Ford Freestyle Transmission Failure

1356

Comments

  • sportmansportman Member Posts: 23
    Attention to service is a function of the dealership.
    Whereas some manufacturers (like Ford) offer financial incentives and extra recognition to dealers with outstanding feedback from customers many dealers do not attempt to qualify.
    Look for a dealer with with a high ranking to get your vehicle serviced at, it doesn't matter whether you purchased the vehicle from them.
    You mention great experience with Volkswagen - I can tell you that I went through three dealers in Northern NJ and all were incompetent and overpriced - couldn't wait to get rid of the VW and will not buy another.
  • passat_2002passat_2002 Member Posts: 468
    "You mention great experience with Volkswagen - I can tell you that I went through three dealers in Northern NJ and all were incompetent and overpriced - couldn't wait to get rid of the VW and will not buy another."

    Ditto for me. As my name would suggest, I once owned a 2002 Passat that was a maintenance nightmare from day one. The VW dealership involved in this mess treated me like I should have felt privileged to do business with them. The happiest day in my life was when I traded that POS in for my '05 Freestyle. My experience with both the Freestyle and my Ford dealership have been night & day different. Lesson learned.
  • ccsandyccsandy Member Posts: 1
    We actually purchased a brand spankin new 2005 Freestyle in April 2005 - had it 3 days and drove 80 miles and BAM - transmission gone. 1 week in the shop and transmission sent back to detroit - "we've never seen anything like this before"
  • bohemia1bohemia1 Member Posts: 33
    Maybe they keep their eyes closed in Detroit!

    We are now above 30,000 miles (15k on the new transmission).

    I had to replace the brakes recently though. Not happy with that since my '01 Civic's brakes were still original at 84k when I traded it.

    I really like the FS design, it is just a shame Ford messed up the execution.
  • butch57butch57 Member Posts: 1
    I have the same problem with my 2005 Freestyle for the last month as you. It is currently in the shop for the second time with the same symptoms as yours. The dealership says they cannot find a problem. Did you get your transmission replaced?
  • xfordmanxfordman Member Posts: 1
    Has anyone else seen this problem? Gear welded to input shaft of the transmission sheared from the shaft. The weld has broken due to lack of weld penetration and bead width. It was within warrantee. This occurred when in cruise control at highway speed going up hill. Load was lost on the engine the following idiot lights flashed (wrench and traction control). It has been in shop for two weeks and counting. Ford will not replace transmission. They are replacing the sheared part only.
  • janetzjanetz Member Posts: 4
    Had the same problem on Christmas Eve. Not going up hill, but cruise control on, took 3 weeks to get repaired, actually had to have engineers come out and show where the input shaft came unwelded. got the car back and it leaked transmission fluid, took back again, then a month later the throttle body sensor went. Now it seems that my windshield has come un glued. I noticed when I picked it up the first time for the transmission that there were spots on the inside of the window. The spots keep coming back, along with streaks. Had my husband look at it, can move the windshield a bit. I am wondering if Ford had a bad batch of these vehicles go out. Since my transmission was repaired, my gas mileage has gone down considerably. Used to get 24.5 mpg, now get 21.6. Also car does not seem to run right. Hopefully you won't have any future problems with yours. :sick:
  • ct2ctct2ct Member Posts: 5
    I have a 2006 FS. Right after the warranty ran out, about 38,000 miles, the check engine light came on. I was hearing weird noises from the engine, it started roughly, ran roughly, especially in the cold weather. Then it started having acceleration issues. It has now been in the dealer twice for a total of 4 weeks. They still don't really know what is wrong. They have changed the engine prob light sensor twice, and supposedly run it through a lot of testing. The check engine light keeps coming back on. They have alternately told me various issues were wrong with it, only to tell me later that that wasn't the issue after all. They have also checked the coils, checked the PCM and are now saying that they need to replace something to do with timing chains and that it will cost $1600. If that doesn't work, they tell me the whole engine will need replacing, at a cost of $6800! I about dropped the phone. They have alternated between telling me it is a computer problem to my problem with not changing the oil soon enough. This car is not that old and doesn't have that many miles on it. Any one with this issue? I saw some transmission issues on this site and they sound similar to mine. Any suggestions before I spend a load of money and hope it gets fixed correctly? Thanks in advance. :sick:
  • janetzjanetz Member Posts: 4
    Sorry about your problems. I just got mine back again this Tuesday. So far, I have had the throttle body replaced, the input shaft sheared- which should not be your problem if you can still drive it, brakes replaced, ignition tumbler replaced and gas pedal assesmbly replaced. This last time, I took it in due to running rough and having a vibration in the gas pedal. They actually re-aligned my engine and exhaust system(something it should have not needed) also re-programmed my powertain (again, not heard of something that should have to be done by actual Ford Engineers). The E :sick: ngineers I spoke with stated that the adjustments are basically unheard of, and that if they were actually what caused my problems. then I will probably have them in the future. The transmission problems on this car seem to be hit or miss. Some people have had no problems, but those of us that do seem to have continous problems. Sorry that I don't have any answers, but maybe some of my listed repairs might help them in diagnosing yours.
  • stmssstmss Member Posts: 206
    I think you need to get a second opinion from another dealer. And a third if necessary. The fact that the story keeps changing tells me they don't know and are willing to do some trial and error repairs on your dime.

    I had my check engine light on and acceleration problems and it turned out to be the electromechanical dohickey on the transmission. It was not running roughly or hard starting though. I would think running rough, hard starting would not be transmission related. I would tend to think that it is electrical/computer related? But - just a guess obviously.

    I have 100,000 km on my 06 with zero engine problems.
  • fsnowtaurusxfsnowtaurusx Member Posts: 1
    They changed the name. Ford "NOT"FREE-STYLE is now a Taurus X. Why? Cause the other one did not work. We bought ours back in 2005 Brand New. In late 05 early 2006 it was shifting funny. No Worries it was under warranty. Now in March 2008. The wrench light came on. We were at 55k miles out of warranty and a Mecatronic and Shifter Bazzler cost us $2000.00. Now in June 2008, The little light came on. Now we need a full transmission. $8000.00. They found metal shavings in the pan with the fluid. My little Mecatronic piece which is brand new will go out the window with the bathwater ($2000) when they drop a new transmission in.They said this vehicle has a unique CVT transmission. So unique that it does not work. Remember the great deal I thought I had in 2005 for a 7 Seater (family of 6)...done. How can they open my sealed transmission in March put a new part in it and seal it and put fluid in so that pieces won't rub...now it has metal shavings. HOW? I remember the dealer I bought this from say to me that they do not make their money on the sale of a car but on the service. I want to buy American, but maybe it has to be a GM (made in Canada). I do not know...I am really blown away by this mess. I guess if our Economic Ressesion ever comes I am done. Oh wait we are almost in a ressesion. Lights Out In San Diego County.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    I have 62,000 on my '05 FS and no CVT problems, but the CVT was one of the reasons I bought a 100,000 mile extended warranty with zero deductable for $1000...hopefully I'll never need it.
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    "We were at 55k miles out of warranty and a Mecatronic and Shifter Bazzler cost us $2000.00."

    Are those the actual names?

    Did the dealer provide any warranty when they did the $2000 repair? These kind of things generally have some warranty period. If the replaced parts contributed to the failure, you may have some justification to ask Ford for some compensation.
  • loveourgoldenloveourgolden Member Posts: 4
    Bought a 2006 Freestle SEL new from local dealership. No major issues except brake recall. We hit 25,000 miles and one day we started the car and the wrench, engine light, and traction control (car swerving light) all came on and the car road really rough. Got home, shut it off and the next time it was fine. Two days later it did the same thing except it started jumping forward when I accelerated and stopped. Took it straight to the dealership and it was a "wire". They couldn't explain why the car did didn't run fine. So out the door we went. 8 days later, it started again except worse. The car wouldn't accelerate and when I was up to 40 or 50 mph it would suck back like I downshifted and drop me to 20 mph which was great for the cars behind me. I took it straight to the dealership and the man looked at it and said, "Yep, it's the transmission". After a week, they still had no idea what it was and told me they were contacting their "master mechanic" and he would come out 24-48 hours after the call was placed. The NEXT morning they called me to pick up the car....and they replaced the throttle body. My Husband picked it up and drove it about 50 miles and put it in the garage for the night. The next morning I went to start it and the car lurched forward in park!! Then the rpms were almost to the red zone while it was idling. Turned it back off and restarted it....fine. Came home let it sit in the garage for about 2 hours and when I started it, it did the same thing. As I was driving BACK to the dealership, my blinker was going crazy and my power door locks kept locking and unlocking. When I arrive the "nice" man told me he has NEVER heard of a car lurching/jumping forward in park...apparently it mechanically can't happen. He told me that if it doesn't do it to him, there is nothing else we can do. :lemon:

    So that is where we are at....I'm aware of the Lemon law but it's 2 days short of being in for 15 days and we were told the car had to be in three times for the same problem. It was the same problem on our end but ford turned it into a different problem everytime--I don't think they even mentioned the word transmission.

    We did pay extra for the extended warranty and even went into the dealership to have them buyback the car and put us into another ford or my same car without the CVT and after they ran the numbers, we would have been screwed.

    I know this is long, BUT I called another Ford dealership to see if they would offer me more than our local dealership for a buy back and after I gave him the info and VIN he told me my car is a liability and he could only auction it off, not resell it on his lot.

    So my question is, do I have any other recourse? For us, this is a safety issue. I drive my children around (all under 9) and I cringe everytime I get into the car. The dealership claims the've "never heard of these problems".

    I owe $20,000 on the car (bought it new for $32,000). I'm not asking for everything back....I did drive the car for two years before this started. However, I need to get out of this car for our safety but can't do so with the $20g hanging over our head.

    Any ideas??

    Thanks!! :confuse:
  • janetzjanetz Member Posts: 4
    I ended up contacting a Lemon Law Lawyer. Their web address is:

    http://www.lemonauto.com/index.htm

    They only assist in some states so you will have to see if your state is listed, if not, you might still want to call and see if they can refer you to someone else, the consultation is free. They were great, they explained the whole process, and everything went as they told me it would. They were able to get me a cash settlement pretty fast. Also, contact Ford and complain, they will probably assign an engineer to look over your car, you can use that diagnosis as the 4th visit and another day the car was out of commission. They do not have to say the word transmission, you just have to provide all the repair statements to the lemon law lawyers and they make the determination if it belongs under "transmission"

    Hope this helps, let me know if it does. By the way, took the cash settlement, paid down the loan and got rid of the car. I took a hit on the trade in, but at least now I feel safe driving again.
  • nomorefordsnomorefords Member Posts: 3
    We bought a 2005 Freestyle in Feb.08 still having about 10,000 miles left on the warranty. And now it's out of warranty by 5 mos. We only have 34,000 miles on it, and the mechtronic computer is failing. After reading all of the stories, I talked to a lemon law lawyer and he said that we don;t have a case because, we never had any problems while it was under warranty. He did say, that we should try looking fo any class action lawsuits. I looked, but didn't find any. Is there anybody interested in starting a class action lawsuit?
  • saabturboidsaabturboid Member Posts: 178
    What are you talking about? I read these boards all the time and haven't seen a common thread of engine and/or transmission management computers failing on the Freestyle. I also have an '05, now with 68,000 miles on it and it has been the most reliable car I've ever owned. Go Ford! Keep up the good work!

    Any car can have a failure, and if it out of warranty then the onus is on you. It seems you are highly sensitive to such events, so perhaps next time you buy a car you should buy an extended warranty. The thought of suing any automaker for an out of warranty failure seems ridiculous to me. You bought the car and knew how long the warranty lasted, so why is this Ford's problem?
  • coldcrankercoldcranker Member Posts: 877
    nomorefords,
    I gotta agree with saabturboid on this one. If the Freestyle had a high rate of failures over the entire population of vehicles, then there might be a class action lawsuit, similar to the one Toyota recently faced with their poor engineering of their V6 engines (sludge issue). However, we know Consumer Reports surveyed hundreds of random owners and found the Freestyle is actually MORE reliable than the average '05 vehicle out there. In my one case, my '05 Freestyle at 48,000 miles has had no major trouble, and gets great MPG, etc. I do sympathize with your problem, but understand that owning cars is risky in many ways. I know Honda owners that wish we would start WWII up again they are so mad at their Japanese makers! (Head cracking problems and electrical issues.) Its not rational, but there is the emotion. I am paranoid and got an extended warranty at some cost to my wallet. Also, I might add, I have an '05 F150 with no problems either. Fords are great cars. The Fusion has won JD Powers quality awards, for example.
  • ruthorutho Member Posts: 1
    I bought my Freestyle new in Dec 2006. After having it a couple months while on a trip to San Diego when I went to pull out into traffic I lost all power, the engine didn't die but it would go down to an idle, I costed to the side put the car in park and then pulled back out into traffic no problem, this happened 2 times in that weekend. During the next week it happened again. I took the car to the Ford dealership and they replaced the throttle body. After putting 18,000 on the mile I took the car to the dealership because the brakes were failing, they didn't want to acknowledge there was a problem, they told my husband maybe I'd driven with the park brake on. My husband left the car there and said he wouldn't be back to pick it up until they agreed to replace the brakes, a few hours later they called and had replaced the brakes. They told my husband they hadn't seen this happen with other freestyles. Since then I have to replace the brakes every 30 to 40,000 miles. I've taken the car into the local Ford dealership 3 times because of a noise the car makes after I've been driving a while, I call it a whinning sound. I drive a lot of miles most days and after I've been driving a while the noise starts. Everytime I take the car in they tell me they can't find anything, theres no engine lights on and they've take it for a test drive and they hear nothing. I took it back about 3 weeks ago because I was just under 100,000 (my warranty expires) because the noise was still there and they told me the same thing. The technician had me go for a ride with him and we heard nothing. I told him he'd have to drive with me for 50 miles or so before it would start, he said he couldn't do that. Now I'm at 101,100 miles and today I drove 200 miles and the noise was VERY loud by the time I finished at the end of the day. I've had them check the transmission, they tell me it's a all in one unit and they aren't able to check the fluid. My husband had them check power steering, they say that's not it. After this last visit they sent the paper work to my home and it says they checked the transmission fluid but the technician told me himself he didn't know how to check the fluid because it appeared to be an all in one unit. I'm very stressed that now that I've hit my warranty I'm gonna have to replace the transmission. Any suggestions?
  • bruneau1bruneau1 Member Posts: 468
    The transmission fluid can be checked by a technician, but not by the consumer since there is no dip stick. Also, the car's computer will register transmission problems indicated either by the dreaded wrench light on the dash or by checking status of various components using the program on the steering wheel. You need to contact Ford Customer Service before warranty runs out. And the technician at your dealership sounds like an idiot, but there are lots of them our there, and we are at their mercy. Any other dealers around there.? Bonne chance.
  • 01taurussel01taurussel Member Posts: 43
    1.) The brakes on that car were junk out of the factory. They were basically recalled under a special campaign because of people complaining. Since then, they have fixed them and they should last longer. I can personally attest to this. My current set at 15k on them, has outlasted every other set and they are wearing well. The brakes have nothing to do with the throttle.
    2.) I had a Limp home mode in my 500 as you described as well. Its not fun!
    3.) The transmission's fluid can be checked, but its a pain and you might as well have your fluid changed because when they check it, they have to remove the air filter, battery, etc.. By the way, did you do that at 60k, per the owner's manual?
    4.) The transmission in this car is fairly noisy - its a noisy chain! Please describe the car's noise in more detail. Where is it coming from? Is a "whinning" noise? My CVT makes noises when I let off the gas, coasting, or at slow speeds.
  • rickcheryljrickcherylj Member Posts: 2
    Here's what I've got: a 2005 Freestyle SE that I purchased in May of 2006 with 19k on it. It now has 85,000 miles and is rock solid - hands down the best car I have ever owned. Aside from the normal maintenance, it has only seen the inside of the dealership once for a mysterious no-start problem at about 60k that never recurred. I had an extended warranty on it because I knew the CVT could be quirky but when the warranty company went out of business I wasn't too concerned (other than annoyed at the loss of my money) because the car has been so solid. Now I'm getting concerned. Over the last couple of weeks, I've noticed that I'm running higher rpms and varying rpms more than normal on the same stretch of winding country road I drive every day with that car. And twice in the last week, it has rolled backwards after shifting into drive from reverse backing out of a parking space. We had the normal service done on the transmission at about 60,000. Anything else that can or should be done? Or do I wait for the big bang and hope my kids aren't with me?? I'm obviously way out of warranty so anything I do will cost me. I'd like to have some info before I talk to the dealer. My husband is good with cars but the CVT is beyond his basic knowledge. :confuse:
  • 01taurussel01taurussel Member Posts: 43
    Because the CVT has infinite ratios, the car will pick the best "speed" based upon conditions (ie speed, wind believe it or not). If there is just a little bit more wind outside, due to the drag, the car will rev higher. I've driven home before while its windy and the thing is running over 2k rpms vs a normal 1600 or whatever.....

    There was a TSB about RPM flutter - it doesn't always doit but its not a big deal.

    There is a stall speed on your car, and if your spot is slightly inclined in a strange way, it will go backwards. Just my 10 cents...... I think your car is fine but nobody here can diagnose things 100% accurately - check the dealer for that (and some dealers are lousy!)
  • rickcheryljrickcherylj Member Posts: 2
    I understand the rpm variances due to conditions - I've noticed that before and have not been concerned. This is different. I've driven this same road every day since I bought that car and these variances are different. It just flat out feels like it is having to work harder in all conditions (wind, etc.). Same with the rolling backwards. It's never done it before and something just feels different.
  • 01taurussel01taurussel Member Posts: 43
    Well, if its different take it to a dealer. Mention that you know about the TSB, drag effects on the CVT, etc......Is this something that can be duplicated? If not, they won't look at it anymore than that.
  • jbrooks544jbrooks544 Member Posts: 8
    My CVT transmission just died. 2006 Limited AWD. The wife took it in, and everything is covered under the warrantee, even up to $28 for a rental car. I'll keep you posted with what I learn. The cvt had been making a soft whirring/whining noise for a few weeks. While it wasn't alarming in and of itself, I new it was a new noise, and I knew something was up. The noise was most noticeable between 20 - 50 mph, and it didn't change when i put it into neutral and pumped the gas, or whatever I did.

    I sure would like to know if more CVT's croak than others. I understand that so far there has been no evidence that they are any worse than any other car for tranny failure. At least mine was still driving fine. This car has been less than perfect. I went through a set of the 18" Pirelli's very fast, along with brakes and rear rotors. My rotors didn't count for the recall, as they had too many miles, something like 24k instead of under 15k. I also went through a main engine ecu (computer) under warrantee. Overall, I love the car. I'm definitely considering buying the Ford extended warrantee. I think I can get it up to 7 years /100k miles with $200 deductible for $865. That way, I wouldn't be out the $3,500 to $7,000 I've heard a cvt replacement costs. If the tranny goes again, I can't afford to cough up $5k in a moment's notice.

    Any thoughts re. Ford's extended warrantee? I'm seriously considering it.

    I'll keep you posted as to what happens with my repair.
  • jbrooks544jbrooks544 Member Posts: 8
    Hi, I got my Freestyle back, after about 2 1/2 weeks. They rebuilt the transmission for $4,300 under warrantee. The car has 46,515 miles on it. I thought it only had a 3 year/36,000 mile drivetrain warrantee. I'm glad I was wrong about that. Can anyone confirm what the 2006 Freestyle warrantee was? I have a copy of my window sticker, and it only mentions the 3/36000
    2006 Limited AWD with everything.
  • jbrooks544jbrooks544 Member Posts: 8
    It was hard to find, but I found that Fords purchased on or after July 14th, 2006 have a 5 year/60k miles powertrain warranty. I bought my car on July 18th! WHEW!! The repair was actually $4,600 plus the car rental, it would have cost me $5 grand.
  • shosfunshosfun Member Posts: 1
    I purchased a 2005 Freestyle Limited AWD in February with 41,000 miles on it, Now at 49,000 it is in the shop for $2,600 in tranny repairs. Input shaft bearing is shot. Is this the typical problem others are having? Does anyone know if Ford is helping with these repairs if the car is out of warranty.
    I have been driving Fords for years (5 SHO's) and this is the 3rd Ford tranny I have had problems with (88, 93 and 96). I was hoping a 05 would be of better quality.I long for the days of my first SHO's with a 5 speed manual.
  • jsal2jsal2 Member Posts: 3
    I have a 2005 Ford Freestyle limited. On Saturday, the differential spider gear pin just fell out (I actually found it and pieces of my transmission cover on the ground) and my transmission literally broke up inside the car. (I guess the pin holds the transmission cover on and in place). Regardless, the car only has 42,100 miles on it and of course it is out of warranty. The cost to repair is about $6,000. Ford WILL NOT help at all with the repair. However, they are willing to put in a new transmission and provide a 3 year, 100,000 mile warranty for it. (but the original transmission only has a 36,000 mile / 3 year warranty). I think they knew the transmission had problems with it all along. Now they won't stand behind their product. No wonder their company is in trouble. The brakes were defective and they fixed those, but this they won't touch.
  • ping8ping8 Member Posts: 2
    every time i use the cruise control it sets off the wrench light and my rpms go way up as i am slowing down like 6000rpms at 30mph and all i do is pull over shut off car and then it runs fine as long as i don't use the cruise control can any one help with this problem.
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    Try asking in the Ford Freestyle Maintenance and Repair discussion. Ford Freestyle Lots of problems may also be helpful.

    tidester, host
    SUVs and Smart Shopper
  • seangooding823seangooding823 Member Posts: 1
    I too have a Freestyle 2005 Limited AWD. It has been in the shop for the tranny twice this year, the Throttle body control and I have put brakes a ll the way around. The AWD Malfunction came on in January and i had it fixed, cost of $1400, it worked until about mid September, the malfunction came on again, another $1400 and it still not working, so now they want another $1700+ to fix it. Ford said I would here from a Supervisor in 48 hrs, no one has called or returned my emails. This is a design flaw, there are hundreds of people with the same problem and the same story. There must be a solution that doee not suck every penny out of my savings.
  • jmdc3jmdc3 Member Posts: 1
    I've had the same problem with the higher rpms and varying rpms when griving on the same winding and hilly roads. I've also experienced lower than normal gas mileage. I just turned 60,000 miles. Did you ever get an answer on what caused that? Are you still having this problem? I took the car to my dealership and they said that there was nothing wrong with the car.
  • etometom Member Posts: 2
    I've experienced the same exact scenario on my 2005 Freestyle Limited AWD.

    It took me some effort to replicate the issue. At first, I was unable to replicate the problem. So my Ford service dealer (Quality Ford in East Rutherford, NJ) was interested in helping. They looked at the car's computer and found nothing. So they installed a "flight recorder" for 4 weeks so that if the lights came-on again, I could hit the button and it would record what the car's computer was getting.

    Unfortunately, I didn't know at the time that the problem occurred only when the cruise control was engaged, so nothing got recorded. Then about 2 weeks ago, I went on a road-trip with the family and engaged the cruise control. BINGO! After 2 minutes, on came the check trans light, then the traction control light. Had to pull-over, shut off the car, then everything was fine (as long as i didn't use the cruise control). And I thought you only had to "reboot" Microsoft products! :P

    So I brought the car back to Ford last week and gave them the exact steps to replicate the lights. They did, and found that the "output shaft transmission sensor" was malfunctioning. They're replacing it, and I get the car back later this week. Hope it fixes the issue . . . and helps you with yours.
  • rusty60rusty60 Member Posts: 1
    Has anyone started a class action suit about the transmission problems?? My Ford Freestyle stop dead in the middle of the road. Had it towed in and was told that the transmission needed to be replaced for $6000.00!!!
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    I checked the latest Consumer Reports and the Freestyle Transmission has an average reliability rating. In fact, only the brakes were given a black circle for reliability, and Ford fixed most of those free of charge.

    Now I've see quite a few other vehicles with black circles for their transmission and I doubt if there were class action lawsuits against all of them, but I could be wrong. I just seems hard to imagine how a transmission with average reliability would quality.
  • coldcrankercoldcranker Member Posts: 877
    bobw3, I've got a 2010 Consumer Reports Buying Guide, where the car reliability data inside shows an ABOVE AVERAGE reliability for Transmission Major and Minor problems specifically.

    That means that non-CVT, conventional automatic transmissions in 2005, 2006, and 2007 models are failing at a higher rate overall. It matches my experience spanning the last 40 years being around conventional automatics in that the old-style automatic transmissions do fail. At least our CVT fails less often.
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    edited March 2010
    "bobw3, I've got a 2010 Consumer Reports Buying Guide, where the car reliability data inside shows an ABOVE AVERAGE reliability for Transmission Major and Minor problems specifically.

    That means that non-CVT, conventional automatic transmissions in 2005, 2006, and 2007 models are failing at a higher rate overall. It matches my experience spanning the last 40 years being around conventional automatics in that the old-style automatic transmissions do fail. At least our CVT fails less often."

    Bob-
    I understand your point of view, but unfortunately this isn't much consolation to those who had the failures. I think that part of the issue is that even the owners don't understand the CVT and it's unique design.

    And to be fair, I'm not sure that there wasn't some pattern of failures in the early model. I don't think anyone has correlated manufacture dates and failures.
  • etometom Member Posts: 2
    I was misinformed. My dealer said they followed my instruction (which i typed-out for them) to replicate the transmission "freak-out" while the cruise control is engaged . . . but the mechanic interpreted my clear instructions wrong, and “cruised at 55mpg” . . . vs. engaging the cruise control at 55mph.

    So after a week of not being able to replicate the transmission "freak-out" and lights, they gave me the car back with a "flight recorder" installed (this records everything the computer is reading and car is doing 30 seconds prior and 30 seconds after pressing the trigger button). I pulled-out of their lot, immediately followed my own instructions, and BINGO . . . transmission "freak-out". I pressed the trigger button on the flight recorder, pulled the car over, shut it down, restarted it and drove right back to the dealership.

    Once I got there, the manager wanted me to take him for a ride so I can show him, and I did, and I replicated the "freak-out" on que. So he drove me home and took the car back to the dealership. After another week of consultation with Ford's hotline, the transmission was removed to inspect the CONVERTER and TURBINE SHAFT O RING ON INPUT. They discovered the O-Ring was damaged/defective/broken, and replaced it. They also replaced a whole list of items which I’ll list later. One thing to note here is that the part number for the new O-Ring was different from the old one. The dealer said that this might indicate that the original (old) O-Ring might have been a defective design, and the new O-Ring was probably a redesigned version.

    Here is a list of parts they replaced . . .

    QTY Part # Description
    1 5F9Z-7N519-B Ring
    1 5F9Z-7902-BRM Convert
    1 5F9Z-7H497-EA Seal
    1 5F9Z-7B325-AA Cover
    1 5F9Z-7F401-AA Seal
    6 XT-7QCFT Fluid
    1 TA-25 Adhesive

    I'm lucky that all of this work was covered under my premium 5-year extended warranty, which ends in April 2010, and which by the way, I made Ford give it to me free since they had to replace my transmission only months after I purchased it! The parts above are under their own warranty, which is 12 months or 12,000 miles. So if this issue happens again within the next 12 months or 12k miles, and they find that it was the O-Ring or other parts listed, the new parts and labor are free.

    Another note, upon inspection of my transmission, they also found that my engine mount bracket was broken/damaged, so they replaced that (Part # 5F9Z-6F055-CB). Weather that allowed the engine/transmission to move enough to create the seal damage in the first place is something only a CVT-certified mechanic or engineer could tell me.

    So far, so good. Car performs without any issues, and I am very happy to have my Freestyle back . . . especially after borrowing my Mom’s recalled Toyota Camry for three weeks!

    Thanks for reading all of this. I did it so that it can hopefully help others experiencing the same issue.
  • coldcrankercoldcranker Member Posts: 877
    "Another note, upon inspection of my transmission, they also found that my engine mount bracket was broken/damaged, so they replaced that (Part # 5F9Z-6F055-CB). "

    That is the upper (very visible on top of the engine) "roll resistor' torque engine mount. That thing is a known weak spot on the Freestyle/500/Montego. There was anothe forum that posted pictures of bad ones, with deteriorating rubber in there. Mine has minor cracks, but is still OK.
  • edwinloosedwinloos Member Posts: 3
    Anybody have experience with towing a boat (about 1000 pounds) with a 2007 Freestyle with the CVT Transmission. Kind of makes me nervous. Thanks.
  • thc3thc3 Member Posts: 3
    Just curious. I just bought a used 2007 limited AWD (had only 11400) this last February. any problems so far with yours? Hearing bout these 05's and 06's training problems makes me slightly nervous. Like the car alot but I relied on Consumer report. if i had known there were potential problems and did a more diligent job of just trusting CR i may not of purchased this car. To anyone else out there I currently have the premium care warrenty and the Pre owned certified Powertrain Limited Warrenty up to six years of original purchase 1/24/10 or 100,000 miles.
  • thc3thc3 Member Posts: 3
    forgot to continue in last message. Anyone have problems w/ Ford honering their agreements?????????????
  • kdibkdib Member Posts: 5
    I have the a cvt problem 2007 AWD Limited. Ford will not do anything. It happened at Approx 8K and 15K. As the problem went away dummy me ignored it that killed me for the Lemon Law .
    At 20527 it happened again took it to the Dealer (Error code P2765 & 2766) upgraded software.
    At 21150 it happened again took it to the Dealer (Error code P2765 & 2766) upgraded software again.
    At 22528 it happened again took it to the Dealer (Error code P2765 & 2766) Cleaned electrical connections.
    At 23859 it happened again took it to the Dealer (Error code P2765 & 2766) Just reset codes drove it a while and returned it to me.
    At 24391 it happened again took it to the Dealer (Error code P2765 & 2766) Just reset codes drove it a while and returned it to me again.
    Called Ford customer service (That is an oxymoron) and now am talking to the Attorney Generals office.
    Any other suggestions?
  • jsal2jsal2 Member Posts: 3
    I have a Ford Freestyle 2005 that had the CVT transmission. Last May I literally dropped the transmission in the car (the car had just over 36,000 miles). It sounded as if I had hit something but it was actually the transmission -- leaving pieces of the engine all over the road. Not only did the transmission need to be replaced, but other engine parts as well because of the parts of the transmission hitting them (sorry, I don't recall the exact terminology). I spoke with Ford but they would do nothing. Not even help a little with the repair costs because I had exceeded the 36K/3year warranty. (in hind sight, was a ridiculous short warranty). Regardless we were stuck paying about $5,000 for the repairs and are now stuck with the car. We purchased an extended warranty after the repairs were complete... I guess we should have bought it when we bought the car. Chances are, we will never need it now, so the $1200 cost will only account for a little piece of mind that we don't have to come up with another $5,000 for future repairs. Has anybody had any luck with Ford?
  • thc3thc3 Member Posts: 3
    :confuse: May I ask what exactly happened (i.e. breakdown, make funny noises)
  • kdibkdib Member Posts: 5
    Wrench Light comes on and car will not go over 25 MPH. During the Service Writers test drive he stopped and shifted into reverse and back to drive It made a huge banging sound during both shifts.
  • precastpatprecastpat Member Posts: 1
    Rusty60,

    I am interested to know if you have discovered any pending legal action. It is obvious to me from reading a slew of posts on several websites and from the fact that Ford discontinued the use of this transmission, that there is an inherent problem. Our 2006 Freestyle started acting up last fall. The wrench light would come on and the rpms would shoot up (I was told by a non Ford mechanic that at the sign of problems the transmission would go into second gear to prevent any catastrophic incident). When you turned off the vehicle and then restarted it it would drive fine. We eventually determined that the instigating factor was the resume function in cruise control. It would drive fine until you needed to brake and then as soon as you hit resume the problem would reoccur. The dealer we bought it from told us we would need a new transmission (about $ 6,000) and we would be responsible for paying it. I took the vehicle to our normal mechanic, who was not able to duplicate the problem but did get an error message from the computer indicating a problem in the transmission. We decided that no more harm (than replacing the transmission) could be done by continuing to drive the vehicle (without using the cruise control), until the problem reoccurred. My son drove the vehicle without incident for about six months. Then over the weekend the problem reappeared, this time without using the cruise control. And because it happened several times in one day, we took it to our mechanic. Our mechanic came to the determination this time that it was the engine computer causing the problem (not the transmission), but that is a repair only Ford can perform. I am not interested in going back to Ford, because they acted like this was an isolated incident, where all of these posts would indicate otherwise (not exactly making me trust them). I would appreciate any suggestions as to who to go to and how to deal with this issue.
  • bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    "It is obvious to me from reading a slew of posts on several websites and from the fact that Ford discontinued the use of this transmission, that there is an inherent problem."

    Ford discontinued the transmission due to cost...the 6spd was cheaper. Reliability of the CVT is average or above average according to JD Power and Consumer Reports, so it's hard to imagine a class action lawsuit. If there were, then you'd think every car with poor and below average reliability stats would also have class action lawsuits against them.

    It's not that the CVT is unreliable, but when there are problems they seem harder & more costly to repair.
Sign In or Register to comment.