Most common 1999 Lincoln Town Car problems
Share of the 148 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Lincoln Town Car complaints by model year
Best Town Car years: 2009, 2011, 2010. Years to avoid: 1997, 1996, 2003, 1998, 2001. Compare all years →
1999 Lincoln Town Car recalls (5)
Tires
Vehicle description: certain limousines stretched over 60 inches fail to comply with the requirements of FMVSS no. 109, "new pneumatic tires," and no. 110, "tire selection and rims."
Remedy: Dealers will replace all 5 tires (including the spare tire) with Michelin tires (225/70r16 107t reinforced white sidewall) with a sufficiently higher load rating. Owner notification began January 10, 2001.
Equipment › Mechanical › Integrated jack/leveler/stabilizer
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. These vehicles have jacking instructions which, if followed, could cause the vehicle operator to place the jack on a frame weld when attempting to raise a rear wheel.
Remedy: Owners will be provided with a revised jack instruction and stowage card and jack warning label, as well as a supplement to the owner guide.
Seat belts › Front › Anchorage
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles using aftermarket driver's seat belt assemblies that were sold by Ford parts departments from January 1, through June 13, 2000. These seat belt assemblies fail to comply with the requirements of FMVSS no.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect these vehicles and replace the service seat belt assemblies that were installed in these vehicles from January 1 through June 13, 2000.
Seat belts › Front › Anchorage
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles using aftermarket front passenger side seat belt assemblies that were sold by Ford parts departments from January 1, through June 13, 2000. These seat belt assemblies fail to comply with the requirements of FMVSS no.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect these vehicles and replace the service seat belt assemblies that were installed in these vehicles from January 1 through June 13, 2000.
Suspension › Front › Control arm › Lower ball joint
Vehicle description: certain 1996-1999 Ford crown victoria police, fleet, natural gas, and 1996-1999 Lincoln town car limousine vehicles that were produced with a lower control arm ball joint containing a one piece bearing; and 1990-1996 Ford crown victoria police, fleet, and ngv vehicles and 1990-1996 Lincoln town car…
Remedy: Dealers will replace the lower control arm ball joints (2).
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 4 possible defects involving the 1999 Lincoln Town Car:
Post rear end collision fires
There is no summary currently available
Inadvertent side air bag deployment
Odi has identified 173 complaints alleging inadvertent or non-crash deployment of side air bags on model year (my) 1999-2003 Lincoln town cars.most of the complaints allege that one of the side air bags deployed while driving without any impact.analysis showed that my 2001 through early my 2003 town cars have much higher complaint and warranty claim rates (138 complaints and 120 warranty claims) than the remaining…
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On September 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 Ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or…
Fuel-fed fires
The fars data shows that the risk of fire from impact in all directions in the subject vehicles is the same as all other sedans.the subject vehicles are not over represented with respect to the risk of fire in real-world high-energy crashes.a further discussion of issues related to post crash fires in the subject vehicles is set out in the closing report for sq 01-014 and that report is in the docket for this…
What 1999 Lincoln Town Car owners say
Air bags all 29 →
Tl* the contact owned a 1999 Lincoln Town Car. While driving approximately 25 MPH in heavy rain, the vehicle hydroplaned and crashed with a flat bed tow truck. None of the frontal air bags deployed. The police department was present, but a report was not filed. The contact and a passenger were transported to the hospital by ambulance, treated, and released. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot and later deemed destroyed by the insurance company. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 183,000.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 2mph through a parking lot, the front driver side airbag deployed without warning. Upon deployment of the side air bag, the contact, who was not wearing a seat belt, was pushed aside into the center console, and lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle rolled over a parking lot divider, and crashed into another vehicle. The contact sustained minor injuries. Due to the low speed of the crash, the vehicle sustained minor damage. A police report was taken. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer and an insurance adjustor who were unable to determine the cause of the airbag deployment. The manufacturer was also alerted. Updated 10/31/2006 -
Suspension all 21 →
The contact owns a 1999 Lincoln Town Car. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the steering wheel started pulling to the left with extreme force. The contact attempted to correct the over steering and the vehicle started pulling to the right and the left. The contact stated that an unknown warning was illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle back to his residence. The contact stated that he drove the vehicle several more times and the steering failure recurred while driving at various speeds. The contact drove the vehicle to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the ball joints, upper and lower control arms, and the steering gear needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 132,000. …
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Lincoln Town Car. The contact stated that while making a left turn, the contact heard an abnormal sound coming from the front driver's side wheel. The contact stated that the wheel detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the driver's and passenger's side front upper control arms and ball joints were replaced. The contact called lamarque Ford located at 3101 williams blvd suite f, kenner, la 70065, [phone], and made the dealer aware of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of failure. The failure mileage was 54,000.
Brakes
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Lincoln Town Car. The contact stated that while driving the contact felt the brakes were not working properly. The contact made a right hand turn and crashed into a parked truck. The contact did not have an injury that required transport to a hospital and no police report was filed. The crash happened right at the independent mechanic's shop. The independent mechanic fixed the brakes with a fluid leak from the brake line as the cause of the malfunction. The contact felt there also was an issue of the front end of the vehicle being out of alignment that caused the vehicle to drift to one side. The issue recurred with the front end still being out of alignment with a scraping sound. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer griffin Ford: new Ford 511 7th st w, tifton, ga 31794 [phone] but received no assistance from the dealer . …
Car has a problen in the steering box. Took it to a specialist and Ford discounted it. They sent a Lincoln rep down and he just lied to me about the problem said it was a factory flaw and could not fix , then I took the Car into the dealer for a pinging and they said they couldn't hear it (nothing was done)then later on a trip it went haywire sounded like a big diesel truck on the highway and ran like crap , sucking gas also, then changed dealers and they said they coulden't find a ping . I grabed me a mechanic and we took a little ride and before I could get it back it was pinging (took them 3 weeks to fix with me coming up almost daily to test it, and nobody can adjust the head lights on the Car that is bad its idiot proof
1999 Lincoln Town Car engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.6L 8-cyl | 4-speed automatic | RWD | 15 / 22 / 18 |
EPA ratings. Class: Large car.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 1999 Lincoln Town Car a good car?
Based on 148 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 1999 Town Car rates average: 1.3× as many complaints as a typical year of the Town Car at the same age. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 1999 Lincoln Town Car?
The air bags — 29 complaints, 20% of all complaints for this model year, most often about side/window. Next are the suspension (21) and brakes (19).
How many recalls does the 1999 Lincoln Town Car have?
There are 5 recalls for the 1999 Lincoln Town Car, the most recent from December 12, 2000 (tires). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Lincoln Town Car?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2009, 2011 and 2010. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 1997, 1996, 2003, 1998 and 2001. See the full Lincoln Town Car years comparison.
At what mileage do 1999 Lincoln Town Car problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 100,000 miles; 18% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
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.