Ford · Mustang · 2012
7
Recalls
468
Complaints
4/5
Safety Rating
The 2012 Ford Mustang has 7 recalls and 468 owner-reported complaints on file with NHTSA. Overall safety rating: 4 out of 5 stars. Most reported issue: air bags (146 reports).
Source: NHTSA Public Records · Updated Apr 22, 2026
This page combines three types of NHTSA data: recall campaigns (official manufacturer or government actions), owner complaints (unverified consumer reports), and crash test ratings (where available). A vehicle with many complaints is not necessarily less reliable — complaint volume correlates with sales volume and vehicle age. Recalls indicate identified defects, not overall quality. To compare this model year with others, use the year navigation in the sidebar or return to the model overview page.
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Side Crash Test

Overall Frontal Rating
Driver and Passenger Assessment
Driver Side
Passenger Side
Overall Side Rating
Side Barrier and Side Pole Tests
Driver Side
Passenger Side
Rollover Resistance
8.7% rollover risk in single-vehicle crash
Safety Features
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles and 2011-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Ford is also recalling certain 2010 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2010-2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, and 2010-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Status
Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall 19S01.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012 Ford Fusion and Mustang and Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Ford is recalling certain 2009 Ford Ranger, Edge, Fusion and Mustang, Lincoln MKX, MKZ and Zephyr and Mercury Milan vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" or "Zone B" above, Ford is recalling certain 2007-2008 Ford Ranger, Edge and Lincoln MKX, 2006-2008 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ, 2005-2008 Ford Mustang and 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Remedy Status
Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. Interim letters informing owners of the recall and that parts are not yet available began mailing March 1, 2017. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S01.
FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011-2012 FORD F-150, 2012 EXPEDITION AND LINCOLN NAVIGATOR, AND 2012-2013 MUSTANG VEHICLES, FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NOS. 102, "TRANSMISSION SHIFT LEVER SEQUENCE, STARTER INTERLOCK, AND TRANSMISSION BRAKING EFFECT" AND 108 LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT. THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE A TRANSMISSION RANGE SENSOR (TRS) THAT WAS CALIBRATED OUT OF SPECIFICATION FOR REVERSE GEAR.
Remedy Status
FORD WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE TRS AS NECESSARY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 11, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain air bag inflator and/or module replacement service parts that may have been used as part of a collision repair. The parts include certain driver-side air bag inflators and/or modules, designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang and Mustang GT500. It also includes certain passenger-side air bag inflators and/or modules designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang, 2010-2012 Lincoln MKZ, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion, 2010-2011 Mercury Milan, 2007-2011 Ford Ranger, and 2007-2010 Lincoln MKX vehicles. Please see Ford's recall report for the specific part numbers. These parts may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Status
Ford will notify dealers that purchased the affected parts, and dealers will provide replacement parts to purchasers, free of charge. The recall began March 18, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2005-2014 Mustang vehicles manufactured April 6, 2004, to June 21, 2014, and 2005-2006 GT vehicles manufactured February 20, 2004, to September 22, 2006. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Remedy Status
Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver side air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on June 10, 2016. Even if interim repairs were performed under safety recall 14V-802, owners must bring their vehicles in for the final remedy. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S21. Note: This recall supersedes safety recall 14V-802.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Ford F-150 trucks, 2012 Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, and Ford Mustang vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with an automatic transmission that may unexpectedly downshift to first gear, regardless of vehicle speed.
Remedy Status
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the powertrain control module with updated software, free of charge. The recall began on September 19, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S19.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2005-2014 Mustang, 2004-2011 Ranger, 2009-2011 Mercury Milan, 2006 Ford GT, 2008-2012 Fusion, 2007-2010 Edge and Lincoln MKX, and 2009-2010 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. These vehicles may be equipped with a driver or passenger frontal air bag inflator used as a replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Status
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver and passenger air bag module, and replace either the module or the inflator, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Down shifting in to first and reverse problems nothing wrong with transmission
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the front windshield wipers independently activated. There were no warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the front windshield wiper fluid reservoir failed to drain the excess water as intended. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the cost. The vehicle was taken to a local independent mechanic for a second opinion, where it was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the windshield wiper motor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired at the consumer's expense; however, after 3 months the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the same local independent mechanic for the windshield wiper motor replacement. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000.
Speedometer went to zero while driving and seemed to be in neutral. Could not accelerate. Also low fuel warning light came on when I had a full tank. After car was shut off and restarted speedometer seemed fine for about 1 mile, then self accelerated. Now continues to read zero and can not accelerate unless I restart engine.
I bought the car on Dec 20th 2024. The dealership informed me of the recall and turned off the passenger side airbag. I returned to the dealership as scheduled about 2 weeks later. When I went to pick up my car after work the service center said they couldn't fix the problem because the airbag didn't exist and sent me on my way. I tried calling the sales person but had to leave a message. There has been no other communication.
Transmission seems to lose power while driving, the car will barely pull itself but the rpms increase if I accelerate. This has happened several times while driving and occasionally there are dash lights lighting and speedometer/gas gauge doesn’t work but that doesn’t happen every time. When it happens I pull over and shut it down and restart and it runs correctly until it happens again! I do a lot of highway driving and the car just “falling flat” on a multi-lane highway at 70+ mph is definitely a safety issue! I have taken it to my local fastlane shop and the car was driven but didn’t malfunction at that time. He advised me to try to drive it there if it happened again, but I have never been close to the shop at the times it happens or they are closed. There is no advance warning, it happens at various speeds and even on takeoff after stopping for traffic lights. I once was pulling into traffic when it happened and didn’t have enough power to get to my lane before it fell flat! Fortunately I could back up before getting hit by oncoming traffic.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle started stalling. The contact pulled over to the side of the road; however, the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and was diagnosed with transmission range sensor failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V190000 (Power Train, Exterior Lighting) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.
Recently started having erratic shifting issues. Will downshift randomly out of nowhere while driving. Sometimes will just be stuck in 1st gear and won’t go anywhere until I pull over and shut off/start up again. Dangerous because I never know when it will do it. Might seem like everything is fine and then all of a sudden, it downshifts and loses power. Rpm’s rise but car has no power. Have to figure out how to get out of the way. As stated in ford’s “ Customer Satisfaction Program 16N02,” my 2012 has all the symptoms and I have DTC code P0731 but dealer refused to service my vehicle because it doesn’t show up with my VIN, even though it’s a 2012 and I clearly need my Molded Leadframe replaced.
The transmission down shifted to first gear and the rear tires locked up. Skidding on the highway.
Windshield wipers turn on randomly and will not stay on when switch is on, also sprays washer fluid on windshield randomly and wipers do not work making it a very dangerous driving hazard
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving 55 MPH, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted to first gear and the vehicle's rear tires ceased. Additionally, the speedometer failed. The air bag warning light, the traction control warning light and the check engine warning light were illuminated. The contact used an OBD reader and read the DTC code P0720. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V248000 (Power Train). The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or a dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000.
There was a pencil mark on the inside tire wall where there was a leak. On the test drive there was a light on the dash indicating low pressure. Prior to pick up I was told it was repaired. On -27-23 I was driving the car and was lusting towards the center of the road after I regained control I had the tire checked at a tire shop and found that a patch had been put on the inside of the tire on the sidewall. The problem was reported to BBB and the dealer has not responded. I am in possession of the tire. No one has inspected the tire.
The rear end creaks and the 2nd gear grinds and pops out in the manual transmission
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, the vehicle started to jerk and downshifted. The contact then stated that the speedometer and RPM’s started to fluctuate rapidly. All the warning lights were illuminated. As a result, the contact crashed into a metal road post and a tree. No injuries were sustained. No medical attention was required. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission seized and needed to be replaced. The contact was informed by the mechanic of the NHTSA Campaign Number 16V248000 (Power Train). The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified however, the contact was unsuccessful. The 90,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the rear wheels locked up and the speedometer displayed 0 MPH. The vehicle started sliding sideways, causing the contact to almost lose control of the vehicle. The contact was able to veer to the side of the roadway. The contact then pulled into the nearest gas station, parked, and turned off the vehicle. The contact resumed driving; however, the failure reoccurred while driving 40 MPH. The vehicle was towed to an unknown dealer who informed the contact that they could not diagnose the vehicle as the transmission specialist was not available. The contact drove to his residence. The vehicle was towed to a second dealer where it was being diagnosed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist as the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V248000 (Power Train). The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle and shifting into the drive and reverse, the vehicle would no drive forward or move backward. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not notified. The failure mileage was 130,000.
Transmission unexpectedly slipped gear while driving at a steady pace in traffic. Caused RPMs to rev high and loud, with inability to control speed suddenly. Had to quickly pull over and turn off car. After waiting a few minutes, was able to restart car and continue driving without issue. This has happened 3-4 times now. Took to my local mechanic who stated there is an issue with a sensor inside the transmission. Spoke to my Ford dealer I purchased the car from, and was informed that this is a known issue occurring with many 2012 Form Mustangs, and they expect a recall to be announced shortly.
Speedometer went down to zero going 55mph. Car thought it was going 0 MPH, which causes transmission to go into first gear . Car reved awfully and had almost caused an accident both times this has happened to me. scanned the codes and it gives me p0722, common problem with these exact year mustangs and many other vehicles. Dealership denied my warranty to replace molded lead frame in transmission which causes this issue. This has already been a warranty extension and recall on many of these exact same cars and I do not know why mine doesn’t qualify. This is a huge safety issue and I’m left to fend for myself according to ford even though it is their products fault.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Mustang. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed however, the vehicle failed to exceed 50 MPH while the RPM decreased to 0. The check engine warning light and several other unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that either the input shaft speed sensor or the output shaft speed sensor needed to be replaced. The dealer was notified of the failure and advised the contact that his vehicle could not be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V248000 (Power Train) because the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 153,000.
The transmission is leaking between where engine and transmission meet and it will not go into gears correctly
car stopped accelerating twice on my mustang 7/23/21.first time on the way to work in traffic and then again when I was going to lunch around 11:30.
Showing 1–20 of 25 complaints
The 2012 Ford Mustang has 7 recalls recorded by NHTSA.
NHTSA has received 468 owner-reported complaints for the 2012 Ford Mustang.
The 2012 Ford Mustang received an overall safety rating of 4 out of 5 stars from NHTSA.
The most commonly reported complaint categories for the 2012 Ford Mustang are air bags (146 reports), power train (140 reports), structure (18 reports).
Yes. NHTSA has 7 recalls on record for the 2012 Ford Mustang. Scroll up to review the published recall summaries, consequences, and remedies. To check for unrepaired recalls on your specific vehicle, use your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Look up recalls and complaints for any year, make, and model.
This page summarizes publicly available data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA by vehicle owners and do not by themselves prove defect severity or vehicle safety. Safety ratings may not be available for all vehicle-years. This site is not affiliated with NHTSA or any vehicle manufacturer. For official information, visit the official NHTSA page for this vehicle.