The 1994 Lincoln Town Car has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 3,992,192 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 212 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the vehicle speed control. Last updated July 5, 2026.
ON CERTAIN PICKUP TRUCKS, PASSENGER VEHICLES, SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, AND MOTOR HOMES CHASSIS, THE SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH MAY, UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS, LEAK INTERNALLY AND THEN OVERHEAT, SMOKE, OR BURN.
Consequence
THIS COULD RESULT IN AN UNDERHOOD FIRE.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSTALL A FUSED WIRING HARNESS. OWNERS OF THE PASSENGER CARS INCLUDED IN THIS CAMPAIGN WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO RETURN THEIR VEHICLES TO THEIR DEALERS TO HAVE THE SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH DISCONNECTED AS AN INTERIM REPAIR. AS SOON AS REPAIR PARTS ARE AVAILABLE (EXPECTED OCTOBER 2007), OWNERS WILL…
SUSPENSION98V3220001998-12-16175,000 affected
Defect
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: CERTAIN 1996-1999 FORD CROWN VICTORIA POLICE, FLEET, NATURAL GAS, AND 1996-1999 LINCOLN TOWN CAR LIMOUSINE VEHICLES THAT WERE PRODUCED WITH A LOWER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINT CONTAINING A ONE PIECE BEARING; AND 1990-1996 FORD CROWN VICTORIA POLICE, FLEET, AND NGV VEHICLES AND 1990-1996 LINCOLN TOWN…
Consequence
IF THIS OCCURS WHILE THE VEHICLE IS MOVING, REDUCED STEERING CONTROL COULD OCCUR, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE LOWER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINTS (2).
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC95V1330001995-07-11692 affected
Defect
IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF THE REAR BRAKE LINE AT THE POINT AT WHICH THE EXTENDED BRAKE LINE FIRST BENDS AND EXTENDS OVER THE LEFT REAR WHEEL AREA OF THE FRAME. IF NOT INSTALLED WITH SUFFICIENT CLEARANCE, CHAFING OF THE BRAKE LINE CAN OCCUR IN AN AREA ADJACENT TO THE REAR FLOOR PAN.
Consequence
THE REAR BRAKE LINE CAN LEAK OR RUPTURE RESULTING IN REDUCED BRAKING CAPABILITY, LOSS OF REAR BRAKES, AND/OR LOSS OF BRAKE FLUID RESERVES IN THE MASTER BRAKE CYLINDER.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE BRAKE LINE FOR PROPER INSTALLATION AND/OR DAMAGE AND REPLACE AS NECESSARY. ALSO A PROTECTIVE BOOT OR SLEEVE OVER THE BRAKE LINE WILL BE INSTALLED.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC94V1520001994-08-09214,000 affected
Defect
THE NUTS AND BOLTS THAT ATTACH THE REAR BRAKE ADAPTOR TO THE AXLE HOUSING FLANGE CAN LOOSEN AND EVENTUALLY SEPARATE. IF ONE OR MORE OF THE NUTS COME OFF THE BOLTS, DAMAGE TO THE PARKING BRAKE ASSEMBLY OR TO THE ANTILOCK BRAKE SYSTEM (ABS) SENSOR AND SENSOR RING (IF SO EQUIPPED) WILL OCCUR. IF ALL FOUR NUTS ON ONE END…
Consequence
OCCURRENCE OF ANY OF THESE CONDITIONS CAN RESULT IN A LOSS OF BRAKING CAPABILITY AND POSSIBLE ACCIDENT.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND, IF NEEDED, INSTALL NEW BOLTS. IF ANY OF THE FASTENERS ARE DISCONNECTED, THE PARKING BRAKE AND ABS COMPONENTS WILL BE INSPECTED AND SERVICED.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC94V1290001994-07-122,500 affected
Defect
THE BRAKE PEDAL PUSH ROD RETAINER (HAIRPIN CLIP) MAY BE MISSING OR NOT PROPERLY INSTALLED ON THE SERVICE BRAKE PEDAL. THIS CAN CAUSE DISENGAGEMENT OF THE BRAKE PUSHROD AND LOSS OF BRAKING ABILITY.
Consequence
LOSS OF BRAKING ABILITY CAN RESULT IN A VEHICLE ACCIDENT.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND, IF NECESSARY, REPLACE THE RETAINER.
Complaints by component
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
16
6fires
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
13
1crashes
SEATS
13
1injuries
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
10
2crashes2injuries
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
8
8crashes8injuries
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
7
1crashes4fires1injuries
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
7
1fires
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
6
1fires
SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT
6
1crashes
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING
5
3fires
Total complaints212
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The car had a recall I didnt know about. It states the car may catch fire due to faulty part. I drove the vehicle home after work and parked it around 9:30 pm. The next morning a neighbor woke me up banging on my front door that my car was on fire. This was at 7 am. The fire originated in the area…”
“The car had a recall I didnt know about. It states the car may catch fire due to faulty part. I drove the vehicle home after work and parked it around 9:30 pm. The next morning a neighbor woke me up banging on my front door that my car was on fire. This was at 7 am. The fire originated in the area…”
“The car had a recall I didnt know about. It states the car may catch fire due to faulty part. I drove the vehicle home after work and parked it around 9:30 pm. The next morning a neighbor woke me up banging on my front door that my car was on fire. This was at 7 am. The fire originated in the area…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 1994 lincoln town car. While the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed an odor of burning rubber and plastic. The vehicle became engulfed with smoke and flames. The contact extinguished the fire. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact stated that the…”
“The contact owns a 1994 lincoln town car equipped with goodyear tires, tire line: assurance comfortred tread touring, tire size: 215/70/r15 dot: pj343912 and pj340214. The contact stated that all four tires were showing signs of cracked sidewalls and treads. The contact stated that the failure was…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 1994 lincoln town car. The contact stated that while parked, he was made aware that the vehicle was on fire. The fire department extinguished the fire. The vehicle was destroyed and remained in the contact's drive way, which was advised by the fire department. The fire…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 1994 lincoln town car. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, the brakes would not respond. The contact had to apply excessive pressure to the brake pedal and pump it repeatedly. Additionally, the air bag warning light illuminated intermittently. The…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 1994 lincoln town car. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, the brakes would not respond. The contact had to apply excessive pressure to the brake pedal and pump it repeatedly. Additionally, the air bag warning light illuminated intermittently. The…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationDP02007 Opened 2002-08-22 · closed 2002-12-04
FUEL-FED FIRES
THE FARS DATA SHOWS THAT THE RISK OF FIRE FROM IMPACT IN ALL DIRECTIONS IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES IS THE SAME AS ALL OTHER SEDANS.THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE NOT OVER REPRESENTED WITH RESPECT TO THE RISK OF FIRE IN REAL-WORLD HIGH-ENERGY CRASHES.A FURTHER DISCUSSION OF ISSUES RELATED TO POST CRASH FIRES IN THE SUBJECT…
InvestigationEA02025 Opened 2002-09-06 · closed 2004-06-30
SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH FIRES
BASED ON THE LOW RATE OF FIRE INCIDENTS (2.5 INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES SOLD) WHERE FAILURE OF THE SCDS IS INVOLVED AND THE AGE OF THE VEHICLES ? 7 TO 11 YEARS ? A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.THE CLOSING OF THIS…
InvestigationRQ01002 Opened 2001-09-20 · closed 2002-09-06
ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES
InvestigationSQ01014 Opened 2001-11-27 · closed 2002-10-03
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1994 Lincoln Town Car as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.