1990 Mercury Cougar problems & reliability
86 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1990 Mercury Cougar. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 19 | 22% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 18 | 21% |
| Seat Belts | 15 | 17% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 9 | 10% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 9 | 10% |
| Exterior Lighting | 5 | 6% |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 5 | 6% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 4 | 5% |
| Steering | 4 | 5% |
| Visibility | 4 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Seat belt doesn't stay locked and latch broke, automatic head lights don't work the digital instrument cluster don't work and as soon as is gets so hot it vaper locks a lot”
Exterior Lighting · filed Jul 19, 2018
“After starting vehicle flickering on off of dash lights,panel completely out and now will not come back on,creating an issue driving,unable to see speed,milage gas usage,when checking under hood I was given an electrical shock,the motor was running,immediately turned off motor”
Electrical System · filed Sep 19, 2017
“Heavy traffic on state highway engine overheating alarm activated,incident has occured twice,in traffic,everything had to be turned off and I had to pull off of highway, other complaint dash panel lights out with definitely electrical issue,almost will not start,this occured while driving and now eill not come back on…”
Engine · filed Sep 18, 2017
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- FAULTY SEATBELT BUCKLES
Preliminary Evaluation PE95019 · opened Mar 27, 1995 · closed Jul 31, 1995
- THRTTL VLV LINKAGE BUSHING
Engineering Analysis EA93033 · opened Dec 30, 1993 · closed Dec 30, 1994
- THRTTL VLV LINKAGE BUSHING
Preliminary Evaluation PE93075 · opened Aug 30, 1993 · closed Dec 30, 1993
- HOOD LATCHES FAIL
Engineering Analysis EA90034 · opened Jun 26, 1990 · closed Feb 25, 1992
- HOOD LATCHES FAIL
Preliminary Evaluation PE90073 · opened Apr 11, 1990 · closed Jun 26, 1990
Technical service bulletins
33 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1990 Mercury Cougar. The 10 most recent:
Information regarding transmission fluid usage charts. *slc
01157 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 6, 2001
Some vehicles may exhibit heater core leaks. *slc
01156 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 6, 2001
Subject regarding contamination from prior transmission concerns or excess wear may be trapped in the transmission fluid cooling system. *tt
002310 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 13, 2000
Subject regarding climate control - eatc - blower motor control service tips. *jb
00213 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 16, 2000
Information regarding the new transmission cooler flusher- service tip. *mjs
0015 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 10, 2000
Subject on a wire harness terminal repair kit available for repairing electrical wiring harnesses. *tt
99222 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 18, 1999
Information on identifying non-approved / alternate refrigerants which could cause safety, and performance concerns if installed in ford a/c systems. *tt
99196 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 20, 1999
Information on the new flush and fill tool available through rotunda. *tt
99152 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 26, 1999
Experiencing a whine / buzz type noise in the speakers of the entertainment radio or two-way radio on vehicles with an in-tank electric fuel pump. *tt
99129 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 14, 1999
Ford motor company now recommends sae 5w-30 viscosity grade for servicing any ford gasoline-powered vehicle regardless of model year. *tt
99816 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 3, 1999
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 1990 Mercury Cougar 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 1990 Mercury Cougar?
- · 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.