Problems with 2005 Ford Freestar POWER TRAIN

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. the contact stated that the driver was operating the vehicle approximately 65 mph, the vehicle suddenly lost power. she coasted to the side of the road. the vehicle would not move forward or backwards. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the contact was told that the transmission had probably stripped gears and caused the failure. the vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. the contact had not spoken with the manufacturer at the time of the complaint. the current and failure mileages were approximately 84,700.

I was driving on a major road during morning traffic when the transmission went. i was in the left lane with a large truck behind me. i immediately put on my flashers and the truck passed me on the right. i was lucky there wasn't more cars after the truck and that i was going down hill and was able to coast over to the shoulder. the van stopped right under a sign that said no stopping or standing. if i had been on a major highway this could have been a horrible accident. i had no prior warning that something was wrong with the van. people could get killed in a situation like this. *tr updated 11/03/11. *jb updated 12/22/11. *jb

Stopped at a stop sign, pulled out of intersection and after driving for less than a minute, my van just wouldn't do anything. i would push the accelerator, the engine would rev, but that van wouldn't accelerate. so i coasted it to the side of the road. called someone to come and help me. we put it in neutral and pushed it into a parking lot and that's where it is now. *tr

On saturday, 7 aug, my wife and 2 kids where returning from a county fair concert at 11:30pm. while cruising in our 2005 ford freestar, on the highway at 70mph, the car lost transmission engagement. up to this point we have had kept up on regular maintenance visits and never had any warning that transmission problems were lurking. we had the vehicle towed to our local for dealer and have been informed the "transmission is shot". our van has 59,100 miles on it. *tr

2005 ford freestar-sudden transmission failure at highway speed. no prior warning, no knocking or sound, just a total disengagement of any gears. vehicle still ran but could not engage any gears. it acted as if it were in neutral. this happened on an interstate and fortunately i was able to stop the vehicle prior to going over a long bridge. after reading on the internet, this has happened to countless others and i found out that an investigation was launched over a year ago by the nhtsa. my family and i were lucky that i was able to stop prior to the bridge. i then had to have the vehicle towed about 40 miles and found out this morning that it was the transmission converter and pump shaft which will cost about $2,000 to repair. *tr

I was taking my family to the beach for a day trip and one hour in to the ride on a major highway the transmission on my 2005 ford freestar stopped working out of no where! the engine revved up and i had no power to the wheels! i was able to get it off to the side of the road, but from there it would not move. no reverse no drive. this is a very unsafe situation, had i gone the way i was going to i would have been on a interstate which is 4 lanes and i wouldn't have had a way to get to safety! i've read that this is happening to allot of these vans! the public needs to know about this! *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while traveling at 15 mph making a left turn, the vehicle failed to accelerate. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the contact was advised that the transmission would need to be replaced. there were no prior warnings of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the current and failure mileages were 117,000.

While my wife was driving home from miami on i-95 with my 3 kids in the car, when all of a sudden the car started slowing down and when she would accelerate, the rpms would just go off the chart and the car was not moving. she had to pull over to the side of the road. we had it towed and was told it was the torque converter. we took it to three more places and it was the same diagnostic. the cost was between $1200-2500 to fix. this is the third major problem in months that we had. first it was the alternator, then the ac unit stopped working and now the torque converter. we have had this car for less than a year. we are in the process of getting it fixed. *tr

2005 ford freestar (manufactured june 04) had sudden catastrophic transmission failure due to poor quality pump parts. *tr

2005 ford freestar transmission failure. car only has 88,000 mi. there was no warning of problems. my son was driving on major hwy at 65 mph when failure occurred. fortunately was able to roll to stop on shoulder. car needs new transmission. *tr

Failure of transmission occurred at highway speed with no warning. vehicle rpm raises with no acceleration at wheels. initial diagnosis is torque converter splines failure. *tr

With my wife and 3 children in the vehicle, we were driving at approx 70mph when we suddenly lost power. rpm's spiked when the gas was touched, but moving forward or reverse in gear were not possible. we pulled over on the side of a major interstate, arranged for a tow, then set for a taxi to get my family off the highway and to safety. it was 11:30 pm and we had to spend a night in a hotel after the van was towed to a dealership for review. upon their opening friday morning we learned that the torque converter had gone bad, that this is a common freestar problem, and that the vehicle could not be repaired until monday. rather than spend 3 nights in a hotel on top of the 1 we already did, we rented a car and drove the 3 + hours back home from where we were. the van was repaired and we picked it up on monday. miles at time of incident were 62,814 and as i type this - 63,394. total cost for repair, $1803.07, hotel $150.93, rental $206.43, tow $60.00, taxi $22.00. *tr

I have a 2005 for freestar. today i pulled into a parking lot and put it into park, engine running. when i tried to leave, none of the gears would engage. after being towed to my local repair shop, the mechanic determined that the transmission was shot. [it was also reported to me that this model/year has had numerous failures like this.] *tr

-no event leading to failure while driving on highway i-75, van lost ability to accelerate. tach would show engine was revving, but no acceleration. was able to get to emergency lane. could not move forward or reverse. was towed to transmission shop,

2005 ford freestar minivan had been traveling at highway speeds for 1 hr and 15 minutes. suddenly lost power on a major interstate. the engine would rev but would not engage the transmission in any gear. this happened only once, no warning, no engine light, strange sounds, no slippage or grinding. car has 103,000 miles approx. taken to local mechanic who states complete rebuild is necessary. *tr updated 2/23/11 *cn updated 11/17/2011 *ln

After a rain storm my van experiences problems with the power control module. the transmission will not operate correctly. this is the third time this has taken place and always associated with a rain storm. this time the engine will not start. *tr

Van stalls at lights. just cuts off. mechanic said it has some thing to do with the pcm. trans has been replaced. but still having problems with that. rear brake calipers ceased up . this van is a road hazard. never know what it is going to do or when it is going to fail . *tr

My van shuddered today on the middle of the highway with my two boys in tow- had to cross over to get to the side of the road for safety. have already replaced transmission, have a faulty erg valve, the ac compressor is going out and we had to replace the cam sensor. now have a powertrain alarm- have to go back to the mechanic to see what exactly it is... already sank over $3500 just on fixing it's many issues. why has this not been recalled??? is ford waiting for folks to die like toyota did before they admit and correct the errors? *tt

I have a 2005 ford freestar with approximately 100,000 miles. it started hesitating and losing power about a week or so ago and then yesterday as i was driving, thankfully in a parking lot it would not go forward. i had it towed to a local ford dealer and they tell me it's the torque converter. i've been reading alot today about similar problems other people are having with this vehicle. the dealer tells me it will cost $1,800.00 to fix. *tr

I own a 2005 ford freestar and the torque converter went out. it does have over 100,000 miles on it. i had been running errands all morning and got home and parked it. later that evening when i tried to move it, it would not go into any gear. luckily, this did not happen to me while driving down a busy highway. *tr

Drove my 2005 ford freestar van home and parked it. got in a few hours later and it would not go into any gear. after doing research on the internet, i found out about the torque converter on these vans. i called a local transmission shop and he said he was very familiar with this problem. towed the van to his shop and sure enough, had to have the torque converter replaced. the mechanic stated that my van was the 7th or 8th that he had replaced just this year (2010). he stated each one had the same problem, it was stripped. he thinks ford should do a recall because this is ridiculous. i agree. evidently ford motor company knew something was wrong with these transmissions since they no longer put these in their vehicles. i have two small children and am scared this could happen again, only this time while the van is moving. something should be done about this. *tr

I was driving my 2005 ford freestar in the city i live in. when i reached an intersection,i stopped and then proceeded to go thru when my vehicle stopped moving right in the middle of the intersection. i had to get help moving it to the side of the road. this was very dangerous for me and my children because of oncoming traffic. i later found out that my torque converter had went. my van only had 45,500 miles on it when this happened. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. the contact stated the vehicle would not shift into reverse. after several attempts, the contact was able to move the gear shift lever to the reverse position and then into drive. while in drive, the vehicle was severely hesitant to accelerate. the vehicle was taken to a local repair facility where the contact was informed that the transmission was defective. the transmission was replaced at the contacts expense. the failure and current mileages were 39,965. updated 10/06/10. *lj updated 10/08/10

I was driving along a country road when all of a sudden my 2005 freestar began to slow down on a corner i stepped on the gas but nothing happened i started to panic it was a blind corner lined with huge trees,fortunately as i was about to come to a stop i started to go down hill and was able to pull of in to a scenic turn out at the lake. i was in a dead zone so i couldn't call on my cell phone but finally found enough service by standing on a rock over the water to text for help. after returning home with the car thanx to aaa i find that this car has a history of transmission failure no warning ,no notice what so ever, i feel very fortunate that this happened where it did because i travel the turnpike daily and could have been run over if it had happened at a more congested area like an on ramp or exchange, i have contacted ford and they have blown me off,i have also contacted the attorney generals office here in maine to see if i have an recourse in this matter the car has 54154 miles on it and so far i have seen estimates of up to $3000 to repair it shouldn't it last atleast til it's paid for? i think so. *tr

Note: i have a 2005 ford freestar van with 123,000 on the engine. on july 4, i was driving down 1-70 west between washington,pa and claysville, pa with my wife and 2 daughters, when all of a sudden the van would not move forward. i tried all gears but, the van would not move forward. eventually, i was able to coast the van to the side of the road. i called a tow truck for assistance. out of no where, a police officer came up beside me and asked if there was a problem. after telling him the situation, he said he would wait for the truck. the van is now sitting at a transmission garage awaiting work to be repaired. *tr

Transmission failure on highway during july 4th holiday weekend. on our way out of st. louis, we were on a slight incline doing 65 when the rpms ramped up. cruise control was engaged at the time until my husband taped the brake. once the cruise was disabled, my husband tried to accelerate, we just continued to slow down. my husband immediately put the hazard lights on and proceeded to coast to an off ramp from highway 61 which in fact turned out to be the on ramp for i-70. we parked on the side of the onramp, turned the van off and started looking for answers. van runs but it just was not going anywhere. no warning, due to the commotion we lost our bearings so we didn't know for sure where we were to tell the towing company. we ended up being towed to wentzville missouri, dumped off at a super 8 and had to wait til the following day to rent a car. the van was taken to a transmission shop in town. they didn't look at the van until july 6th, they stated the transmission had internal issues. only option was to replace with refurbished for $2600. now it's july 9th, had the van towed to our house for $500. looking for a cheaper transmission since we don't have that kind of money laying around. not sure yet how we'll proceed. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while driving 65 mph without a warning the rpms increased excessively and the transmission disengaged. she was able to safely drive onto the emergency lane and have the vehicle towed to his residence. the dealer was contacted and stated that there was no related warranty. the failure was not diagnosed or repaired. the failure and current mileages were 60,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. the contact stated that while driving approximately 30 mph the vehicle lost power. there were no warning signs. the vehicle was towed to a local repair shop where the transmission was replaced along with the torque converter. ford was notified and stated that there were no recalls and the vehicle could repaired at the owners expense. the current and failure mileages were approximately 51,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while driving approximately 65 mph the vehicle stalled and driven onto the emergency lane. the vehicle would not shift out of park gear. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who stated that the torque converter needed to be replaced. the torque converter was replaced. the failure and current mileages were 107,000. updated 09/24/10. *lj updated 09/24/10

I was driving home from work 4 am in the morning going 60 plus miles per hour, all of the sudden the my van slow down to a stop. my engine was still on but the car wont go when i step on the gas. this was very dangerous to me because there was no warning what so ever. engine light wasn't on just completely stalled on me on the freeway. *tr

I was driving my 2005 freestar(ford) on the beltway at 55mph when suddenly it stopped moving. the engine kept running but it would not go into gear. there is nothing wrong with the shifting hardware- it seems to be a transmission issue with absolutely no warning, no slipping, no noise and no warning light. very frightening since i had to be towed from the beltway. *tr

2005 ford freestar w/88,000 miles. have owned this car for 2 months. trnsmission went out after accelerating car started coasting. no fix as yet. *tr

While driving down the freeway with the van full of 5 children it all of a sudden lost all transmission power. everything else worked fine in the vehicle, but it had no power. gas pedal to the floor and nothing. the vehicle was safely maneuvered off the freeway and the children safely removed from the vehicle and onto a service road which ran beside the freeway- until the towtruck driver could respond and tow the vehicle. *tr

I was driving my 2005 ford freestar with my daughter on a hot saturday afternoon when all of the sudden without any warning my van started slowing down. i coasted towards a nearby gas station until the van completely stopped in the gas station entrance. it would engage into gear but not move at all, no matter how much i stepped on the gas pedal. the workers at the gas station pushed the van into the station's lot. a tow truck was called and within one half hour the van was towed to our mechanic's shop. the mechanic informed my husband the next morning that it was the transmission. the transmission only has 53,000 miles and basically stopped working without warning. i am currently awaiting a diagnosis of the problem. *tr

2005 ford freestar with 54,111 miles lost all power to the transmission. had towed to ford dealership and found that the torque converter had failed. luckily i had an extended warranty that covered it, less my deductible. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while making a turn driving 15 mph, the transmission failed. the contact attempted to accelerate and the engine revved but the vehicle did not move forward. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the contact was informed that the transmission could not be repaired. the dealer suggested that the contact purchase a refurbished transmission from ford. the current and failure mileages were approximately 45,000.

I stopped at a stop sign and waited for traffic to pass. when it was safe to pull out, i did so, making a right hand turn. i then had to make a left hand turn, and about half way into the turn lane my engine revved up and then the van began to slow. luckily there was no traffic coming and i was able to veer to the shoulder of the road. once safely stopped, i went through all of the gears , but the van would not move. this is the first time this happened, and there was no warning whatsoever. i was driving along and then nothing! i took the van to my local ford dealership and they determined that the transmission went out. they are in the process of replacing the transmission after only 80,000 miles. i requested to get the failed transmission, but was told that they would have to charge me an additional $600 core charge. *tr

Was driving my 2005 ford freestar sel through our town had made two or three stops no problem started to go through a light and notice it was not taking the gas had to change lanes to get off side of road and pull over almost got hit by side and back from traffic through the light had two of my three children with me no warning at all had not acted up or no lights came on. i notice the vehicle was still running when i put it in park went to put back in gear but notice i was not hearing it go in any gear and when press gas it would just rev up. my son un hooked the battery and waited and put it back on to see if it was computer and would reset itself still nothing. phoned my husband at work and he had to leave work and check it out we was right beside the ford dealer and they said it sounded as if it was the transmission. we had it towed to our fathers home and called a ford mechanic he said it was in transmission we found a used one for $1100.00 and to rebuilt is between $1600.00 and $2000.00 i have read online over and over again sounds just like my story. it is just a miracle that someone hasn't got killed over this without any warning. my husband has just got back hours at work it has been rough the last two years and then this. we are going to have it rebuilt due to not wanting to pay out $1100.00 and not knowing how long it will be before it goes out.the company that is rebuilding ours says there are new parts so it may last longer.they said we were lucky we got the miles out of ours that we did,but it is driven by me in a little town most of my miles are from taking my little girl to school the last five years. ford needs to be responsible for this! *tr

Upon a stop or when attempting to reverse, the car lunges for no apparent reason. i view this as dangerous, as this has occurred several times, either when in a parking lot with pedestrians behind me entering store or when i am at a stop light and pedestrians are in a crosswalk. after researching this issue, i see that this is a problem that other people are having as well, concerning a "throttle body" component on the ford freestyle from years 2005 and up. i feel that this should be seriously investigated before someone is seriously injured or killed through no fault of the car owner, but in fact, the vehicle and the maker of the vehicle. *kb

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford freestar. while driving at 60 mph, there was an unusual increase in engine rpms and the vehicle began to independently decrease in speed. the vehicle was towed to the contacts place of residence. the manufacturer was contacted and advised there were no recalls on the vehicle. the manufacturer would not provide any assistance. the failure mileage was 117,000.

Was stopped at a red light. when it was time to go i stepped on the gas pedal. the van moved just enough to get us past the intersection. when i stepped on the pedal again it did not respond with anything other than the revving of the needle. it was like if the van was in neutral. we avoided the heavy traffic and coasted to an empty lot. we tried to reverse as well and there was no response from the van. prior to the incident we had no type of warning that this may occur. everything was working properly. it just suddenly gave out. my husband, sister-in-law, 3 year old niece, and myself where stuck out in the heat until we could get someone to tow the van back to our house. the mileage is currently at 87,000. we are currently waiting on a mechanic to inspect the vehicle. i am afraid the cost will be sky high and i know we can't afford this. *tr

We have a 2005 ford freestar, we were driving along and suddenly lost power to the vehicle. the engine still ran, but would not engage in any gear. when we took the vehicle into the shop, they said the torque converter had failed. *tr

While i was driving on the interstate doing 70 mph, i was trying to pass a slower car my van starting revving but i was slowing down. fortunately i was able to coast to the shoulder without getting into an accident. i had it towed to a transmission shop where i was told that the torque converter had pretty much exploded. i had no warning that there were any problems. there were metal pieces in the transmission. i had to have it replaced. *tr

2005 ford freestar completely lost power to the drivetrain while traveling in a 45 mph zone. there was no warning light or strange noises coming from the vehicle prior to the failure. my wife was lucky to have gotten the vehicle out of traffic before she was rear-ended which would have obviously caused serious injury. the vehicle has only 62,000 miles on it and the vehicle has been meticulously maintained, including a transmission flush at 42,000 miles. ford dealership diagnosed problem and determined that transmission needed to be replaced. there numerous complaints of transmission failure with this make/model with other ford owners. *tr

I have a 2005 ford freestar that i recently purchased at a used car dealership 6 months ago. today i was driving on interstate 75 in plano, tx when the problem occurred. i tried to accelerate and the rpm went up and the transmission died. i had to cross lanes on a very busy highway and coast to the side of the road. this was very dangerous and i had children in the car. i immediately did some research and noticed this issue is a known problem with ford freestar mini-vans. someone needs to investigate this issue before lives are lost. *tr

While driving my 2005 ford freestar mini-van, the vehicle suddenly and instantly lost power and coasted to a stop. the engine continued to run, but the transmission would not engage in any gear. in order to correct the problem, i had to purchase another transmission. i purchased a transmission from an "after-market" parts manufacturer, as it was slightly less expensive than a new transmission from ford and was warranted, while ford's was not. *tr

Transmission failed in 2005 ford freestar. vehicle has 66,000 miles. while driving on interstate, transmission slipped and failed. no warning. *tr

My wife was traveling in our 2005 ford freestar. when she pulled out on to a busy state route, the car just stopped going, she would push on the gas and the engine would rev, but the car would not move forward. she was almost hit by cars that were already traveling on the road at 55mph. after safely pulling the car to the side of the rd, she had to wait for an hour and a half while i got off work to come and meet her. we were able to switch the car into the different gears. park would not allow the car to move while neutral allowed the car to move. we then towed the car home with it in neutral. after some extensive research on the internet we discovered this is a common problem for ford vans. apparently the torque converters are going bad on them around 60-80k miles. after talking to numerous mechanics, they all agreed that it was the torque converter. while i am trying to save up the money to pay for this repair, my car is sitting dead in my driveway and is useless. repair looks to cost anywhere from $1000-$1500. *tr

In may 2010, van lost all power on the interstate. wife and daughter were left stranded. engine ran, but vehicle would not move. torque converter replacement cost $1300. in oct 2010 the van again lost all power, but fortunately in the driveway backing out of the garage. it is in the shop now. who knows how much it will cost this time. i still owe $2000, so i have no choice but to make repairs. there is a class action lawsuit filed against ford. i intent on seeing if i can be added. *tr

I was driving down the interstate on my way to work one morning going approximately 75 mph when suddenly in the fast lane passing a car, my motor just revs. i coast to the edge of the road as safely as possible (this was during 8:00am rush hour traffic). then i was stranded there for over an hour waiting for my boss to come pick me up. later that afternoon i had the van towed to a garage and hooked up to diagnostics which said the torque converter was out and then towed home at a cost of $225. my van which i loved up until that day is sitting at my house waiting to be repaired which i can not afford at this time. it makes me sick to have to pay the car payment and fix it too. and because this happened i missed three days of work and now no longer have transportation to and from work, which may turn end up having my beloved van reposessed and end up losing my job. i hope they get the recall out there asap so i can get this fixed!!! *tr