2003 Ford Mustang GT problems & reliability
51 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2003 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.
4 complaints report injuries (4 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Power Train → | 15 | 29% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling → | 11 | 22% |
| Seat Belts | 6 | 12% |
| Electrical System | 5 | 10% |
| Seats | 3 | 6% |
| Unknown OR Other | 3 | 6% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 2 | 4% |
| Steering | 2 | 4% |
| Air Bags | 1 | 2% |
| Electronic Stability Control | 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 14,490 miles (middle 50% between 2,173 and 33,750 miles), based on 34 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Takata recall passenger seat belt locked up now drivers side seat belt acting up and hard to retract in and out as well.”
Seat Belts · filed May 2, 2018
“Driver side seat belt gets twisted and wont retract and gets shut in door if you don't pay attention, passenger side seat belt is stuck and wont come out or work at all. *tr”
Seat Belts · filed Dec 14, 2013
“Tl*the contact owns a 2003 ford mustang gt. While driving approximately 35 mph on normal road conditions, suddenly, the front driver seat collapsed in a backward position. The contact was able to continue driving with caution. The contact was able to drive the onto the emergency lane and adjust the seat onto the…”
Seats · filed Feb 5, 2010
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
- ACCELERATOR PEDAL INTERFERENCE
Preliminary Evaluation PE05038 · opened Jul 7, 2005 · closed Sep 13, 2005
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 2003 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 2003 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 14,490 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.