THE TRANSMISSION IN THESE CARS GO OUT WITHOUT WARNING. THEY WILL STOP THE VEHICLE FROM ACCELERATING WHEN DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. YOU WILL HAVE TO PULL OVER AND ONCE YOU PULLOVER AND COME TO A COMPLETE STOP IT WILL NOT LET THE CAR ENGAGE INTO GEAR AND MOVE.
2004 Lincoln Ls
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2004 Lincoln Ls do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 91.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Ls years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
80 reports with mileage · 11 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
91 reportsHI. I BOUGHT THIS CAR AND I KEPT SMELLING GAS VERY BAD. TO THE POINT THE WHOLE HOUSE SMELT AND WHEN I PARK THE CAR I CAN SMELL IT. I FIGURED THERE HAD TO BE A PROBLEM BUT COULD NOT FIND A LEAK. I DECIDED TO LOOK ONLINE AND FOUND LINCOLN HAD A RECALL FOR DEFECTIVE GAS TANKS WHICH HAS THE SYMPTOMS I'M ENCOUNTERING. ITS A HIGH SAFE…
Read full complaint
HI. I BOUGHT THIS CAR AND I KEPT SMELLING GAS VERY BAD. TO THE POINT THE WHOLE HOUSE SMELT AND WHEN I PARK THE CAR I CAN SMELL IT. I FIGURED THERE HAD TO BE A PROBLEM BUT COULD NOT FIND A LEAK. I DECIDED TO LOOK ONLINE AND FOUND LINCOLN HAD A RECALL FOR DEFECTIVE GAS TANKS WHICH HAS THE SYMPTOMS I'M ENCOUNTERING. ITS A HIGH SAFETY ISSUE WHICH CAN START A FIRE AND OR HAVE HEALTH ISSUES WITH ME AND THE KIDS. WELL TURNS OUT MY CAR WITH THAT VIN DID NOT HAVE A RECALL EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS A RECALL FOR SAME YEAR AND MAKE BUT NOT MINE FOR SOME REASON. IT IS OBVIOUS THAT MY VEHICLE NEEDED TO BE RECALLED TO FIX IT. IM IN DESPERATE NEED TO HAVE IT REPAIRED AND DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO. I DONT HAVE THE FUNDS TO FIX THERE MISTAKE. PLEASE HELP IN ANY WAY YOU CAN. THANK YOU, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
WHILE DRIVING IN THE EVENING, ON A SLIGHTLY WINDING, SMOOTH, GRAVEL ROAD AT ABOUT 30 TO 35 MPH, TEMPERATURE ABOUT 34 DEGREES F, THE AIRBAG IN THE PASSENGER SEAT DEPLOYED. THERE WAS NOT ANY FORM OR TYPE OF COLLISION. DURING THE TIME I HAVE HAD THE CAR, ABOUT 2 YEARS, THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANY FORM OF COLLISION DAMAGE, AS FAR AS I …
Read full complaint
WHILE DRIVING IN THE EVENING, ON A SLIGHTLY WINDING, SMOOTH, GRAVEL ROAD AT ABOUT 30 TO 35 MPH, TEMPERATURE ABOUT 34 DEGREES F, THE AIRBAG IN THE PASSENGER SEAT DEPLOYED. THERE WAS NOT ANY FORM OR TYPE OF COLLISION. DURING THE TIME I HAVE HAD THE CAR, ABOUT 2 YEARS, THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANY FORM OF COLLISION DAMAGE, AS FAR AS I KNOW THERE WAS NOT ANY PRIOR HISTORY OF ANY TYPE OF COLLISION DAMAGE. THERE WAS AN OCCUPANT IN THE SEAT, HIS SHOULDER FELT SORE AND HIS HEARING WAS AFFECTED AT THE TIME.
NORMAL CLEAR WEATHER DRIVING DOWN BUSY STREET WHEN CARE SUDDENLY SLOWED DOWN ALMOST RESULTING IN A COLLISION WITH VEHICLES BEHIND ME. THE ENGINE STOPPED , I RESTARTED WITH VERY LIMITED DRIVABILITY THE ETC FAILSAFE MODE KICKED IN FOR NO APPARENT REASON THIS ISSUE MUST BE ADDRESSED BEFORE SOMEONE IS SERIOUSLY INJURED.
WAS COMING HOME FROM THE STORE I WAS GOING 55MPH AND OUT OF NO WHERE THE HEADLIGHTS TURN OFF....PULLED OVER TURNED OFF THE CAR THEN BACK ON AND WORK FOR LIKE A MIN THEN AGAIN I ALMOST CRASH BECAUSE NO LIGHT..A 15MIN DRIVE HOME BECAME 50MIN HAD TO BE PULLING OVER ALL THE WAY HOME....DUE TO THE LIGHTS TURNING OFF ON THERE OWN... …
Read full complaint
WAS COMING HOME FROM THE STORE I WAS GOING 55MPH AND OUT OF NO WHERE THE HEADLIGHTS TURN OFF....PULLED OVER TURNED OFF THE CAR THEN BACK ON AND WORK FOR LIKE A MIN THEN AGAIN I ALMOST CRASH BECAUSE NO LIGHT..A 15MIN DRIVE HOME BECAME 50MIN HAD TO BE PULLING OVER ALL THE WAY HOME....DUE TO THE LIGHTS TURNING OFF ON THERE OWN... *TR
WHILE DRIVING 5 MPH ON A DRIVEWAY, THE PASSENGER CEILING AIR BAG DEPLOYED FROM THE FRONT SEAT TO THE BACK SEAT. THE CAR DIDN'T HIT ANYTHING. PASSENGER WAS INJURED. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 LINCOLN LS. WHILE ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A REDUCTION IN ENGINE POWER. THE VEHICLE WAS MANEUVERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. UPON RESTARTING, THE WRENCH WARNING SYMBOL DISPLAYED CONTINUOUSLY UNTIL AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF AND RESTARTED MULT…
Read full complaint
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 LINCOLN LS. WHILE ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A REDUCTION IN ENGINE POWER. THE VEHICLE WAS MANEUVERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. UPON RESTARTING, THE WRENCH WARNING SYMBOL DISPLAYED CONTINUOUSLY UNTIL AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF AND RESTARTED MULTIPLE TIMES. THE FAILURE OCCURRED THREE TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 57,900.
BRAND NEW BATTERY IN CAR. COME OUT TO START CAR. BATTERY IS DEAD. MY MECHANIC HAS CAR FOR THREE DAYS. HE TRIED TO FIND A SHORT. HE INSTRUCTED ME TO MAKE SURE ALL DOORS ARE COMPLETELY CLOSED AND LIGHTS ARE ALL OUT. THIS WAS AFTER MULTIPLE DEAD BATTERIES. I MADE SURE OF ALL THE ABOVE AND STILL CAME OUT TO DEAD BATTERIES. …
Read full complaint
BRAND NEW BATTERY IN CAR. COME OUT TO START CAR. BATTERY IS DEAD. MY MECHANIC HAS CAR FOR THREE DAYS. HE TRIED TO FIND A SHORT. HE INSTRUCTED ME TO MAKE SURE ALL DOORS ARE COMPLETELY CLOSED AND LIGHTS ARE ALL OUT. THIS WAS AFTER MULTIPLE DEAD BATTERIES. I MADE SURE OF ALL THE ABOVE AND STILL CAME OUT TO DEAD BATTERIES. I MANUALLY TURN OFF THE LIGHTS AS I CAME OUT TO THEM BEING ON AFTER I HAD WATCHED THEM DIM AND GO OUT. I REPLACED THE NEW BATTERY WITH ANOTHER NEW BATTERY AND I AM STILL HAVING PROBLEMS. *TR
WHILE TRAVELING AT 40 MPH ON FLAT, SMOOTH TWO LANE ROADWAY THE DRIVER SIDE CURTAIN AND SIDE SEAT AIRBAGS DEPLOYED STRIKING DRIVER ON LEFT SHOULDER AND FACIAL AREA. THERE WAS NO SIDE IMPACT OR ROUGH ROAD PRIOR TO DEPLOYMENT. DRIVER WAS ABLE TO KEEP CONTROL OF VEHICLE AND MOVE TO BERM. DRIVER SUFFERED SOFT TISSUE TRAUMA TO LEFT SH…
Read full complaint
WHILE TRAVELING AT 40 MPH ON FLAT, SMOOTH TWO LANE ROADWAY THE DRIVER SIDE CURTAIN AND SIDE SEAT AIRBAGS DEPLOYED STRIKING DRIVER ON LEFT SHOULDER AND FACIAL AREA. THERE WAS NO SIDE IMPACT OR ROUGH ROAD PRIOR TO DEPLOYMENT. DRIVER WAS ABLE TO KEEP CONTROL OF VEHICLE AND MOVE TO BERM. DRIVER SUFFERED SOFT TISSUE TRAUMA TO LEFT SHOULDER, UPPER ARM AND FACE. SIDE CURTAIN AIRBAG DAMAGED INTERIOR ROOF HEADER UPON DEPLOYMENT. DRIVER SEAT SIDE AIRBAG APPEARS TO HAVE NOT FULLY DEPLOYED AND EXPANDED INSIDE THE SEAT RIPPING OUT A 3 FOOT AREA OF STITCHING AND TEARING THE LEATHER SEATING MATERIAL IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA. CONTACTED FORD MOTOR COMPANY AND THEY REFUSED RESPONSIBILITY. *JS
NO BRAKES TILL ENGINE WARMS UP. PEDAL GOOD BUT NO BRAKES. NEW PADS AND ROTORS. NO IDIOT LITE. MECHANIC CAN'T FIGURE OUT WHY IT DOES THIS. *JS
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
Illustration