"How reliable is the 1992 Ford Tempo?"

"Based on 264 NHTSA complaints, the 1992 Ford Tempo has a median complaint mileage of 170000 miles. The most common issue is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE."

"What are common problems with the 1992 Ford Tempo?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1992 Ford Tempo is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE, accounting for a significant portion of the 264 total complaints filed."

1992 Ford Tempo: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 264 complaints

264

Total Complaints

170,000mi

Median Mileage

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

103,325 25th Percentile

170,000 Median Mileage

170,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SEAT BELTS

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"MOTOR STARTED SHIFTING AND RUBBING AGAINST THE FIRE WALL DUE TO DEFECTIVE MOTOR MOUNTS. TT"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28