The throttle body is defective and needs to be replaced. The symptoms are very dangerous: the car goes into fail safe mode and cannot accelerate. On one occasion this happened in the middle of the road; fortunately it was a quiet street and I was able to coast to the side of the street. If this had happened on a busy street it could have caused injury or death. Several mechanics did different kinds of repairs, but the problem kept recurring. We are now getting the throttle body replaced and hope this is the final repair that removes the problem. Numerous other ford five hundred owners have experienced this (per internet research). Ford needs to recall the five hundred and replace the throttle body to prevent injury or death.
2005 Ford Five Hundred electrical complaints
Page 3 of 4: complaints 41 to 70 of 95, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that the instrument panel light failed. The contact was unable to see the miles driven or any of the other components on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who performed a diagnostic that located the failure at the instrument panel digital system. The vehicle was repaired. The dealer replaced the electrical instrument panel digital system. The failure and the current mileage was 59,090.
Not sure the exact time but within the past year or so my 2005 ford five hundred ( purchased new) is going into failsafe mode limited throttle power, very sporadic at first but now happening quite often. If you pull over and shut the car off and restart it clears and drives normal. My daughter was driving it yesterday and it happened 7 times from mall to the house (about 20 miles). Once while she was in heavy traffic driving about 55 MPH. Car jerked then started slowing down. This is a safety issue that needs to be looked at. Very dangerous. My mechanic is trouble shooting problem, looking like throttle body or gas pedal. I believe ford came out with a new throttle body in 2010 to correct the problem (tsb 05-25-13)but will only replace it at their cost if still under warranty, otherwise the cost is on us the consumer. (about a thousand dollars).
Dashboard has been erratic, completely blank.
We have a 2005 ford five hundred. Two days ago, the car failed to respond when the accelerator was pressed, even as it was pressed to the floor. The wrench light came on and the car started lunging and hesitating in addition to not accelerating properly. This occurred while driving through a very busy intersection; thankfully, I was able to move the car with my two small children out of traffic. A diagnostic computer provided two codes - p2106 and p061b. This is not the first time the car has lunged; it has been doing this for approximately 1.5 years. It has repeated this several times in both drive and reverse. In most instances, the air conditioner was running at the same time; however, the car has lunged when the A/C was not on. The lunging occurs when the car is being driven or sitting idle (I.e., stop lights, preparing to merge into traffic). I have been able to avoid accidents by keeping my foot firmly on the brake and by creating a large stopping distance cushion. We contacted the dealer and were told the entire throttle body would need replaced, at a cost of over $530.00. We are now reviewing our options.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact noticed that the instrument cluster would become dark intermittently which made it impossible to see the instrument display. When the vehicle accelerated forward the back up lights would illuminate without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic who informed the contact that the instrument cluster was faulty and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was aware of the failure. None of the repairs were performed. The current mileage was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 75,000.
This is the second time the dash cluster has failed in my ford five hundred. It was replaced the first time. While under the part warranty of 12mo/12k miles, the cluster failed again. I took it to the dealer and they pulled the identical codes as the first time they replaced the cluster, but would not replace it this time because none of the indicator lamps where on at the time they looked at it. Now the wrench, traction control, check engine are lit, and the display reads check engine, check transmission, and transmission data error. These are the same as the last time when it was replaced. The car will not accelerate properly, and this time after parking the car it would not restart. I came back in about 20min. And the car started. I took it to the dealer, now out of the part warranty and now they immediately want to replace the cluster. Seems ford just wanted me to pay for the repair, again.
During normal operation the instrument cluster gauges (speedometer, tachometer, etc..) swing from 0 to max and then down to 0. The gauges stay like that for awhile then return to operation. During the gauge outage the reverse lights on the car come on. This could lead to an accident if the driver behind you is not paying attention as well as possible equipment violation tickets from the local police. There is a technical service bulletin about the problem but ford doesn't seem to think this is a safety issue. The car in question is a 2005 ford 500 with less than 50k miles on it. The car is pristine in all other areas, we baby the car.
Dash cluster displays check engine, check transmission, and traction control lights. The trouble indicators illuminate, and the vehicle will not accelerate normally. After turning off and restarting vehicle may or may not drive normal with trouble indicators still lit. After shutting off and restarting sometimes the indicators are off and the vehicle drives normally for some time and then the problem returns. This happens while driving and does not allow the driver to accelerate normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dash cluster was replaced and I was informed they knew of the problem with the cluster. The problem has reoccurred a few months later.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. While driving approximately 70 MPH, all of the gauges on the instrument cluster stopped functioning and displayed readings of zero. The contact continued to drive and the instrument cluster began working a few moments later. The failure occurred intermittently while driving at any speed. The vehicle was not inspected or repaired. The failure and current mileages were 70,000.
The gauges periodically go flat and the reverse lights come on. Ford knows about this, they've issued a technical service bulletin (tsb 06-17-9). The problem is a faulty solder joint and the instrument cluster needs to be replaced. This is not due to normal wear from driving but from poor design and should be recalled. Ford should correct their mistakes.
I purchased a used 2005 ford 500 ltd awd in may 2008. I was told it was a lease turn in. The mileage was very low, under 30,000 miles. The factory warranty expired in july 2008. In october 2008, my dash began malfunctioning. The gauges would go completely dead. I could not tell how fast I was going, how much gas I had left or the temperature of the engine. Nothing on my dash would work. It varied from lasting seconds to appx a half an hour. I drove home one night (it took me appx 25 minutes) not knowing how fast I was going or how much gas I had left. Also, the reverse lights were on when my car was in both drive and park. I stopped at a red light (my car was in drive) and the reverse sensor alarm went off when a car pulled up behind me. We took it to the dealership we bought it from & were told it was a cluster in the dash that was a "known problem with this vehicle" but because it was not a "safety issue" ford did not have to recall this. I feel that not being able to know what speed you are driving down the highway to be a huge safety issue. Also having your reverse lights on while the car is in park or drive seems a bit dangerous as well. We had it repaired and it cost us over 400.00. About 2 weeks ago, we had to have another "cluster" repaired that was making my transmission shake & the check engine light as well another warning light appear. It was a sensor that went bad and was making my car think it was out of gas. This cost us almost 350.00 to repair. Not sure what's going on with the sensors/clusters on these cars but it seems to be a safety issue to me.
My 05 ford 500 has 58,000 miles on it and now the dash lights flash/go off and the gauges read 0. The reverse lights come on too. It was very scary when it happened. It appears to be at random: no particular time of day, no certain weather, and at no particular speed. I have family members who also have ford 500s and say this has happened to them as well. This issue needs to be addressed!
Dash gauges, lights, inoperable. Stuck in various positions. Turn signals are inoperable and reverse lights are on in the drive position. Reverse warning indicators beep when in traffic at stop lights or when other vehicles get close to rear of vehicle. Air bag inoperable warning light is on all the time. Existing research by the federal safety agency indicates exterior lighting working on previous complaints. Internet research indicates turn signals and reverse lights do not operate when cluster fails. Possible air bag failure coupled with inoperable turn signals and increased risk of accident as well as reverse lights on in drive are major safety concerns.
Apparently, I am not the first person to bring this issue to the federal safety agency's attention. I like so many other, have also had a problem with my instrument panel on my ford five hundred. I would like for a recall to be issued as it has nearly caused me an accident today, and can lead to other hazardous driving conditions for others. The instrument panel on my car has failed completely, and my speedometer, odometer, and all other gauges shut off. Whenever I drive my car, the reverse (or white) light turns on despite the fact that I might be driving forward at 55mph on a highway. I think corrective action should be taken towards a resolution. There are countless others who have filed complaints and concerns regarding this very issue.
While driving the instrument panel blacked out and when it came back on the instruments all registered 0. After the initial incident it has continued to escalate. On or about december 26, 2010 the panel blacked out and the car bogged down and I had to pull off of the road, turn the car off and restart to get it to run normally. There is a real safety issue with the car and I feel that there should be a recall on this vehicle.
Tl*-the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that the instrument panel stopped functioning. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who had the panel restored. The dealer could not guarantee that the failure would not occur again as the entire instrument panel needed to be replaced. The current and failure mileages were approximately 120,000.
As I was slowing to turn off of a state highway, my car shut off and displayed a message that said "failsafe engine mode." I was somewhat able to steer, so I completed my turn onto a side street, where the car drifted to a stop. I was able to restart the car and drive home. The next morning, the car would start but immediately shut off, displaying the same error message. I had it towed to a garage, which indicated that the diagnostic test revealed a failed electronic throttle body. They ordered a replacement part, which was then installed. Incidentally, the part had since been redesigned by ford. Once that part was reinstalled, the computer was reflashed to "learn" that a new throttle body assembly was installed. The computer would not learn the new part, though, so a new computer had to be ordered and installed. Over the last five years, this same problem (shutting off while driving) had occurred, but in each case I was able to restart the car without any further problem. This was dangerous in that my car simply shut off while I was driving,making a left turn across oncoming traffic. Fortunately nobody was coming the other direction, so I was able to safely drift through the oncoming lane to another side street. Also, it is important to note that while my car was at the dealership having the throttle body replaced, I was told that there were approximately five other ford five hundred vehicles in the shop at the same time for the same problem with their electronic throttles as well.
I purchased a 2005 ford 500 4-door sedan 2-1/2 years ago from a ford dealership. It was described as a "program" car. I soon noticed that the dashboard display lights would not light up during daylight hours, even though the rheostat was set on maximum brilliance. I proved this by driving into a dark parking garage and saw that the said lights turned on at maximum. I asked the service manager about this and he said ford had wired the lights through the solar switch via the electronic control unit and could not be changed. This is a dangerous distraction when driving in daylight hours and to see the information o the dashboard the running lights must be turned off. In my opinion this defect needs to be remedied with a recall. Thank you.
At first our 2005 ford five hundred had issues with instrument cluster failures (blacking out and needles zeroing etc. But now rear back up lights come on going down the highway because of this electrical problem. I believe this has to be considered a safety issue and should warrant a recall .thank you
Instrument cluster failure. All gauges drop to zero. Multiple dash warning lights come on them go back off leaving the check engine light on. Turn signal lights will not operate. Problem is intermittent. The reverse lights come on when the car is not in reverse. Problem started this morning 9/20/2010 I can not believe that the federal safety agency has not made ford issue a recall!
We own a 2005 ford 500 and my wife has taken it to 3 different ford dealers to have an issue looked at. The vehicle has stalled on her over a dozen times while driving down the highway and it has gone into fail safe mode. The vehicle seems to lurch when in gear either drive or reverse. I've looked up the issue on line and it appears to be very common with this model of vehicle. Throttle body and reprogramming of the PCM. I believe this to be a very big safety issue and there needs to be a recall on these before someone gets severely hurt.
Ford 500 2005 - 74k miles....car started jerking forward as soon as I lift my foot off the brake,which has almost caused me to run into things in a parking lot full of cars. The sensors went out,which I wasn't aware of until I backed into a tree without warning. Now the air conditioning has gone out and it seems my car is not the only one with these problems.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. While the contact was parking the vehicle, all of the gauges on the instrument panel failed to function. The failure also recurred intermittently while driving at various speeds. The contact also stated that when the failure occurred she was not able to use the turn signals. All of the warning lights on the instrument panel began to shut on and off intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that they could not duplicate or diagnose the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 75,200.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated the vehicle would intermittently and abnormally accelerate without driver intent. The failure would occur whether the vehicle was in drive or reverse. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop where the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was scheduled for further diagnostic testing by the dealer. The failure mileage was 106,000 and the current mileage was 108,000. Updated 08/24/10*lj the consumer stated the vehicle randomly accelerates at a rate of 65 MPH when her foot is not on the gas pedal. The vehicle also has wiring problems that leads to the headlights causing them to fail. The wires overheat and sometimes flickers. The casing melt as well and then the lights begin to smoke. Updated 08/25/10
I purchased a 2005 ford 500 ltd. The first incident occurred while driving home from atlantic city. The dashboard lit up like I was starting the car and went into failsafe engine mode. After pulling over, the car ran normal. The next occurrence was when the car started shutting off while driving. It has done this on numerous occastions. Then the dashboard lit up again and the reverse lights stayed on. This winter season the door latches would not catch to keep the doors shut. After it rains the rear doors have water sitting inside of them. Upon doing some research, I found that these problems were on ford's technical service bulliten (tsb). I called ford and they said there were no recalls according to the vehicle identification number. They also stated that there was work done prior to me purchasing the vehicle. I also had the car worked on for the electrical problem and was told the car was fixed. The car is still experiencing these problems. I don't have the finances to continue to have work done and the problems not be fixed.
It started with my instrument cluster going out (no lights, gauges, anything) and it can last anywhere from 15 minutes to hours. The other night my boyfriend and I hit a deer and we went from 70 to 50 on impact (which was head on) and our airbags did not deploy. However a few minutes after the impact, the light came on saying something was wrong with the airbags.
Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. While driving 30 MPH the vehicle began shaking and then idling as if it wanted to shut off. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and inspected where it was determined that the valve body box was failing and the cost for repair would be $1800.00. The vehicle has not been repaired and the contact is trying to get the manufacturer to cover the cost of the repair. The contact called the manufacturer and a complaint was filed and the contact was advised that her claim would be reviewed. The failure mileage was 25,281 and the current mileage was 74,000. Updated 11/10/09 *cn the consumer stated the vehicle shut off several times, the gauge act erratically. Updated 11/18/09
My wife called me outside and said the passenger side headlight was out, I said no problem I'll have it replaced in the morning, go ahead with one head-light, she only went around the block and came back screaming that the car was on fire, and the fire was right behind the headlight that just went out. I extinguished the flame and disconnected the battery. The car has been towed to the shop for an estimate. I contacted my ford dealer, the car is not under warranty, 2005 ford five-hundred with 58,150 miles in excellent condition. He said " they have never heard of that happening before, and to contact ford customer relations on monday.
We are having a problem with the instrument cluster of our 2005 ford five hundred. All the lights on the dashboard go out. All the gauges drop down to zero. Sometimes this lasts for a second. Sometimes it will go out for hours. This is dangerous because you do not have a speedometer reading.
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