Problems with 2006 Ford Freestyle ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Auto-up/down function is erratic. battery warning light goes off and on. sudden acceleration at any speed. *kb

The car is surging and lunging (see pending investigation from may 2011). also, when running the a/c it starts to go off and on by itself, then the engine starts to shut off and on, and all gages go to zero, like the car is losing power.

My ford freestyle has had engine surging issues for approximately a year know. today 6/21/2012 my car started surging at every stop light so severely if we weren't holding down the brake we would of hit the car in front of us. the problem became so severe we had to put the car in neutral at every intersection to keep car from trying to jump into the intersection and stall. today's temp was in the high nineties and we were using the air conditioning. today's incident was the worst its been. went on line and search the symptoms and found that a lot of freestyle owners are having the same issue. with the safety of the car owner and pedestrians that could be near the car in jeopardy. ford should be recalling these cars and trying to find a permanent solution to fix this rather then charging the owners high dollars to replace a defective designed part with the same defective part. *tt

I pulled into my garage, placed the car in park, turned it off, returned in 30 minutes, started right up, placed transmission in reverse, heard and felt a large bang, whining noise from engine, wrench light came on, that was the last time i drove it. i had it towed to a shop, replaced the computer, recoded, reflashed, nothing worked. i was told it needs a new transmission. new transmission estimate is $7000.00...ford should be held accountable for a flawed design...i was fortunate in that my transmission failed in my garage, others were not so lucky. please dont wait until someone's family is killed before you force a much needed recall on some seriously bad research and development. *tr

My 2006 ford freestyle has been giving a warning titled "awd malfunction". no mechanic can find a problem and the warning comes on intermittently. evidently it is a flaw in the electronic system. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 ford freestyle. the contact stated that the vehicle hesitated to accelerate and stalled without warning. after several attempts, the vehicle was able to restart. the vehicle was taken to the dealer more than five times, but the failure was unable to be replicated. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 137,000.

2 months in (cruise control causes car to shut down) continues to do so when used at 35 mph or less. 3 mo. in (car looses power and surges randomly mainly in parking mode. also power lost while driving down road between 30 mph and 60 mph 6 months in all lights surge when used. a/c usage agitates all symptoms but does not have to be in use for occurrence. one or all occurrences happen everytime driven, air filter changed(no help) car is now harder to start. plans for throttle body cleaning in the next week though. will update on results. *tr

On multiple occasions my vehicle has lunged when in a stopped position. when backing out of a parking spot, while in reverse, but with the brake still applied the car has lunged feet backwards at a fast rate and nearly caused accidents. this is also true in regards to stopped at a light or stop sign. while in drive with the brake peddle depressed stopped behind another vehicle the car lunged forward a couple feet nearly hitting the car in front of me. i have four children and i feel unsafe in my own car. i don't know when it is going to happen so i have to be prepared for it at all times. thank god that i haven't had any accidents when this happens. it is such a fast and unexpected movement that my children will scream. this needs to be taken seriously before someone has a serious accident. *tr

i have a 2006 ford freestyle. over the past 4-6 months i have noticed the car surging and lurching forward after coming to a complete stop with my foot still completely on the brake. i have almost collided with vehicles in front of me as well as pedestrians in the crosswalk! this also happens when the car is in reverse backing out of the driveway and stopping to shift into drive. the car will surge or lurch backwards and if you are not covering the brake while in drive or reverse, the car will accelerate without touching the gas pedal. i took the vehicle to frontier ford in san jose, ca and the mechanic diagnosed this problem as a bad throttle body. from my research, this is a widespread problem with this make & model vehicle. i believe this problem may very well lead to a serious tragedy if this common problem is not recalled. please help us owners of these cars remain safe and not kill someone because of this failure! a recall is badly needed !!! *tr

I have always owned fords however this is by far the scariest ford car ever and to me the unsafest!! i purchased my ford freestyle back in october 2010. ever since then my car seems to have a mind of its own. when i am completely stopped my car will automatically lunge forward and even stall when i am turning my wheel. i have a 5 year old child who i drive everyday to school in this death trap and it scares me to death. i have tried talking to my ford dealership about this since the car was like this when i bought it but of course they want me to spend all this money i do not have on repairs...after internet research it appears there are hundreds of people that have the same problem with this vehicle. why isn't anyone doing something about this to protect the consumer? it is very scary and i do not understand why the car is lunging forward and backwards if backing up when my foot is clearly on the brake as well as stalling . i hope someone will do something about it before someone ends up in an accident or even dead because of this!! that would be a serious lawsuit i am sure. this is a serious issue please please do a recall on it now if not for me for the sake of someone's life who is driving one of these unsafe vehicles. *tr

While idling in park with a/c on, put vehicle in reverse or drive and vehicle began to quickly accelerate without pressing the accelerator pedal. had to quickly press the brake pedal to avoid running into people/vehicle. even with brake pedal being applied, vehicle tends to lurch in reverse or drive. this began occasionally at around 70,000 miles but now happens continually. ford dealer said it is a common problem on this model and is caused by a part that is on back order for months. vehicle is unsafe to operate. *tr

the car began to jerk and lurch, and engine speed abruptly slowed after about (3) hours of highway driving (from vermont to new hampshire). a trouble light (wrench icon) appeared. engine rpms fluctuated, but vehicle would not respond to the gas pedal. pulled over, waited a few minutes, restarted the car. trouble light was no longer on, and the vehicle was fine and normal for the rest of the ride home. brought car to portsmouth ford, who could not find any problem. second incident, january 2011: highway drive back to new hampshire from connecticut. same problem. abrupt and alarming drop in car speed. no throttle control. erratic engine rpm performance. attempted to pull off interstate highway to a safe area. waited 5 minutes. re-started the engine. trouble light gone, engine performed fine, and no issue the rest of the trip. brought the car for transmission service to valvoline, then to dowling ford where the vehicle was purchased. third incident, march 2011: after (2) hours of highway driving abrupt drop in engine speed while attempting to merge on interstate 84. lost throttle control. near collision with a tractor-trailer in bad weather while trying to get out of the way and off the highway. frightening experience. brought car to bob thomas ford in hamden, connecticut for a transmission program update and complete transmission service. dealer could not find a problem with the vehicle. fourth incident, june 24, 2011: again on i-84 in the rain after 2.5 hours of highway cruising. radical loss of engine power and vehicle speed. my daughter barely avoided a collision attempting to maneuver off the highway in heavy traffic with erratic throttle control. daughter called me in a panic, crying. waited off the highway a few minutes, re-started, and was fine. car no longer used on the highway, just locally. the consumer also stated the alternator failed. updated portable 08/23/11 updated 09/14/11*jb

2006 ford freestyle surging when brake is on. problem is worse when the ac is running. this is a very dangerous issue. it happens when you do not want to go such as tight parking spaces, school parking lots, drive thru fast food places, etc. the car will also have a big surge and then lose power. happened to me in a busy intersection. awesome car but the safety is being compromised and needs to be addressed. *tr

I have two (2) 2006 ford freestyles. the first one has 85,000 miles when the dash cluster and throttle body needing replacing. the car would surge forward and accelerate beyond our control. ford told us there were no known problems. the repairs cost $1700. the second vehicle, same year, has 105,000 miles and is now starting to show the same symptoms. the car accelerates and surges randomly. again, ford told me there are no known problems and there was nothing they were willing to do to help. the dealership told me the original manufacture of the throttle bodies went bankrupt and they are now sourcing the part from some other company. the parts will not be available for several weeks. in the mean time, my vehicle surges and accelerates beyond my control, causing several near collisions at low speeds and while parking. *tr

Early july 2010 car would surge after started when placed into drive or reverse. july 17,2010 about 95 degrees ambient. driving 55 mph car started to lose power and stall. restarted and it went into limp mode with check engine light and occasional surges. i found a ford dealer about 5 miles away. diagnosis was a bad mass air flow sensor. replaced and we were on our way again. early june 2011 it was surging after starting when placed in drive or reverse. june 11,2011. car stalled and went into limp mode again with check engine light on. bought a new mass air flow sensor, installed it myself and cleared the code. july 5,2011 while driving to baltimore at 65 mph and 100 degree ambient, car stalled, restarted and it went into limp mode with check engine light on. i found a parking lot with shade and let it idle for about 20 minutes. shut it off and restarted. check engine light was off and it ran fine to baltimore. this appears to be an issue with the mass air flow circuit. nhtsa cannot ignore this flaw. *kb

Tl*the contact owns 2006 ford freestyle. while driving 40 mph the speedometer displayed zero and the contact was unable to apply the brakes. within a few minutes the gauge began to function properly. the vehicle will be towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the failure and the current mileages were 66,000.

The car when your at a stop or low speed, in drive or reverse the car will try to lurch. when driving down the highway it's fine but when you come to a stop the wrench light comes on. a couple of times the car wouldn't go right away but eventually it would sometimes after turning the car off and back on again the wrench would be gone and would be able to go. sounds like sometimes the car isn't shifting right.the lurching is really noticeable when the a/c is on. can't have the a/c on when at a stop or it will lurch. *tr

June 2010 i started having problems with the vehicle lurching forward/backward while in gear and foot firmly on brake. the car would stall and i would have to wait 5-10 minutes to re-start. it seemed to be worse when the a/c was running. still having problems today. took the vehicle to dick masheter ford in columbus, oh per ford's customer service. they ran a diagnostic test (with a waived fee per ford) and after letting the vehicle and a/c run for awhile they did notice a "light serge at idle in gear with a/c on and turning at the same time". i do not feel safe driving the vehicle when the a/c needs to be ran. it will lurch a good foot if not more when it is at its worst.

I purchased my 2006 ford freestyle in june of 2007. initially i fell in love with the comfort, size, and gas mileage of my new car. around 2 1/2 yrs later i started noticing when moving from park to reverse my car would sometimes stall or lunge backwards. it was only occasionally and at the time i was told i probably didn't have it in gear all the way before reversing. i had to switch from park to reverse very slowly and always be ready to hit the brake in case it decided to lunge on its own. this problem has almost completely gone away except now i have problems accelerating. almost always on the highway now my car will loose power and the wrench light will come on. once i pull over and restart it , it seems to temporarily solve the problem. this is however beyond dangerous. several times this has happened in places on busy highways where there is no shoulder. i have to travel in the slow lane now 100% of the time and i try to avoid major interstate at all costs. i have invested a great deal of money into several different things that have turned out to not be the problem. i feel like this car should have been recalled by now, before it ends up killing someone. i bought this car because it seemed like a great family car but now i am scared to death to even let children ride with me. i am also very upset that after paying down over a 20k loan to 5k that i will have to buy another car. i planned on having this car for years and years. i attempted in 2009 and in 2011 to trade the car in for a new car and the $ value of trade in is very low. the dealerships are well aware of the problems and offer a very small amount for a 7 passenger 2006 with only 85k miles on and it gets great gas mileage compared to most suvs or vans that seat 7. *tr

Vehicle will surge forward while at a full stop or while braking/decelerating with no warning. usually happens when a/c is running on full fan. wrench light will go on when it occurs and car will run very sluggish until car is turned off. at restart, (if air is off) wrench light is off and car runs ok. ford service dept in 2007 and 2008 said if they can't duplicate problem, can't help. this is the third summer it has occurred and is occurring more frequently. finally brought it to service dept for repair. they said they hadn't heard about this although i am finding several reports of exact same issue online and at nhtsa. they replaced the electronic throttle and a "computer" part. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 ford freestyle. the contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the brakes were depressed and the vehicle lunged forward. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and a private mechanic. the mechanic stated that the main computer needed to be updated and a wire was touching the air conditioner unit. the manufacturer was not contacted. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 54,000 and the current mileage was 75,000.

This happened 3 times before they were able to do anything at the ford dealership because the lights would be off by the time i was able to reach the dealership, and their response was always technician was unable to duplicate symptom. while driving at 50mph on the interstate there was an intermittent idle surge while driving and then a loud "clunking" noise and then the transmission lost power and the vehicle crawled to a halt. there was no acceleration even though the engine revved up. the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver so i was unable to even get it into the emergency lane. i was stuck in the middle lane of the interstate with my child in the car. the check engine light, the wrench light for the cvt transmission, and the passenger air bag light also came on. i had to turn the car off, put it in park, and then restart the car, when i reached the dealership they were finally able to retrieve several fault codes. they performed an r&r transmission and overhaul. this happened 2 other times at (77004 miles, after shifting into park at 0 mph. they replaced a faulty throttle body for this repair- and then at 77238 miles-they replaced the alternator for this repair). it's beginning to happen again. this was and still is a dangerous situation. i now have 3 kids. i thank god we weren't struck from behind while driving on the interstate. i am terrified to drive the vehicle to long distance locations or drive on any parkway, highway, or interstate because it took a while for the vehicle to start up long enough to get it to the dealership that was only 4 miles away. *tr

At the beginning of february, my kids wanted to watch a dvd in the car while i was cleaning the driveway. i put the keys in the ignition (i did not start the engine) for the dvd to work, put on the dvd and start cleaning the driveway. few minutes later i have seen a big smoke coming from the outside passenger side mirror. i have checked the mirror and it was in flames. i took the kids out of the car, took the keys out of ignition, remove the back cover of the mirror and put out the fire which was coming from a bundle of wires inside the mirror assembly. *tr

I was driving 65 miles an hour on the new york state thruway when without the warning the recently and continually maintained vehicle stopped running. after 4 dealers contacted found one who would look at car that week i was 3 hrs from home on vacation. it was determined to be a broken wire in a harness that runs the crank shaft? no explanation how this could possibly happen from ford but not covered on any warranty. cannot ever even check this harness as it is enclosed. seems to be an awfully dangerous defect...... *tr

Had a flat tire on my 2006 ford freestyle, awd, ltd and installed the space saver tire. while driving, the speedometer failed to operate, all fault indicators on the dashboard illuminated, and the transmission proceeded to erratically up and down shift. went directly to my local ford dealers service department wherein told by service advisor that this was not normal. told service advisor that i thought it had to do with the space saver tire. there was no information in the owner's manual to the vehicles eradicate behavior. later, service advisor reported that this was normal behavior with the space saver tire and the vehicles abs sensors. i disagreed on the normal behavior since i consider my speedometer a safety device - and since the space saver tire is speed limited, this made the vehicle behavior questionable. *tr

My ford freestyle has been lurching for years. i have now started stalling when pulling into parking spaces, or making sharp turns. my air compressor needs replacing and i was told the erg valve may cause the lurching? my engine lights comes and goes sporadically and i have to go through carpool line or grocery store with one foot on brakes. i can't fully feel confident at redlights that i won't rearend the person in front of me. i can't understand how this is a issue we should all be stuck with when its obvious a defect. i filed a complaint quite awhile back but now the stalling and lurching has become quite a safety issue. i can live without air although the mechanic seems to think its all related... please recall the issued parts! i stall on hills, when pulling out into traffic, i lunge at random times and then....its fine for the next drive... then dangerous the next! *tr

Sunroof/moonroof leak: possibly allows water inside vehicle every time it gets wet. brought the vehicle to the selling dealer approximately 16 mos. into warranty. i thought it was a windshield leak at first and the service rep told me i would have to go to a glass company. i explained that i had not had any glass replaced on the vehicle and that it was a ford problem, to which they responded that they would check it out. when i returned to pick up the vehicle they told me that they could not find the leak. i asked if they had put water on the car roof and they said they had not to which i questioned how can you find a water leak without water? i refused to pick up the car and they said they would try water. the next day they called to say the leak was repaired,that there was a service bulletin about the moonroof leak, and that they had rerouted the drains to fix the problem. i believed them. i forgot about the problem until march 09 at which time i was out of warranty and was told by a customer service rep in dearborn that i would have to have it evaluated at a ford dealer at my expense.i declined this.now roughly one year later it is back again and i have concerns that it probably will lead to mold, if it hasn't already, and that because the water stays above the headliner, the wiring for my rear brakelights as well as the side curtain airbags could possibly be compromised,in addition to leading to premature rust through or rot where the water eventually comes out.also i feel betrayed by ford because i have copies of other tsb's which pertain to my vehicle but were not taken care of because i did not complain of those symptoms at the time of service and now that i've realised i have those problems it's too late for them to be covered. i believe every new vehicle owner should receive notice from the manufacturer about every problem concerning their vehicle and that every time a dealer services a product under warranty, that all tsb's are checked and acted upon. *tr

I have had nothing but issue after issue. it started with my brakes failing like several others that i have read. it now surrounds my 6 cd player that either melts or won't play. i have had it into the ford dealership a few times to no avail. on 03-12-08 the electrical panel only lights up partially, and after shaking the front dash board a few time all lights popped on. i have talked to service managers and they have done what they have the ability to do. this vehicle is a 2006 ford freestyle and i would not recommend it to anyone for purchase. *tr

Started the 2006 ford freestyle and noticed starter continued to crank. took key out of ignition and vehicle would not shut off. thick smoke began pouring out from under the hood and continued until starter burned out. vehicle was towed, and a new starter was installed.*ak

Upon lowering the driver side window to get a parking lot ticket, the window would not then go back up. it was no longer working. other windows were still working fine, but the driver side window could not be closed. i had to leave the car at the amtrak station as i was about to catch a train. roadside assistance towed the vehicle to the nearest ford dealer for inspection. the vehicle was less than a month old! upon inspection it was discovered that the driver side window motor had burned out. in addition, service found a chafed/exposed wire in the door next to the junction box. they replaced this also. *jb

While putting car in reverse car surged backwards and the check engine wrench came on. drove car home approx. five blocks and shut car off because car was running rough. started car back up and car ran smooth and the check engine wrench was off. i sat in parking lot for approx. five minutes while my wife was shopping with car running and the air conditioning on. this is the second time in the last month that this car has done this. both with the same issues. the car surges, then runs rough, then the check engine wrench comes on, then when you shut the car off and restart it the car runs smooth and the check engine wrench shuts off.