"How reliable is the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible?"

"Based on 42 NHTSA complaints, the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible has a median complaint mileage of 24000 miles. The most common issue is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE."

"What are common problems with the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2003 Ford Mustang Convertible is ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE, accounting for a significant portion of the 42 total complaints filed."

2003 Ford Mustang Convertible: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 42 complaints

Total Complaints

24,000mi

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.

10,000 25th Percentile

24,000 Median Mileage

57,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SUSPENSION:REAR

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS

STRUCTURE

EQUIPMENT

SEATS

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

AIR BAGS

STEERING

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"SVT COBRA IS INTERMITTENTLY STALLING WHILE THE CLUTCH IS FULLY DEPRESSED AND DECELERATING TO A STOP. THIS INTERMITTENT STALLING OCCURS MOST FREQUENTLY AT IDLE. THE VEHICLE HAS STALLED AT LEAST TEN TIMES IN THE FIRST 1174 MILES OF OWNERSHIP. OCCURS WITH GREATER FREQUENCY IN WARM WEATHER WHILE THE ..."

"THE MOST RECENT BEING JUST A FEW DAYS AGO, MY VEHICLE WILL SOMETIMES HAVE A PROBLEM IN WHICH IT STALLS WHILE MOVING AT A SLOW SPEED WHILE A GEAR IS NOT ENGAGED. THE CAR IS A 2003 SVT FORD MUSTANG COBRA CONVERTIBLE. A CALL TO FORD'S SVT DIVISION HAD NO SOLUTIONS. MANY PEOPLE THAT I KNOW WITH THE SAME..."

"2003, COBRA SVT CONVERTIBLE, THE CAR STALL WHEN DECELERATING TO A STOP WHEN THE TAKEN FROM A GEAR TO NEUTRAL WITH THE CLUTCH IN/OUT AND DEPRESSING THE BRAKES. THE DEALER WAS ABLE TO HAVE THIS OCCUR ON A TEST RIDE, THEY HAD NO ANSWER TO WHY THIS HAPPENS. THEY ADDED A DEVICE THAT I HAVE TO PUSH WHE..."

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