Problems owners report
Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.
- Exterior lighting99
- Steering36
- Electrical system21
- Power train14
- Vehicle speed control11
- Engine8
- Seat belts7
- Air bags6
- Visibility5
- Fuel system, gasoline5
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 10 injuries and 1 deaths reported
Compared with other years
NHTSA ODI complaints by model year
Fatal crashes in the US
From 2020 to 2023, 23 2005 Crown Victoria vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died; 18 people died inside them, and 3 of the vehicles rolled over. This is a count, not a crash rate: it grows with the number of cars on the road.
NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), crash years 2020–2023 (public domain)
New York safety inspections
At its first New York inspection the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria failed the safety check 1.58% of the time — 31% less often than the average 2005 passenger car (2.30%). Median odometer at inspection: 115,973 miles.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
In the United Kingdom
1 cars built in 2005 were licensed for the road at the end of 2025.
Department for Transport and DVLA, vehicle licensing statistics (table VEH0124, year of manufacture) · Open Government Licence v3.0
In Finland
6 of these cars first registered in 2005 were in use in Finland on 30 Jun 2026, with an average of 164,000 km on the odometer at their last inspection.
Traficom (Finnish Transport and Communications Agency), open data on vehicles in use · CC BY 4.0
Fuel consumption
Official Canadian test results for 1 variant: combined 12.7 L/100 km (about 19 mpg US), CO₂ 292 g/km.
| Variant | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crown Victoria · Full-size · Regular gasoline | 14.7 | 10.2 | 12.7 |
Litres per 100 km. Natural Resources Canada, Fuel consumption ratings (open.canada.ca) · Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls in Canada
6 Transport Canada recalls for the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria.
| 2015610 21 Dec 2015 | Electrical On certain vehicles, a defect in the Lighting Control Module could cause the headlight high and low beams to become inoperative without warning, causing the hea… |
| 2014502 5 Nov 2014 | Steering Certain vehicles serviced as part of recall 2013-287 (13S08) or special service campaign 13R01 may require re-inspection and repair. The service procedure may h… |
| 2013287 27 Aug 2013 | Steering On certain vehicles originally sold or currently registered in areas of heavy road salt usage during winter months (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia,… |
| 2007055 2 Mar 2007 | Wheels The wheels of certain Police Interceptor vehicles may crack, particularly when exposed to severe loading in high speed pursuit situations. Often cracked wheels… |
| 2005350 8 Nov 2005 | Electrical On certain vehicles, the positive battery cable may come in contact with the #2 cross member attaching bolt. During normal vehicle operation, the insulation ma… |
| 2005146 16 May 2005 | Other On certain Police Interceptors and Commercial Heavy Duty (Taxi) vehicles, the dash outer sound insulator could sag and possibly contact the surface of the light… |
Transport Canada Vehicle Recalls Database · Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2003-2005 Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis vehicles manufactured October 3, 2001, to August 2, 2005. The affected vehicles have a lighting control module (LCM) that may fail, resulting in a loss of headlights.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 Ford Crown Victoria, 2005-2011 Mercury Grand Marquis vehicles manufactured March 23, 2004, to August 30, 2011, and 2005-2011 Lincoln Town Car vehicles manufactured March 8, 2004, to August 30, 2011, and on which the upper intermediate shaft was serviced during the course of safety recall 13V-385. The prior repairs may not have been correctly performed.
Ford is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 Ford Crown Victoria (including Crown Victoria Police Interceptors), Mercury Grand Marquis, and Lincoln Town Car vehicles. The affected vehicles are currently registered or were originally sold in Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Severe corrosion can seize the lower intermediate shaft which may cause the upper intermediate shaft to collapse and the steering column lower bearing to separate.
ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE BATTERY CABLE INCLUDES A FUSIBLE LINK THAT MAY CONTACT AND SUBSEQUENTLY CHAFE ON A #2 CROSS MEMBER ATTACHING BOLT.
ON CERTAIN POLICE INTERCEPTORS (CVPI) AND COMMERCIAL HEAVY DUTY (TAXI) VEHICLES, AT EXTREMELY HIGH OPERATING TEMPERATURES, THE SOUND INSULATING PANEL, LOCATED UNDER THE VEHICLE POSITIONED BETWEEN THE EXHAUST SYSTEM AND THE UNDERBODY, COULD SAG AND POSSIBLY CONTACT THE SURFACE OF THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER.
Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words
Service bulletins
What Ford told its dealers about the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria: known faults, fixes and updates.
| Bulletin | Summary |
|---|---|
| 10205037 | Inpected or repaired under 13R01 - Requests for recall service action under 13S08 |
| 10183773 | For 2005-2012 Crown Victoria, 2005-2011 Grand Marquis and Town Car vehicles, Regional Program 13R01 applies to vehicles not registered in corrosion states and not included in Safety Recall 13S08, where operation in high corrosion areas for an extended period may lead to corrosion in the lower intermediate steering shaft swing link. This may result in a compressed upper intermediate steering shaft and separation from the steering column, which can result in a loss of steering control. Vehicles covered under 13R01 that were inspected or repaired without replacement of the lower intermediate shaf |
| 10177863 | This article supersedes TSB 19-2026 to update the vehicle model years affected. Some 2000 and newer Ford/Lincoln/Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white dust. Panel replacement is recommended. |
| 10156863 | Some 2000 and newer Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white dust. Panel replacement is recommended. Follow the Service Procedure steps to correct the condition |
| 10155551 | Some 2000 and newer Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles equipped with aluminum body panels may exhibit corrosion concerns appearing as bubbled and/or peeling paint with or without accompanying white dust. Panel replacement is recommended. Follow the Service Procedure steps to correct the condition |
| 10109070 | The Powertrain Control/Emissions Diagnosis (PC/ED) manual has been revised for diagnosing electronic throttle bodies (ETBs). The ETC_ACT and ETC_DSD PIDs should not used to diagnose possible ETB concerns. The IDS has a limited refresh rate when reading these PIDs and cannot display quickly enough to validate a concern. The PCM automatically monitors these inputs more accurately and will set diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) when appropriate. Using these PIDs for diagnostics will lead to inaccurate results and improper ETB replacements. If a concern is intermittent and no DTCs are present, refer |
| 10074793 | SUMMARY TO BE PROVIDED ON A FUTURE DATE. |
| 10056190 | FORD: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. INFORMATION REGARDING THE LIGHTING CONTROL MODULE EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE, FOR SOME VEHICLES, TO 15 YEARS OR 250,000 MILES, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST. MODEL 2003-2005 VICTORIA, GRAND MARQUIS. *PE |
| 10055936 | FORD: THE LIGHTING CONTROL MODULE HAS EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE, ON CERTAIN VEHICLES, DUE TO A POSSIBLE CRACK ON SOLDER JOINT THAT CONNECTS RELAY TO CIRCUIT BOARD. MODEL 2003-2005 CROWN VICTORIA, GRAND MARQUIS. *PE |
| 10054924 | FORD: THE LOWER INTERMEDIATE STEERING SHAFT, HAS CORROSION OF SWING LINK JOINTS, COMBINED WITH COLLAPSED UPPER INTERMEDIATE STEERING SHAFT, RESULTING IN STEERING COLUMN SEPARATION AND LOSS OF STEERING CONTROL. MODEL 2005-2011 CROWN VICTORIA, GRAND MARQUIS, TOWN CAR. *PE UPDATED 04/23/14 *LJ UPDATED 07/10/15 *TA UPDATED 7/15/15 *TA |
| 10054006 | FORD: SWING LINK JOINTS ON LOWER INTERMEDIATE STEERING SHAFT, HAS CORROSION, AND COMBINED WITH COLLAPSED UPPER INTERMEDIATE STEERING SHAFT, ON SOME VEHICLES, CAUSES STEERING COLUMN TO SEPARATE, LEADING TO STEERING CONTROL LOSS. MODEL 2005-2011 CROWN VICTORIA, GRAND MARQUIS, TOWN CAR. *PE |
| 10045340 | FORD/LINCOLN/MERCURY: IF BATTERY WAS DISCONNECTED OR DEAD, VEHICLES/TRUCKS MAY EXPERIENCE HARD STARTS AND ENGINE IDLE RPM FLUCTUATION AND EXHIBIT DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES (DTCS) P0505, P0506, P2111 AND P2112. *PE |
| 10029205 | FORD/MERCURY/LINCOLN: VEHICLES MAY EXHIBIT ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING SYMPTOMS: DRIVE AWAY HESITATION, LOSS OF RPM ON DECELERATION, DIFFICULTY STARTING, AND/OR IDLE RPM LESS THAN DESIRED. THE F53 MOTORHOME CHASSIS IS INCLUDED. *PE |
| 10023943 | SOME 1997-2008 VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A 4.6L 2V, 5.4L 2V, OR 6.8L 2V ENGINE--SPARK PLUG THREAD REPAIR PROCEDURE--NOT COVERED UNDER NEW VEHICLE LIMITED WARRANTY. *NJ THIS INCLUDES F-53 MOTORHOME CHASSIS. UPDATED 2/23/10. *PE |
| 10023864 | MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LAMP (MIL) ON--DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODE (DTC) P2106 AND P061B--POLICE INTERCEPTOR BUILT BEFORE 10/19/2007. *NJ |
| 10022298 | REDUCTION IN POWER AT WIDE OPEN THROTTLE. *KB |
| 10020676 | UN-COMMANDED TCC APPLY ON THE 1-2 SHIFT CAUSING PERCEPTION OF HESITATION AND/OR LACK OF POWER DURING SHIFT. *KB |
| 10020077 | CATALYTIC CONVERTER BRICK RATTLE OR BUZZING NOISE. *TT |
| 10019391 | EXTENDED COVERAGE PROGRAM FOR FORWARD CLUTCH CYLINDER IN THE TRANSMISSION MAY CRACK AT THE SNAP RING GROOVE LOCATION CAUSING A LOSS OF CLUTCH CAPACITY AND THE EVENTUAL LOSS OF FORWARD GEARS. *TT SUPPLEMENT #2, OWNER NOTIFICATION. *TT SUPPLEMENT #4. *KB |
| 10019389 | THE FORWARD CLUTCH CYLINDER IN THE TRANSMISSION MAY CRACK AT THE SNAP RING GROOVE LOCATION CAUSING LOSS OF CLUTCH CAPACITY AND THE EVENTUAL LOSS OF FORWARD GEARS. CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM 06B36. *TT SUPPLEMENT #1. *TT SUPPLEMENT #2. *KB SUPPLEMENT #3. *KB |
| 10019374 | MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LAMP ON WITH DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES P0305, P0316, P0171, AND/OR P0174 AFTER EXTENDED IDLE. *TT |
| 10018955 | LIGHT STEERING EFFORTS AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. *TT |
| 10018949 | AUTO RELEASE PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM DIFFICULT TO SET. *TT |
| 10018943 | PARKING BRAKE CONTROL SLOW TO RELEASE, VEHICLES BUILT FROM 12/06/2004 THROUGH 11/21/2005. *TT |
| 10018748 | DRIVER'S SEAT CUSHION SAGGING. *TT |
NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)
NHTSA investigations
Loss of headlights
Loss of headlamp/exterior lighting
Steering Column Shaft Obstruction
Loss of Steering Control
Loss of Steering Control
LOSS OF HEADLIGHT FUNCTION
FRACTURE OF THE STEEL WHEEL RIM
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation