Most common 2004 Lincoln Town Car problems
Share of the 83 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 →
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into a possible defect involving the 2004 Lincoln Town Car:
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…
What 2004 Lincoln Town Car owners say
Speed control & acceleration
2004 Lincoln Town Car's brakes failed. The vehicle would not stop which resulted in an accident. Not only did the vehicle not stop but it also accelerated while the consumer's foot was on the brake. The consumer's vehicle hit the vehicle directly in front of hers pushing that vehicle off the road. The consumer continued trying to get he vehicle to stop. She put the gear shift in park and turned off the ignition but the vehicle would not stop. The consumer attempted to maneuver the vehicle away from other vehicles but eventually had no other choice but to run into a parked vehicle. The vehicle rolled over three times before coming to rest upright on all four wheels. The vehicle was still accelerating and hit the wall of a building then stopped.
Tl contact owns a 2004 Lincoln Town Car. While driving approximately 2 MPH into a garage, the contact depressed the brake pedal and the vehicle stopped. He attempted to shift into reverse and the vehicle automatically surged forward, crashing into the foundation. There were no warnings prior to the failure. The vehicle sustained minor damages. The contact was waiting on a response from the insurance company regarding the damages. The failure and current mileages were 28,000. Updated 11-25-08 updated 11/25/08.
Steering
Bought a 2004 Linc Tow as a gift to my grandson. Drove it a couple of times and had no issues. After it had sat for about 2-3 weeks, I drove it to town to let it run after sitting. On my way home I was turning on to the road for home and the steering suddenly caught, I was in the middle of a turn and pulled steering wheel to straighten the car when it released. I almost hit the car next to me. I have an appointment on October 14th to have it checked out. I understand that this is a problem that has occurred often in other years and was fixed, so why not the 2004. This car only has 92,500 miles on it. I can't risk my grandson getting into an accident.
The steering is binding really bad. Noticed it yesterday while taking hubby to docs. Much worse today. Unable to pull into parking spaces, did not dare to try to pull up to pumps. Cornering was a challenge in either direction. We do not have any Ford garages in this area. Think this is a major issue that may go with Lincolns. had 2 other ones with similar issues. It is not too bad if rolling along, but almost impossible when going slow.
Body & structure
2004 Lincoln Town Car cartier. Riding down road 35 MPH accelerating. Windows were all up, sunroof closed. Never had any problems prior. Wife touched sunroof button to open sunroof while windows still closed, and bam! The sunroof exploded; luckily did not shatter onto us but cracked in large pieces. Scared us both but I kept control of the Car until could pull over. No cars in the area around us. Not aware of any debris. A windshiled replacement company told us there is a high incidence of sunroofs exploding for no reason. My thoughts are that the sudden pulling back of the sunroof cover caused a big difference in air pressure causing the sunroof glass to break. This is a serious problem needing attn. Usuallly I have my windows opened slightly before opening sunroof..no prior problems. …
I came from work at around 0600 am on 9/4/15 in my 2004 Lincoln Town Car and park it in my apartment. At around 0330 of the same day I decided to go pick my child from school . Whent I statrted my Car and put it in reverse tryng to back up from the parking lot, the Car suddenly accelerated at a speed of about 60 ml/hr to hit tow cars park in the parking lot and dragging one of the to a tree which finally stopped the Car. If that tree did not stop the Car the damage would have been worse because all my efforts to stop the Car failed. The Car was just uncontrollable with unprecedented speed . It was as if the Car had a mind of it self. I was just lucky because my wife and kids were in another Car very close to the Car that was dragged. If they have came out of the Car , they would have been dragged too. Thank god their is no fatalities. …
2004 Lincoln Town Car engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.6L 8-cyl | 4-speed automatic | RWD | 15 / 23 / 18 |
EPA ratings. Class: Large car.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2004 Lincoln Town Car a good car?
Based on 83 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2004 Town Car rates better than average: 45% fewer complaints than 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 2004 Lincoln Town Car?
The speed control & acceleration — 19 complaints, 23% of all complaints for this model year, most often about cruise control. Next are the steering (14) and body & structure (11).
How many recalls does the 2004 Lincoln Town Car have?
NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2004 Lincoln Town Car. You can still confirm with your VIN using our 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 2004 Lincoln Town Car problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 66,000 miles; 45% 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.