Airbag complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (front, side and curtain air bags, sensors and inflators).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Tl* the contact owned a 2009 Ford Crown Victoria. While driving at approximately 20 MPH approaching an intersection, another vehicle ran the red light and crashed into the front driver side of the contact's vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed and the contact sustained unknown injuries that required medical attention. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was destroyed. The failure mileage was unknown.
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Ford Crown Victoria. While driving various speeds, the horn was depressed and failed to function. The air bag warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 71,000.
Tl* the contact owned a 2007 Ford Crown Victoria. While driving approximately 15 MPH and making a left turn, the steering wheel suddenly malfunctioned and continued to turn. The driver was unable to steer the vehicle and crashed into a curb, which caused the driver side air bag to deploy. The driver sustained head, face, neck, and back injuries along with arm burns that were caused by the air bag deployment. Medical treatment was required. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to the local dealer (jack byrne Ford, 1003 hudson river rd., mechanicville, ny) where it was diagnosed that the lower steering shaft failed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 168,000.
In 2006 my husband was a deputy sheriff I'm mt.he was driving a 2006 Crown Victoria with approx 3000 miles. He was heading to an assistance call on the interstate at a high rate of speed. Road conditions were good that day and no abnormalities in the road. I hired a private investigator to investigate some issues. I was informed that the air bags never deployed he was in a head on collision through a fence and then wrapped around a metal sign pole. Cause severe damage to this vehicle. All windows busted out radiator came through the front of the vehicle. Tires were not noted to be defected but I due question a tie rod. And at the time the investigator did run a recall check and nothing noted at that time. His report did state there was deformity noted in the stering colum. In which I have now noticed that there has been some issues with the steering colum. …
The car dealership didn't tell us that this car have no air bag and also nothing was checking or change on the car. We paid for the car at 2700 and the electric and the radiator are bad and also the ac unit is bad they don't have no anti-theft system and much more we just don't have the money to fix it no more you already put 5,000 plus $2,700
In October 2022 a mechanic successfully replaced a dark gray-colored "seat belt retractor assembly and buckle" on the passenger side of my Ford Crown Victoria in response to an Air Bag dashboard light Lamp Fault Code of "3-4" and a Diagnostic Trouble Code of "B2292" ("Restraint System Seatbelt Pretensioner Error"). Such an error renders the entire supplemental restraint system inoperative and necessitates immediate repair service for safe vehicle operation. In September 2023 the Air Bag light displayed a "3-3" LFC with the "B2292" DTC indicating Restraint System Seatbelt Pretensioner Error on the driver's side. The mechanic and I contacted a Ford dealership for a replacement dark gray-colored seat belt retractor assembly and buckle and were advised that Ford had discontinued manufacture of the part in dark gray and other colors! Ford only offered a tan seat belt assembly. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 Ford Crown Victoria. The contact stated that while driving, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the driver air bag switch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,890. The VIN was not available.
I brought this vehicle into the dealership for safety recall 15s39. There were no problems with the vehicle prior to taking it in. When I received the vehicle back from the dealer they had admitted to not completing all the steps in the safety recall. Now that I have the vehicle the dealer returned it to me with the following issues: all of the interior and exterior lighting including the headlights do not work and the air bag light is illuminated. A supervisor at Ford customer service said they refuse to do anything about the new problems they caused. She stated that "well, it's a pretty old car." I don't think the age of the car should give Ford a pass to not fix a safety recall. The fix for their safety recall only created safety problems with this car - namely the air bags may not work.
Related recalls (3)
Air bags › Frontal › Sensor/control module-inactive
Vehicle description: minivans and passenger vehicles. A restraint control module (rcm) or a side or front crash sensor May have been assembled with one or more of the screws that mount the circuit board in the housing missing. If some or all of the screws are missing, the performance of the occupant restrains could be affected.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the rcm and crash sensors and, if necessary, replace them.
Air bags
Certain passenger vehicles, limousines, and Mini vans were built with a newly designed restraint control module (rcm). In some cases, the rcm does not recognize certain system faults that could result in an air bag or seat belt pre-tensioner unexpectedly activating during the self-test sequence at vehicle start-up.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rcm in these vehicles. Owner notification began September 14, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy…
Air bags › Frontal
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. These vehicles May have been built with lower than the intended level of torque on the bolts that attach the air bag electronic crash sensor module to the vehicle.
Remedy: Dealers will tighten the air bag electronic crash sensor attaching bolts.
Frequently asked questions
Which Ford Crown Victoria years have airbag problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1995 (11), 2001 (9), 2006 (7), 2005 (6) and 2007 (6) model years. Airbag complaints make up 4% of all complaints for the 1995.
Is there a recall for Ford Crown Victoria airbag problems?
Yes — 3 recalls, including 00V-412 (sensor/control module-inactive, Dec 6, 2000); 00V-270 (air bags, Sep 13, 2000); 00V-050 (frontal, Feb 17, 2000). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Ford Crown Victoria airbag problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 115,000 miles; 18% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the frontal (25 mentions), followed by the frontal › driver side › inflator module (1).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.