Problems owners report
Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2005 Lincoln Town Car, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.
- Vehicle speed control34
- Air bags22
- Service brakes, hydraulic15
- Seat belts11
- Service brakes9
- Steering8
- Electrical system8
- Structure8
- Engine7
- Power train7
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 18 injuries and 1 deaths reported
Compared with other years
NHTSA ODI complaints by model year
Fatal crashes in the US
From 2020 to 2023, 39 2005 Town Car vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died; 34 people died inside them, and 5 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 Lincoln Town Car failed the safety check 2.09% of the time — 9% less often than the average 2005 passenger car (2.30%). Median odometer at inspection: 117,943 miles.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
In the United Kingdom
10 cars built in 2005 were licensed for the road at the end of 2025, and 7 more were declared off the road (SORN).
Department for Transport and DVLA, vehicle licensing statistics (table VEH0124, year of manufacture) · Open Government Licence v3.0
In Finland
9 of these cars first registered in 2005 were in use in Finland on 30 Jun 2026, with an average of 235,000 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town Car · 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
4 Transport Canada recalls for the 2005 Lincoln Town Car.
| 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,… |
| 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… |
| 2004417 25 Nov 2004 | Lights And Instruments Certain vehicles do not comply with the requirements of CMVSS 108 - Lighting System and Retroreflective Devices. The Daytime Running Lamp (DRL) system was not … |
Transport Canada Vehicle Recalls Database · Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls
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.
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 Lincoln told its dealers about the 2005 Lincoln Town Car: 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 |
| 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 |
| 10032224 | FORD: ENGINE COOLING FAN CONTROL RELAY PART AVAILABILITY. *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 |
| 10022299 | PARKING AID SYSTEM IS INOPERATIVE - DTC C1983. *KB |
| 10020702 | PARKING AID SYSTEM INOPERATIVE - DTC C1983. *KB |
| 10020077 | CATALYTIC CONVERTER BRICK RATTLE OR BUZZING NOISE. *TT |
| 10019374 | MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LAMP ON WITH DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES P0305, P0316, P0171, AND/OR P0174 AFTER EXTENDED IDLE. *TT |
| 10018968 | PARKING AID SYSTEM INOPERATIVE. *AK |
| 10018949 | AUTO RELEASE PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM DIFFICULT TO SET. *TT |
| 10018745 | WDS COP KIT DIAGNOSTIC TIP - COIL ON PLUG (COP) IGNITION SYSTEMS - ENGINE MISFIRE OR ROUGH RUNNING. *TT |
| 10018074 | CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM 05B31 - INFORMATION ONLY. A POSSIBILITY THAT DURING A HIGH SPEED / HIGH ENERGY REAR COLLISION, CERTAIN COMPONENTS HAVE AN INCREASED RISK OF PUNCTURING THE FUEL TANK ON VEHICLES WITH LIMO PREP PACKAGE LIMO PACKAGE UPGRADE KIT OFFERING. *TT SUPPLEMENT #1. *TT UPDATED SUPPLEMENT #2. *TT |
| 10016803 | HIGH EFFORT TO ACTIVATE HORN - VEHICLES BUILT BEFORE 5/6/2005. *TT OASIS. *TT |
| 10014697 | HIGH EFFORT TO ACTIVATE HORN. *EH |
| 10014310 | WELD BONDING PROCEDURE. *TT |
| 10014276 | NUMEROUS ANTI-LOCK BRAKE (ABS) WHEEL SPEED SENSOR (WSS) DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES (DTC'S) C1145, C1155, C1175, C1296, C1297, C1298, C1299 AND C1222. *TT |
| 10014138 | SAFETY BELT RETRACTION SPEED. *TT |
NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)