The 1985 Mercury Lynx has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 1,866,549 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 8 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE FORWARD OUTBOARD PEDESTAL OF THE SEAT TRACK OF DRIVER'S SEAT MAY BE SUSCEPTIBLE TO FATIGUE FRACTURE.
THIS COULD RESULT IN A LIMITED DEGREE OF ROCKING MOTIONOF THE DRIVERS SEAT ASSEMBLY UPON ACCELERATION OR DECELERATION, WHICH COULDCAUSE AN ACCIDENT.
INSTALL A REINFORCEMENT ON ALL MODELS AND A NEW SEAT TRACK AS NECESSARY
EXTERNAL CRACKS ABOVE THE NUMBER 3 CYLINDER (1984 MODELS) OR ROCKER ARM COVER GASKETS SPLITTING (1985 MODELS) COULD ALLOW OIL TO LEAK ONTO THE EXHAUST MANIFOLD.
ENGINE OIL LEAKING ONTO A HOT EXHAUST MANIFOLD COULDRESULT IN AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE.
REPLACE CRACKED CYLINDER HEADS (1984 MODELS); REPLACE ROCKER ARM COVER GASKETS (1985 MODELS).
THE THROTTLE LEVER MAY NOT RETURN TO IDLE POSITION DUE TO MISALIGNMENT OF THE AIR CONDITIONER SHUT OFF SWITCH TO THE THROTTLE LEVER PIN. CONSEQUENCE OF…
ADJUST SHUTOFF SWITCH AND ASSURE PROPER ALIGNMENT TO THROTTLE LEVER PIN.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Vehicle would stall while driving at any speed. Vehicle been at dealer shop on three occasions, and problem still reoccurring. *ak *slc”
“Plastic retainer that holds metal bar of seat belt buckle deteriorated, causing buckle to fail. *sd”
“Upon parking and walking in home, driver heard horn and saw windshield wipers motion. Vehicle burst into flames. Please describe details. *ak”
“Upon parking and walking in home, driver heard horn and saw windshield wipers motion. Vehicle burst into flames. Please describe details. *ak”
“Wk [REDACTED]; while driving owner noticed burning smell. Parked vehicle and flames began from dash by door. Please describe details. *ak”
“Wk [REDACTED]; while driving owner noticed burning smell. Parked vehicle and flames began from dash by door. Please describe details. *ak”
“Upon parking and walking in home, driver heard horn and saw windshield wipers motion. Vehicle burst into flames. *ak”
“Upon parking and walking in home, driver heard horn and saw windshield wipers motion. Vehicle burst into flames. *ak”
REAR SEAT BELT COMPLIANCE
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:FORD BELIEVES THAT THE AL-LEGED DEFECT ONLY OCCURS IN A SMALL NUMBER OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ANDRECALLED ABOUT 195,732 1984 TEMPO/TOPAZ VEHICLES IN JUNE 1986.ANALYSIS: VEHICLES POTENTIALLY INVOLVED INCLUDE TEMPO/TOPAZ, ESCORT/LYNX/EXP, MUSTANG/CAPRI, LTD/MARQUIS, AND…
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:THE ALLEGED FIRES RESULT FROMA VARIETY OF CAUSES.FIRE RATE REMAINS ABOUT THE SAME DESPITE MAJORCHANGES WITH 85-1/2 MODELS.IT BELIEVES THAT THE FIRE RATE IS LESS THANINDUSTRY AVERAGE.MFGR REQUEST COPIES OF SPECIFIC FIRE REPORTS FOR TRENDANALYSIS.ANALYSIS:SEVERAL AREAS OF FIRE…
SUMMARY: A FRACTURED FRONT SEAT TRACK RECEIVED FROM AN ESCORT OWNER SHOWSTHAT METAL FATIGUE OCCURRED WHICH COULD CAUSE PARTIAL MOVEMENT OF THE SEAT.ANOTHER OWNER SENT PICTURES SHOWING FRACTURE AT THE SAME LOCATION. TENOF THE EIGHTEEN ODI COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED IN THE PAST FOUR MONTHS.MANUFACTURER INFORMATION:…
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SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:THE ALLEGED FIRES RESULT FROM A WIDE VARIETY OF CAUSES, WITH THE REPORTEDRATES OF FIRES FOR 1984-85 MODELS VERSUS THE 85 1/2 MODELS REMAININGAPPROXIMATELY THE SAME.THESE RATES ARE SIGNIFIGANTLY LESS THAN THEINDUSTRY AVERAGE FOR NON-COLLISION VEHICLE FIRES AS REPORTED IN THE…
SUMMARY: A FRACTURED FRONT SEAT TRACK RECEIVED FROM AN ESCORT OWNER SHOWSTHAT METAL FATIGUE OCCURRED WHICH COULD CAUSE PARTIAL MOVEMENT OF THE SEAT.ANOTHER OWNER SENT PICTURES SHOWING FRACTURE AT THE SAME LOCATION. TENOF THE EIGHTEEN ODI COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED IN THE PAST FOUR MONTHS.MANUFACTURER INFORMATION:…
NO SAFETY DEFECT TREND HAS BEEN DETECTED.===
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1985 Mercury Lynx as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.