Trying to park my car in a crowded parking lot, the car suddenly surged forward and then stalled. I tried to restart the car and it would not start. I waited a minute, turned off the radio, A/C, etc and then was able to restart. I have had a similar problem on two other occasions since.
2006 Ford Freestyle transmission complaints
Page 11 of 17: complaints 281 to 310 of 484, newest first, as owners wrote them.
We have had persistent acceleration problems with our 2006 ford freestyle. Starting in july 2009, the car started lunging when pulling in or out of parking spaces - I.e., at low speeds. A repair shop completed an induction cleaning which took care of the problem temporarily. In june 2011 the problem reappeared and we completed another induction cleaning which took care of the acceleration problem for a few weeks. Now, a few weeks later, the wrench and engine symbols have started appearing when we start the car. If we try to drive while the wrench symbol (indicating powertrain issue) still appears, the car does not accelerate at lower speeds. Yesterday at the shop they performed a throttle body cleaning which has not taken care of the problem. I am very concerned about the unpredictable nature of this car's issues which appear to be related to other complaints about sudden acceleration/lunging and the related investigation that has been reported. I would appreciate any information about the status of this investigation and what responsibility ford will take if I should need more extensive work to correct this issue. Note that we filed a related complaint in may 2010 ((odi number 10328630) but have received no direct response. Thus the purpose of this complaint is to indicate that the problem continues to be a serious concern.
2006 ford freestyle, lunged forward at low speeds multiple time form the date of incident. Currently, car will lung forward and stall out. Warranty will not cover part replacement.
There have been multiple engine or transmission related problems with this vehicle dating back to 1 year ago. Last august, the car started lunging when idle without the driver pressing the gas. This happened numerous times when we lived in california while idling at traffic lights or while driving slow in parking lots. We brought it in and had a part replaced for $800 and was told everything was fine. 3 weeks later the car was revving high and making a loud whur. We brought it back in and was told that the transmission had to be replaced and that this was a known defect with the freestyle automatic transmission. It cost over $5000. We moved to georgia in april and the lunging problem resurfaced. We had to spend another $1300 to fix this. Then low and behold, 6 weeks later, the transmission blew again. This car is a hazard and needs to be taken off the road by ford.
Vehicle surged forward while parking and backward while exiting parking space. Has continued to occur since.
Vehicle surges forward in low idle or when stopped. Will happen also in reverse. Seems worse on hot days or with A/C running. Service "wrench" light will come on and car will almost stop running and has stopped on some occasions.
Auto-up/down function is erratic. Battery warning light goes off and on. Sudden acceleration at any speed.
We own a 2006 ford freestyle. In 2008, at 36,730 miles we had the throttle body replaced because the vehicle lurched & the wrench light came on. Problem fixed. However, 2011 @ 88,356 we had the car in again because it lurched and engine & wrench light would come on again, and it would lose power. If we turned the key off and back on, it would temporarily go away. They replaced an electronic sensor in the transmission. This was at a ford dealer. They had to call their mechanic help line & work on it several days to figure out the problem. Apparently, that was not the problem, because it had to go back in two weeks later for the same issue. They claimed the new part was faulty and they replaced the sensor again. Fast forward 2.5 months. We are in june @ 92,744. Vehicle was again lurching, wrench & check engine light would come on and had a loss of power. This all seemed to happen when the engine was under strain/load: AC on high, turning the wheel. It would happen in reverse or drive. I had a foot on/over the brake - so lurching never caused any incidents. This time, I took it to my mechanic. He didn't believe me - because as I said - if you turned the car off, it would all go away until the next random time it happened. So, after 2 days I picked the vehicle up from him. It happened again 2 days later. I took it to autozone and had them plug it in to get the codes out of it - before I turned it off. I took the vehicle and the codes to my mechanic. He had the car for a couple days and was able to get it to behave as I described to him. He replaced the throttle body and it seemed to fix it. We took it on a road trip for 6,000 miles and there was no problem. It is now just over 100,000 miles and the warranty has now expired. Until now - warranty has covered the bulk of the cost. About 2 weeks ago, there was one instance of surging but no other symptoms or lights. Not sure what I plan to do from here except perhaps wait until it is recalled?
I have a 2006 ford freestyle. It has begun taking off while backing out of my driveway and lurching forward without pressing the accelerator. This is a safety issue of highest urgency. Upon research on the web, I see numerous recent complaints about this very same issue for this particular style, make & year. There is even a facebook page requesting throttle body recall on ford freestyles, with 214 likes to date. I have 2 children ages 7 & 5. I fear for the safety of my own children and others around as this is the "family" car & used for school and activity pick ups and drop offs. These surges occur at stop lights, parking, and easing out of parking. All of these times have the propensity to cause major accidents. If it does cause an accident, I will have my lawyers contact ford. This is a well documented issue. I am assuming as a reputable car maker- ford needs to be made aware of such issue in order to issue recall to correct. I hope this complaint speeds up the process.
I have a 2006 freestyle. 2 years ago I had to have the throttle body replaced due to unintended acceleration that got to be dangerous. This fixed the problem, but now I am again having the exact same issues, especially when the air is on. I now have a teen driving and I am very concerned for her welfare. I already paid 800+ to repair something ford should have repaired at their cost. Now I have the same issue. Does someone have to get hurt before ford recalls this part?
Throttle body seem to make the vehicle lunge forward while setting in traffic. Almost struck vehicles in front of me on many occasions. I'm forced to put vehicle in park or neutral while stopped.
I have a 2006 ford freestyle and when ever I drive it, it accelerates when your stopped at stop signs, traffic lights,coasting through parking lots, etc. I have just recently hit the car in front of me while waiting at a traffic light I was slowing down to stop when the car accelerated causing the car to lunge forward hitting the car in front of me before I had time to stop. This has become very dangerous. I took it to a ford dealer with no results. I called the ford mfg. And they told me they were aware of the problem but nothing was being done about it. I have ask several owners of the freestyle about this and they said they were having the same problem. I have checked on the internet and found complaint after complaint about this problem and the high cost of trying to fix it. I have went to several repair shops with no guarantees. The ford dealer I took it to charged me $140.00 then told me there was nothing wrong with the car. I feel this should be something the ford motor co. Should be recalling. Thank you.
I own a 2006 ford freestyle and have begun to notice a surging/lunging of the vehicle while the A/C is running. I've noticed this lunging more when the car has been running for some time and I am driving and/or reversing at slow speeds, like in a parking lot. When this happens, the rpms go up and the car surges even with the brakes being applied. This sounds like a common problem with the throttle body in freestyles. The vehicle has been doing this consistently since the A/C has been needed.
2006 ford freestyle lunging started about 2 months ago. It happens often, thought it was just when I ran the air conditioner but it is happening all the time now. It will happen when the car is going forward and in reverse and sometimes it will die on me. I've already heard of this problem being responsible for 1 injury and I'm afraid it could continue to happen to other freestyle owners including myself. I should not have to pay for this problem. Ford needs to own up to the fact that this is their fault and recall all freestyles made within 2006-2007. As I am researching this problem with the freestyle I am becoming aware that ford has known about this issue for some time now and have not done anything about it. If this is how they are going to make vehicles and treat their customers then I can assure you that most of their costumers will choose to go elsewhere with their business, including myself! They need to recall this model and fix it!!!! I am at 65,000 mile's and this is unacceptable to me and every other owner out there.!!! Please do something about this mess.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 ford freestyle. The contact stated that the vehicle would surge while in drive or reverse. The failure became progressively worse and the vehicle would intermittently stall when the brakes were applied. The vehicle was taken to a repair shop, where the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 67,000. The current mileage was 69,000. Updated 09/27/11 *bf the consumer stated the vehicle is now fully operational. Updated 10/05/11
The engine surges all the time, and if the brake pedal is not firmly stepped on, the vehicle will lurch forward 6 to 12 inches. This week the engine surged twice while backing out of my driveway, then once again after shifting into drive, then the engine stalled in the middle of the road. Ford diagnosed it as the throttle body needing replacement, but it is not covered under the extended warranty and will cost $805 to replace it. This has been a known problem to ford for several years.
First sign was when leaving a mall parking space; placed car into reverse to back up, motor surged and car leaped backwards unexpectedly nearly striking a passing car and pedestrians. Put transmission into'd' to pull back into space and transmission dash indicator illuminated and the car died. Various iterations of restarting the engine, putting the car in gear and then either surging under full power or dying until we got to an auto parts store to see if they could read any codes for the problem. The shop was very nice but unable to determine anything conclusive so we limped along to the nearest ford dealership where we learned the throttlebody had failed.
2006 ford freestyle while sitting still at idle, in gear, suddenly surging causing unintentional vehicle movement.
I was waiting on my wife in mall parking lot with the AC running when I pulled out to pick her up car accelerated and I hit the brakes and the car stalled and the wrench light came on. It has done this about 50000 miles ago and they replaced throttle body. I cant believe it is happening again. We are going on vacation in 2 weeks and I need to get it fixed before we go but do not need this added expense. Ford needs to do something about this. I will be at dealership monday morning.
The car began to jerk and lurch, and engine speed abruptly slowed after about (3) hours of highway driving (from vermont to new hampshire). A trouble light (wrench icon) appeared. Engine rpms fluctuated, but vehicle would not respond to the gas pedal. Pulled over, waited a few minutes, restarted the car. Trouble light was no longer on, and the vehicle was fine and normal for the rest of the ride home. Brought car to portsmouth ford, who could not find any problem. Second incident, january 2011: highway drive back to new hampshire from connecticut. Same problem. Abrupt and alarming drop in car speed. No throttle control. Erratic engine RPM performance. Attempted to pull off interstate highway to a safe area. Waited 5 minutes. Re-started the engine. Trouble light gone, engine performed fine, and no issue the rest of the trip. Brought the car for transmission service to valvoline, then to dowling ford where the vehicle was purchased. Third incident, march 2011: after (2) hours of highway driving abrupt drop in engine speed while attempting to merge on interstate 84. Lost throttle control. Near collision with a tractor-trailer in bad weather while trying to get out of the way and off the highway. Frightening experience. Brought car to bob thomas ford in hamden, connecticut for a transmission program update and complete transmission service. Dealer could not find a problem with the vehicle. Fourth incident, june 24, 2011: again on I-84 in the rain after 2.5 hours of highway cruising. Radical loss of engine power and vehicle speed. My daughter barely avoided a collision attempting to maneuver off the highway in heavy traffic with erratic throttle control. Daughter called me in a panic, crying. Waited off the highway a few minutes, re-started, and was fine. Car no longer used on the highway, just locally. The consumer also stated the alternator failed. Updated portable 08/23/11 updated 09/14/11
2006 ford freestyle will accelerate, or lunge forward, when brake is engaged while in drive.
My 2006 ford freestyle has had a lunging problem for the past couple of years. There have been many times that it has lunged in reverse/drive and almost hit another car or object.
Unintended acceleration when moving transmission out of park. Car lurches and accelerates covering distances of 5-20 feet depending upon terrain. Movement can be arrested with braking, but is very sudden and intermittent so difficult to expect and control.
Put car in reverse and as soon as the brake was released the car jumped back as if I had quickly pressed on the accelerator. I quickly applied the brake and then the car shut itself off. Since july 12 I have had a few other instances both when putting the car in reverse and when the car was in drive. I was waiting in a line with the brakes applied. As I lifted my foot off the brake to idle forward the car jumped forward with a quick burst of acceleration and resulting in almost hitting the car in front of me.
Car lurches (in drive or reverse) when at low speeds. This issue is much more pronounced while air conditioning is on. Engine revs from 1,000 RPM to 2,500 RPM. On occasion the "fail-safe" will engage and the engine will shutdown completely when brakes are applied to stop the car from lurching. The only unusual light that comes on is "throttle system" light.
Early july 2010 car would surge after started when placed into drive or reverse. July 17,2010 about 95 degrees ambient. Driving 55 MPH car started to lose power and stall. Restarted and it went into limp mode with check engine light and occasional surges. I found a ford dealer about 5 miles away. Diagnosis was a bad mass air flow sensor. Replaced and we were on our way again. Early june 2011 it was surging after starting when placed in drive or reverse. June 11,2011. Car stalled and went into limp mode again with check engine light on. Bought a new mass air flow sensor, installed it myself and cleared the code. July 5,2011 while driving to baltimore at 65 MPH and 100 degree ambient, car stalled, restarted and it went into limp mode with check engine light on. I found a parking lot with shade and let it idle for about 20 minutes. Shut it off and restarted. Check engine light was off and it ran fine to baltimore. This appears to be an issue with the mass air flow circuit. The federal safety agency cannot ignore this flaw.
2006 ford freestyle over the past year my car has been accelerating and stalling for no reason. I have had to brake suddenly many times when pulling into a parking space and or backing up. Its really scary. Last week it accelerated so fast and I slammed on my brakes so hard that it quit, I started it, it quit and when I started it again, my engine light was on. I just spent over $1600 dollars to have the problem corrected at the local ford dealership. I bought this car new and gave over $34,000 dollars for it and it has had many issues. I just paid it off in december and now I'm still spending so much money to keep it going. I am a teacher and can not afford this but I can't afford to trade it in and have car payments all over again. Please, isn't there anything you can do to help me?
Drove car about 10 miles, no problems. Sat in parking lot for about 10 minutes idling, outdoor temperature about 90 degrees. Put car in reverse, engine surged and car died. Took three tries to get car to start and the wrench light came on. Was able to begin driving, however the car did not seem to accelerate, even with pedal pushed to the floor. On the way home, engine would "herky/jerk" a little, but did begin to accelerate better and get up to speed. Turned off car in driveway and started a little later to take to garage to get checked. Car started easily this time, and the wrench light was off. Absolutely no issues on way to the garage. Will find out tomorrow what, if anything garage tells me. This problem seems to be similar to other issues described in internet search.
I drive a 2006 ford freestyle. I would like to report that when the car has been running and it is a hot day when placed in reverse it will accelerate on it's own and then the motor will die causing the check engine light to come one. Typically if I turn it off and wait a few minutes it will come back on light free, but there has been two occasions when it has not. The first I took it for a diagnostics where I was told to take it to ford that it seemed to be a transmission issue, ford told me that they were not sure but they cleared out the sensor to give it a good wash if it happened again. It has happened again only this time the engine dying to acceleration ration has increased and a good car wash has not helped the issue. I am becoming very concerned before the acceleration was only in reverse now it is occurring in drive as well and happening more frequently. I have plans to take it to my local ford dealership however I do not have high hopes for answers as they were not all that helpful the first time.
Have 2006 ford freestyle with 55,000 miles on it. It recently lunged forward while I was in driveway. And engine has been revving up for no reason what so ever.
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