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Ford Five Hundred headlights problems

18 of the 1,074 owner complaints about the Ford Five Hundred describe headlights failing or too dim, most of them for the 2005 model year.

owner complaints
18
worst model year
2005
typical mileage
58,150
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

What owners say

Filed Dec 25, 2021 · Electrical, Lights · OK

when I’m The vehicle and the temperature reaches middle temp ,the car starts to beep and all the dashboard lights go completely out and the head lights and tail lights be blinking as if they are about to go off . Even when I have the heater or a/c on they turns off and I’m a afraid that if or when I’m on the highway all my lights will just stop working on the middle of the highway at night and no one will be able to see me. And that will cause a big wreck and maybe kill myself or worst someone else. I have looked my car up to see if it has a recall but none are given. I’m afraid for the safety of my fellow drivers on the at night . And I don’t know what to do about this problem.

Filed Oct 11, 2019 · Lights · 3 miles · MD

Driver side headlight socket burns out the bulb. The bulb has been replaced three times in the past three months. The entire light socket unit needs to be replaced. The service tech informed me that was a problem with this model vehicle.

Filed Oct 22, 2013 · Electrical, Lights · KS · fire

Cpsc: i1390188a. 2006 ford five hundred. Consumer stated the left front head light caught on fire spontaneously while having been parked for 30 minutes in the garage and engine was off. *ln the fire destroyed the left front engine area. The vehicle was totaled by the insurance company.

Filed Sep 5, 2013 · Engine, Lights · 103,682 miles · NC

At times when placing car into reverse or drive it will lurch forward. When going up any hill and the 6 speed transmission needs to down shift, it seems that it pops into neutral and then pops into lower gear causing the car to jerk very hard.. The jerking can be so hard that I am scared that its going to break the motor mounts or the drive axles. This happens every time I am going up a hill or trying to pass someone on the interstate on flat land. Had to replace the low beam headlight sockets due to them overheating and melting the socket and causing the bulbs to stop working. The driver side window, when trying to bring it up it will stop and go back down. Sometimes it will do it a couple times before I can get the window all the way up. This is my first ford I have ever owned and I am love with the car but not with the problems I am having with the car. Also, when the car hit 100,000 miles it started to burn 1 quart of oil between oil changes. I cannot find any leaks. I have see a lot of people having the same issues I am having with the lurching and jerking of the transmission. Wish ford would do a real call for these problems because I just love this car!

Filed Aug 30, 2013 · Lights · 81,000 miles · UT

Replaced low beam headlamp on driver side, noted electrical burn marks on one terminal. Replacement bulb did not work, had to wiggle to get it to work. Quit working daily without wiggling whole lighting socket , took apart noticed that the socket housing was brittle and cracked with burn mark on metal female lead. Two to three weeks later passenger low beam headlight would not work, wiggled passenger side light, came back on. Sometimes both light would go out at same time. Problem kept occurring through august. Found this has occurred on other ford five hundreds due to sockets overheating. Checked passenger socket and compared to driver side and both sockets and light bulbs look identical in damage. Burned/melted plastic on bulb base and cracked burned sockets. Replaced both side bulbs and sockets last weekend, both lights worked for three days before apparently fused the socket with the bulb on the driver side. Guessing the passenger side will do the same within next month like it did before.

Filed Dec 6, 2012 · Brakes, Lights · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2006 ford five hundred. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50 MPH and having to brake abruptly, there was a hesitation in braking response. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis where they advised him that they were unable to diagnose the failure. The vehicle was repaired and three sets of rear brake pads were installed on the vehicle. In addition, the low beam headlights started to dim. The contact inspected the vehicle himself and noticed that the pig tail socket had shortened. The pig tail socket was replaced. The failure mileage was unknown. The current mileage was approximately 125,000. The VIN was unavailable.

Filed Nov 13, 2012 · Electrical, Lights · MA

The headlight socket on both headlights are over heating and melting causing the bulb not to operate. I'm just nervous that this will cause a fire as all the parts are plastic. I also noted on line that it is a very real problem and I'm not the only one experiencing this.

Filed Dec 9, 2011 · Engine, Lights · 70,000 miles · ID · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford five hundred. The contact stated that the harness for the front passenger side headlight had to be replaced because it melted. An authorized dealer stated that the failure may have been caused by excess moisture, but the contact stated that the headlight became brittle and fractured. The dealer also stated that the top motor mount had worn. The contact felt that these were manufacturers defects. The failure mileage was 70,000 and the current mileage was 89,700.

Filed Aug 31, 2010 · Lights · 55,389 miles · PA

My 2005 ford 500 bought used september 2009 (around 53,000 miles current miles 55,432) has had a problem with the driver's low beam burning out. On the 3rd bulb replacement in less than a year the entire headlight socket crumbled in my hands. I had to replace the socket and rewire it to the wiring harness.

Filed Jun 3, 2010 · Acceleration, Electrical · 106,000 miles · MO

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

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Ford Five Hundred headlights

Which Ford Five Hundred years have headlights failing or too dim problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2005 (9 complaints), 2006 (8 complaints) and 2007 (1 complaints).

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