AutoUtility currently tracks 264 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2017 Ford Mustang. Driver Assistance & Safety Tech issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 67 complaints (25.4% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 14 filings cite a crash, 8 cite a fire, 9 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • Total NHTSA Complaints: 264 reports
  • #1 Reported Problem Area: Driver Assistance & Safety Tech (67 reports • 25.4% of submitted complaints)
  • Secondary Problem Areas: Body & Structure (57), Electrical System (34)
  • Crash-Citing Complaints: 14 filings
  • Fire-Citing Complaints: 8 filings
  • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 9 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
264
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
14
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
8
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
9
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2017 Ford Mustang

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 25.4% of complaints

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech

67 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 3 crash reports 🔥 1 fire report
#2 Problem Area 21.6% of complaints

Body & Structure

57 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 2 crash reports 🩹 2 injury report entries
#3 Problem Area 12.9% of complaints

Electrical System

34 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ 1 crash report 🔥 4 fire reports 🩹 1 injury report entry
#4 Problem Area 12.1% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

32 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
🔥 1 fire report 🩹 2 injury report entries
#5 Problem Area 9.8% of complaints

Air Bags & Restraints

26 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 7 crash reports 🔥 2 fire reports 🩹 6 injury report entries
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2017 Ford Mustang

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Visibility, Wipers & Glass 3.4% of complaints

Rearview Camera / Screen Display Blackout

9 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Engine & Cooling 3.4% of complaints

Engine Coolant Intrusion / Oil Leak

9 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Powertrain & Transmission 2.7% of complaints

Loss of Motive Power While Driving

7 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2017 Ford Mustang

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11752554
Fire Cited Filed: 07/24/2026

"Was driving, all the sudden I heard a pop and a little bit of smoke and the smell of burning plastic came from under passenger seat. Pulled over, noticed it was coming from electrical harness under seat that controls the heated and cooled seats. Disconnected plug and saw that it had burnt out &..."

Incident Date: 07/23/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS
Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11752210
Fire Cited Filed: 07/22/2026

"The contact owns a 2017 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed smoke on the interior of the vehicle. The contact stated that the smoke became heavy on the interior of the vehicle. The contact stopped the vehicle and became aware that the..."

Incident Date: 07/20/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11750675
Filed: 07/15/2026

"Horn when first pushed does not work....Push it 3-4 times rapidly and it works fine...Intermittent....Yesterday a kid not paying attn pulled out in front of me on a bicycle....I hit the horn, horn did not work, came sooooo close to hitting him......With a horn operating properly it would not have..."

Incident Date: 07/13/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Body & Structure NHTSA ODI ID: #11749603
Filed: 07/10/2026

"Our 2017 has had an ongoing problem through the years with the passenger door opening at speed. Sometimes going 70 mph on the interstate. Lately it has happened more and more. Yesterday, my wife called me at work, very upset saying that the passenger door popped open again on her way to work. I..."

Incident Date: 07/09/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: STRUCTURE
Air Bags & Restraints NHTSA ODI ID: #11746513
Filed: 06/25/2026

"The contact owns a 2017 Ford Mustang. The contact stated that the driver's and passenger's side seat belts were seizing. The occupants were concerned about being stuck inside the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The mechanic removed the inside panels of the seat belts and greased..."

Incident Date: 05/01/2025 • Raw NHTSA Component: SEAT BELTS
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Ford Mustang

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Ford Mustang 436 26 11 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Ford Mustang 373 13 5 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Ford Mustang Current Page 264 14 6 Current
2018 Ford Mustang 187 8 4 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Ford Mustang 146 3 6 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Ford Mustang 118 13 8 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Ford Mustang 55 4 6 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Ford Mustang 49 3 9 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Ford Mustang 15 5 6 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Ford Mustang 73 5 11 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Ford Mustang 14 1 5 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Ford Mustang 0 0 3 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2017 Ford Mustang

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 58 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Back Over Prevention / Camera NHTSA category: BACK OVER PREVENTION 51 0 0 0 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 22 1 0 1 0
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 18 0 1 2 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 18 1 1 0 0
Doors, Latches & Locks NHTSA category: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 15 0 0 1 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 15 1 0 0 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 0 1 0 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 12 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 11 0 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 7 6 2 6 0
Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 6 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 5 0 0 0 0
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 5 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 4 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,BACK OVER PREVENTION 3 0 0 0 0
SEAT BELTS,BACK OVER PREVENTION 3 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 3 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,BACK OVER PREVENTION 3 0 0 0 0
Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS 3 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE 2 1 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS 2 0 1 0 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES,BACK OVER PREVENTION 2 0 0 0 0
Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS 2 0 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 2 0 0 0 0
Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 1 0 0 0
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EQUIPMENT 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 1 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 1 1 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY/WIPER,BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY/WIPER,VISIBILITY 1 0 0 1 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
SEAT BELTS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,POWER TRAIN 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,POWER TRAIN,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
STRUCTURE,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 1 1 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES 1 1 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (264). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (1)

1 OPEN

Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)

Official Federal Inquiries: NHTSA opens a defect investigation when safety screening or consumer defect trends indicate a potential unreasonable safety risk. An open investigation is a formal inquiry and does not by itself confirm a defect or result in a mandatory recall.
OPEN Engineering Analysis (EA) ODI Action #EA21002
Opened: 2021-09-17 • Currently Active

Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture

Affected Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious...

Active federal investigation. Official NHTSA File →
Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.