THE IGNITION SWITCH COULD EXPERIENCE AN INTERNAL SHORT CIRCUIT.
THIS CONDITION COULD CAUSE OVERHEATING, SMOKE, AND POSSIBLY FIRE IN THE STEERING COLUMN AREA OF THE VEHICLE.
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE IGNITION SWITCH.
The 1989 Lincoln Town Car has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 7,901,083 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 97 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE IGNITION SWITCH COULD EXPERIENCE AN INTERNAL SHORT CIRCUIT.
THIS CONDITION COULD CAUSE OVERHEATING, SMOKE, AND POSSIBLY FIRE IN THE STEERING COLUMN AREA OF THE VEHICLE.
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE IGNITION SWITCH.
GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT RATINGS AND TIRE INFORMATION MAY BE INCORRECT ON LABELS.
VEHICLES WOULD NOT COMPLY WITH 49 CFR PART 567.
INSTALL REVISED CERTIFICATION LABELS.
TIRE PLACARD MAY CONTAIN INCORRECT GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT RATINGS AND TIRE INFORMATION.
LIMOUSINES WOULD NOT COMPLY WITH FMVSS 110 AND CONSUMERMIGHT UNKNOWINGLY OVERLOAD THE VEHICLE BECAUSE OF PLACARD MISINFORMATION.
INSTALL REVISED TIRE PLACARDS.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: LIMOUSINES BUILT BY EMPIRE COACH. VEHICLE ALTERERS LABEL MAY BE MISSING OR INCOMPLETE.
VEHICLES DO NOT COMPLY WITH PART 567.
ADD COMPLIANCE LABEL.
SAFETY BELTS (TYPE 1 LAP BELTS) FOR REAR FACING SEATS WERE NOT INSTALLED.
LACK OF RESTRAINTS COULD CONTRIBUTE TO OTHERWISE PREVENTABLE INJURY AND WOULD NOT COMPLY WITH FMVSS 209 AND 210.
INSTALL SAFETY BELTS FOR REAR FACING SEATS.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Letter on behalf of concern about the 1996 recall on lincoln town cars, his brother-in-law is having electrical problem with the ignition switch on his 1989 lincoln town car; send incoming ltr with reply to attn: allison jackson/foley *tgw the consumer stated the key did not operate properly. The…”
“Tl*the contact owns a 1998 lincoln town car. While driving approximately 65 mph, the contact stated that the screw inside the reflective cone of the bulb was loose which caused the bulb to shatter and fail. The vehicle was taken to the dealership where the dealer attempted to sell the contact a…”
“While driving 35 mph rear suspension failed. As a result, the rear end dropped at least one foot to the ground. *ak”
“While driving the plastic cap on the transmission cable that connected to the throttle body broke. This mad it hard for the consumer to shift the transmission gears. Dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem.*ak the transmission was damaged due to the plastic clip breaking. The…”
“After parking the vehicle and turning off the ignition, the consumer heard a popping sound. A few seconds passed and the consumer saw thick black smoke and a fire coming from the engine compartment. The fire was extinguished and the vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer informed the consumer…”
“Vehicle hit a 8-10 inch high concrete divider, passenger hit head on windshield. Seatbelt did not restrain her, she suffered head lacerations/ neck and back injuries. Driver was not wearing seatbelt due to medical reason, hit head on windshield. Damage to vehicle unknown.*ak jg”
“While making a turn at 10 mph consumer ran through a medium and seat belts never locked in place, passenger almost went through the windshield.*ak *jg”
“Consumer states that after he heard a loud sound and saw a smoke, fire shot out from the rear of the vehicle, fire department are suggesting that the tail shift malfunction which caused fire (ohio traffic police report# 10-91-158). *yd”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1989 Lincoln Town Car as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.