I am writing about the problem with the 2004 ford freestar transmission. On 6/28/08 with only 84,000 mile on the way home from tn with no warning I lose my transmission on a busy highway. Thank god I we were able to get over to the shoulder. I have read many comets left on the internet on other websites about the same issue. I can not believe ford is not doing anything about this or is anyone else. There is no reason that a veh that is properly maintenance should have problems like this with such low mileage. Hope something is done soon about this before someone gets hurt or killed. As of right now I am unable to get it fixed so as for now we have to try to figure out how to get around in a 3 seater truck with 5 members in a household.
2004 Ford Freestar transmission complaints
Page 28 of 30: complaints 791 to 820 of 851, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. While driving 45 MPH uphill, the transmission failed. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle did not move. There were no warning lights illuminated prior to the failure. The vehicle was towed to an auto shop. The manufacturer wanted her to have the vehicle towed to a dealer an hour away, but the contact refused because it would cost nearly $300 in towing costs. The manufacturer also stated that she should have purchased an extended warranty on the vehicle. The contact was informed that the transmission repair would cost approximately $3,000. She stated that the vehicle underwent regular oil changes and maintenance; therefore, she could not understand why the failure occurred so suddenly. The VIN was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 39,000.
My 2004 freestar, gave no warning..the transmission slipped into low gear and then it was done. I called ford motor co, found out because I chose to have it repaired at a private / non ford dealer they wouldn't even begin to assist me. I have approx 46,000 on the vehicle. Both the repair facility and the tow truck driver informed us this was a common problem with these transmissions. And after researching online I soon discovered they couldn't be any more right. Now its cost me $2500 to have it rebuilt.
Failure of cam sensor, then complete failure of transmission 2 weeks later.
Vehicle suddenly would not go forward on highway. Vehicle was towed approximately 35 miles to auto repair shop. Transmission failure was diagnosed, specifically torque converter failure. A rebuilt transmission was installed and vehicle now runs normally.
Automatic transmission died without warning.
I have a 2004 ford freestar whose transmission failed without warning in the middle of the road while my husband was coming to pick me up from the hospital right after I had a baby. The transmission was totally gone and needed to be replaced. There were only 45000 miles on the vehicle at the time. This could have been a very dangerous situation if there were cars nearby, and even worse if I was in the car with him and our newborn when the transmission failed, to be stranded somewhere with a 2 day old baby. I can't imagine the transmission failing at 45000 miles on a vehicle that you think is reliable.
Since january 21, 2008 we have been experiencing problems with our ford freestar. On several occasions our vehicle has stopped working/stalled on major road ways in pennsylvania including a major expressway in the city of philadelphia. Our family car has been back the dealerships autoshop for over 68 days since january 2008. Presently we have been without our vehicle since may 13, 2008 without a contact from the dealership, keyer miller in collegeville, regarding any specific problems with our car. The dealership has not offered us anything to reconcile this situation.
On may 20 2008 while driving a 2004 ford freestar on vacation. With 2 other adults and 3 dogs in the minivan the transmission with only about 40,000 miles without warning quit. The engine accelerated but nothing was happening. At 73mph in the left lane allot of traffic the transmission of the vehicle failed without any warning. I was able to safely roll onto the left shoulder of the I-23 expressway. But while sitting waiting for help to arrive I sure thought of many situations that the outcome could have been alot different. What if we had been on a bridge overpass and nowhere to pullover to? The vehicle has been towed to a transmission repair shop and that is all so far. But looking at other wed sites about the ford freestar minivan, it looks like I am not the only one to have a fairly low mileage transmission to just suddenly quit.
Automatic transmission failed when vehicle was just 3 years old, 70,000 miles. Automatic transmission failed again after just another 13,000 miles, less than one year later.
Transmission failure.
I'd like to add my complaint to the list of unhappy ford consumers who've had problems with their transmissions on the ford freestar minivans. I have a 2004 ford freestar and it has a little over 44,000 miles on it. We were going down the highway and suddenly we had no power to go anywhere, the RPM indicator would move up but we had no power, it basically died. We had no forward or reverse, we were just coasting with no power. Luckily we were able to pull over to the side of the road and call a tow truck. Took it to the ford garage and was told it was the torque converter that went out. We had it fixed and thankfully it was under warranty yet. I know you've had numerous complaints about the ford freestar vans...come on people do something before someone gets hurt. We had no power to go anywhere.
2004 ford freestar (minivan).
Driving on a busy highway(rte 422 -ohio) in moderate to heavy traffic. Stopped for a school bus and the cars made a pop then would not go forward or reverse. Had to be towed , took two hours and caused some traffic congestion. Transmission failure.
Transmission failure at 47,000 miles of use. Vehicle was serviced at required mileage by dealer. Transmission repair shop states that failure may be torque converter. Cost to confirm will be $350.00. Repair will be additional.
2004 ford freestar transmission failed while driving. Towed to ford dealership and needed torque converter replaced because of failed spline. Inspection of spline showed it was worn away yet other gears remained in good shape. Review of internet complaints of this problem were numerous. Some of the failures were with children in vehicle while driving on busy highways. Fortunately my transmission failure was on a empty country road I just coasted to a stop ( I was only going about 10 MPH at the time ) without incident.
Very dangerous! Bought a new 2004 ford freestar mini van on jan. 22. Of 2005 leftover . I have 35,000 miles on it. Driving home with my family on the heavily traffic long island expressway I 495 at approx 10:30 in the evening. No warning the transmission dies. No power at all. I coast to the right lane and with no shoulder where I was I just prayed I would not get plowed into the rear with my two boys age 5 and 10 sleeping. This was extremely dangerous. After reading the forums on the internet I find this is a common problem with this vehicle. Check out this link which is one of a few I have found... Http://www.carsurvey.org/viewmorecomments_review_77118_1.html what recourse do I have and why isn't ford made to redesign / repair this deficiency in their design. Some family will get injured if not killed. These vans were designed for families with young children. Very disappointed and concerned.
Transmission fails and car stalls in traffic without warning, which creates a safety hazard. The ford dealer service department replaced the PCM, wiring harness, and multiple sensors, but the problem continued. The cause appears to be flooding of PCM, related wiring, and attached sensors due to design defect. Ford tsb exists on this issue.
Vehicle transmission went on my 2004 ford freestar van with no warning signs while driving. (car only had 74,000). I have read online and there are many other owners of these same vans the same problem which is extremely dangerous.. Vans are primarily purchased to transport kids and this should be a number one reason ford should have a recall to take care of this problem before anyone has a dangerous accident.
In oct. My two year old and I were in a left lane on the expressway in flint during rush hour when the transmission went out. Somehow I made it to the side of the road. Cars were swerving around us. People helping me push the car said they can't believe we weren't hit. It was terrifying. The car only had 79,000 miles. This was just the beginning of our journey. We already had numerous problems with the back tailgate (a design flaw I'm told), sliding doors to the power steering. After a couple months because of arranging funding and getting a new trans the car was back. I drove my husbands lease on my 4 days 50 mile each way a week commute putting us way over the miles on his lease. 4 weeks later the light was on and the trans shop had it for about 3 weeks while they kept replacing parts to get it working. We got it back and within a month had it back in for service. My son and I spent the day at the shop. The light was back on within a month. On 6/21/07 we dropped it off. We got it back the end of august. The trans shop got ford involved and the trans shop replaced several parts of the transmission. The torque converter, which I read complaints about, was one of the things replaced - I don't know how many times. I contacted ford long before this and got nowhere with them. We got the car back and a month later the light came on. The trans shop decided to start over and get another complete transmission and replace it. They ordered it and the van went in again for a couple of weeks. For the last two months we haven't had any problems. Ford absolutely, 100%, has not stood behind this vehicle. It's a miracle my son and I weren't injured or killed when it first went out. It's only a matter of time before someone is seriously injured or killed. I was surprised when I saw on edmunds all the people complaining about this same problem. I bought this vehicle because I wanted a safe and reliable car for my child. What a joke!
My 04 freestar just stopped no warning nothing just stop while I was driving my daughter to the doctor my son in law had to take off work and tow me home I cant afford to have it fixed I live on a disability and barely make my bills then I read on the internet that hundreds of the same vehicles are doing the same thing I can bet that it is my transmission and torque converter when I can get it fixed ford needs to make this right.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. While driving 40 MPH, the engine revved and the vehicle would not accelerate. The vehicle coasted to a stop. There were no warning indicators prior to the failure. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and they stated that the transmission failed for an unknown reason. The transmission needed to be replaced. The VIN, engine size, and powertrain were unknown. The current and failure mileages were 61,300.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford freestar. When the vehicle was started, the RPM's constantly accelerated to 2,000. While driving 40 MPH, the transmission shifts gears and the RPM fluctuates between 25,000-35,000. There is also significant loss of power. The dealer stated that the failure was a normal occurrence; however, they informed the contact that the wheel hubs needed to be replaced two weeks later. The parts for the repair will not be available until april of 2008, but the vehicle is safe to drive in the interim. The failure mileage was 47,550 and current mileage was 47,600.
My 2004 ford freestar stopped going forwards or backwards. Had it towed and it needs a new transmission with less than 30,000 miles on it.
Our 2004 ford freestar limited only has 48000 miles on it. This morning while moving slowly through our daughters school parking lot the van lost all power and she coasted into a parking place. The gear shift shifts into all gears but doesn't move. When you crank the vehicle in park it just whines and does the same thing no matter what gear you are in. I had the van towed to an independent garage and the mechanic said the splines on the torque converter were gone and due to the torque converter failing it has also lead to the transmission failure. I am being quoted repair prices between 1800 and 2200 to repair it. This vehicle is too new for this type of a problem on so many vehicles, the company should step up or the federal safety agency should require them to.
Transmission failure after 59,000 miles due to stripped splies on torque converter. A search for torque converter stripped splines returns ford freestar as the top result. There are several other people experiencing the same issue. It should be review to see if there is a general defect with the torque converters. It seems early in this model years life for transmission failures.
With 51,000 miles on my 2004 ford freestar the transmission simply failed while traveling 70 MPH on the interstate. Vehicle basically slipped into neutral and coasted to a stop on the shoulder. Gears would no longer engage and had to be towed to the ford dealership. Dealership blames a faulty torque converter and wants $1,600.00 in repairs.
Just driving along and the transmission stopped working. Would not work in any gear, but would go into park. No warning lights or noises.
While accelerating at a stop light. I felt a pop and there was no power to go forward or reverse. It was like running in neutral. Tried shifting gears but it would not move. I did research about what had happened and found many similar cases of internal problems with the torque converter and transmission. There where no warning signs. No lights on the dash column even after the problem occurred. I had my 3 year old son in the vehicle and we were very lucky that we were not on the highway where something horrible could have happened.
I have a ford freestar 2004 & at 44,000 miles my transmission needs to be replaced. I am not getting anywhere with ford and I think this could result in a fatal accident. I have seen a lot of other 2004 freestars with the same problem & I think ford should address this problem.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2004 Ford Freestar?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history