2005 Ford Five Hundred: complete transmission failure

Filed Oct 6, 2016 · Transmission · 145,753 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. While driving various speeds, it was difficult to shift gears. The contact did not notice if any warning indicators were illuminated. A mechanic determined that the transmission failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 145,753.

Filed Aug 20, 2014 · Transmission · 150,000 miles · IA

Traveling down the interstate at 75 MPH we received a message on the message center about a failure of some sort (I don't remember what it said exactly now). We lost all acceleration of the car. We pulled over and let it sit while I looked up the error on my phone. I tried the car a bit later and it was fine. Then we kept getting the error. I took it to our ford dealer and he cleaned the throttle body...then replace it a week later when that didn't fix it. A about 2 weeks later we were getting another error about the transmission failing. It started making a terrible noise. I still owe 3200 on this car,,.and a new transmission is over 7k. Seriously?? I have read so many posts about the CVT transmission on the five hundred and other cars failing. Ford should be ashamed of themselves for passing off something like this. Now I have a 3200.00 paper weight in my driveway....and I cannot afford to buy another car. Thanks ford!!

Filed Nov 8, 2012 · Transmission · 200,000 miles · GA

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH, the transmission failed and the speed dropped to 30 MPH. The contact moved the vehicle off the roadway and allowed the vehicle to cool down. The contact was able to drive the vehicle home. The vehicle was later taken to the dealer for inspection where they stated that the transmission control module needed to be reprogrammed. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 200,000. The VIN was unavailable.

Filed Sep 25, 2012 · Acceleration, Transmission · KY

2005 ford five hundred. Consumer writes in regards to hard shifting and two instrument panel lights illuminating. *tgw the consumer also stated the RPM's would race at times. The consumer went to her local dealer and a diagnostic's test revealed a problem with the pcv valve. The pcv was replaced at a cost of $ 112.95. However, it did not resolve the problem. The consumer went back to the dealer for a transmission diagnostic test, but the dealer was unable to give a definitive answer as tow hat the problem was. Ford customer service was then contacted and they informed the dealer to replace the transmission at a cost of $5000. There was also another intermittent problem where the vehicle would rev while stopped at a stop sign, or red light etc. After getting other opinions, the consumer was informed, the problem was not with the transmission. After doing some research online, the consumer discovered it was a very common occurrence with her particular make, which seemed to be a manufacturing defect.

Filed Jul 11, 2012 · Acceleration · 50,000 miles · OH

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that the transmission failed. Upon shifting into gear, the vehicle accelerated on its own even with the brakes applied. The vehicle would then enter into fail safe mode and stall. The failure would recur upon restart. There were no lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for inspection and they stated that the failure was due to a throttle body failure. The throttle body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 50,000.

Filed Apr 18, 2012 · Transmission · 128,000 miles · MN

I had the need to avoid an accident by suddenly changing lanes but when I step on the gas pedal my transmission failed to shift to higher speed. Instead two clunking sounds took place before finally switching into higher gear .I was able to avoid the car in front of me , but now the car behind me almost rear ended us. This would have created a fatal chain reaction we could have been crushed in. I found out this cars have a great amount of failures on record ford 500 2005 please help

Filed Jan 22, 2012 · Transmission · 79,500 miles · CA

Driving from sj to la, calif. 200 miles into my journey with wife and 3 kids, pulled off highway for gas. Slowed down and noticed the wrench and check engine lights on and car would only go 10 to 15 miles per hour and revved at more than 3000 rpms. The car clunked hard when put into drive or reverse. Turned off the engine, several times and restarted. Sometimes fixed problem, other times did not. I had car towed to hanford, california, and then again to los angeles-another 198 miles to ford dealership. I had to rent a car and drive the rest of the way to la and drive back - 198 miles-to hanford-to return the rental car. I tested the car a few times in hanford and when it was at the ford dealer. From a cold start, the car worked fine. Drove and shifted well with no problems. But once the car warmed up, it went back into limp-mode, clunked hard when you shifted into drive or reverse, and would go only 10-15 MPH at 3000 or more rpms. The dealer test drove it and had the same result. The dealer got codes p0701, p0871, and p0961 and said that meant the transmission had internal problems. They said they called ford engineers who told them the likely problem was when the transmission fluid warms up, it is not properly circulating due to leaks in what they called two variators inside the transmission. They quoted the cost to replace the variators as $3600 for parts and labor of $1200 for a total of $4800 and that is more than the cost to replace the transmission for which they quoted $4500. So they replaced the transmission. After starting, they found a broken transmission mount so they replaced that for another $250 (part only - no labor charge). I test drove the new transmission yesterday. The car no longer goes into limp mode and drives nicely except after it warms up it clunks hard into drive and reverse and wines in reverse gear. Not taking car till fixed properly.

Filed Jul 7, 2011 · Acceleration · 75,000 miles · AR

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that when starting her vehicle and placing her foot on the brake pedal, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and the RPM's increased. She was able to stop the vehicle forcefully by depressing the brake pedal. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer who advised her that the throttle body needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. Within a year she experienced the identical failure. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer who advised her that the transmission failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified offered her no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.

Filed Jun 23, 2011 · Transmission · 80,500 miles · NY

The car entered engine "failsafe mode" and shut down while trying to merge into traffic on a busy rush-hour highway. After pulling over and restarting the engine, operation was normal. This was the 3rd time in a 2.5 week period this occurred. The car experienced the same issues in july 2010 frequently (it had existed for 2-3 year on and off before then). Ford applied the service alert fix by replacing the throttle body and refreshing the PCM. This fix has not worked. The car will sporadically enter failsafe mode on warm days when trying to accelerate/shift gears. The original fix in july 2010 was covered under warranty. In october 2010 there was a transmission control failure and the computer had to be replaced. The warranty had expired and the fix cost $2000. Operation was normal during the winter months, however, when the warm weather returned so did the problem. An independent mechanic believes the failsafe mode issue was the beginning of the transmission failure and ford should not have charged $2000 for a new computer. The problem has not been resolved and continues to occur. The dealership's suggestion is to pull over and restart the car to clear the computer. The car is unsafe to drive, especially on multiple lane highways. Once the failsafe mode engages, there is little power to get the car off the road. If you are on an incline it will stop altogether. This is a dangerous situation and the possibility of a rear end collision is great. Ford has not issued a recall, only a service alert for a fix that does not work.

Filed Apr 12, 2011 · Transmission · 102,000 miles · MI

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred sel. The contact stated that the transmission was replaced and within a couple of days she drove the vehicle again and it stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where they diagnosed that the throttle bottle needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 102, 000.

Filed Jul 7, 2010 · Transmission · 135,000 miles · TN

I am buying a 2005 ford 500 limited with an 6 spd transmission it now has 136k miles on it. It has been a problem ever since I purchased the vehicle used from crossroads ford in memphis. I had to have the engine replaced at 54k miles. Now the transmission/transaxle is starting to slip and stall in traffic. You start to move from a traffic light and it will go slowly then jump to about 4k to 6k on the tachometer and at that point the car stalls and you are about to be rear ended by other drivers due to the car stalling. According to ford they have known of this problem but only offer selling you a new transmission which they should be responsible for since they built the product even if the factory warranty is gone. Cant afford to buy another car or trade this one in or get the transmission fixed according to ford the replacement is around $4600. Don't have that kind of money lying around.

Filed Feb 27, 2010 · Seats, Transmission · 31,589 miles · MN

Just purchased a 2005 five hundred with 32000 miles and had to bring back to dealer for transmission up-down hard shifting. They said they had to flash w/new software. Picked up and did not notice any difference, still hard shifting. Have 10 days left on my 60 day warranty. Will bring back to dealer for diagnostics. Sounds to me that a huge amount of loyal ford customers are having a huge problem with the this transmission. I suppose I will have an transmission failure soon to come. Why in gods name is nobody doing something about this problem. I also had to have my driver heated seat pads replaced because of failure.