We were driving eastbound on highway 26 in the state of oregon. We were driving up the hill when there was a odd sound, then the RPM of the vehicle went over 3000. We were able to pull the vehicle off the high way barely past the white line. I let off the brake and tried to drive the RPM revved but the car drifted backwards. We put the vehicle in park and then tried again in 1, 3 and drive and again same result. We drifted the car backwards further off the road and contacted a tow. If we were not lucky enough to have had no traffic behind us and have a large enough side bar on the road we would have likely been in an accident.
2004 Ford Freestar transmission complaints
Page 14 of 30: complaints 371 to 400 of 851, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Transmission failed at highway speeds (55mph). Total loss of motive power. After coasting to a stop I was unable to get the car to move in any gear (drive, reverse, 1, 2, etc.)
This is the second issue I have had with water getting into the PCM(computer). The first occurrence (03/10) I had the car towed to the ford dealership and was advises per the obdb scan codes that the transmission needed an overhaul. I told the dealership that I had just pulled the car out of my driveway and had no reverse and had slippage in other gears, it was raining very heavily that day- I asked the dealership if it could be an issue of moisture getting into PCM(computer), the dealership said that that was not the issue. I then had the car towed to a reputable transmission repair shop, there I was told that my car was the third to freestar to have been brought in with an issue of water getting into the PCM(computer). The owner of the transmission shop was able to let the PCM dry out for three days and reinstall with no transmission issues. The second event (04/11) happened after several days of rain; while driving to work the instrument panel displayed the following lights: check engine, brakes, ABS, fuel, battery, and trans axle light. The vehicle stalled out in the middle of traffic, and I had the car towed back to my mechanic who advised that the fuel pump and fuel pump module was defective and replaced. However, the trans axle light was still appearing intermittently. I took the vehicle back to transmission shop for second time, and through careful trouble isolation, they determined that the pcu was telling the torque converter to shift into fourth gear while coming to a stop. They allowed the pcu to dry out, but then determined that the transmission module had shorted out and that it need to be brought to dealership to reprogram pcu. I contacted the dealership who stated that they are not aware of any moisture/water issues with freestars and I advised them that I am filing a complaint the federal safety agency and will also forward letter to ford motor company.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle suddenly stalled and she couldn't accelerate. There were no warning lights on the instrumental panel prior or after the failure. The driver then coasted to the side of the highway. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who advised her that it might be the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance but they advised her that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The failure and current mileages were approximately 70,000. The VIN was unavailable.
Repeated problems with moisture/rain getting into PCM(computer). Car is back at transmission shop again due to car stalling during braking. I have had fuel pump/module replaced in error, due to false check engine codes due to moisture/rain getting into PCM, owner of transmission said issue is with water in PCM causing torque converter to engage during braking.
I was driving down the highway and the transmission just suddenly went out. It was like the vehicle was stuck in neutral. I have no power to the wheels; forward or reverse.
Transmission torque converter failed.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. The contact stated that the vehicle would surge forward between one and two rpms. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where they replaced the ball bearings and hoses. Six days later, while attempting to decelerate, the contact noticed that the check engine, battery, and oil warning lights illuminated when the vehicle stalled. She was able to restart the vehicle; however, it stalled again and she was unable to place the vehicle in reverse. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who performed a diagnostic test which determined that the torque converter and vacuum had failed. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The current and failure mileage was 85,000.
I was driving at 35 MPH and went to speed up coming out of town. When I went to accelerate, my rpms revved upto 5 and my speed drastically declined to where I had no power and could not go in drive or reverse. I had t call a tow truck to take van back to town. Have been told torque converter is bad and that transmission needs to be replaced. No signs of anything leading up to the car not driving.
2004 ford freestar transmission has gone out again. Second transmission trans was replaced by ford just after we bought it. This is the second time it has left us stranded.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. The contact was driving 35 MPH when the vehicle experienced a loss of power and abnormally decelerated to 10 MPH. The vehicle would not accelerate over 10 MPH and was towed to a local mechanic where the fuel filter was replaced. Later, the contact was driving 40 MPH when the vehicle became resistant to acceleration attempts. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer who stated that the torque converter was the cause of the failure. The vehicle was being repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who offered no assistance. The VIN was unavailable. The current mileage was approximately 75,000 and the failure mileage was approximately 74,000.
Pulling away from a stop, there was a sudden lose of power to the wheels (the rpms started to climb, but there was no power to the wheels). After coming to a stop, tried to move the van in any gear ( forward, reverse or any lower gear), in any direction, but there was no movement. While there was one sound at the lose of power (a thump), there was no warning sounds, vibrations or other indicators of this coming problem. Torque converter was replaced by maker dealership (at owners expense).
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. While driving approximately 10 MPH, she heard a loud bang. The vehicle lost all power and would not accelerate. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the torque converter was replaced. In addition, five other unknown components that failed due to the torque converter were replaced. The failure and current mileage was 73,000. Updated *lj updated 5/2/11 *cn updated 05/13/11
Had transmission fixed in jan 2010 and my transmission just went out again march 10 2011... I have had nothing but problems with this vehicle ranging from broken motor mounts, tranny, A/C, radiator, spark plugs 02 sensors and so forth. This is the 5th time I have reported on here. Please do something before it kills more people. On top of this, I was driving and the dvd player fell out of the ceiling landing on my child's legs causing bruises.
On 3/5/11, my husband, myself, and 2 of our children were traveling uphill on route 79 in upstate ny. Suddenly our 2004 ford freestar minivan acted as though it were in neutral. My husband pushed on the gas pedal, the engine revved, but the car just wouldn't go. We had to coast backwards down the hill and into someone's driveway. Fortunately, it was the driveway of a local mechanic who quickly diagnosed the problem as transmission failure. Upon researching this issue, I found on www. Edmunds.com that hundreds of others had experienced the exact same problem at about the same mileage (ours is approximately 72k). I was hoping to find that this would be a recall issue, but apparently hundreds of complaints just isn't enough.
Bought van with 68,000 miles and a week later with 68,500 miles the vehicle lost power while driving with no warning...had to replace transmission $2900.00.......I would like all of that back....and so would everyone else that has had this happen to them....thanks
My 2004 ford freestar had a catastrophic transmission failure while I was on the freeway with my family in the car. My car has only 88k miles and gave absolutely no indication of anything mechanically wrong prior to the failure. I have since learned that this is an extremely common problem for ford freestar owners; I am appalled that the n.h.t.s.a. Has done absolutely nothing about this. Ford has made a lemon with an extremely dangerous safety issue; we were fortunate to have made it across five lanes of busy highway before our car came to a complete stop. This is unacceptable. Ford needs to make restitution to its owners. It is unacceptable that you, the entity that is supposed to protect consumers, is doing nothing.
April 2008. Driving home from sisters wedding in canada to north carolina. Torque converter came apart and damaged the transmission, (97000 miles). New transmission install at aamco in manchester, ct. 65000 miles later (november 2011) that transmission fails. Had it checked out and water was getting into the transmission. No visible signs as to how.
Driving to work the transmission in 2004 freestar with only 78,000 miles catastrophically failed without any warning, stranding the vehicle in the southbound lane of traffic on a rural highway creating traffic hazards for myself and other motorists. The vehicle had to be towed to a private transmission repair shop for replacement of failed transmission components and a complete transmission rebuild. The local ford dealer could not accommodate repairs because they did not have the necessary parts available due to "national backorder" of the parts. Several phone calls to transmission shops and a google search revealed that the 2004-7 ford freestars are well known for" sudden catastrophic failures" due to inferior torque converters, input shafts and pumps. This is clearly a design defect since most automobiles and vans in this class do not have histories of large numbers of sudden failures, especially at such low miles. Ford needs to accept this design flaw and honor recall repairs to customers.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. While accelerating from a stop light at approximately 5 MPH the contact heard a clanging noise in the front end of the vehicle and then it stalled. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the contact was told that the spline was stripped and the torque converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 82,576 and the current mileage was 86,000. Updated 03/24/11*lj the dealer found the transmission pump shaft stripped out of place. Updated 05/05/11
2004 ford freestar transmission failure. Ford service manager stated a substance -appears to be water-enter through transaxle vent. Vent is suppose to be cover by a cowl grille panel. Loss of power while driving and unable to shift into any gear, although engine running. Transaxle light came on back in june 2010 taken to bangor, me ford, transmission drained, flushed with bg flush machine and refilled. Feb 17, 2011 transaxle light again came on .was able to get safely back into driveway when all transmission power loss. Unable to shift into any gear. Towed to ford dealership again in ny where I live. After tranny torn down ($450.00) ford service manager stated a substance -appears to be water-enter through transaxle vent. Vent is suppose to be cover by a cowl grille panel. Found tsb06-04-10 report that identified that water may leake into PCM and or transaxle vent if the PCM connector cover is not properly seated and allows water to leak into these two areas. In nov.2006, I incurred a failure of the PCM . Three scary loss of power on a major highway and three attempts to fix the problem before ford hotline contacted by technician and tsb bulletin used to install new PCM and install cowl panel fix described. This panels seal may have failed allowing water to enter the transaxle's vent. Ford's consumer's 800 line refused to help and denied any responsibility for repairs as did my warranty company. They said that water intrusion isn't covered. Ford needs to recall these vehicles as there is a large number of complaints (many that could have ended in tragedy on highways. Any number of google searches will show hundreds of complaints. Please the federal safety agency help us get these vehicles recalled. Remember the denials by toyota. They are paying for that fatal accident that killed a family of 4.
Was traveling in the vehicle and all of a sudden lost all power to the transmission. Was very concerning as it occurred in traffic at highway speeds.
#1398 of 1400 another tran fails "death trap" by alton5 feb 20, 2011 (1:31 pm) I have a 2004 freestar and was traveling on a 5 line freeway when all the sudden the tran light came on. The car lost all power even the power steering. I was in the inside lane and had to coast to try and make it off the highway cutting off traffic. I had my 3 kids in the car and was terrified as we almost got slammed in to twice since I was coasting at 30 and the traffic was going 70. Once on the side of the road I tried to start the van and nothing worked. Had to walk with my 3 girls 2 mikes along side the highway "against the law" to get to a pay phone and call aaa. Had the van towed to a shop and it will cost me $3000 to fix. Ford- shame on you! You have put a big burden on my family and put our lives at risk!!! - [xxx] parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
2004 ford freestar transmission failed.
During normal operation of our 2004 ford freestar, the vehicle ceased movement due to a catastrophic failure of the automatic transmission, requiring removal and replacement of the transmission at approximately 75,000 miles. The maintenance garage (a ford dealer) could not determine the exact cause of the failure, but noted the presence of a significant amount of metal shavings within the fluid evacuated from the failed transmission.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. The contact stated that when trying to accelerate from a stop, the vehicle did not move. The contact shifted into a lower gear which allowed the vehicle to accelerate slowly but the failure occurred again. The vehicle moved fine in reverse but not in the drive position. The vehicle had not been inspected or repaired. The failure mileage was 134,250.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. The contact was traveling down the highway with the cruise control activated at 78 MPH up a hill, when suddenly, the engine began to rev and the vehicle started to decelerate quickly. The contact was able to get to the side of the highway with no acceleration because the transmission had just seemed to disengage. The vehicle was taken to the dealership. Upon inspection, it was determined the transmission pump and torque converter had literally sheared off without cause. Updated 3/11/11 *cn updated 04/29/11
I have a 04 ford freestar that continues to have transmission problems. It started early around 40k. Fmc service stated 'just a leak'. Repeat complaints equaled 'nothing found, etc, etc'. Beginning last year it would lose power and backfire while the transmission would not engage and almost caused my wife and daughter to be broadsided when she tried to pull out in traffic and the van did not go forward. The transmission would slip and not engage to second gear. I took it to aamco and paid $1800 to have it fixed. They said they had to basically replace everything. Now, a year later and it is doing it again, but this time by not engaging into second gear, it caused a person behind me to get hit in the rear because he thought I would turn as a normal car would, but I couldn't accelerate due to the trans. Additionally now it will shudder, shake and lose power at 40 to 50 MPH. It is not even drivable as I tried to go out to the store today and it made terrible noises and shook like crazy when put into reverse. Tried to go up my driveway and it shook even harder and made terrible grinding noises in drive, 3rd and 1st gear. Does not matter what position the shifter is in, it has problems. Looked at the dip stick for the trans and it is rusted showing that obviously now some type of water is in the system too. I am disabled and on a disability income and do not have the funds to have this repaired again. Ford will do nothing for it unless of course I want to pay to have it rebuilt at $4000. This van is a danger to all on the road and luckily no one has been killed as a result of it not pulling out into traffic as it should. Please force ford to buy back these vans and refund the expenses of people who had to pay to have it fixed. For me, it looks like it is going to be a double trouble problem. I do not know what to do, I know it will just break down again if I do have it fixed. The van needs to be taken to a junk yard and crushed to save lives.
I own a 2004 ford freestar. On wednesday, jan. 26,2011, I try to move my van in my garage, found the engine started normally, but the van cannot move.. The gear looked not functional at all. The van would not move forward as well. I had my mechanic to take a look, and he informed me that the transmission went on our van. He suggested that we have it towed to the ford dealership where we purchased it. So, this is what we plan to do. The van only has around 83, 000 miles on it!! I understand, after doing lots of research, that this is a common problem with this make and model, and I am infuriated that we will have to cover the expense associated with the repairs! Unacceptable! Shame on ford! I will never purchase another ford vehicle again.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. While driving 45 MPH the vehicle began to hesitate as if were running out of gasoline. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or a local mechanic for the failure. The vehicle was no longer under warranty. The failure began on january 25, 2011. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 126,000.
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