IllustrationI OWN A 1996 LINCOLN MARK VIII AND HAVE BECOME VERY CONSERNED ABOUT THE POOR LIGHTING THIS VEHICLE HAS DURING THE NIGHT HOURS. IT IS BECOMMING HARDER AND HARDER TO USE THE FACTORY LIGHTING TO HAVE A GOOD FISION OF THE AREA AHEAD AND ANY OBSTICALS THAT MIGHT BE THERE.*AK
1996 Lincoln Mark Viii
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1996 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
Compare all Mark Viii 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
Limited mileage data: 26 of 106 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
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.
- Exterior Lighting. Review the 77 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 5 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
5 crash reports2 fire reports4 injury reports
What owners actually said
106 reportsWHILE DRIVING THE HEADLIGHT OVERHEATED AND BURNED OUT. *NLM
THE HEAD LIGHTS WERE VERY DIM, WHICH MADE IT DIFFICULT TO SEE WHILE DRIVING. *JB
NONE
HEAD LIGHTS NOT BRIGHT ENOUGH FOR NIGHT DRIVING. DT
WE HAVE BEEN NOTING THE HIGH NUMBER OF 1993-1996 LINCOLN MARK 8 OWNERS THAT HAVE BEEN REPORTING SERIOUS HEADLIGHT PROBLEMS WITH THEIR CARS, YET NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE BY YOUR OFFICES. FORD & LINCOLN WILL APPARENTLY DO NOTHING BECAUSE YOU DO NOTHING. THESE ARE SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERNS OF THE OWNERS. THEY CAN'T SEE DOWN THE ROAD A…
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WE HAVE BEEN NOTING THE HIGH NUMBER OF 1993-1996 LINCOLN MARK 8 OWNERS THAT HAVE BEEN REPORTING SERIOUS HEADLIGHT PROBLEMS WITH THEIR CARS, YET NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE BY YOUR OFFICES. FORD & LINCOLN WILL APPARENTLY DO NOTHING BECAUSE YOU DO NOTHING. THESE ARE SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERNS OF THE OWNERS. THEY CAN'T SEE DOWN THE ROAD AT NIGHT BECAUSE OF THE SERIOUS APPARENT DESIGN FLAWS OF THEIR HEADLIGHTS. WHAT IS THE GOOD OF HAVING A GOVERNMENT TRANSPORTATION AGENCY THAT WILL NOT START AN INVESTIGATION WITH AN ISSUE SUCH AS THIS??? FORD/LINCOLN WILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGE A PROBLEM BEACUSE THEY KNOW YOU HAVE NOT DONE ANYTHING . PROBABLY THEY HOPE THAT TIME WILL RUN OUT AND EVERY ONE WILL TRASH THESE $40,000 CARS OR TRADE THEM IN . IT IS INTERESTING THAT THE LATER MODELS, 1997-1998 MARK 8S, HAVE A DIFFFERENT HEADLIGHT SYSTEM. BUT NO HELP OR RETROFIT TO THE OLDER MODEL OWNERS. WHAT GOOD IS THE GOVERNMENT IN THESE CASES WHERE THEY DO NOTHING??? A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY TO THE OWNERS WHO TRUST THAT YOU WILL DO SOMETHING AND INVESTIGATE. HEADLIGHTS, COME ON - HOW MUCH MORE SERIOUS CAN YOU GET??? WHEN YOU REVIEW THE YEARS IN QUESTION, YOU CAN SEE THAT SOME ACCIDENTS HAVE OCCURRED. AND OF COURSE THESE ARE ONLY THE REPORTS OF OWNERS WHO ARE AWARE OF YOUR AGENCY. DT
MANUFACTURE INSTALLED HALOGEN (9005) HEADLIGHTS ARE TOO HOT AND HAVE DESTROYED THE HOUSING AND REFLECTIVE MATERIALS SO THERE IS LITTLE TO NO VISIBILITY WHEN USING THEM. DT
HEADLIGHT OUTPUT IS INADEQUATE. NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON NHTSA WEBSITE INDICATE POOR DESIGN. MR
CONSUMERS WIFE LEFT FOR WORK AND COULD NOT GET THE SHIFT LEVER OUT OF PARK. THE MANUAL EXPLAINED HOW TO OVER RIDE THE LOCK OUT ALSO INDICATING THE BRAKE LIGHTS WOULD BE OUT. NOT WANTING TO BE WITH OUT BRAKE LIGHTS, CONSUEMRS WIFE TOOK VEHICLE TO THE NEAREST SERVICE SHOP TO HAVE THE FUSE REPLACED. WHEN THEY PROCEEDED TO BRING …
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CONSUMERS WIFE LEFT FOR WORK AND COULD NOT GET THE SHIFT LEVER OUT OF PARK. THE MANUAL EXPLAINED HOW TO OVER RIDE THE LOCK OUT ALSO INDICATING THE BRAKE LIGHTS WOULD BE OUT. NOT WANTING TO BE WITH OUT BRAKE LIGHTS, CONSUEMRS WIFE TOOK VEHICLE TO THE NEAREST SERVICE SHOP TO HAVE THE FUSE REPLACED. WHEN THEY PROCEEDED TO BRING THE VEHICLE IN, THE STARTER CONTINUED TO STAY ENGAGED WITH THE ENGINE RUNNING EVEN WITH THE KEYS REMOVED. THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE BRAKCET HAD COME LOOSE AND SHORTED THE BRAKE WIRES ALSO SHORTING THE WIRES TO THE STARTER. *JG
CONSUMER STATES DUE TO A DESIGN DEFICIENCY, THE REFLECTIVE LINING INSIDE OF THE PLASTIC HEADLAMP HOUSING IS BEING BURNED OFF, SEVERELY DIMINISHING THE OUTPUT OF THE HEADLAMPS. THIS IS CAUSED BY THE EXTREME HEAT BUILD-UP FROM THE 9005 HALOGEN BULB USED IN THE LOW BEAM SECTION OF THE HEALAMP HOUSING. *TT
Official recalls
107V336000 · 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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.