2005 Ford Crown Victoria Problems, Recalls & Reliability
240 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria, alongside 6 recall campaigns and 7 defect investigations. It scores 46/100 on the trouble index — a below-average year for this model. Electrical leads the reports, typically around 80,000 miles.
Below average
Where 2005 sits among all Crown Victoria years
What owners report
“My headlights goes off while i'm driving and clicks off and clicks back on and sometimes when i turned on my signal switch on they will click back on or click off or i just have to wait for them to come back on but i can hear when it clicks and my headlights comes back on”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Crown Victoria
“Power steering went out when I was driving and barely avoided a collision. Light went out another time when I was driving.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Crown Victoria
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 194 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 80,086 miles. Half of those reports fall between 52,542 and 111,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (6)
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2003-2005 Ford Crown Victoria and Mercury Grand Marquis vehicles manufactured October 3, 2001, to August 2, 2005. The affected vehicles have a lighting control module (LCM) that may fail, resulting in…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the LCM, free of charge. The recall began April 14, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 Ford Crown Victoria, 2005-2011 Mercury Grand Marquis vehicles manufactured March 23, 2004, to August 30, 2011, and 2005-2011 Lincoln Town Car vehicles manufactured March 8, 2004, to August…
Fix: Ford will notify the owners of vehicles whose repair records reflect that the upper intermediate steering shaft was repaired during the course of the prior recall 13V-385. Dealers will inspect and…
Ford is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 Ford Crown Victoria (including Crown Victoria Police Interceptors), Mercury Grand Marquis, and Lincoln Town Car vehicles. The affected vehicles are currently registered or were originally sold in Connecticut,…
Fix: Ford will notify owners and dealers will replace the lower intermediate shaft, free of charge. The upper intermediate shaft and steering column lower bearing will be inspected to identify any damage…
CERTAIN AFTERMARKET FUEL FILTERS SOLD UNDER THE PUROLATOR BRAND NAME, P/N F65277, SHIPPED FROM JANUARY 16 THROUGH JUNE 2, 2006, FOR USE ON THE ABOVE LISTED PASSENGER VEHICLES. DUE TO INCORRECT DESIGN, THE QUICK CONNECTORS MAY NOT FULLY SEAT WITH THE TUBE…
Fix: UFI WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE FILTERS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 4, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT UFI FILTERS USA AT 800-230-5876.
ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE BATTERY CABLE INCLUDES A FUSIBLE LINK THAT MAY CONTACT AND SUBSEQUENTLY CHAFE ON A #2 CROSS MEMBER ATTACHING BOLT.
Fix: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE FUSIBLE LINK AND POSITION IT AWAY FROM THE CROSS MEMBER BOLT. IF THE FUSIBLE LINK HAS ALREADY CHAFED AND COPPER WIRES HAVE BEEN EXPOSED, THE FUSIBLE LINK WILL BE REPLACED.…
ON CERTAIN POLICE INTERCEPTORS (CVPI) AND COMMERCIAL HEAVY DUTY (TAXI) VEHICLES, AT EXTREMELY HIGH OPERATING TEMPERATURES, THE SOUND INSULATING PANEL, LOCATED UNDER THE VEHICLE POSITIONED BETWEEN THE EXHAUST SYSTEM AND THE UNDERBODY, COULD SAG AND POSSIBLY…
Fix: DEALERS WILL REMOVE THE EXISTING DASH INSULATOR AND INSTALL A REVISED DESIGN INSULATOR PAD FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 3, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673.
Federal defect investigations
Led to recall campaign 15V861000.
Led to recall campaign 13V385000.
Technical service bulletins
44 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on engine and electrical — are on file for the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2005 Crown Victoria TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria reliable?
The 2005 Ford Crown Victoria drew 240 complaints in federal safety records — a below-average year for this model. Its trouble index is 46/100, scored against the model's worst year (1992).
What are the most common 2005 Ford Crown Victoria problems?
The top reported problems for the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria are electrical (123 complaints), steering (37), and transmission & drivetrain (14).
At what mileage do 2005 Ford Crown Victoria problems show up?
Owners most often report 2005 Ford Crown Victoria problems around 80,086 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 52,542 and 111,000 miles.
Does the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria have recalls?
6 recall campaigns apply to the 2005 Ford Crown Victoria. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.