2005 Ford Mustang Electrical System
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
I HAVE A 2005 FORD MUSTANG AND THE INSTRUMENT PANEL STOPPED WORKING PROPERLY. ACCORDING TO THE GAUGE, I WAS GOING 120 MPH!! THEN THE LIGHTS, RADIO, AND DOORS STOPPED WORKING. I NOTICE THERE ARE A LOT OF THIS MAKE AND MODEL WITH THE SAME PROBLEM. IT'S VERY IRRITATING TO HAVE TO BORROW A CAR TO GET TO WORK AND BACK. I'VE ALWAYS DRIVEN MUSTANGS AND NEVER HAD A PROBLEM BEFORE, SO THIS TOOK ME BY SURPRISE. MAYBE I SHOULD LOOK AT A HONDA OR CHEVY. *TR
SPEEDOMETER AND RPM GAUGES FAULTY. SPEEDOMETER STARTS AT 140 WHEN VEHICLE IS STOPPED AND CLIMBS TILL IT IS VERTICALLY FACING DOWN. RPM GAUGE DOES NOT WORK. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 FORD MUSTANG. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, SHE NOTICED THAT ALL OF THE GAUGES ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WERE NOT OPERATING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE CLUSTER WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 80,000.
DRIVING ON HIGHWAY 55MPH, CAR SHUT DOWN AND COULD NOT RESTART. TOWED TO SHOP, THEY SAY NEEDS A NEW COMPUTER. $1,300.00 REPAIR. THEY CAR IS 8 YEARS OLD AND ONLY HAS 9100 MILES ON IT. *TR
LEFT SIDE OF DASH CLUSTER ( TACH AND FUEL GAUGE ) BOTH STOPPED WORKING. MUST REPLACE ENTIRE CLUSTER TO FIX . *TR
MY ENGINE OVERHEATED WHEN IT COOLED DOWN I CHECKED THE COOLING FAN CONNECTORS AND DISCOVERED THEY HAVE MELTED NOW THE FAN WON'T OPERATE. *TR
ALL GAUGES STOPPED WORKING. FIRST SPEEDOMETER, THAN THE TACT, GAS GAUGE, AND FINALLY THE HOT/COLD GAUGE. I DON'T KNOW HOW FAST I'M GOING AND I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH GAS I HAVE IN MY CAR. EVERY TIME I DRIVE MY CAR IT'S A GUESSING GAME BETWEEN GAS AND SPEED. FORD NEEDS TO ISSUE A RECALL BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT OR EVEN WORSE KILLED BECAUSE OF THIS. IF NOT A RECALL AT LEAST MAKE THE PART CHEAPER SO WE CAN GET IT FIXED INSTEAD OF GOING TO SOME MAKE SHIFT SHOP TO GET IT REPAIRED. $440.00 PLUS A $300.00 CORE IS WAY TO MUCH FOR A CLUSTER. *TR
THE INSTRUMENT GAUGES ON MY 2005 MUSTANG GT STARTED TO FAIL. FIRST THE SPEEDOMETER AND THEN THE FUEL AND TEMPERATURE GAUGES. ONLY THE TACHOMETER REMAINS FUNCTIONAL. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD AS THERE IS NO WAY TO ACCURATELY MEASURE HOW FAST YOUR GOING. THIS CAN BE A BIG ISSUE ON RAIN SOAKED, ICY OR OTHERWISE HAZARDOUS HIGHWAYS WHERE KNOWING YOUR SPEED IS CRUCIAL TO SAFE OPERATION OF YOUR VEHICLE. FORD IS OBVIOUSLY NOT STANDING BEHIND THEIR PRODUCT AND WILL NOT FIX THE PROBLEM WITHOUT A RECALL, UNLESS I PAY UP 1,000 DOLLARS...THEN WAIT FOR THE SAME THING TO OCCUR AGAIN. NHTSA HAS THE POWER TO ISSUE THE RECALL IF SAFETY IS AN ISSUE. HOW CAN IT NOT BE? HOW MANY HAVE TO BE MAIMED OR INJURED BEFORE YOU ISSUE THE RECALL AND DEMAND THAT FORD FIX THIS PROBLEM? *TR
THE VEHICLES TACHOMETER HAS FAILED AND NO LONGER PROPERLY MEASURES THE VEHICLES RPMS. IT IS PROBABLY CAUSED BY A FAILED MOTOR IN THE GAUGE CLUSTER. *TR
MY 2005 FORD MUSTANG TEMPERATURE GAUGE READ HOT, INTO THE RED WARNING SECTION. I DROVE IT IMMEDIATELY TO AUBURN FORD. THEY KEPT THE CAR FOR 4 HOURS AND TOLD ME I NEEDED A NEW THERMOSTAT. I HAD IT REPLACED. THE PROBLEM PERSISTED AND I WENT BACK TWICE. THE FORD DEALERSHIP AGAIN SAID THERE WAS NO PROBLEM AND TO IGNORE IT. WITHIN A MONTH MY SPEEDOMETER FAILED AND SAID I WAS TRAVELING AT 120 MPH WHEN I WAS GOING APPROX. 55 MPH. THEN THE INSTRUMENT GAUGES STARTED TO ALL GIVE INACCURATE INFORMATION. TO NOT KNOW HOW FAST YOU ARE DRIVING, TO NOT KNOW IF YOUR CAR IS OVER HEATING IS DANGEROUS. I HAVE SINCE LEARNED THAT THIS PROBLEM IS HAPPENING ALOT WITH OTHER 2005 MUSTANGS. WHY IS THIS NOT BEING FIXED BY FORD FOR FREE?? READ "MUSTANG MONTHLY" ON THE WEB AND SEE ALL THE PEOPLE EXPERIENCING THIS PRAGMATIC AND DANGEROUS NON RECALL ISSUE. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL AND SHAME ON FORD FOR CHARGING ME FOR SOMETHING I DID NOT NEED AND THE PROBLEM SHOULD NOT BE IGNORED. THIS IS MY 4TH FORD BUT MOST LIKELY MY LAST! HOPE YOU DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. *TR
BACK IN 2011 MY THERMO GAUGE SHOWED CAR WAS OVER HEATING WHEN IT WAS NOT. I HAD VEHICLE LOOKED AT AND THERE WAS NO INDICATION THAT CAR WAS RUNNING HOT. THIS WOULD HAPPEN OCCASSIONALLY NOT AN EVERYDAY OCCURANCE. THEN THIS PAST WINTER IT STARTED IT AGAIN AND THEN MY SPEEDOMETER STARTED SHOWING THAT I WAS TRAVELING AT HIGH RATES OF SPEED OR WOULD NOT WORK AT ALL. THE SAME THING HAPPENS WITH THE GAS GAUGE IT WORKS WHEN IT WANTS TO. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH I FOUND OUT THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THESE PROBLEMS. IT SEEMS TO HAPPEN IN STATES WHERE WEATHER BECOMES EXTREMELY COLD AND THEN WHEN IT WARMS BACK UP EVERYTHING WORKS. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL. *TR
THE SPEEDOMETER ON THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER STOPPED WORKING. A FEW MONTHS LATER THE TACHOMETER STOPPED WORKING. IN APRIL 2013, THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE STOPPED WORKING. ALL GAUGE NEEDLES ARE STUCK ON THE BOTTOM OF THE GAUGES. *TR
ALL OF MY GAUGES STARTED TO READ IMPROPERLY OR NOT AT ALL, SPEEDOMETER, OIL PRESSURE, GAS, BATTERY, COOLANT TEMP, RPM. THEY DIDN'T ALL GO AT THE SAME TIME AND THE PROBLEM MOVES AROUND BUT THERE IS ALWAYS AT LEAST 2 OR 3 GAUGES SHOWING INACCURATE DATA. IT HAS GOTTEN PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. NOT KNOWING HOW FAST I AM GOING IS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD! I AM APPALLED THAT THIS VERY PREVALENT PROBLEM HAS NOT ALREADY HAD A RECALL ISSUED. *TR
ALL OF MY GAUGES STARTED TO READ IMPROPERLY OR NOT AT ALL, SPEEDOMETER, OIL PRESSURE, GAS, BATTERY, COOLANT TEMP, RPM. THEY DIDN'T ALL GO AT THE SAME TIME. IT HAS GOTTEN PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. NOT KNOWING HOW FAST I AM GOING IS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD! I AM SURPRISED THAT THIS HAS NOT ALREADY HAD A RECALL ISSUED VIEWING ALL THE PROBLEMS WITH THIS MAKE, MODEL AND YEAR WITH THE SAME PROBLEM. *TR
THE SPEEDOMETER STICKS AT APPROX 60,40,35 MPH. IT WILL USE THAT AS ZERO SO IF IT STICKS AT 60. AND YOU ARE GOING 60 IT WILL READ 120. FORD SAYS THAT I SHOULD REPLACE THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER 2005 MUSTANG V6 OWNERS WHO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. *TR
FUEL GAUGE, SPEEDOMETER AND DIGITAL READ OUT. COMMENTS: HELLO, I AM HAVING SIGNIFICANT PROBLEMS WITH THE SPEEDOMETER ON MY 2005 FORD MUSTANG V6. THIS IS BY NO MEANS AN ISOLATED PROBLEM. SPEEDOMETER JUMPS TO ANYWHERE BETWEEN 20 TO 80 MPH AND REMAINS AT 20 TO 80. I HAVE SEEN IT ON EVERY FORUM THAT I COULD FIND AND IN LARGE NUMBERS. I HAVE NOTICED IS IT SEEMS TO BE MORE PREVALENT WHEN IT IS BELOW 40F DEGREES OUTSIDE. THE SAME THING HAPPENED WITH THE FUEL GAUGE SO I FILLED THE TANK, BUT THE GAS GAUGE STILL SHOWS 1/4 TANK. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND THERE NEEDS TO BE RESOLVE BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT, IF NOT ALREADY. I CHECKED FORD SITE, THERE ARE NO RECALLS ON THIS I'M SURPRISED THEY HAVEN'T HAD A RECALL YET. *TR
MY SPEEDOMETER DOES NOT WORK SO I DO NOT KNOW HOW FAST I AM GOING. THIS IS A PROBLEM WITH MANY 2005 FORD MUSTANGS. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 FORD MUSTANG. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT PANEL FAILED. THE CONTACT COULD NOT DETERMINE AT WHICH SPEED THEY WERE TRAVELING OR THE AMOUNT OF GASOLINE FUEL THAT WAS IN THE FUEL TANK. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE INSTRUMENT PANEL GAUGES BEGAN FAILING OVER TEN MONTHS AGO AND PROGRESSED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 72,000......UPDATED 01/14/13 *BF UPDATED 1/16/2013 *JS
SPEEDOMETER ERRATIC - SHOWS MILES PER HOUR WAY OUT OF RANGE OF ACTUAL MPH - I.E. SHOWS 120 MILES PER HOUR OR EVEN BEYOND WHILE ONLY GOING ABOUT 30; CAN ZERO OUT IF IN PARK AND SHUT OFF AND RESTART ENGINE, SLOWLY RESETS 5 MPH EACH TIME OFF AND ON AGAIN - TAKING A LOT OF TURNING OFF AND ON TO ZERO BACK OUT. HAVE READ AND HEARD OF MANY, MANY OTHER 2005 MUSTANG OWNERS HAVING SAME COMPLAINT - MUST BE RECALLED BY NOW? *TR *JS
I WAS TRAVELING DOWN THE HIGHWAY AND THE SPEEDOMETER WENT TO 0 MPH AND HAS NOT WORKED PROPERLY SINCE THAT TIME. MY ON-LINE RESEARCH HAS REVEALED THAT THIS PROBLEM IS QUITE COMMON WITH THIS MAKE AND YEAR OF CAR AND STEMS FROM FORD INSTALLING SUBSTANDARD STEPPER MOTORS ON THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER GAUGE CIRCUIT BOARDS. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE IN THAT I CANNOT GAUGE MY ROAD SPEED WHILE MOVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY. FORD SHOULD BE FORCED TO RECALL THESE VEHICLES AND MAKE THE NECESSARY REPAIRS SINCE THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND FORD IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 FORD MUSTANG. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SPEEDOMETER FAILED TO PROVIDE ACCURATE SPEED READINGS WHILE TRAVELING 55 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 57,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 58,000. ...UPDATED 10/19/12 *BF THE CONSUMER STATED NONE OF THE GAUGES ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WORKED. THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD READ OVER 120 MPH. THE TACHOMETER MOVED SOMETIMES AND THE FUEL GAUGE WORKED SPORADICALLY. UPDATED 10/25/12
SPEEDOMETER ERRATIC, INACCURATE. OFTEN INOPERABLE. OCCASIONALLY WORKS IN AMBIENT TEMPERATURES ABOVE 60 DEGREES F. ERRATIC/INOPERABLE CONDITION IS MORE PRONOUNCED AS AMBIENT TEMPERATURE DROPS BELOW 60 DEGREES F. REPLACED SENSOR ASSEMBLY - ENGINE SPEED, PART #XW4Z-7H103-AA. PROBLEM PERSISTS. *TR
THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER ON MY '05 GT STOPPED WORKING. IT WILL SOMETIMES SHOW THAT I AM DRIVING AT 120 MPH WHEN I AM IN FIRST GEAR AND IN MY DRIVEWAY. OTHER TIMES IT GOES 25 MPH ON THE FREEWAY IN FIFTH GEAR. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE AS YOU NEVER KNOW HOW FAST YOU ARE DRIVING. *TR
THE SPEEDOMETER CONSTANTLY MALFUNCTIONS, WHICH MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW WHAT SPEED YOU ARE TRAVELING. THE SPEEDOMETER WILL EITHER STICK AT ZERO OR BE 10 TO 15 MPH OFF. THIS IS COMMON PROBLEM BASED ON PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH MANY OTHER 2005 MUSTANG V6 DRIVERS. THE PROBLEM REQUIRES THE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT PANEL TO BE REPLACED (~$500-800), AND FORD CONTINUES TO GIVE US ALL THE RUN-AROUND. A SIMPLE SEARCH ONLINE ALSO RETURNS NUMEROUS POSTINGS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. NOT KNOWING THE SPEED IN WHICH YOU ARE TRAVELING IS A VERY UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITION. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER PROMPTLY AND ISSUE A RECALL. THANKS FOR YOUR HELP ON THIS MATTER. *TR
I WAS DRIVING OVER A BRIDGE AND LOOKED DOWN AND MY SPEEDOMETER SAID THAT I WAS GOING 120 MPH. I WAS ONLY TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH. I PULLED INTO A RESTAURANT PARKING LOT AND CONTINUED TO TURN THE CAR ON AND OFF. EACH TIME THE SPEEDOMETER WENT DOWN 10 MPH UNTIL I FINALLY GOT IT TO 0. I TURNED AROUND AND DROVE HOME, BUT THE SPEEDOMETER KEPT STICKING AT AROUND 40 TO 60 MPH. I HAVE READ ONLINE AT HTTP://FORUMS.MUSTANGMONTHLY.COM/70/7581455/2005-2010-MUSTANGS/SPEEDOMETER-ERRATIC-2005-MUSTANG-V6/PAGE2.HTML THAT SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE HAVE BEEN HAVING THE SAME ISSUE SINCE 2009. MY CAR IS CURRENTLY AT A SHOP AND THEY ARE ORDERING THE PART FROM THE DEALER TO FIX IT. THEY SAID THE SAME THING EVERYONE ONLINE SAID, "IT'S THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER." IF SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD THIS ISSUE SINCE 2009, WHY WAS IT NEVER RECALLED? *TR
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Quick Summary
The 2005 Ford Mustang has 196 Electrical System complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.