Total Complaints
9 filings
FORD MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE · model year
9 NHTSA complaints, 1 crash report for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1996FORDMUSTANG CONVERTIBLE carries 9 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 1 crash, 0 fires, 1 injury, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 1996 MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE is air bags with 2 filings, followed by suspension:rear (1) and seat belts (1). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 177 investigation files overlapping the 1996 MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE, and 8 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
Total Complaints
9 filings
Crashes Reported
1 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| AIR BAGS | 2 |
| SUSPENSION:REAR | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS | 1 |
| SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:RECLINER | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 1 |
| TIRES | 1 |
| POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE | 1 |
AIR BAG LIGHT COMES ON IT REALLY SCARY IT'S BEEN GOING SINCE 05/1/2010 AND TODAY 02/08/2018
Mileage: 158,000
FORD MUSTANG GT CONVERTIBLE '96 - WHILE HEADING HOME ME AND MY FAMILY WERE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD GOING ABOUT 50 MPH. IT WAS A CLEAR SUNNY DAY, 85 DEGREES OUTSIDE WITH NO CHANCE OF RAIN. WE HAD THE WINDOWS AND TOP UP AC GOING. MY FIANCE, THE DRIVER, STARTED SMELLING WATER COMING FROM THE VENTS AND ASKED IF I COULD, BUT I COULDN'T SMELL THE SCENT OF WATER. A FEW SECONDS LATER IT STARTED TO GET SMOKEY INSIDE THE CAR SO HE STARTED TO SLOW DOWN TO PULL OVER AND THE SMOKE GOT THICKER. AS SOON AS WE CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP THE PASSENGER AIR BAG JUST DEPLOYED! WE WERE THE ONLY CAR ON THE ROAD AT THE TIME, WE DIDN'T HIT ANYTHING OR ANYONE... NOT EVEN A POTHOLE! I GO HIT HARD LEAVING BURNS AND BRUISES UNDERNEATH MY CHIN, ON MY ABDOMEN AND ARMS... I WAS 3 WEEKS AWAY FROM GIVING BIRTH! *TR
Mileage: 125,000
VIBRATION ON MY 1996 MUSTANG GT CONVERTIBLE BETWEEN 60-80 MPH TOOK TO DEALER SAID I NEEDED NEW TIRES BEFORE THEY COULD CHECK COULD NOT AFFORD THE TIRES AT THAT TIME GOT NEW TIRES AND BROUGHT TO DEALER AGAIN AND SAID IT WAS OUT OF WARRANTY BUT WAS TOLD EARLIER THAT IT WAS COVERED UNDER RECALL TRIED TO ARGUE BUT THEY WANTED TO CHARGE ME FOR A RECALL AND I GOT ANGRY AND LEFT!!!! CAN YOU HELP? *TR
VIBRATION ON MY 1996 MUSTANG GT CONVERTIBLE BETWEEN 60-80 MPH TOOK TO DEALER SAID I NEEDED NEW TIRES BEFORE THEY COULD CHECK COULD NOT AFFORD THE TIRES AT THAT TIME GOT NEW TIRES AND BROUGHT TO DEALER AGAIN AND SAID IT WAS OUT OF WARRANTY BUT WAS TOLD EARLIER THAT IT WAS COVERED UNDER RECALL TRIED TO ARGUE BUT THEY WANTED TO CHARGE ME FOR A RECALL AND I GOT ANGRY AND LEFT!!!! CAN YOU HELP? *TR
INLET MANIFOLD COOLANT TRANSFER PASSAGE ON MY 1996 FORD MUSTANG WITH 4.6L 2V FAILED. AS THIS OCCURRED AT SPEED AND RESULTED IN OBSCURED FORWARD VISION, IT CREATED SOME HAZARD - AS WELL AS THE SUBSEQUENT INCONVENIENCE OF AN IMMOBILE VEHICLE. THIS FAULT HAS BEEN SUBJECT TO CLASS ACTION IN THE USA, BUT A SIGNIFICANT PROPORTION OF AFFECTED VEHICLES, INCLUDING MINE, HAVE BEEN EXCLUDED ON BASIS OF AGE. THE FLAMING FORD WEBSITE HAS REQUESTED THESE INCIDENTS BE REPORTED VIA YOURSELVES. *JB
Mileage: 49,000
DRIVING AND MADE A TURN, CAR WENT OUT OF CONTROL AS IF A TIRE BLEW OUT SPUN AND DID 360 TURN JUMPED A CURB, SMASHED INTO A POLE. ATTEMPTED TO STOP CAR AND TURN OFF IGNITION BUT CAR WOULDN'T STOP UNTIL 3RD ATTEMPT! ATTEMPTED TO START CAR BACK UP YET CAR KEPT ACCELERATING AND REVVING EVEN THOUGH CAR WAS IN PARK AND NO ONE WAS PRESSING THE GAS IT KEPT REVVING AS IF THE GAS PEDAL WAS STUCK. HAD CAR TOWED AND MECHANIC SAID COMPUTER CHIP IN CAR MALFUNCTIONED ENGAGED IN CRUISE CONTROL WHICH IS WHY MY ATTEMPTS OF GAINING CONTROL OF CAR FAILED. CAR IS TOTALED DUE TO WHEN IT JUMPED CURB IT TORE UP THE SUSPENSION AMONG OTHER THINGS AND CAR IS NOT DRIVABLE UNTIL AT LEAST $ 1500 IS PAID FOR DAMAGES JUST TO THE UNDERCARRIAGE OF CAR NOT INCLUDING THE DAMAGE TO SIDE OF CAR THAT SMASHED INTO THE POLE.*JB
THE DRIVER SEAT TRACK IN MY 1996 MUSTANG GT CONVERTIBLE BROKE AT THE WELDS ON THE LEFT SIDE RESULTING IN THE SEAT LEANING AS I GO AROUND TURNS WHICH COULD HAVE RESULTED IN LOSS OF CONTROL. THE SEAT TRACK PARTS NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE SEAT IS A POWER SEAT. THERE WERE NO EVENTS LEADING UPTO FAILURE. AS I WAS GOING AROUND A TURN AT 20 MPH THE BOTH SNAPPED. I WEIGH 215 LBS.*AK
Mileage: 86,000
THE PASSENGER AND REAR SEAT BELTS BECAME JAMMED AND WILL NOT STRETCH TO BUCKLE INTO IT'S LATCH. I HAD THE CAR A SHORT TIME BEFORE THE BELTS WERE INOPERABLE. THESE SEAT BELTS WERE ONLY USED OCCASIONALLY BEFORE THEY BECAME INOPERABLE. *NLM
Mileage: 52,000
1996 FORD MUSTANG GT CONVT. ---REAR SWAY BAR BROKEN AT ATACH POINT ON RIGHT SIDE JUST AHEAD OF REAR AXLE. CAR HAS NEVER BEEN IN COLLISION, SNOW WHERE SALT MIGHT HAVE CAUSED CORROSION, DOESN'T HAVE ANY NOTICABLE CORROSION, AND SWAY BAR HAS NEVER COLLIDED WITH ANY ROAD HAZZARDS...IT JUST SNAPPED.
Mileage: 105,060
Unintended Transmission Downshift and Rear Wheel Lock-up
Timing Belt Failure
Underbody shields detachment
B-Pillar Trim Detachment
Unintended Transmission Downshift and Rear Wheel Lock-up
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.