Case file · FORD-MUSTANG-2024-2026 · Field document

Ford Mustang 2024–2026 · Pre-purchase checklist

Bring this to the inspection. Every check below is specific to this generation's documented failure modes, not generic used-car advice.

1. Check 01

   Run the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before anything else. This generation has an unusually busy recall sheet for its age. Confirm every campaign shows completed, especially the 25V546 cowl-seal/BCM water-leak fix.

2. Check 02

   Check the passenger-side footwell carpet for dampness or a musty smell, and look for water staining below the windshield corners, the classic cowl-leak tell. Walk away or negotiate hard on a car with a soaked BCM history.

3. Check 03

   With the car running at dusk or in a dark spot, verify every exterior light works: taillamps, side markers, license-plate light. Flickering or dead rear lighting is the BCM water-intrusion symptom.

4. Check 04

   On a 2024 built July–November 2023, confirm the 24S49 rear-suspension-knuckle inspection was performed. On a 2024 EcoBoost, confirm the 24S19 fuel-line recall is closed.

5. Check 05

   Cold test drive an automatic: creep to several stops and listen for a clunk or lurch around 25–30 mph as it downshifts. Some of this is 10R80 character, but ask whether the latest transmission software update has been applied, and on a 2025, that the 25V164 valve-body recall is done.

6. Check 06

   Cycle the digital cluster and the 13.2-inch center screen through a full restart. Ask if the 24C35 cluster software update was done and whether the APIM (infotainment module) was ever replaced.

7. Check 07

   On a 5.0, let it idle warm and listen near the passenger front wheel well. A light irregular tick is the known 'typewriter tick', which Ford calls normal, but you want to hear it yourself before you own it.

8. Check 08

   Inspect paint and panel gaps in daylight, especially the nose cone and front fascia edges. Launch-era cars left the factory with visible defects often enough that owners documented them.