1999 Ford Crown Victoria PI review from North America

Intake Manifold cracked at 180,000 - $800

(not covered by class action suit - 2nd owner

and 2006 filing deadline)

Ignition switch replaced at 175,000 - $250

Keys replaced - worn - $200

Wheel bearings had to be repacked 170,000 - $225

Fuse issues - constantly replacing

Numerous recall issues with safety belts and cruise control

Poor gas mileage - approx 20mpg highway - 15mpg city.

I was surprised to see few entries here concerning the intake manifold issue with crown vics. Ford used a composite plastic on certain models of this vehicle which crack with no warning and are very expensive to replace ($1100 at a dealership.) Google is your friend when researching this issue as well as numerous other recalls on the crown vics.

We are ones who religously maintain our vehicles and have two other cars with 200k+ miles that run incredibly well and are very dependable. The crown vic is at the bottom of our list in these respects. This particular one was a police cruiser bought at auction so caveat emptor. It has been a bit of a money pit to keep it in good working order.

That said, the car is built like a tank. Extra heavy duty everything. Very safe and sturdy, great acceleration, great on long road trips.

The best advice I can give is to stay as far away from dealerships as possible. A trusted local mechanic will save you hundreds on service costs. We have had nothing but issues with our local dealer who have tried to pull nothing but fast ones on us and in several cases we had to have factory service reps get involved to get resolution.

These cars are very satisfactory when well maintained and in good working order. It's a car you can feel good about when transporting your loved ones, just be aware there are costs with the poor mileage and possibly some expensive surprises lurking. Pay a trusted mechanic to pressure test the engine and give the car a good going over prior to making a purchasing decision.