1996 LINCOLN TOWN CAR — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 255 complaints · 0 recalls
Most-reported system: ENGINE (85 complaints · 33.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 9
  • Fires 11
  • Injuries 6
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1995 →
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 ENGINE appears in 85 of 255 owner complaints (33.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. ENGINE: 85 complaints, 33.3% of reports ENGINE 85 · 33.3% · 2 fire reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 30 complaints, 11.8% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 30 · 11.8% · 4 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 24 complaints, 9.4% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 24 · 9.4% · 1 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 16 complaints, 6.3% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 16 · 6.3% · 1 crash reports 2 fire reports SUSPENSION: 16 complaints, 6.3% of reports SUSPENSION 16 · 6.3% SEAT BELTS: 14 complaints, 5.5% of reports SEAT BELTS 14 · 5.5% STEERING: 14 complaints, 5.5% of reports STEERING 14 · 5.5% · 2 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 13 complaints, 5.1% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 13 · 5.1% FUEL SYSTEM: 8 complaints, 3.1% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 8 · 3.1% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 192 complaints, 75.3% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 192 · 75.3% · 6 crash reports 6 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)
ENGINE 85 33.3% 0 crashes · 2 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 30 11.8% 0 crashes · 4 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 24 9.4% 0 crashes · 1 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 16 6.3% 1 crashes · 2 fires
SUSPENSION 16 6.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 14 5.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 14 5.5% 2 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 13 5.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 8 3.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 192 75.3% 6 crashes · 6 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 Oct 1995. 1995-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1996-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1996-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 1996-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 1997-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 1997-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 1997-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 1997-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 1998-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 1998-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 1998-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 1998-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1999-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2000-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2000-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2001-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2001-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2002-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2002-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2002-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2002-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2003-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2003-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2004-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2004-Q2: 9 owner reports 9 2004-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2004-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2005-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2005-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2006-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2007-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2008-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2008-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2008-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2011-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2011-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2012-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 1995 Jan 2023 Investigation SQ01014 ● Investigation SQ01014 Investigation DP02007 ● Investigation DP02007 Investigation EA02025 ● Investigation EA02025 Investigation RQ03002 ● Investigation RQ03002 Investigation RQ03004 ● Investigation RQ03004 Investigation EA03012 ● Investigation EA03012
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q4 Owner reports 2
1996-Q1 Owner reports 2
1996-Q2 Owner reports 1
1996-Q3 Owner reports 6
1996-Q4 Owner reports 5
1997-Q1 Owner reports 6
1997-Q2 Owner reports 6
1997-Q3 Owner reports 5
1997-Q4 Owner reports 8
1998-Q1 Owner reports 4
1998-Q2 Owner reports 7
1998-Q3 Owner reports 3
1998-Q4 Owner reports 1
1999-Q1 Owner reports 2
1999-Q2 Owner reports 3
1999-Q3 Owner reports 5
1999-Q4 Owner reports 4
2000-Q1 Owner reports 3
2000-Q3 Owner reports 1
2000-Q4 Owner reports 2
2001-Q1 Owner reports 5
2001-Q2 Owner reports 1
2001-Q3 Owner reports 3
2001-Q4 Owner reports 6
2002-Q1 Owner reports 4
2002-Q2 Owner reports 4
2002-Q3 Owner reports 6
2002-Q4 Owner reports 9
2003-Q1 Owner reports 6
2003-Q2 Owner reports 5
2003-Q3 Owner reports 5
2003-Q4 Owner reports 10
2004-Q1 Owner reports 13
2004-Q2 Owner reports 9
2004-Q3 Owner reports 8
2004-Q4 Owner reports 5
2005-Q1 Owner reports 4
2005-Q2 Owner reports 4
2005-Q3 Owner reports 6
2005-Q4 Owner reports 3
2006-Q1 Owner reports 1
2006-Q2 Owner reports 3
2006-Q3 Owner reports 5
2006-Q4 Owner reports 1
2007-Q2 Owner reports 1
2007-Q3 Owner reports 8
2007-Q4 Owner reports 5
2008-Q1 Owner reports 8
2008-Q2 Owner reports 8
2008-Q3 Owner reports 1
2009-Q1 Owner reports 1
2009-Q2 Owner reports 2
2009-Q4 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 1
2010-Q4 Owner reports 1
2011-Q1 Owner reports 2
2011-Q3 Owner reports 3
2012-Q2 Owner reports 1
2013-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q3 Owner reports 1
2014-Q4 Owner reports 1
2015-Q1 Owner reports 1
2016-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q3 Owner reports 1
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
Defect investigation 1 SQ01014
Defect investigation 1 DP02007
Defect investigation 1 EA02025
Defect investigation 1 RQ03002
Defect investigation 1 RQ03004
Defect investigation 1 EA03012
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (0)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

Zero safety recalls recorded for this model year in official NHTSA 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.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 255 complaints · page 1 of 11

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 Aug 21, 2026
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