Problems with 2005 Ford Freestar POWER TRAIN

My wife was driving our 2005 ford freestar with six kids in the van to school this morning, all of sudden, the transmission was dead on i-95 of jacksonville, fl, the lost of transmission came so suddenly in i-95 without any earlier indications, she finally cruise it to the left should of i-95 and with the help of two police officers and one road ranger, all the passengers got transferred to a safe place. the van was towed to a repair shop where we were told the transmission needs to be changed at cost of at least more than $2000.00. *tr

While driving 30 mph my 2005 ford freestar van felt like it had slid into neutral. in fact the car was still in drive but would not go forward or reverse. it felt like it would not go into any gear. there was no previous "slipping, or lurching". i had to pay to have it towed to a transmission shop and have just been told that i will need another transmission and the torque converter was stripped. the van only has 65,000 miles on it. the mechanic is trying to find a rebuilt transmission with low miles, but low miles is what mine had. *tr

Transmission failed without any warning signs, vehicle would not move in forward or reverse. this happened in the middle of the road with my wife and five kids on board. *tr

My husband and i were on i95 aprox. 17 miles from savannah ga. suddenly the engine began revving and i could no longer get any power. being all the way in the left lane i had to pass over 2 lanes of traffic to get safely onto the side of the road. after over an hour we were picked up by a towing company. the transmission now has to be replaced. *tr

2005 ford freestar torque converter failure. failed with no warning while driving at highway speeds. failed on major highway with limited shoulder, had to have police show up due to lane blockage. *tr

While driving on state highway in left lane doing 55 miles per hour, lost all ability to accelerate. the vehicle could not be moved out of the left lane and off the highway putting myself and my son in danger. the vehicle had to be pushed off the highway and towed. *tr

Engine stutters, won't run steady, idles over 2000rpm in neutral, continually dies, when engine dies steering hard(naturally), won't go in reverse, this problem causes numerous problems that are not safe when it does it on the road. the problem is apparently in moisture in the pcm. torque converter was replaced in 2012. has not done the problem for a year and did it again today( has not rained in more than a week) just going down the road and starts cutting out and dies! has done this many times since 2010. ford knows about it! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Driving at 70 mph on i-70, slowed down to go through automatic toll both on the turnpike. when i pushed the accelerator to resume speed, the transmission was disengaged. i was able to pull off of the side of the road in time to avoid being rear ended by the cars behind me in the toll booth line. the car is now at the dealer being fixed. they suspect broken output shaft, estimated $1800 to fix. *tr

While driving at 55 mph, our 2005 ford freestar minivan just stopped. thankfully there was light traffic, but with no warning, the van just stopped. we took the van to a transmission shop. "yeppers", the guy said, "something broke" he gave us a price on a used transmission with labor and the price for rebuilding ours. very scary incident. *tr

Pe09033 & ea09-016, a sudden and unexpected loss of motive power due to an internal transmission failure in the subject vehicles. from what i understand the transmission was replaced around 50,000 miles for this same reason and now it has happened again. *tr

2005 ford freestar van with 60,000 miles. the transmission failed with out any warning, leaving our family stranded at a busy intersection. the transmission never slipped or shifted hard, it just stopped transferring power to the wheels. the van is at a transmission shop now, the initial diagnosis is the splines are stripped out of the torque converter. the shop is removing the transmission to replace the torque converter and inspect the rest of the transmission. *tr

2005 ford freestar 55k miles on odometer: water/moisture in powertrain control module causes transmission to quit, vehicle to stall, transmission to lurch dangerously and unexpectedly. our van has been in the shop 3 times. since it was bought used from the dealer, it is not under manufacturer warranty. we have paid thousands of dollars in repair costs and, after each repair and after a fix detailed by a technical service bulletin by our mechanic to try and avoid water getting into vital transmission components, our vehicle has had to be returned for additional service. the last time, my wife was driving 60mph on a highway with our two children in the car when the van's electrical system suddenly quit and she nearly got clipped by a truck as she tried to pull over to the side of the road. *tr

Abrupt transmission failure. *tr

Purchased our 2005 freestar in june 09 69,000 miles on it. this car was purchased for the sole reason to use to commute or 7 children to and from where we need to be and to get to work everyday. we purchased this vehicle with the understanding that it was a reliable car and the dealership gave us such a "good deal" we could not pass it up. (this dealership is no longer in business to even talk with them), we were just getting back to work with being laid off last year at christmas time. trying to catch up with all the bills that were collected with limited income. with no other vehicle we purchased this with 3 year loan left on it. besides having to replacing all 4 tires, we have not had any problems until january 1 2010. we live in mn and were pulling out of the drive way to go to work at 14 below, only for the van to go in d or r or any of the gears with warning at all. luckily we were only in the middle of our icy culdesac when this happened and not on the icy highway we were about to get on. the transmission completely went out on us leaving us with no vehicle. this was the first ford i purchased and as it appears with the other cases i am reading about will be our last. if ford is aware of these problems and doing nothing to fix them, it is going to cost people loss of income or maybe even a life at some point in time. with the economy as it is and everyone trying to make ends meet this is terrible for ford to do something like this. we cannot pay to get this fixed for awhile, and we will still have to pay for the monthly payments besides. not a way to start the 2010 year. *tr

Difficult to diagnose! symptoms of a wet pcm module manifests itself in many forms. we've experienced most of them by this point in our ~3 year battle with our freestar. randomly, our van would not: start, go into reverse, give warning lights, drive forward without stalling, allow certain systems to function properly. in other situations, it would: run roughly, break down, rev up unexpectedly, create transmission issues, etc. seals wear down and allows water to enter into the computer, due to its location under the windshield. one of the greatest problems of all is the lack of diagnostics for this issue. we've had our vehicle towed in, only to find diagnostic codes did not show up when the van was checked out. surprisingly, the car would usually start up and drive without a problem after being towed into the mechanic. after several towing experiences, we simply decided to leave our car stranded for a day or two if possible and return later to drive it away without a problem. we've replaced pumps, coils, transmission components, plugs, wires.. in an effort to get the van to work properly. finally, one mechanic did on-line research and found the pcm problem with the 2005 freestar. after finding water in the computer housing, he suggested that we buy a rebuilt one (ford does not supply pcm's for this van anymore) to see if that would solve the problems. however, the ford dealership had to install the computer so that the programming could be completed. otherwise, the original keys would not work. in summary, the pcm did solve the problems, until the next weather event. then, the problems started all over again. we have now had the computer replaced, dried, and/or sealed several times, but water keeps getting inside. the local ford dealership and other mechanics have been working diligently in an effort to seal the pcm. recall and class action needed! *tr

1. driving down the street, suddenly the vehicle was no long being powered, but the engine was running. transmission has been regularly serviced and has had no prior indications of transmission trouble (i.e. slipping, skipping, grinding or using transmission fluid) 2. according to the transmission mechanic, the splines on the torque converter sheered off, causing the transmission to be stop working. this has occurred 1 time. metal shavings from the torque converter in the transmission. luckily we were only doing 30 mph when the failure occurred and were close to home. 3. the transmission is being rebuilt w/ a new torque converter. according to the transmission shop, the 2004-2007 ford freestars have an inherent defect in the torque converter. in order to address the issue, a re-manufactured torque converter with reinforced splines must be installed as the ford replacement part suffers from the same design flaw. approximately $2,200.00 to resolve this manufacturers defect and at this time, ford's fix installs the same faulty torque converter which caused the transmission failure to begin with. *tr

We were in my wife's 2005 ford freestar driving home from my family for the holidays when we in a snowstorm. the car violently jerked during driving several times, due to the transmission and once put us in a spin into the ditch!!!!! this is not acceptable!!!!! it is criminal. my 9 year old child was in the car also and this vehicle only has 55,000 miles on it. we are scared to death to drive it and afraid it will get us killed. what can you help us with? is ford going to have to answer at all for this failure of engineering and who is going to pay the $3000 to get this suicide vehicle repaired correctly to fix ford's failure? please help us! *tr

When i started the car on dec. 27,2009, i heard a high pitched whirring sound. when i put the car in reverse, there was no power, the car wouldn't move backwards or frontwards when i put it in drive. *tr

while in driving in wintry conditions on ny rt 86, my wife's vehicle suddenly lost drivetrain power, sending the rpm's of the vehicle 5000 range. my wife was able to coast to the emergency lane due to the lack of traffic. the vehicle was unable to move due to the loss of transmission power. my wife and two kids were left to fend for themselves for 2 hrs on the side of the road while traffic whizzed by at 70+ mph just inches away. ny state trooper just stopped and left offering no assistance. finally, aaa tow showed up just before i arrived from work, to tow the vehicle to a shop. thank god they were not struck by a drunk of distracted driver or going uphill. do i think this is a safety issue? definitely. picture your family driving in their 05' ford freestar. while slowly crossing a set of railroad tracks in traffic, the transmission fails leaving the vehicle unable to move. the driver panics struggling to figure out what's wrong, shifting gears, trying anything. then the gates go down signaling a train is coming. your families vehicle and maybe the family behind theirs are trapped. your family may not have the time to get out. what if you have two or more children in child safety seats. could you imagine trying to decide which one gets out first. i can think of many scenarios in which the vehicles ability to operate is a serious safety issue. i can understand somewhat that parts can wear out on vehicles 10-15 y/o, but not on vehicles less than 5/4 y/o. even the mechanic in the tiny town in ny knew just what the issue was when he saw the vehicle. this issue is not new, the problem is known. i am sure ford is not about to depart with $$$ voluntarily to fix this safety issue because of their great big heart, or ethics! the organizations who we pay through gov't should keep us protected and demand a recall. *tr

While driving my ford freestar i lost power i was able to pull over but the van would not move at that point. could get the rpm's up but would not move. the place i took it to said it seems to be the transmission. i cannot afford this and it could have been a very dangerous situation had i been going faster. the van is still financed and i owe to much to even sell it. can you please help me??? *tr

On sunday, 12/27/09 we came out of church and got into our 2005 ford freestar to go home. after starting it up i put the transmission into d and it would not move. we had no previous problems with the transaxle at all. i put it into r and nothing happened. i allowed the engine to warm up for a few minutes, then tried again. the van would not move in d, but jerked and moved when put in 3. i began to drive it home in 3. it slipped in and out of gear constantly, and the transaxle light stayed on, but it got us home--about 5 miles. i checked the fluid when i got there. it was just a little low. i added some and drove it around the block, but no change. i called our ford dealer the next day, who told me to bring it in the next day. it didn't move until then. i warmed it up for 1/2 hour before driving, then drove it to the dealer--about 5-6 miles away. it shifted fine in d for about the first mile, then it began to slip and jerk in and out of gear. the next 3 miles were highway miles. it would be driving fine at about 50 then kick out of gear and lose motion completely, then grab and take off again. back in town, when stopping at a light it would try to stall. when put into n it would rev up to 2000 rpm. the dealer charged $100 to check it. they called later and said it might be the stator and needed to be torn into--$850. after 2 days, they called and said the entire inside of the transmission was full of metal shavings, the splines were stripped, it was shot, and it would be $3400. the van has 53,100 miles on it. i bought it with 4,700 miles on it when it was 6 months old and serviced the transmission at this same dealer at 36,000 miles. it has been well cared for. *tr

We were driving our 2005 ford freestar minivan on the highway at approx 65mph when our tachometer suddenly surges then we lost all ability to accelerate so we had to coast over the shoulder of the highway. *tr

2005 ford freestar transmission failed without warning. this van is a lemon. my 4 kids and i were driving, and transmission failed without warning. had no previous problems with this van before this incident,,, ford should have a recall for this problem as i know this is happening frequently to ford owners. *tr

Transmission failed driving down major highway. vehicle has only 61000 miles. *tr

Ford freestar 05 transmission failure. doing 55 in outside lane and the revs when up with complete loss off power. it was rush hour and we were very lucky not to have an accident. put the car in the garage and they needed to rebuild transmission due to torque converter failure. $3000 repair. *tr

Just got home from driving the kids from town and the transmission quit on the 2005 freestar van. i am trying to get into the shop. i considered this a near miss. *tr

We own a 2005 ford freestar with 53,000 miles on it this morning, saturday, december 5th i went to start the car and it made a horrible screeching noise. i sat in the driveway for about 5 minutes to see if it would go away as the engine warmed up and while it became softer the screech was still there. tried to put it in reverse and slowly rolled down my drive way but was unable to ever engage the gears and get it back into drive. after a couple minutes of being frustrated and rolling farther down my drive way i put it in park and had my husband help me push the van back into our driveway. being a saturday, we can't get a hold of any of our local shops but looking online we were able to find hundreds of people with the same issue and would like someone to look into it. my car is 4 years old and has 53k on it, it shouldn't be having issues like this yet. *tr

On wed, dec 2, 2009, my wife was driving our 2005 ford freestar during rush hour. she turned a corner, onto a busy blvd, and continued to go up the hill, suddenly the car acted as if it had been shifted into neutral. there was no prior vibration, noise, stall, stutter, smell, engine light or other occurrence to alert us that the vehicle had any issues at all. the engine revved and the car lost all acceleration, mid-hill, in very busy traffic. she was able to dodge traffic and coast to a shoulder. if this had happened 30-60 seconds earlier, she would have been t-boned by oncoming traffic as she turned onto the blvd. after reading the online forums and nhtsa site, i am shocked to learn that the 2004/2005 freestars are known for their transmissions going out with no prior symptoms or notice of any kind. i am equally shocked to learn that ford knows about this, and the nhtsa is supposedly investigating the many many complaints of same issue, and yet neither ford nor the nhtsa have chosen to notify current owners of the impending danger. a recall is certainly in order. and at the very least, all current ford 2004/2005 freestar owners should be made aware of this danger. the quote we received today, for a refurbished transmission, was $2,800. this is a huge problem for our family in a horrible economy where our household income has dropped dramatically and it's 3 weeks till christmas. thank you ford and nhtsa for leaving customers and citizens in the dark, and in danger! *tr

While driving on the highway, experienced a sudden and complete loss of power. repair shop advised that the torque converter had failed and stripped the splines. transmission had to be replaced. *tr

Driving on i-10 in the florida panhandle, my 2005 ford freestar van suddenly (and without any warning) lost forward power. the engine was running but there was no trust. i had the car towed to a nearby service station and was told that the transmission had to be replaced. i did some research and it appears that my situation is very similar the numerous complaints filed about the lost torque in this particular model year car. my car had only 68,000 miles on it. *tr

Transmission suddenly failed when attempted to leave driveway in the morning. car: 2005 ford freestar. there is no drive no reverse gear nothing. *tr

I was driving my 2005 ford freestar van on 11/21/09 when the transmission failed at 60 miles an hour. i steered the van onto the shoulder of i-35, called a tow truck and had it hauled to sebald's motors in askov, the closest ford dealer. they completed repairs on the transmission amounting to #2,210.18. *tr

While exiting the pearlridge shopping mall parking garage in pearl city, hawaii, my van completely lost power. as i drifted to the stop light i tried to shift into another gear to see if i possibly had some other gear to go into so that i may pull out of traffic. after trying for a few seconds i realized that i could not move the van and had to get out and push. i had to attempt to move the van while traffic was passing on both sides of me. luckily, a motorist stopped and he and another guy assisted me in getting my vehicle back to the parking structure safely. with a vehicle just quitting in the middle of a busy road like this one i was at risk of being rear ended which would have lead to a sever accident that would have involved myself, my aunt and my two young daughters along with the occupants of the striking car. i was also at risk while trying to clear the vehicle from the roadway before an accident could possibly occur. i bought the van used in 2007 and received a full transmission service before i took the vehicle home. this was done at 46000 miles and now that i am at 84k this major problem has occurred. i believe i am supposed to have the transmission serviced every 50k miles so i am still good with the fluid. i took it to the ford dealer and i was informed that it would cost me in the neighborhood of $4700 to get the vehicle repaired by using a remanufactured transmission which was possibly fixed from having the same problem as i have. with all of the posted complaints from people who has and are still having the same problem as i am, i find it hard just to sit back and shell out this amount of money when it seems to be a much larger problem than just that of one van. *tr

Transmission failed to go into gear while driving. *tr

2005 ford freestar would not go forward or backward after starting engine. *tr

December 2008, felt the transmission slip while driving in snow, had mechanic look at the van, couldn't reproduce the problem. vehicle drives fine until 11-19-09 driving up a hill, speed limit 45, around a corner, 2005 ford freestar with 63457 miles, transmission suddenly goes into neutral. pull over, won't go into any gear, aaa towed the van to a transmission shop. shop re-built transmission, $2557.37. basal's transmissions, jim basal 860 633 9111 not sure if part is available. he indicated that the problem was in the torque converter. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while driving 45 mph all of the gears in the transmission failed. she had to coast to the side of the road-way. the vehicle has been towed to her home. the vehicle has not been inspected, nor has any repairs been made. the failure and current mileages were 61,000.

Van just stopped in the middle of driving down the highway. it just cut off. the mechanics are saying the computer went out. we had to get a new transmission not even 6 months after we got the van in 2006. *tr

I purchased a 2005 freestar with 37,000 miles on it in april of 09. within the first 1,000 miles the transmission sensors had to be replaced. november 13th, yes friday the 13th, the torque converter broke on the transmission with 47,000 miles on it. i was on the 290 expressway during rush hour when this happened. i purchased the vehicle so i could commute back and forth to work and cart my granchildren around. does someone have to die before ford is held accountable??????? i had to borrow money( 8,000 dollars) and now i have to pay for a new torque converter for the transmission!!!! ford should be ashamed for putting a product like that on the market. had i looked into reports before i purchased the vehicle i would have never considered buying one. i have purchased ford vehicles for the past 25 years, but no more..please help us get a recall on these vehicles before someone gets hurt. *tr

We were accelerating after a stop light, traveling at approx. 25 mph when the vehicle failed to continue to move forward. we coasted and put the vehicle into park in a left turn lane. the vehicle would not shift into any gear. we had the vehicle towed and found out that our transmission needed to be replaced. there were no warning signs or warning lights in the vehicle that would indicate a problem with the vehicle. the repair shop could not explain the reason for the malfunction. our transmission fluid was clean and they could not explain the reason the transmission failed. the van only had 50,645 miles at the time and it was 4.5 years old. we replaced the transmission with an out of pocket expense of $2682.60. there was no explanation from ford motor company after phone calls were made. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while the contact was driving approximately 25 mph the vehicle began to jerk and the transmission failed to respond. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. the repairs performed on the vehicle consisted of the replacement of the torque converter, master air flow system and egr valve at different times. in addition, the belt tensioner was replaced. the failure occurred on three separate occasions. most recently, the contact was advised that the transmission would need to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 40,000.

Failure of the transmission created a sudden and unexpected loss of motive power. the shaft splines failed suddenly and without warning, resulting in a sudden loss of vehicle propulsion due to the engine power becoming disconnected from the drivetrain. *tr

I own a 2005 ford windstar minivan my wife was on her way home from work when the van stopped going and cost to a stop seems the transmission went out and would not engage no matter what and we had went to the ford dealer a month prior to the extended warranty had expired with the van making odd sounds in the transmission they claimed to have not found any problem. *tr

Drove to the store that day. we have been having a lot of rain. when done at the store got in the van and it started fine but when you pressed on the gas pedal the rpm would race up but the van would go no where. the ford dealership replaced the pcm sensor because it had water in it. it was running but not like before. took back the van on 4/21/11. engine runs fine. driving down the road and van started sputtering like it was choking. stopped the van and shut off the engine, turned it back on and it ran fine. two days later had the same problem but i was at a stop sign and the van did not want to move forward. my husband barely got it to the dealership, it just completely died on him once. once the dealership had it they said they couldn't find anything. just had a speed sensor changed on it on 11/15/11 they had the van for 8 days trying to figure out what is wrong. now just tonight, when you put the van in any gear the rpms drop and the shifting is delayed. i am guessing something is wrong with transmission. how can i ever trust the ford company again? i have been reading too many of the same problems. we are going to take the van tomorrow to see what is wrong with it again?! help!!! i also read i need to call ford for them to have some many complaints for a recall is this true? *tr

Trans went out 10/09 with 69613 ml. had it repaired. said it had something to do with the torque converter. on 2/11, 88k ml on van, 18k ml on rebuilt trans, it went out again. i was lucky, both times it quit when my wife was in the drive way so no one was hurt. i haven't had it repaired as yet, still deciding if it is worth having it repaired a 2nd time if it is not going to be safe/dependable. now i here the case is closed! the subject vehicles suffered from a design issue whereby water could run down onto the cowling and then drip on the (pcm), which could be manifested in a variety of symptoms. in addition to causing an engine to stall, it could also cause the trans to shift poorly, have erratic power, an inability to shift the vehicle into either forward or reverse, and cause higher idle rpm in park. during this investigation odi was concerned with the effect of the engine stalling or a drastic and sudden loss of power either of which may create a safety risk. in reviewing the actual number of these types of incidents, collectively referred to here as engine stalls, the number was found to be below what would be considered a defect trend. accordingly this investigation is closed. the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that a safety-related defect does not exist. the agency will continue to monitor complaints and other information relating to the alleged defect in the subject vehicles and take further action in the future if warranted. edt you mean to tell me nhtsa doesn't find a drastic and sudden loss of the trans to create a safety risk. driving on the interstate or pulling into a busy intersection and the trans suddenly quits, no way to move out of harms way. there are over 1500 messages on edmunds.com , telling the same story, but that's not being looked into. i sincerely hope the agency will continue to monitor complaints and information relating to the defect and take further action in the future because it is warranted. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford free star. the contact stated that the transmission failed and was replaced with a rebuilt transmission. within 18 months, the rebuilt transmission failed. the vehicle was not repaired and neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were contacted in regards to the failure. the failure mileage was 88,109. updated 04/08/11

I was stopped on a busy road waiting to make a left hand turn. when the road cleared i put my foot on the gas and the engine revved but moved only a bit putting me out into the oncoming lane. with traffic starting to bear down on me i put the shifter into d3 gear and the van moved and i was able to return the short distance to home. in the driveway i tried putting the van in drive again and it moved a little but at high revs. there was no engine light and absolutely no symptoms leading up to this. i just put brand new tires on the van last month. this is my family van and in fact one of my children was sitting on the passenger side at the time. this sudden , no symptom failure of the transmission was very scary. i am having a remanufactured transmission installed. it comes with a 6 yr 100k warranty. although the larger warranty is comforting this type of failure could result in some very terrible accidents. this one almost did. *tr

On the evening of october 15, i was on my way to meet with several of my children's teachers for parent/teacher conference night. i had just left home and made it a few blocks when i heard this loud grinding type noise. at that moment, i was at a stop sign getting ready to make a right turn. this was unusual considering i had been driving my van all day. i hadn't heard any noises prior to that. i put my vehicle in park and i heard some more grinding type noises. every time i changed gears, i would hear grinding. i put my van back in drive and tried to accelerate but my van would not move. i put it in reverse in an attempt to drive it backwards to get it to the curb and it would not move in reverse. i put my van in park and took my foot off the brake and my van started to roll backwards. i had to quickly reach for the emergency brake to keep it from moving. my van was on a slight hill and with the help of my uncle and husband, we were able to coast it home. when we finally made it to our driveway, it still rolled backward on a flat surface. about 2 months i took my van to a coleman taylor transmission auto repair shop for a diagnostic and they told me that my transmission was fine. *tr

2005 ford freestar 52,000 miles, sudden loss of transmission power after stop at intersection kids in this so called family van with hundreds of complaints. leaving parents w/ kids stranded in near accidents, what are you waiting for??? a death so you can initiate recall????, ford needs to be held accountable for these lemon vehicles people have purchased w/ their hard earned cash! *tr

In october 2009 i was driving 2005 ford freestar van on highway 16 in georgia at 70 miles per hour when suddenly no acceleration. my van started to immediately slow down. i was able to coast to the side of the road. the car would not move. we were towed 200 miles home and paid 3000.00 for a ford rebuilt transmission. now the car is jerking all over the road the rpm do not go above 2 and the needle bounces all over. the ford dealership is saying it is not a transmission problem. yet that is exactly how it acted right before it died the last time. now they are saying it is a torque converter or a half shaft and of course additional expense. we were very lucky that we were not killed. there were semi's passing us and we were barely off the side of the road. we called ford and they will not help and denied there being any problems with the transmission. the place that fixed the transmission said the transmission was burnt like it was on fire. *tr