"How reliable is the 1997 Ford Aspire?"

"Based on 88 NHTSA complaints, the 1997 Ford Aspire has a median complaint mileage of 96500 miles. The most common issue is AIR BAGS."

"What are common problems with the 1997 Ford Aspire?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1997 Ford Aspire is AIR BAGS, accounting for a significant portion of the 88 total complaints filed."

1997 Ford Aspire: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 88 complaints

Total Complaints

96,500mi

Median Mileage

AIR BAGS

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

87,098 25th Percentile

96,500 Median Mileage

101,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

AIR BAGS

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FRONT UNDERHOOD

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR

WHEELS

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM:EMISSION CONTROL

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"VAPOR SEPARATOR FOR FUEL SYSTEM IS EMITTING ODOR. *AK"

"THIS IS A RENTAL VEHICLE AND WHILE GOING 40MPH THE HOOD FLEW UP, HIT THE WINDSHIELD AND THEN FLEW OFF THE CAR. THE HOOD WAS MAKING A POPPING NOISE PRIOR TO ACCIDENT. *AK"

"CONSUMER STATES THE VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE UNDER THE HOOD. VEHICLE WAS OFF FOR ABOUT 1 1/2 HOURS, OWNER NOTICED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON , ON 26 OF AUG OF 97. OWNER TOOK THE VEHICLE INTO THE DEALER ON THE 26 TH OF AUG. 97 TO HAVE IT SERVICED. THE DEALER SAID THAT IT WAS THE SENSOR, AND THAT IT WA..."

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