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.
The vehicle surges when at a complete stop. It also stops when driving it down the road. The "wrench" light comes on and the vehicle slows to a complete stop. This is extremely dangerous. The service engine light comes on. The vehicle does this on a consistent basis......6 or 7 times per 25 miles! I took it to the Ford garage where I purchased it in clinton, nc. They put it on the machine and said they could not find anything wrong. Their suggestion was to turn off air or heat!!! now after researching this issue online I find out there are numerous complaints about the same issue. I took the car to a local mechanic who was suggested to me by our local advance auto store. The mechanic was very familiar with the Freestyle and the same issue. The solution to fix the problem is a new throttle body. At a cost of $520. I called the Ford garage in clinton, nc to see if they had the part so my local mechanic could fix it. Now the parts employee, bobby told me the throttle body problem was a "huge" issue with the Freestyle and there should have been a recall. Is it going to take someone getting killed or seriously injured before Ford takes responsibility. By the way, I have contacted Ford, to no avail. The wrench light issue started once in a while on February 18, 2011. It now is a daily thing multiple times a day since April 5, 2011. Updated 10/06/11 status update 11/15/11
The contact owns a 2005 Ford Freestyle. The contact stated his vehicle lunged forward when the brake pedal was being depressed and he was making a left turn. This failure happened more than once including while driving in reverse. The wrench warning light illuminated after the vehicle lunged forward. The vehicle was driven onto the emergency land and towed to the dealer. The dealer stated the throttle body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 78,300. Updated 11/17/11
The contact owns a 2005 Ford Freestyle. The contact stated the vehicle suddenly accelerated while the brakes were applied and the vehicle was not moving. The contact stated the vehicle functioned normally while driving at an average speed. The failure only occurred when the vehicle was coming to a stop or accelerating from a stop. The VIN was not accepted at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was unknown, but the current mileage was 92,000.
2005 Ford Freestyle unexpectedly surges forward while idling at a stop, moving as slow speed or shifting from park into either forward or reverse. The frequency of occurrence increases when the vehicle's air conditioning has been running but the vehicle is not moving, I.e., while either parked or idling. Engine enters "fail-safe" mode and restarting engine temporarily clears the error and alleviates the problem.
The contact owns 2005 Ford Freestyle. The contact stated the wrench light illuminated on the instrument panel and the vehicle started to lose power. The contact stated the vehicle was turned off; however, when it was turned back on, it surged backwards when it was placed in reverse gear. The contact was taking the vehicle to the dealer to be inspected. The failure and current mileage was 55,500. Updated 10/4/11 updated 10/21/11
- York, PA, USA
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Vehicle surges/lunges unexpectedly while engaging the transmission into drive or reverse. Applying the brake has been effective at stopping however, this is an unsafe condition as it happens sporadically and again quite unexpectedly. Vehicle has stalled out on several occasions in the middle of moving traffic and service light "wrench" illuminates. We have experienced these issues for the last several months and I have since taken the vehicle to the Ford dealership for service where they just informed me that the throttle body must be replaced.
Car lunged while in reverse, had to apply the brake hard to prevent backing into parked cars. Put car in forward, it lunged 2 or 3 times and stalled out as I applied the brake hard. This is the second time with this problem. The car lunged forward while stopped at a red light in July of last year and Ford replaced the throttle body assembly. I had never had this type of problem except with this car and it appears Ford has a defective throttle body assembly that fails especially during hot weather.
2005 Ford Freestyle 7/23/2011 lunged in church parking lot with ac on and foot lifting off brake. Went to a grocery store and while parking same thing happened in reverse after idling with ac on. Sat in car in parking spot with ac on. (air temp outside was 99) when going to leave it lunged again and display panel went "nuts" and warning lights came on and car stalled. I restarted the car and I believe the warning system read, system failure and engine start in safe mode. I proceeded to leave and the check engine stayed on and vehicle seemed to run in low gear even while shifter was in drive. All other gauges, engine temp, oil pressure etc were ok. We were 10 miles from home so went to dinner to let car rest, city driving no more than 25 mph, higher RPM than normal. After 1 hour plus dinner, drove home with engine light on but seemed to be a more like normal RPM so went 50 mph on 65 mph highway with hazard lights flashing. Car remains parked. Since it is Sunday I will be calling the Ford dealership tomorrow am.
1. the air conditioner failed, had to be replaced June 2011. It just gradually did not cool the air at all. Fan on ac worked fine, all controls as well, just no cool air. $850. The vehicle lunges forward or backward, more noticeable when starting to back up. Had valves cleaned. Worked temporarily. Looking at major repair bill for throttle body or transmission, don't know which..
Car was at a full stop and accelerated on it's own lunging forward. Luckily I reacted quick enough or I would have hit another vehicle. My wife thought it did the same thing earlier this week but only briefly. This is really discouraging because I have always owned Ford and this vehicle is disswaying my opinion of their vehicles. It, S bad enough I have to get the rear brakes replaced on this vehicle every 25,000 miles which by the way is another safety issue you should be looking into.
Today on 7/23/2011 my 2005 Ford Freestyle stalled when I put the car in reverse. I re-started the vehicle and proceeded to the parking lot exit and waited to make a left hand turn into traffic. While I was stopped the engine revved twice and the car attempted to surge forward into oncoming traffic and stalled again. When I re-started the car, the display showed the car was in engine fail safe mode and the car would not accelerate to a speed greater than 40 mph. I have researched this situation online and I have seen similar complaints about this problem from numerous Ford Freestyle owners. The problem is diagnosed as a throttle assembly malfunction. This was a terrifying situation...to have a car surge forward from a complete stop and endanger me and my passengers.
On 7/22/2011 Friday, 5:30 pm my vehicle (2005 Ford Freestyle limited with 3rd row seating) was at idle in a parking lot with the air conditioner on. I placed the vehicle in "R" reverse and it suddenly lunged backwards very quickly approximately 10 feet. Two parking lot pedestrians could have been struck that were nearby. A "fail safe mode" notification appeared on the information screen located on the dashboard and orange "wrench" warning light illuminated on the left side of the dashboard. The vehicle was driven with severe power loss to less dense populated area for safety. The vehicle was turned off, the key removed. I waited approximately 30 seconds and restarted the vehicle and everything was normal again. The vehicle was driven to another parking area and turned off. Approximately 10 minutes lapsed and the vehicle was turned on. The air conditioner was turned on. The vehicle was placed in "D" drive and vehicle unexpectedly lunged forward approximately 10 feet. The vehicle's "fail safe mode" illuminated for a short time. The vehicle stalled and the "check engine" notification on the information screen appeared and the orange "engine" symbol warning light illuminated and remained on. The vehicle was restarted and driven to my home and is currently sitting in my garage at this time. (7/23/2011 Saturday 9:33 am).
I have a 2005 Ford Freestyle, I have the same problem with the vehicle suddenly lunging forwards or backwards. Just out of no where the rpms will sure and lung the vehicle, I have almost crashed a few times because of it. I have tried to get this problem looked at by a mechanic but there computers wont read unless the check engine light is on. It also has stalled out on me at a red light and when I start it back up it says its in failsafe mode, and when its in failsafe mode the engine wont idle up like it suppose to. Top speed is like 30mph.. but once you turn the car off and back on again it fixes itself.
Vehicle has intermittent lurches when accelerator is not being pressed. Usually from a complete stop or when first started. Had throttle body replaced when car had about 50,000 miles at a cost of nearly $700 and problem went away. Car now has 100,000 miles on engine and problem has returned. Faulty parts? I don't want to spend this money every few years just to stay safe. I have been lucky so far and haven't hit anyone when this happens. Don't want to take the chance of that happening.
The contact owns a 2005 Ford Freestyle. The contact stated that whether in drive or reverse, the vehicle would lunge abnormally. The failure was experienced numerous times. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 76,000 and the current mileage 82,600.
My car lurches forward if my foot is not fully on the brake or when I begin to accelerate from a stopped position. This has happened several times. My check engine light is now on. I was running my ac in 100 degree weather this last time.
We have an 2005 Freestyle. My wife was picking up our grandson from vacation bible school on 7/19/2011. The car lunged forward and almost ran over some other kids crossing over the road in front of her. The crossing guard frantically waved his arms for my wife to stop which she was trying to do. By luck the engine died. Someone is going to die from this yet and then Ford will have a big lawsuit on there hands with thousands of people on the side of the plaintiff. I can't understand Ford's position on this issue since they are rated highly for quality. They had the publics support when they didn't take a bailout. Why damage a good reputation?
The vehicle surges when at idle. Commonly happens when backing up or moving forward slowly (ie, in a parking lot or driving into a garage). Because this is occurring at idle speeds so far my foot has been either on the brake or close to the brake to prevent an accident. However this will also happen if in a traffic jam or slow moving traffic situations (ie, dropping the kids off at school, slowing down due to pedestrian traffic, etc). I have discussed with the dealer the issue and they are ignorant to the problem.
My 2005 Ford Freestyle "surges" when the engine is running but my car is not moving. I have to keep my foot on the brake when starting up the car for fear it will lunge forward, or backward, without any pressure put on the gas pedal. I am afraid to let anyone drive the car, even with me telling the person about the surges, since it is not what you would normally be thinking about when starting a car and putting it into gear. I am concerned about the safety of this situation. I have not taken the car to the dealership yet since I don't know what the charge will be for repair. The surging has occurred at least 10 times over the last 2 months. Each time I think it is just a one time thing, but now I know it is not.
Turned the vehicle on and immediately it surged. Thought it was me but then it continued to happen. Seems to only happen when foot is on brake and/or when turning the steering wheel all the way. Just started happening this month. Took the mechanic to check, but he could no reproduce issue. I am not surprised though, as it seems to be intermittent. Problem best described as vehicle seems to have someone else pressing the accelerator. Has not caused an accident yet, but certainly seems as if it is inevitable.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Mount Olive, NC, USA