1998 Ford Mustang GT problems & reliability
53 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1998 Ford Mustang GT. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
2 complaints report injuries (2 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Engine and Engine Cooling → | 44 | 83% |
| Seat Belts | 2 | 4% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 2 | 4% |
| Electrical System | 1 | 2% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 2% |
| Interior Lighting | 1 | 2% |
| Parking Brake | 1 | 2% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 2% |
| Structure | 1 | 2% |
| Suspension | 1 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 82,000 miles (middle 50% between 60,000 and 94,000 miles), based on 37 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“The plastic intake manifold cracked and leaked coolant onto the engine and other related components. Car died on freeway. The plastic intake manifold cracks. The coolant will leak onto the top of the block and then down the back of the engine. This intake design is a known defect by ford. Below is an "owner…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Feb 2, 2012
“While driving on the interstate at 65mph, the intake manifold cracked, spraying coolant and steam from the hot engine out the back of the hood. This covered the windshield, causing me to lose all visibility. This is very dangerous, had there been something in front of me, I would have caused an accident. I see that…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Sep 3, 2010
“Intake manifold failure on 1998 ford mustang gt / 4.6l / 2v per class action suit us district court / northern district of california. *tr”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Nov 29, 2007
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD
Defect Petition DP05005 · opened Sep 22, 2005 · closed Jan 4, 2006
Technical service bulletins
5 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1998 Ford Mustang GT.
Some vehicles with manual transmission or with automatic transmission may exhibit a front end accessory drive (fead) belt that has become broken or frayed and / or detach from the engine. *tt
13950 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2001
Some vehicles equipped with manual transmission and with automatic transmission may exhibit a front end accessory drive (fead) belt that has become broken or frayed and / or detach from the engine. *tt
8278 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 1, 2000
Some vehicles equipped with manual transmission and with automatic transmission may exhibit a front end accessory drive (fead) belt that has become broken or frayed and / or detach from the engine. *tt
13950 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2000
Some vehicles with manual and automatic transmissions may exhibit a front end accessory drive (fead) belt that has become broken or frayed and / or detached from the engine. *tt
8278 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2000
Some vehicles with a t-45 transmission may shift from 4th to neutral (pop out) when the clutch is released. *tt
11504 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 1, 1998
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 1998 Ford Mustang GT in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1998 Ford Mustang GT?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 82,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.