2000 Ford Mustang Power Train
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
The contact owns a 1965 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle unintendedly reversed on an incline of a parking lot and struck another parked unoccupied vehicle. There was no injury sustained. The contact stated that the vehicle was not designed with air bags. The vehicle sustained fenders, bumpers, and paint damage. The contact was able to drive to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the transmission had unintendedly shifted from park(P) to reverse(R). The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000. The VIN was not available.
I HAVE PURCHASED A USED 2000 FORD MUSTANG AND TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT THE TRANSMISSION WILL NOT GO INTO GEAR UNLESS I REV THE RPMS UP VERY HIGH AND I AM INTERESTED IN KEEPING THIS VEHICLE SO I LOOKED ON LINE AND FOUND THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR, I HAVE WENT FROM SITE TO SITE, I DON'T MIND PAYING FOR THE REPAIR IF NEED BE, BUT THIS IS DANGEROUS, I DON'T WANT TO INJURY MYSELF OR ANYONE ELSE. I HAVE FOUND THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE DESIGN AND NEEDS TO BE CORRECTED. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT IS THE SOLUTION AND CAUSE OF THIS PROBLEM. I WANT TO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. *TR
TL- THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 FORD MUSTANG. THE CONTACT DETECTED A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF TRANSMISSION FLUID LEAKING FROM THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE RECURRED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN OR STATIONARY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO EXPRESSED CONCERNS TO THE CONTACT OF A POTENTIAL FIRE AS A RESULT OF THE FAILURE AND ADVISED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WOULD POSSIBLY NEED REPLACING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 194,000. KMJ
I BOUGHT A 2000 FORD MUSTANG AND THREE DAYS LATER I NOTICED THE SHIFT INDICATOR POSITION MARKER ON THE FLOOR WAS NOT SHOWING WHAT GEAR THE CAR WAS IN. THIS COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT DURING DAY AND MOST LIKELY DURING NIGHT DRIVING AND COULD ALSO CAUSE TRANMISSION PROBLEMS NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE THE GEAR SHIFT POSITION. I TOOK IT TO THE FORD DEALER AND THEY INSTALLED A NEW BEZEL ASY-TRANSMISSION AND IT WORKS FINE NOW, BUT A CAR THAT'S ONLY FOUR YEARS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN AND I HAVE NEVER HAD A CAR THAT THE SHIFT INDICATOR MARKER HAS BROKEN.*AK
TRANSMISSION BROKE DAMAGING MY ENGINE BLOCK AND SMASHING MY CATALYTIC CONVERTER AND O2 SENSOR CAUSING AN ESTIMATED $13,000 DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE.
2000 FORD MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE.AFTER LEASING THE NEW CAR FOR 3YRS,WE DECIDED TO BUY. THE CAR WAS AT 50K MILES.IT IS NOW AT 61K MILES. BEGINNING FEB.20TH 2004,THE CLUTCH MADE A HORRIBLE SOUND WHEN ENGAGED.NOT COVERED BY FORD EXTENDED WARRANTY PURCHASED AT TIME OF SALE.BUISINESS MGR. AT JACK SCHMITT FORD IN COLLINSVILLE,IL SAID," CARS AREN'T BUILT TO LAST FOREVER".THIS VEHICHLE IS ONLY 4YRS. OLD.IT IS DRIVEN GINGERLY BY A RESPONSIBLE 55YR. OLD RN.I KNOW CARS ARE NOT MADE TO LAST FOREVER,BUT YOU WOULD THINK THE CLUTCH WOULD LAST A BIT LONGER THAN 4YRS. DRIVEN PROPERLY. WE HAVE ALSO NOTICED THAT THE CAR SEEMS TO SHIMMIE AT 60 TO 68 MPH.*AK
MY 2000 MUSTANG GT, MANUAL TRANSMISSION, KEEPS CUTTING OUT SUDDENLY WITH DECELERATION AND I LOSE MY POWER BRAKES AND STEERING. VERY SCARY. THE IAC VALVE WAS REPLACED 18 MONTHS. AGO WHEN I BOUGHT THE CAR, BUT I STILL HAD PROBLEMS. AFTER DOING THIS CONTINUALLY FOR 2 DAYS, THE DEALER CHANGED THE IAC AGAIN. FOUR DAYS LATER IT DID IT AGAIN, TWICE. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE, AND WHEN I CALLED FORD REGIONAL, I GOT NOTHING USEFUL NO ONE SEEMS TO KNOW WHAT CAUSES THIS. *LA
AS I WAS DRIVING AND REACHED 30 MPH IT SOUNDED LIKE THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT SHIFTING TO THE NEXT GEAR. IT MADE A SCREECHING NOISE AND WOULD NOT PASS 30 MPH MEAN WHILE THE RPM WAS TO 8. THEN IT JUMPED AND PASSED 30 MPH. THIS HAPPENED EVERY TIME IT REACHED 30 MPH. THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WAS SLOW TO SHIFT. THIS 2000 MUSTANG ONLY HAS 40,000 MILES!!- AND I WAS TOLD BY FORD THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS DAMAGED--ON TOP OF THAT THE WARRANTY DOES NOT COVER THE $1,600 COST. I'VE HEARD A LOT OF THE SAME COMPLAINT ABOUT FORD MUSTANG 'S TRANSMISSION. FOR A 3 YEAR OLD MUSTANG WE SHOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR A DEFECTED TRANSMISSION !!!!EVEN THOUGHT THE WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED -- FORD SHOULD HELP COVER THE COST. *LA
CONSUMER STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED DURING WARM WEATHER AND NO WARNING THE VEHICLE WILL STALL AND IT WILL BE HARD FOR THE CONSUMER TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. DEALER NOTIFIED. TS
IN ORDER TO SHIFT MY 2000 MUSTANG GT INTO REVERSE, I HAVE TO FIRST SHIFT THE CAR INTO FIRST GEAR AS THE REVERSE GEAR IS NOT SYNCHRONIZED. THE DEALERSHIP IT WAS BOUGHT FROM CLAIMS THAT THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE WITH THIS MODEL YEAR BUT THE ISSUE IS NOT STATED IN THE MANUAL AND I HAVE NEVER BEEN INFORMED OTHERWISE. FURTHER, EVEN THOUGH I SHIFT THE CAR INTO FIRST BEFORE GOING TO REVERSE, I STILL HAVE DIFFICULTY GETTING THE STICK INTO REVERSE PERIODICALLY. THE PROCESS IS INCONVENIENT - WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO SHIFT INTO TWO GEARS JUST TO GET TO THE ONE I WANT?*AK
THE VEHICLES CLUTCH MADE A SQUEAKING NOISE WHEN ENGAGED. THE CLUTCH FAILED AND WAS REPLACED BUT THE PROBLEM RE-OCCURRED WITHIN 10000 MILES. *NLM
VEHICLE HAS 24000 MILES ON IT. AT APPROX. 12000 MILES THE CLUTCH LOST TRAVEL DISTANCE, AND COULD NOT BE ADJUSTED USING THE MANUAL ADJUSTMENT PROCEDURE. CLUTCH FROZE ONE MORNING AFTER A VERY COLD SUB-ZERO NIGHT. UPON STARTING VEHICLE WITH CLUTCH PARTIALLY ENGAGED, CLUTCH BURNED. THEN FELL OUT OF 4TH GEAR WHILE TRAVELING AT 40 MPH. DEALER CLAIMS IT IS A WEAR ITEM AND BAD DRIVING RESULTED IN PRESSURE PLATES BEING UNUSUALLY WORN, A PROBLEM WITH THE LINKAGE WAS ALSO NOTED BUT NOT ASSESSED AS CONTRIBUTING TO THE WORN PLATES. CUSTOMER CONTENDS THE LINKAGE FAILED AND CAUSED CONTINUOUS RUBBING OF PRESSURE PLATES INSIDE TRANSMISSION ULTIMATELY LEADING TO FAILURE, AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED BY MANUFACTURER. PREMATURE WEAR OF THE PLATES IS MOST LIKELY LINKED TO THE FAILURE IN THE LINKAGE AND THE FAILURE OF THE SELF ADJUSTING CLUTCH TO IN EFFECT, SELF ADJUST WHEN THE PEDAL IS PULLED UP AND PUSHED DOWN AS RECOMMENDED IN THE MANUAL. SUSPECT THIS MAY ALSO BE A PROBLEM WITH THE PARTS ORIGINAL TO VEHICLE. TS
NHTSA ITEM # 620988 - I HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM IN MY ORIGINAL NEW TRANSMISSION AND ALSO IN A FORD REBUILT TRANSMISSION INSTALLED BY RELIABLE MOTORS ON 12/03/02.*AK
THE CAR HAS DIED WHILE ENGAGING THE CLUTCH OVER FIVE TIMES. WHEN WE TOOK IT TO FORD DEALER THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND A PROBLEM OR THAT THEY COULD NOT RECREATE IT. WHEN THE CAR DIES YOU LOSE ALL POWER STEERING BRAKES ETC, WHICH IN THE RIGHT SITUATION COULD BE AND IS VERY DANGEROUS. NOW THE CAR IS OFF WARRANTY SO THIS IS ON;Y ROUTE I KNEW TO GO. SOMETHING IS WRONG, OTHER PEOPLE HAVE COMPLAINED OF SAME PROBLEM SO IT NEEDS TO BE CORRECTED.*AK
AT CERTAIN RPMS AND WITHOUT WARNING CLUTCH AND PEDAL RATTLE CONTINUOUSLY. MECHANIC HAS BEEN NOTIFIED; HOWEVER, MECHANIC STATED THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH VEHICLE.*AK
THERE IS A WHINING NOISE COMING FROM BACK I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER BUNCH OF TIMES AND THEY SAID IT WAS FINE BUT IT WHINES AT SPEEDS OF 55/65. DT
MY CAR IS LESS THAN 2 YEARS OLD AND I WAS TOLD THAT BECAUSE IT HAS MORE THAN 36,000 MILES ON IT. THEY WILL NOT WARRANTY IT. I THINK THERE MUST BE A PROBLEM WITH THIS TRANSMISSION. THEY ARE DESIGNED TO LAST LONGER THAN 2 YEARS. HAS ANYONE ELSE REPORTED THIS PROBLEM?*JB
HAVE HAD NUMEROUS PROBLEMS WITH THE POWER TRAIN AND THEY REPLACED THE TRANSMISSION AND IS STILL DOING THE SAME THING...WILL NOT REPLACE THE VEHICLE AND SAYS THAT IT DOES NOT FALL UNDER THE LEMON LAW EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE TRIED TO FIX THE PROBLEM AND HAVE FAILED THREE SEPERATE TIMES....ALL I WANT IS ANOTHER CAR WITHOUT THE PROBLEMS. *AK
CAR WAS STUCK IN REVERSE ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASSIONS. WAS ABLE TO WORK IT OUT FIRST TIME BUT HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED TO DEALER SECOND TIME. DEALER STATES THEY CAN NOT GET A NEW TRANSMISSION FOR VEHICLE SINCE IT HAS BEEN MODIFIED AND NO 2000 TRANSMISSIONS ARE AVAILABLE. FORD FIELD REP VISISTED DEALERSHIP AND HAS TOLD THEM TO PUT A "PATCH" ON THE SHIFT ASSEMBLY AND "SEE IF THAT WILL WORK". WHEN I QUESTIONED FORD FIELD REP WHO THE NEXT PERSON IN CHAIN OF COMMAND TO SPEAK WITH ABOUT PROBLEM, HE INDICATED THERE WAS NO ONE ABOVE HIM; THAT HE RESOLVES ALL PROBLEMS. DEALERSHIP HAS BENT OVER BACKWARD TO TRY TO HELP ME; PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE WITH FORD CORP. FORD'S CUSTOMER CARE SERVICE DEPT. HAS NOT RESPONDED TO MY E-MAIL.*AK
WHILE TRAVELING AND SHIFTING GEARS VEHICLE GETS STUCK IN REVERSE. CONUSMER HAS TO TURN VEHICLE OFF TO SHIFT GEARS. DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK
VEHICHLE HAS HAD A VIBRATION SINCE IT WAS NEW. THE DEALER ASSURED ME THAT IT COULD BE REPAIRED. I HAVE HAD THE VEHICLE BACK TWICE. THE VIBRATION IS IN 3RD GEAR AND 5TH GEAR. THE VIBRATION IN 3RD GEAR IS FROM 2,000-3,000 RPMS. IN 5TH GEAR, IT IS FROM 1,200-2,100 RMPS. THE DRIVE SHAFT HAS BEEN REPLACED. WHEELS AND TIRES CHECKED OKAY. TIRES AND WHEELS BALANCED OKAY. THE DRIVESHAFT RUNOUT CHECKED. DRIVESHAFT ROTATE AND RECHECK RUNOUT. CHECKED AND REPLACED REAR AXLE. SHAFT ASSEMBLY REAR AXLE REPLACED. THE VIBRATION STILL PERSISTS. I'M CONSIDERING A BUY-BACK. I DON'T KNOW WHAT MY OPTIONS ARE. COULD YOU ADVISE?*AK
TRANSMISSION IS MAKING A TICKING NOISE AT INITIAL TAKE OFF.*AK
CPNSUMER WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 55MPH ON HIGHWAY AND APPLIED BRAKES BECAUSE HE WAS COMING TO A STAND STILL. VEHICLE WAS IN THIRD GEAR, AND THE RPMS STARTED GOING DOWN. CONSUMER SHIFTED GEAR INTO NEUTRAL, AND VEHICLE CUT OFF WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. DEALERSHIP WAS AWARE OF PROBLEM.*AK
FROM PURCHASE, HAD PROBLEM WITH NOISES EMINNATING, WE THOUGHT, FROM THE TRANSMISSION. ALSO, UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES, USUALLY AFTER DOWNSHIFTING FROM 5TH TO 4TH AND THEN ACCELERATING, WILL JUMP OUT OF 4TH GEAR. BUT, BIGGEST CONCERN HAS BEEN A TERRIFIC VIBRATION FROM BENEATH THE CAR AND IN THE CONSOLE WHICH, ON ONE OCCASION, DISPLACED THE PLASTIC COVER ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. TOOK VEHICLE TO VARIOUS FORD DEALERS IN CARSON CITY AND RENO, NEVADA AND STATELINE, CA. ALTHOUGH NOISE OBVIOUS, DEALERS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE PROBLEM. SEVERAL MONTHS AGO, THE NOISE BECAME VERY LOUD, AT WHICH TIME A DEALER REPLACED PARTS, UNKNOWN, IN THE DIFFERENTIAL. WE CONTINUED TO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS AND MORE RECENTLY, THE FORD DEALERSHIP IN CARSON CITY FOUND A "TECHNICAL" WHICH COVERED A CLUTCH PROBLEM. THE MUSTANG IS IN THE DEALERSHIP NOW (SINCE MONDAY) AT WHICH TIME CLUTCH PARTS ARE TO BE REPLACED AND THE TRANSMISSION IS ALSO TO BE CHECKED FOR PROBLEMS. PERHAPS OUR CONCERNS WILL BE ADDRESSED, BUT WE HAVE BEEN COMPLAINING FOR APPROXIMATELY 25,000 MILES. OUR CONCERN HAS BEEN FOR A "LOCKED UP" TRANSMISSION AND THE POSSIBILITY OF AN ACCIDENT. NO ACCIDENT HAS OCCURRED AT THIS POINT. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT 35 AND 40 MPH CONSUMER HEARD A NOISE, REAR AXLE BROKE. *AK
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Quick Summary
The 2000 Ford Mustang has 31 Power Train complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.