
1996-Q2 Owner reports 7
1996-Q4 Owner reports 3
1997-Q1 Owner reports 1
1997-Q2 Owner reports 1
1997-Q4 Owner reports 2
1998-Q2 Owner reports 1
1999-Q1 Owner reports 1
1999-Q3 Owner reports 2
1999-Q4 Owner reports 1
2000-Q1 Owner reports 1
2000-Q2 Owner reports 1
2000-Q4 Owner reports 3
2001-Q4 Owner reports 1
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 1
2002-Q4 Owner reports 1
2003-Q1 Owner reports 1
2004-Q2 Owner reports 1
2010-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 87V139000
Recall campaign 1 06E049000
Recall campaign 1 08E050000
Recall campaign 1 09E012000
Recall campaign 1 09E025000
Defect investigation 1 PE89118
Defect investigation 1 EA89037
Defect investigation 1 PE90052
Defect investigation 1 PE91078
Defect investigation 1 PE91137
Defect investigation 1 PE93011
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (5)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E049000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
    Remedy:
    CK MOTORSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE NONCOMPLIANT LAMPS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 1, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CK MOTORSPORT AT 1-909-610-7211.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 08E050000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER SIDE REFLEX REFLECTORS, THE LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY BE AFFECTED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    K2 MOTOR WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND. THE RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMEBER 17, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT K2 MOTOR AT 1-909-839-2992.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E012000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E025000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DOPE, INC. WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 28, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOPE, INC. AT 1-626-272-1798.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 87V139000

    Report date
    Component:
    FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
    Consequence:
    COUPLING COULD DISENGAGE DUE TO FUEL PRESSURE,VIBRATION, AND ENGINE MOVEMENTS; THIS WOULD CAUSE LOSS OF FUEL WHICH, INPRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, CREATES A FIRE RISK.
    Remedy:
    INSTALL RETAINER CLIPS OVER THE COUPLINGS TO PREVENT COUPLING SEPARATION AND FUEL LEAKAGE.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 38 complaints · page 1 of 2

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources