10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
61,150 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2006 Ford Five Hundred transmission problems

transmission problem

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2006 Ford Five Hundred Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #31

Jul 252012

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 71,229 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2005 Ford Five hundred. The contact stated that while reversing, the vehicle lunged backward. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for a diagnosis and the throttle control was replaced. The manufacturer was notified, but offered no assistance. The failure and current mileages were 71,229.....updated 08-24-12 the consumer shifted the vehicle into drive it then went into safe drive mode. When the vehicle was in reverse the consumer depressed the brake with both feet to no avail. 08/30/2012

- Ballston Spa, NY, USA

problem #30

Dec 112011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 64,000 miles
I drove out of my driveway and immediately lost the ability to accelerate. I tried to rev the engine but there was no response from the engine. My car just sat there in the middle of the street like a dead duck. I was grateful I was not on the freeway or in the middle of an intersection! the next time something happened the car was being driven up the driveway and while climbing up the driveway the accelerator was unresponsive and the car started rolling backwards while it was in drive.

- Bridgeport, CT, USA

problem #29

Nov 052011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 95,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Ford Five hundred AWD. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road and restart the vehicle after several minutes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where they advised him that the valve body in the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired for the valve body. The failure and the current mileages were approximately 95,000. Updated 12/06/11 updated 02/29/12

- East Wenactchee, WA, USA

problem #28

Aug 182010

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 68,690 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I'm not sure if this is a power train or other problem, car lurches dangerously at low speeds, and when changing gear into and out of reverse. I hit a post parking in August of 2010 due to this, and it's been getting gradually worse. Took it to the dealer who replaced a broken upper motor mount that was connected to the transmission. Didn't help, although it seemed like a good guess at the time. It helps to keep foot firmly on brake when changing gear or holding still, while the car tries to lurch forward (or back) with unplanned acceleration. Seems to be getting increasingly worse and now I don't feel it's safe to let anyone else drive it, like at valet parking. Taking it back to dealer tomorrow, but we let warranty expire recently darn it. We get so many fake spam warranty-expiring phone calls that I got confused and dropped the ball. Throttle control module may be giving false signal to carburetor, not sure what it is.

- Castro Valley, CA, USA

problem #27

Apr 012011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • miles
The car lunges in drive and reverse without accelerating. This is dangerous as when backing out of garages or parking places. Trying to take off slowing is not possible.

- Henryetta, OK, USA

problem #26

Aug 302011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 38,000 miles
This car is scaring me and anyone else that has to move it in or out of a parking space or when approaching a light or stop sign. It lunges forward when putting it in any gear and when at a stop. This has been happening for over a year. I am so afraid someone is going to get hit or property damage will occur. Your foot can be pressed on the brake and it still lunges forwards or backwards. This problem started at 38,000 and is getting increasingly worse.

- Santee, CA, USA

problem #25

Jun 012011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 110,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I have a 2006 Ford Five hundred, and it has recently the engine accelerates the vehicle during low speeds in forward and reverse, while approaching an intersection with foot on brake. This has happens continuously. I am not sure what to do. I have read the other complaints and it seems that Ford is not interested in solving the problem. Read more: www.faqs.org/car/Ford-five-hundred-2006/fuel-system/#recalls_0#ixzz1U0A0pmoy

- Santa Fe, TX, USA

problem #24

Jul 272011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 65,970 miles
Vehicle was in reverse to pull out of driveway, vehicle lurched and then would not accelerate. Turned off key, restarted, pulled into street, vehicle again lurched, wrench light illuminated on dash, vehicle shut itself off. Turned key off and restarted--car did samething again in the middle of the street. Last time, rekeyed vehicle worked from that point. Car taken to dealer & had a code of U0401 in transmission. Was told throttle body was defective. Have not replaced part at the point due to cost.

- Cincinnati, OH, USA

problem #23

Nov 202009

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 75,000 miles
I have a 06' Ford Five hundred that I purchased certified used in 07'. within a few months I started experiencing surging problems especially when the A/C was running. The dealer replaced the instrument cluster in 08' but did not fix the problem. On each return to the dealership they could not fix the problem. On my last visit to the dealer they cleaned the throttle body and said that would fix the problem. This did not fix the problem and they could not diagnose the problem. This problem has caused me to rearend a vehicle in 2009. Ford is not responding to the problem at all. After 3+ years of trying to figure out what the problem is I all but have given up. That is until today when the repair shop that I use on a regular basis hired a new mechanic who was able to diagnose the problem. The problem turns out to be the throttle position sensors in the throttle body. It took the mechanic over 2 hours to get to the bottom of the problem. The unfortunate thing is the cost of a new throttle body is over $500 then add labor. If I have the throttle body replaced there is no guarantee from Ford that the new throttle body won't do the same thing. It is obvious that Ford has a problem with the throttle body and is not willing to resolve the issue and back their products.

- Laguna Niguel, CA, USA

problem #22

Jul 042011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • miles
2006 Ford Five hundred surging at low speed when putting into drive and reverse. This problem gas occurred on many occasions with near misses on parking and pedestrians and my research has found it to be an issue with the throttle body control. When is this Agency going to help the consumer in a case against Ford"? its been happening since 2005 on many of theses models??"

- Pickerington, OH, USA

problem #21

Jul 102011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 77,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

2006 Ford Five hundred sel on several occasions our 2006 Ford Five hundred has accelerated while pulling into a parking spot in a parking lot or into our garage. This usually occurs while our foot is on the brake at idle speed. Acceleration varies from mild to very noticeable by the passengers. Concerned about hitting pedestrians or other vehicles or losing control of vehicle.

- Perry, GA, USA

problem #20

Jul 112011

Five Hundred

  • 70,000 miles
I have owned a 2006 for several months and the vehicle does a burst of acceleration while foot is on the brake. This has occured 3 times in the past week.

- Allen Park, MI, USA

problem #19

Mar 122011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 88,000 miles
I purchased a 2006 Ford 500 in March 2011. I have had problems with this car from the very beginning. On many occasions, proceeding to back out of parking spots the car accelerates and lunges on its own. It will then jerk and go dead always starts right back, displaying a wrench light. Several times waiting in drive through lines or at traffic lights this has happened. I always feel as if it is dangerous to pull it into gear if anyone or anything is within 10 feet of me. Then there are the time on the road when I suddenly lose power. I have discussed this problem with the dealership on several occasions and all they tell me is there is nothing they can do because they could not duplicate the problem. This seems to be a very dangerous situation that will eventually cause harm to one or many people.

- Guntown, MS, USA

problem #18

Jul 082011

Five Hundred

  • 118,000 miles
2006 Ford Five hundred, lunges forward unexpectedly, air conditioner does not work properly, does not accelerate to full potential, wrench light came out after weeks of this problem happening. Power train and transmission problem. When put in reverse it accelerates with foot still on brake, could cause an accident. Need to be recalled various complaints seen on-line!! wrench lights comes on and off. (related vehicle information: Model year=2006, make=Five hundred, model=Ford).

- Fresno, CA, USA

problem #17

Jul 032011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 89,664 miles
Increasing to and finally ending in the car shutting down, my '06 Five hundred began sudden accelerations when being placed in gear. Several "close calls" when in parking lots could have resulted in injury to people. Not good and scary. It started with occasional surges, and became very frequent until the light came on revealing the throttle control is the issue. I am currently grounded until it can be fixed. I care about people's well being and hope Ford cares too!

- Denham Springs, LA, USA

problem #16

Jun 052011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 114,000 miles
I own a 2006 Ford 500. Cvt transmission. 114,000 miles. 3 weeks ago, I noticed a surging on occasions. Felt like it needed tune up. After tuneup the surging continued.my mechanic said to take it to a Ford dealer, have it checked out. When I did, was told by the service manager that I needed a new transmission slipping on cones in transmission, cost $5600.. said could not rebuild transmission, because Ford did not supply them with the equipment to do this. Said they ran test to find problem while driving. Was told they also checked transmission fluid, and it was ok.cost was $80. To find problem.that afternoon, I checked transmission fluid, and dipstick was hard to remove, because it had not been removed since car was new. After getting it to free-up, it just slides in and out. After inspecting fluid, noticed color of fluid is color of unused motor oil..almost clear. Also had a few bubbles in it.color is supposed to be bluish-green, as it gets older turns dark green, or brown. Went back to Ford dealership, informed serv. Mgr that fluid was never checked also there was no belt, it has a chain in it. Cost $900.+for chain. He said drive car until wrench indicator came on.next day, wrench appeared. Car lost power, continued to run, however could not rev rpms. Cut off, then restarted car, this clears codes..still in lingo. Also motor support on top of engine is broken, this effects transmission. Part is partially rubber and heat from engine causes it to break. Cost of this on ebay $200.thru Ford, replaced $600+.throttle control I understand is like $800.+someone need to look at all the problems that are listed about this on the internet.. I looked at trading car, value on trade was $5300. With good transmission..which cost $5600.car is a 2006 model, . are cars only suppose to last 5 years. The cvt was suppose to be so great to help increase mileage but Ford used it a couple of years, then went to 6speed auto. Honda has used cvt for years, no problem. What's the deal.

- Madison, NC, USA

problem #15

May 162011

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 45,000 miles
My 2006 Ford 500 cvt when going from idle either forward of reverse will lunge if my foot is not firmly on the brakes. My wife and son have used the car and both have almost had accidents from this happening in parking lots. This happens almost daily and before the 60,000 mile warranty ran out I did take the car back to autoway Ford in St petersburg fl but it still is occurring. I heard about the freestyle issue and know they also have a cvt transmission is anyone looking into this issue with the Five hundred.

- Seminole, FL, USA

problem #14

Apr 142010

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 52,000 miles
2006 Ford Five hundred automatic transmissions does not work properly once the car has warmed up. When slowing down the car shifts abruptly and also shakes the car. When accelerating the car shifts down hard than normal then upshifts and or down shifts while accelerating at a normal pick up. Sometimes the transmission goes into a false neutral then but if the foot is removed from the gas pedal the car is still revving up. Very odd. This issue started to show up around 52, 000 miles and I have contacted a local dealership and asked if Ford intend on fixing. The response was "there are no plans for repairing the issue". this problem was identified in consumer reports but the write only stated how the transmission shifts abruptly". I do not consider myself an elder but I do know many elderly people drive these cars and how it could potentially frighten an elderly driver. Basically "this should be corrected by Ford before someone gets hurt".

- Fuquay Varina, NC, USA

problem #13

Mar 172011

Five Hundred

  • 58,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Ford Five hundred. While driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle independently decelerated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician replaced the transmission. The technicians were test driving the vehicle after replacing the transmission when the failure recurred. The vehicle was left with the dealer where the contact was awaiting a new transmission to arrive for repairs. The approximate failure mileage was 58,000.

- Kigwood, WV, USA

problem #12

Apr 012010

Five Hundred 6-cyl

  • 55,000 miles
2006 Ford 500. Transmission slips and bucks while accelerating and braking. The problems occurs alot when the transmission starts to warm up and the temp outside is above 50. It seem to start at about 55000.

- North Branch, MN, USA

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