The 1997 Lincoln Town Car is a full-size car that came with a 4.6L 8-cyl engine. At 29 years old, many are reaching the point where repairs cost more than the car is worth. Running or not, we'll make you an offer and tow it away for free.
| Body style | Large Cars |
|---|---|
| Engines | 4.6L 8-cyl |
| Transmissions | Automatic 4-spd |
| Drive | Rear-Wheel Drive |
| Fuel | Regular Gasoline |
| Fuel economy | 15 city / 23 highway / 18 combined MPG |
| EPA annual fuel cost | $3,700 a year (EPA estimate at current fuel prices, 15,000 miles) |
| Tailpipe CO₂ | 494 grams per mile |
| Versions tested by EPA | 1 configuration |
| Age | 29 years |
Specs, fuel cost and emissions from the EPA's fueleconomy.gov data. Your car's exact equipment may differ.
NHTSA lists 6 safety recalls covering the 1997 Lincoln Town Car. Open recalls don't stop you from selling or junking the car, but check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which apply to yours.
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.
Risk: This could result in an underhood fire.
Equipment description: passenger vehicles that have had the driver's air bag module replaced after april 5, 2000. The replacement driver's air bag module inflator may have insufficient welds that could prevent proper inflation of the air bag.
Risk: In the event of a crash, the driver's air bag may not properly deploy which could potentially result in less than the intended level of occupant protection.
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles using aftermarket driver's seat belt assemblies that were sold by ford parts departments from january 1, through june 13, 2000. These seat belt assemblies fail to comply with the requirements of fmvss no. 209, "seat belt assemblies." the equipment involved is service stock seat belt assemblies…
Risk: In the event of a collision, these seat belts may not restrain an occupant increasing the risk of injury.
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles using aftermarket front passenger side seat belt assemblies that were sold by ford parts departments from january 1, through june 13, 2000. These seat belt assemblies fail to comply with the requirements of fmvss no. 209, "seat belt assemblies." the equipment involved is service stock seat belt…
Risk: In the event of a collision, these seat belts may not restrain an occupant increasing the risk of injury.
Vehicle description: certain 1996-1999 ford crown victoria police, fleet, natural gas, and 1996-1999 Lincoln Town Car limousine vehicles that were produced with a lower control arm ball joint containing a one piece bearing; and 1990-1996 ford crown victoria police, fleet, and ngv vehicles and 1990-1996 Lincoln Town Car limousine…
Risk: If this occurs while the vehicle is moving, reduced steering control could occur, increasing the risk of a crash.
Two bolts that attach the driver air bag to the steering wheel were not installed during vehicle assembly.
Risk: In the event of a frontal collision, the air bag module would stay in position during deployment. However, the module could leave the steering wheel cavity following air bag deployment.
Owners have filed 314 complaints about the 1997 Lincoln Town Car with NHTSA. 10 reports involved a crash and 6 reports involved a fire. Owners reported 8 injuries.
Complaints are reports from owners and aren't verified by NHTSA. One complaint can list several components. Mileage is the median odometer reading owners reported for that component.
Manufacturers have filed 134 technical service bulletins and communications with NHTSA covering the 1997 Lincoln Town Car. These are repair instructions for known issues, not recalls.
Ford/Lincoln mercury: certain 1992-2001 model year crown victoria, grand marquis, and Town Car vehicles registered in the states of wisconsin and connecticut upgrade modi
Some 1997-2008 vehicles equipped with a 4.6l 2v, 5.4l 2v, or 6.8l 2v engine--spark plug thread repair procedure--not covered under new vehicle limited warranty. *nj this
Customer satisfaction program 05b31 - information only. A possibility that during a high speed / high energy rear collision, certain components have an increased risk of
Extended coverage program 05n04 - extended coverage for composite intake manifold. This program is being provided as a settlement to a class action lawsuit. The terms of
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications (technical service bulletins).
NHTSA opened 7 defect investigations covering the 1997 Lincoln Town Car.
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or t
Rear brake line failure
In a letter dated february 25, 2005, ford motor company (ford) notified odi that it would be conducting a customer satisfaction program (ford no. 04b26) to correct a rear brake line chafing concern in approximately 44,000 model year (my) 1997 ford crown victoria and grand marquis non-fleet vehicles equipped with electr
Rear brake line failure
Odi has received 40 complaints alleging rear brake line failure in the subject vehicles, including 8 that have been received this year.an additional 192 reports and 478 warranty claims have been received from ford.a leak in the rear brake line can cause extended stopping distance.a search of odi's complaint database fo
Ball joint separation
See attached report.
Speed control deactivation switch fires
Based on the low rate of fire incidents (2.5 incidents per 100,000 vehicles sold) where failure of the scds is involved and the age of the vehicles ? 7 to 11 years ? A safety-related defect trend has not been identified and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.the closing of this investigatio
Fuel-fed fires
The fars data shows that the risk of fire from impact in all directions in the subject vehicles is the same as all other sedans.the subject vehicles are not over represented with respect to the risk of fire in real-world high-energy crashes.a further discussion of issues related to post crash fires in the subject vehic
Post rear end collision fires
There is no summary currently available
‹ Sell a 1996 Town Car · Sell a 1998 Town Car › · All Lincoln Town Car years
It depends on its condition, whether major parts like the engine, transmission and catalytic converter are still there, and current scrap and parts prices where you live. Its parts make up much of its value. Enter your ZIP code above for a free offer on your specific car.
Yes. We buy 1997 Town Cars that don't start, were in an accident, failed inspection or have a blown engine or transmission. Towing is always free.
Yes. Open recalls don't prevent a junk sale. NHTSA lists 6 recalls for the 1997 Lincoln Town Car; you can check whether any are still open on yours with the VIN lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Usually the title and a photo ID. Rules differ by state, including what to do with your plates and whether to file a notice of sale. Check our state-by-state car title guides for the official forms.
Data retrieved October 2026.
Get a free offer in minutes. Towing is always free and you get paid at pickup.