Four problems related to transmission not engage have been reported for the 2005 Ford Five Hundred. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2005 Ford Five Hundred based on all problems reported for the 2005 Five Hundred.
The transmission disengages at various speeds even on the interstate at 55+ mph causing it to lose power. You must be able to get it stopped on the side of the road and shut the car off and then restart it to correct the problem for a short period of time.
On the interstate headed towards denver, after about an hour, when to accelerate from about 70mph to ascend up the hills, the engine rpms accelerate, however, it feels that the transmission is disengaged (slipping) with no power to the drivetrain resulting in a drastic loss of speed. This happened numerous times in efforts to regain control and maintain speed. This was extremely hazardous as traffic was somewhat congested, and other drivers are expecting me to accelerate, however, vehicle was in a decelerating mode. This was only with light pressure to the accelerator. It sounded as if the gears had stripped in the transmission. We turned around and headed home, auto would not allow speeds over 60mph. Later the same happened at speeds of 35-40 on local roads. These transmissions are extremely dangerous. Ford knows of this problem and refuses to do anything about them.
2005 Ford Five Hundred this product with a cvt transmission should be investigated and recalled immediately. There are thousands failing and it is very dangerous! the transmission disengages causing the automobile to lose power without warning. I've seen posts of thousands of this same failure beginning at 3500 miles! I contacted Ford because mine is doing this and they basically sent a form letter saying OH well, sorry about your luck. Many of Ford's products have this same issue with the cvt transmission including the Ford flex which is involved in a class action lawsuit. The Five Hundred should be involved in this lawsuit as well.
Last Sunday the consumer discovered she had a flat tire. When she attempted to start the vehicle, the motor starting racing and making a loud noise like it was revving up. The transmission light came on. The consumer placed the vehicle in park then put it into drive and it would not move at all. The transmission would not engage. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer who could not find anything wrong with the vehicle. They think it was just a glitch.