Engine Cooling System problems of the 1996 Ford Mustang

I bought a used 1996 Ford Mustang gt, soon after having the vehicle I noticed that the car ran hot and could sometimes smell coolant when exiting the car, after my husband changed many parts in the cooling system, which did not resolve the issue, we called a local Ford dealership and explained the issue the parts department employee stated that he thought there was a recall so he sent us to talk to a service manager, after giving the VIN # to the service manager we were informed that our car did not have any recalls. A few days later my husband found a crack in the intake manifold we replaced it ourselves at our own expense only to find out through research that this is a known problem with these vehicles, I find it sad that an american car company can get away with knowingly selling defective vehicles and getting away with it. I will remember this next vehicle and buy a foreign car.

We owned a 1996 Ford Mustang gt that had a plastic intake manifold that cracked and failed. The manifold cracked on the coolant crossover passage, directly behind the alternator. There was no crash or injuries. I replaced the manifold myself by purchasing a new one from auto zone on 8/16/05. The cost of the manifold was $264. 94.

Engine and engine cooling system I bought a lot of new parts for this car to try and keep it cooled down everything there is to buy I was finely told by the shop that works on the car I should check with Ford because if they did anymore work on my car it could become up in the thousands and that Ford should be paying the bill or recall the whole car there is a lot of miles on my car but I take very good care of it and as many parts I buy and as many times that it has been in the shop almost everything on the car is new I have tried everything to make this car run good the reason the owner before me sold the car he was always fixing something on it with everything he done to the car I thought if I just did a little more it would run good but there's no way I replaced the intake manifold 2 times because of cracking I was told by Ford they know there is a problem with the intake manifolds but they don't recall them anymore so second hand buyers are out of luck we just keep replacing that part while Ford gets richer on a part they know will not work on that car I replaced the clutch a little over a year ago and again something 's wrong I had it checked and they found that all the bolts that hold the transmission in where all almost out I have had them put back in place 2 times and the same with starter only with the starter there was only one bolt left holding it the shop said they don't even know how it had been starting so I fixed that but worried about them all the time Ford has been no help on any thing I called about but they say they know of the trouble people are having but sorry no one has put any recalls on these problems and that they will send me a letter if any recalls come out anything that cost Ford to much never gets recalls only thing like hood latch seat belt those 2 things I have never had trouble with but they also don't pay much to have them fixed.

Plastic intake manifold cracked for the 2nd time. I was fortunate enough to get covered under the recall the first time, but this time I'm on my own. This is on a '96 Mustang gt with 100k miles. Both cracks were around the temperature sending unit at the front/passenger side of the motor.

(1) events leading up to the failure: normal driving conditions. 2) failure and its consequences: cracked intake manifold on 1996 Ford Mustang gt sohc v8 engine (85,000miles). Engine coolant leaked out rendering car undriveable, and me stranded. (3) what was done to correct the failure; I. E, parts repaired or replaced: framingham Ford dealer replaced the defective part at a charge of $1150. The work was done in a sloppy fashion where upon receiving the car, there were washers and nuts missing from some parts of the reassembled engine (which has since been adressed). The cracked manifold was not fixed under warranty or the 97m91 recall as it had run out last year. There was no recall notice sent prior to it running out. Being a known problem, Ford needs to replace the part at their expense, not at a profit for themselves.

My car's cooling system was draining fluids, and when I took it in to the dealership to get checked out, they told me the head gaskets as well as the front timing cover gasket needed to be replaced. It cost me $2500 for the repairs necessary. There are about 12 or 13 complaints of a similar nature for the same model and year (1996 Ford Mustang), but since this engine was installed on other models and years, who knows how many others have suffered from the same problem.

Consumer states her auto is running hot, and she has taken the auto to 4 mechanics and each has said that this part has been on recall. She also states that her air condition and defroster does not work. She also said she was told that the 95 and 96 has been recalled for this problem. Ts.

Recall notice was not sent to our address and b class recall is expired. However this just became a problem with our car. Related problems are as follows. Heater giving cold air, timing chain cover rusting, 1 or more gallons of water daily is leaked out thru gasket after driving. Constant overheating and feared overheating damages to motor may occur or engine fire as a result of such severe motor overheating.

There was clanking noise when engine was turned off/overheated.

Engine stalled and began smoking from under hood. All coolant lost from cooling system. Repair shop said there is a crack in the intake manifold made from plastic. Has repaired 3 in past 6 months. Ford dealer in the area keeps 15 of this expensive part in stock because it is an ongoing problem.

I have had several reoccurring problems including 2 transmission failures. The transmission is an aod automatic, and it still doesn't shift correctly. If passing gear is engaged, then car's rpms shoot up and it shifts down to too low of a gear. I have replaced 2 water pumps that were leaking. I have replaced a sway bar that broke while driving down a flat road. There is a whinning sound that comes from either the pulleys or the crankshaft. In hot weather the car will act like it is running out of gas when accelerating even when the tank is full. The brakes are very poor even with new pads and the rotors resurfaced, they fade especially when braking must be done quickly or at higher speeds. There are also many rattles that come from various bady panels and the trunk when driving.

Tempeture shows overheating & engine stalls with or without a/c.

Engine continues to stall and overheat have had 2 engines replaced because of this has seen dealership several times and there has been no resolution.

Water pump is leaking. Yh.

Plastic gasket not able to handle to with stand the pressure from the coolant system. Most cars do not have plastic cylinder head.

The intake manifold cracked & leaked/steamed under normal driving conditions. It had to be replaced at a cost of over $400. (parts & labor included). I have owned several cars & have never even heard of the intake manifold going out at this low mileage. I asked the dealer service mgr @ moyer Ford in foley, al if this had been a problem & he said, "not on this model, the police cars have had some problems with it though". This isn't right & it makes me want to go back to another make of car that is more reliable.

Engine overheats after manufacturer TSB kit installed,dealer kept car 1 mth afterward, no further updates, no repair, car still runs hot.

The defective design of the engine coolant system which is not adequate for the size of the engine, caused the vehicle to overheat and stall unexpectedly, which could result in a crash. Dealer will install a new coolant system at consumer's expense.

I have a 1996 Ford Mustang lx. I was driving my car at night and I had it on cruise control and it blew up. I took care of my car and checked the engine and the antifreeze before I leave my house. I gave my car a 15 minute warm up period before I leave my house. The engine overheated and blew up due to faulty engine gasket. I have had to change the starter,the water pump(2x), radiator, and pistons because of that. I am very mad at Ford and I told them so in dearborn mi. I will not buy a Ford in the future and I tell everyone that asks me about my bad experience w/ this car and I tell them to not buy Ford cars or trucks. Thank you for reading this.

Bob allen Ford and the regional Ford representative refused to fix the problem. The vehicle's cooling system was not upgraded to the specifications outlined in the service bulletins published by Ford which acknowledged that there is a systemic problem in the cooling systems for 1996 Mustang cobras.

Vehicle intermittently overheats.

Car has had serious braking, transmission and cooling problems since the date purchased. Has been in the shop for these repairs more then 12 times. Dealer & Ford have said there is nothing wrong with this car. I have read 33 pages of comments of 1996 Mustang owners who are experiencing the same serious defects that I have. Please do something about this unsafe vehicle!.

Engine cooling system constantly overheats from June to September in ordinary driving conditions with a/c on.

Engine overheats with air conditioner on in city type driving on warm days.

Flaw in the design of the engine cooling system causing vehicle to overheat and damage components.