Total Complaints
3 filings
FORD UTILITY VAN XH · model year
3 NHTSA complaints for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1998FORDUTILITY VAN XH carries 3 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, 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 1998 UTILITY VAN XH is steering with 1 filings, followed by latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch (1) and electrical system:wiring:interior/under dash (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 1998 UTILITY VAN XH, 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
3 filings
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| STEERING | 1 |
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:INTERIOR/UNDER DASH | 1 |
DOOR AJAR LIGHT REMAINS ON AFTER DOOR IS CLOSED AND DRAINS BATTERY BY THE DOME LIGHTS STAYING ON OVER NIGHT. *AK
THE CHIMING OF THE DOORS BEING OPEN DOES NOT TURN OFF, ITS AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM. THE DOORS WIL NOT LOCK BECAUSE IT THINKS THE DOOR ARE OPEN. *AK
Mileage: 74,000
WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH, THE DRIVER NOTICED THAT THE STEERING WHEEL WAS LOOSE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION. THE MECHANIC INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT THE STEERING FRAME NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER DETAILS. *JB
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.