— Ford Mustang transmission problems have caused a lawsuit for consumers who purchased or leased 2011-2019 Mustangs equipped with MT82 or MT82-D4 manual transmissions.
According to the Mustang class action lawsuit, the cars contain defects that cause the MT82 transmissions to slip, jerk, engage harshly, clash gears, suffer premature wear and eventually fail.
The plaintiffs claim the transmission problems cause owners the expense of repairing repeated problems with the shift forks, shift shafts, synchronizers and clutch assemblies. The plaintiffs also allege failed MT82 transmissions which are replaced by dealers are replaced with transmissions just as defective as the original components.
The lawsuit says Ford used Tremec and Borg Warner transmissions in previous Mustangs but switched to Chinese-made Getrag transmissions to save money. It was this change to Getrag MT82 and MT82-D4 transmissions that allegedly caused the problems.
The MT82 and MT82-D4 manual transmissions were allegedly used in smaller vehicles with less horsepower than Mustangs, and the transmission synchronizers were allegedly not designed to handle the horsepower of a Mustang.
This allegedly causes failures of the synchronizers to spin up the shaft quickly enough to engage the gears.
The Ford Mustang transmission problems allegedly cause a loss of vehicle values, and owners and lessees are allegedly put in danger by driving the Mustangs.
The automaker allegedly has known about the Mustang transmission problems since 2010 because Ford has issued technical service bulletins (TSBs) and special service messages (SSMs) related to the transmissions.
- TSB 10-19-4
- TSB 11-3-18
- SSM 26614
- TSB 18-2083
- TSB 18-2175
- TSB 18-2267
According to the class action, Ford has told dealer technicians to drain and refill the transmissions, replace the 3rd/4th shift forks, the countershaft 3rd gears and the 3rd/4th gear synchronizer hubs and sleeves.
Additionally, technicians have been told to replace the gearshift levers, replace the clutch pedal position switches and replace the brackets. The main shaft 2nd gears and the 1st/2nd gear synchronizer hubs and sleeves also should be replaced.
The Mustang transmission lawsuit references a federal investigation opened in 2011 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) concerning 2011-2012 Mustang manual transmission problems.
NHTSA found 364 complaints indicating various problems with shifting while driving, especially in cold temperatures.
Ford allegedly took actions to improve the transmission problems and federal safety regulators closed the investigation after finding, "[t]here is no indication of loss of motive power or unreasonable safety risk associated with the alleged defect in the subject vehicles."
Ford allegedly continues to deny the transmission problems are caused by defects and instead places the blame on wear and tear of the manual transmissions.
The Ford Mustang transmission lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California: Gregorio, et al., v. Ford Motor Company.
The plaintiffs are represented by Capstone Law APC, Gordon & Partners, P.A., and Kopelowitz Ostrow Ferguson Weiselberg Gilbert.
Ford Mustang Complaints - 2011 / 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
