Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2011 Ford Mustang owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
6/22/2015: I was driving home from work and my car suddenly turned off and the check engine light turned on. It is very subtle when it happened; no jerky movement noticed. I realized what have happened after my failed attempts to accelerate. I was able to use the car's momentum to make it to a parking lot. I step out and examined my car but nothing was out of the ordinary. After 10 minutes, I attempted to start it up (first attempt after incident) and it started up normally. Everything functioned as normal and even the check engine light is gone. I thought it was a fluke incident so I drove home and forgot about it. 6/30/2015: I was driving on the highway and my engine cut off again. I was very scared because I was on the california 91 freeway and it was during traffic hours. I was able to draw experience from the last incident and cruised my car to the side of the highway. …
While driving down the left lane of the sawgrass expressway, a very busy highway between ft. Lauderdale and miami, I lost all throttle response. The wrench light came on the dashboard and I went from 60 MPH down to nothing by the time I was off to the side of the road. Cars behind me were obviously braking hard to avoid smashing into me. I turned the car off and was about to call aaa, but the heat index that day was around a million degrees so I turned the car back on. The throttle response had returned so I cautiously limped the car back home in the right hand lane the whole way. I thought it was some freak computer glitch until it happened again going to the store the next day. I called the Ford dealership and before I even got the problem oout of my mouth the service tech said " it is your throttle body. We see this all the time. It will be about $800 to repair". …
Car randomly goes into "limp home" mode. Code could not be caught by dealer so I purchased a scanner. Code caught everytime is p2111 representing that the throttle body actuator is stuck open. This can happen within a few miles of driving or up to 20 miles. It can happen at 5 MPH or 65 MPH. It can happen within the first few minutes of a trip or 30 minutes in. It can happen once or every few minutes. This is very dangerous as the limp home does not get enough power to get off road. I almost caused a multi car accident . Can you imagine driving down the highway and the car just stops? It doesn't even coast. I see this complaint on alot of Ford forums. It is like Ford is just waiting for someone to be killed or sue them before they solve the issue. I have taken it to the Ford dealer and they say it is my battery. …
While driving my 2011 v6 Mustang the car will completely loose power. This has happened on the highway and on side streets. There is no warning. The wrench light comes on and the car is forced to idle. No response at all to throttle input. Error code read is p2111 which indicates "throttle actuator "a" control system - stuck open". It is my understanding that the throttle body in this vehicle is the same as used in other Ford vehicles. A recall has been issued for those other vehicles but everyone suffering from this on the v6 Mustang is on their own. This can be very dangerous for people accelerating to merge and very dangerous on the highway to stop in the middle of the road or have to limp to the shoulder through traffic at idle. I have already paid $300 for a full throttle body service and the same thing is still happening.
Immediate loss of power and complete loss of acceleration. This has occurred in an intersection and in the middle of a multi-lane highway at 35 MPH and 60 MPH and when either accelerating or holding at a steady speed. The wrench light comes on and the vehicle immediately loses power and decelerates regardless of speed. The vehicle is inoperable until it is turned off and restarted. The problem is recurring and unpredictable. Because the code disappears upon restarting it cannot be diagnosed. I had to get a code reader to get the code which had to be used after an emergency stop along the highway. This is dangerous as there is no warning before the loss of power. Error code p2111-throttle actuator control system stuck open. The problem has occurred 10/29/15, 11/16/15, 11/25/15, and 11/30/15.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled numerous times without warning. The wrench warning light illuminated after the failure occurred. The vehicle was taken the to the dealer several times for the failure who located the failure at the throttle body. The throttle body was replaced but the failure recurred and caused the contact to crash into the proceeding vehicle rear end. There was no injury to report. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for further inspection. The failure mileage was 36,264 and current mileage was 36,508.
While driving my 2011 Ford Mustang (with a v6 engine and automatic transmission) at 40mph on a local street, I experienced the vehicle unexpectedly losing power and a fault light in the form of a wrench appearing on the dashboard. The engine speed dropped down to idle and did not respond to any gas pedal operation. The cars engine remained running, however, the engine ran roughly as evidence of it shaking the entire car. The incident placed myself and other drivers around me in danger, as I had to move quickly to get my vehicle out of the moving traffic and into a safe place off the side of the road.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate and started losing power. The contact stated also that the electronic throttle body warning light illuminated. The vehicle was merged to the shoulder of the road but still failed to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the throttle body needed to be replaced however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 51,800. Updated 02/12/16
Vehicle stuck accelerator at slow and higher speeds!! It happened once while I was driving it and once while my daughter was driving. This could easily cause severe accident. Throttle body was replaced by dealer. This accelerator problem happened after the throttle body was replaced. By the dealer. I brought it back to the dealer after this incident and they called me and said "they can find nothing wrong". I told them to keep the car until the find the problem as this out of control acceleration is very dangerous.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 Ford Mustang. While stopped at a stop sign with the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle accelerated without warning. The contact placed the vehicle into neutral and turned the vehicle off to stop the engine. The vehicle restarted; however, the failure recurred on two other occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 21,000. Updated 6/11/15 ma 10/22/2015 updated 10/11/2017
Acceleration complaints in other Mustang years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2011 Ford Mustang?
NHTSA has 39 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2011 Ford Mustang, 8% of the model year's 466 complaints. The component named most often is cruise control (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2011 Ford Mustang acceleration problems?
No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for the 2011 Ford Mustang, though it has 4 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2011 Ford Mustang acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 43,000 miles, and 11% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 1 injury to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
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.