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1998 Lincoln Mark Viii

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 1998 Lincoln Mark Viii do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 86.5.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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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

26 reports with mileage · 57 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.

  • Visibility. Review the 23 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Exterior Lighting. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Suspension. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

2 crash reports3 fire reports3 injury reports

What owners actually said

83 reports
80,000 miles · Apr 11, 2006
Exterior Lighting

HEADLIGHTS PLASTICC COVERING HAVE BECOME CLOUDY REDUCING HEADLIGHTS OUT PUT! *NM

NHTSA ODI #10155023

Mileage unknown · Nov 16, 2005
Visibility

CONTINUOUS PROBLEM WITH HEATER-A/C BLEND DOOR FAILURE RESULTING IN LACK OF DEFOGGING OF WINDSHIELD AND POOR VISIBILITY. ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS AT NIGHT IN CHANGING OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS. THIS FAILURE HAS BEEN REPORTED TO YOUR OFFICES MANY TIMES IN THE PAST 5 YEARS WITH LINCOLN AND FORD VEHICLES . THE COST OF REPAIR …

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CONTINUOUS PROBLEM WITH HEATER-A/C BLEND DOOR FAILURE RESULTING IN LACK OF DEFOGGING OF WINDSHIELD AND POOR VISIBILITY. ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS AT NIGHT IN CHANGING OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS. THIS FAILURE HAS BEEN REPORTED TO YOUR OFFICES MANY TIMES IN THE PAST 5 YEARS WITH LINCOLN AND FORD VEHICLES . THE COST OF REPAIR IS BETWEEN $500-$2000 DOLLARS. FORD HAS APPARENTLY MADE CHANGES TO STRENGTHEN THE BLEND DOOR LEVER BUT REFUSES TO ADMIT DESIGN FAILURE NOR WILL WARRANT THE ITEM. NHTSA HAS YET TO TAKE ANY ACTION ON THE CONSUMER'S PART. WE ARE THE PUBLIC AND YOUR CHARTER IS TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO US, NOT THE AUTO MAKER. *JB

NHTSA ODI #10142943

71,000 miles · Oct 13, 2005
Air Bags

AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT WENT ON AND LINCOLN/MERCURY DEALERSHIP SAYS THE AIRBAG MAY DEPLOY WITHOUT WARNING OR MAY NOT DEPLOY IN THE EVENT OF AN ACCIDENT. REPLACEMENT/REPAIR OF THE CLOCK SPRING ASSEMBLY SHOULD BE COVERED BY FORD/LINCOLN SINCE THIS IS A SAFETY DEVICE ONLY AND NOT A MECHANICAL DEVICE. *JB

NHTSA ODI #10139598

30,000 miles · Mar 8, 2005
SuspensionUnknown Or Other

THE FRONT SUSPENSION SINKS DOWN ON THE VEHICLE, CAUSING THE FRONT TO SCRAPE ON THE GROUND. THIS IS MAKING THE ABILITY TO DRIVE DIFFICULT. MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED BY OWNER.*AK THE CONSUMER STATED THAT THE MAIN COMPUTER IS FAILING. *TC

NHTSA ODI #10109284

56,200 miles · Jan 25, 2005
Visibility

HEATER/AC BLENDER DOOR-DOORS,FAIL TO OPERATE AND OR HAVE "NO" TEMPETURE CONTROL,RESULTING IN POOR VISIBLITY.FOGGING ETC,LACK OF DEFROSTING AND OR A COLD DRIVER..SEE PREVIOUS 768368,768427,768529,768796,768173.7689173,769183,769959,10003517,10005626,10023956,10075009,AND NOW MINE ! THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGED IS THE COST OF REPA…

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HEATER/AC BLENDER DOOR-DOORS,FAIL TO OPERATE AND OR HAVE "NO" TEMPETURE CONTROL,RESULTING IN POOR VISIBLITY.FOGGING ETC,LACK OF DEFROSTING AND OR A COLD DRIVER..SEE PREVIOUS 768368,768427,768529,768796,768173.7689173,769183,769959,10003517,10005626,10023956,10075009,AND NOW MINE ! THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGED IS THE COST OF REPAIRS BY THE DEALER HAS GONE UP. I HAVE A WRITTEN ESTIMATE FOR( THE DASH HAS TO BE REMOVED) $680.00 LABOR.. PARTS AS FOUND/ TO BE $38.00,,$68.00,,$5.00,,$35.00 AND THAN MAYBE $350.00 MORE FOR A PLEMUM.. ($1,176.00) I UNDERSTAND THAT FORD HAS REPLACED THE PARTS WITH BETTER VERSIONS AS TO MATERIALS THAT WITH STAND THE DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES IT IS SUBJECT TOO.THIS APPARENT LACK OF ACTION BY NHTSA IS CAUSE FOR CONCERN AS TO YOUR UNINTEREST IN THE PUBLIC SAFETY NOT KNOWING HOW MANY OTHER VEHICLES ARE OUT THEIR WITH THIS HAZARDOUS DEFECT. HELP US,PROTECT US ,,THANK YOU. *AK

NHTSA ODI #10103960

59,301 miles · Dec 16, 2004
Latches/locks/linkages

MY 1998 LINCOLN MARKVIII OUTSIDE DRIVER DOOR HANDLE BROKE I HAVE 59,000 MILES ON IT ,IT COST $70.00 FOR THE PART,$40.00 TO PAINT THE THING,OVER @200.00 LABOR,(IGOT TO KEEP THE BROKEN ONE !),I FEEL THAT FORD KNOWS OF THIS DEFECT IN MATERIALS<CHANGED THE METAL MIX AND CURE, BUT FAIL TO BE RESPONSIBLE OF THIS SAFETY-DEFECT>>SEE ALS…

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MY 1998 LINCOLN MARKVIII OUTSIDE DRIVER DOOR HANDLE BROKE I HAVE 59,000 MILES ON IT ,IT COST $70.00 FOR THE PART,$40.00 TO PAINT THE THING,OVER @200.00 LABOR,(IGOT TO KEEP THE BROKEN ONE !),I FEEL THAT FORD KNOWS OF THIS DEFECT IN MATERIALS<CHANGED THE METAL MIX AND CURE, BUT FAIL TO BE RESPONSIBLE OF THIS SAFETY-DEFECT>>SEE ALSO #10052604 PLUS COUNTLESS OTHERS WHO HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM>

NHTSA ODI #10103083

32,050 miles · Nov 18, 2004
Engine And Engine CoolingSteering

VEHICLE WAS RUNNING VERY ROUGH, AND MISSING. ALSO, STEERING MALFUNCTIONED. *AK

NHTSA ODI #10101254

58,158 miles · Jul 12, 2004
Steering

I ROLAND MATOS PURCHASED A LINCOLN MARK VIII ON 06\27\01. BEAUTIFUL CAR . BUT 2 WEEKS AFTER I WAS HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE POWERTILT\TELESCOPE STEERING. IT WASN'T MOVING BACK AND FORTH ANY-MORE, AND DROPPING ITS BALL BEARINGS ON DRIVERSIDE MAT. SO I CALLED COUNTY LINE LEXUS WHERE I PURCHASED CAR, THEY TOLD ME THAT I BOUGHT T…

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I ROLAND MATOS PURCHASED A LINCOLN MARK VIII ON 06\27\01. BEAUTIFUL CAR . BUT 2 WEEKS AFTER I WAS HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE POWERTILT\TELESCOPE STEERING. IT WASN'T MOVING BACK AND FORTH ANY-MORE, AND DROPPING ITS BALL BEARINGS ON DRIVERSIDE MAT. SO I CALLED COUNTY LINE LEXUS WHERE I PURCHASED CAR, THEY TOLD ME THAT I BOUGHT THE CAR "AS IS" THEY DIRECTED ME TO FORD. I CALLED FORD AND THEY TOLD ME THAT THE MANUFACTURE WARRANTY HAD EXPIRED. I HAD VEHICLE FOR LESS THAN A MONTH ,THAT I HAD TO PAY TO FIX IT. SO I CONTACTED NHTSA AND TOLD THEM THAT THE VEHICLE WAS UNSAFE TO DRIVE BECAUSE THE STEERING WHEEL IS LOSE IT MOVES UP AND DOWN FREELY EVEN WITHOUT PRESSURE. I'VE MADE 3 COMPLAINTS. UP TO THIS DAY ITS STILL NOT FIXED.THANK YOU FOR TAKING TIME TO READ THIS LETTER. PLEASE HELP ROLAND. *LA

NHTSA ODI #10080863

65,639 miles · Jun 8, 2004
Visibility

ELECTRONIC TEMPERATURE CONTROL FAILURES PREVENTS WINDSHIELD CLEARING WHEN INTERNAL TO EXTERNAL TEMPERTAURE DIFFERENTIAL FOGS THE GLASS. BLEND DOOR FAILS ON A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF LINCOLN MARK VIII MODELS. MINE HAPPENS TO BE A 1998. *AK IT'S BOUND TO LEAD TO ACCIDENTS

NHTSA ODI #10075009

Mileage unknown · May 21, 2004
Structure

WE HAVE OWNED A MARK VII AND A MARK VIII LINCOLN. BOTH CARS HAD SERIOUS PAINT DETERIORATION. WE ALWAYS HAVE OUR AUTOMOBILES HAND WASHED. WE WOULD LIKE TO REPLACE ONE OF THE AUTOS WITH ANOTHER LINCOLN, HOWEVER, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE BOTH OF THE CARS PAINTED. HIS MUST BE A FAULT OF YOUR PAINT. IS THERE ANY COMPENSATION…

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WE HAVE OWNED A MARK VII AND A MARK VIII LINCOLN. BOTH CARS HAD SERIOUS PAINT DETERIORATION. WE ALWAYS HAVE OUR AUTOMOBILES HAND WASHED. WE WOULD LIKE TO REPLACE ONE OF THE AUTOS WITH ANOTHER LINCOLN, HOWEVER, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE BOTH OF THE CARS PAINTED. HIS MUST BE A FAULT OF YOUR PAINT. IS THERE ANY COMPENSATION? I HESITATE TO BUY ANOTHER LINCOLN. *AK

NHTSA ODI #10072972

Official recalls

1

07V336000 · Vehicle Speed Control

Aug 3, 2007

ON CERTAIN PICKUP TRUCKS, PASSENGER VEHICLES, SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, AND MOTOR HOMES CHASSIS, THE SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH MAY, UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS, LEAK INTERNALLY AND THEN OVERHEAT, SMOKE, OR BURN.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: THIS COULD RESULT IN AN UNDERHOOD FIRE.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A FUSED WIRING HARNESS. OWNERS OF THE PASSENGER CARS INCLUDED IN THIS CAMPAIGN WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO RETURN THEIR VEHICLES TO THEIR DEALERS TO HAVE THE SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH DISCONNECTED AS AN INTERIM REPAIR. AS SOON AS REPAIR PARTS ARE AVAILABLE (EXPECTED OCTOBER 2007), OWNERS WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO RETURN TO THE DEALERS FOR INSTALLATION OF A FUSED WIRING HARNESS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 13, 2007, AND MAILING COMPLETED BY SEPTEMBER 19, 2007. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-888-222-2751.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.