RoadVitals

1998 Mercury Cougar

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
1
Latest Aug 24, 1998
Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
0
InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
1
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
0

Overview

Our database contains 1 NHTSA owner-reported complaint for the 1998 Mercury Cougar, most frequently naming the electrical category. 1 NHTSA investigation names it; and 21 manufacturer communications are on file.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

What owners report

Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded

  • Electrical1100.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Safety recalls

No recalls in our database for this model year

That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.

Safety investigations

NHTSA inquiries naming this vehicle. An investigation is not a finding of a defect.

EA01001ClosedEngineering Analysis

BLOWER SWITCH/RESISTOR OR WIRING HARNESS

Opened Jan 5, 2001
Closed Jul 31, 2001

There is no summary currently available

ELECTRICAL SYSTEMLed to recall 01I009000

Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

Electrical
Filed Aug 24, 1998

WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE STALLED AND LOST ALL POWER, WHICH ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE PROBLEM. PLEASE PROVIDE DETAILS. *AK

NHTSA ID
827132
Incident
Aug 17, 1998

Manufacturer communications

A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.

042107

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)

GENERAL (PCM) POWER TRAIN CONTROL MODULE PROGRAMMING PROCEDURES. *TT

04217

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)

GENERAL POWER TRAIN CONTROL MODULE (PCM) PROGRAMMING PROCEDURES. *TT

02176

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCH

LAMP-BRAKE-INVADVERTENT DISABLING OF BRAKE SHIFT INTERLOCK. *MJ

0019

POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY

INFORMATION REGARDING SEVERAL INTERNAL CHANGES THAT HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED ON THE MRX-75 TRANSAXLE TO IMPROVE SHIFT EFFORTS. *MJS

13468

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SOME VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 2.0L ENGINE MAY EXHIBIT A TIMING BELT SHREDDING OR TIMING BELT STRIKING THE FRONT COVER. *TT

7451

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SOME VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 2.0L ENGINE MAY EXHIBIT A TIMING BELT SHREDDING OR TIMING BELT STRIKING THE FRONT COVER. *TT

Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

Mercury Cougar by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
2002953052.7
2001823053.2
20002115054.4
19994549155.6
1998Viewing101
1997760140.3
1996622148.7
19951090142.9
19941370142.8
19931953255.7
1992923457.8
1991733261.0
1990863564.9
1989814670.7
1988551560.2
1987331360.4
1986132156.4
1985101149.7
1984171254.6
1983232
1982241
1981011
1980222
1979030
1978221
1977040
1976010
1975020
1974020
1973200
1972010
1971010
1970010
1969040
1968010
1967020
1962100

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.