Transmission Not Engage Problems of Ford Freestar

Ford Freestar owners have reported 27 problems related to transmission not engage (under the power train category). The most recently reported issues are listed below. Also please check out the statistics and reliability analysis of Ford Freestar based on all problems reported for the Freestar.

1 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 01/28/2017

Gears failed to engage. It was suddenly, no advance warning. We were driving on a 4 lane highway, it just lost power to the transmission gears.

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2 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 05/16/2013

Was going to accelerate and when I did the vehicle just stopped going, the vehicle did stay on no lights no warning I coasted to side of road. Stopped then tried to go again and the transmission would not engage. Tried all the gears and nothing would engage had to call tow truck to come get it now waiting on mechanic to tell me what is going on!.

3 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 02/19/2012

I have a 2005 Ford Freestar minivan that just turned 59,983 miles on it. Have had not issues with transmission and it had been driving just fine. Drove it all day Saturday with no issues - then on Sunday morning, when I went to take my daughter to work the car would not move when engaging it in reverse, drive etc. No warning at all. . . The transmission just went. Had it towed to my mechanic and he said it was the transmission and he advised me to look up to see if there were any recalls and sure enough there is. I had to pay to have it towed again to a family members house where it had been sitting as I don't have the $$$ to fix it. I am no happy with Ford. I will never purchase another Ford after this car. I just put close to $600 for 4 brand new tires in November - I hope these haven't been ruined! a family member recently found this site. I have been using a family members car to get to work, kids to school etc. Not happy at all with this situation!.

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4 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 11/24/2011

I purchased my 2004 Ford Freestar minivan new and had experienced no problems or symptoms whatsoever leading up to the date of my recent transmission failure in 11/11. Recently, while merging onto a major highway (wife, two children, grandmother in car with me), my transmission simply failed. The vehicle would not engage in drive or reverse and we were stuck in the middle of the highway at night. We pushed the vehicle off the road as much as possible and had it towed to the Ford dealership. The result was a new transmission for nearly $3000. I had been reading for years about identical problems with the 04-05 Ford Freestar transmission and had taken extra precautions hoping to prevent it. My vehicle is very well maintained and I had absolutely no symptoms or indications of a transmission problem. The dealership gave me no reason for the failure other than to give me options for repairing it and to say there have been a number of transmission issues for these vehicles.

5 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 09/02/2011

Driving at freeway speed (65mph) the transmision lost power. Vehicle will not engage in drive or reverse. Coasted to shoulder of the freeway and had to get a tow truck. Transmision needs to be replaced at a cost of over 3,000. 00 dollars. Nhtsa investigation number ea09016.

6 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 07/25/2011

I own a 2004 Ford Freestar. Last night, under normal driving conditions, the transmission disengaged suddenly and without warning while my two children were in the car. The car had no power, as though it was in neutral. Thankfully, it was going downhill so it was safely rolled to a side street. However, under other circumstances, it could have been very dangerous. I have seen many postings on line about this same problem with the 2004 Ford Freestar and hope that the NHTSA forces Ford to recall and repair these vehicles. My vehicle has since been towed and I expect it will cost me $1,000 - $3,000 to repair, not withstanding the danger that Ford has created by putting a defective product on the road without so much as a warning to the vehicle owners.

7 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 06/01/2011

Driving in the far left lane of I-75 at approximately 70 mph when the engine rpm's rose and I had to coast across two lanes of traffic to the right shoulder of I-l75. My transmission had went out. I could put the transmission in gear but it would not engage. I could haave been injured or could have injured someone else. The transmission went out without any kind of warning. At this time I have been told that I need to replace the transmission with a new one from the Ford dealer because my mechanic said that you cannot rebuild it because you cann't get parts for it.

8 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 02/01/2011

February 1, 2011. 2005 Freestar, 110,000miles. As I was driving 45mph on parkway I accelerated into middle lane when without warning the car would not accelerate. I hit the gas, tachometer reved but no response. I quickly coasted to shoulder and managed to avoid getting hit! after putting van in park, I tried changing gears but van would not engage in drive or reverse. No warning signals at all! not even a check engine light. Had van towed to shop. Still troubleshooting failure.

9 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 09/24/2010

Vehicle just stopped moving. Engine running but no engagement. No drive or reverse. Steering and brakes not affected. Eec test no codes. Replaced transmission.

10 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 08/12/2010

I was driving yesterday and all of a sudden my 2004 Ford Freestar sel lost power, transmission would not engage. I was lucky to move to the right-hand side of the road and was able to get away from heavy traffic. This is a dangerous and awful situation, someone can get run-over or get injured when you lose mobility in a highway. My engine is functioning well; transmission is dead. . . .

11 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 07/02/2010

The contact owns a 2005 Ford Freestar. While driving 65 mph without a warning the rpms increased excessively and the transmission disengaged. She was able to safely drive onto the emergency lane and have the vehicle towed to his residence. The dealer was contacted and stated that there was no related warranty. The failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure and current mileages were 60,000.

12 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 06/08/2010

My wife was driving down the highway at appx 60 mph. The engine suddenly, without warning, revved the rpms and lost power to the wheels. She coasted the van to the shoulder and called for help. The transmission would not engage into any gear, it would only rev. Checked fluid and it was fine. Luckily, no one was injured and cars were able to swerve around her as she took the shoulder. Had van towed to shop who told us transmission is shot. Options are: new transmission will cost $2800, rebuilding the old will cost $1700. Van is a 2004 Ford Freestar with only 75,000 miles.

13 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 05/03/2010

2005 Ford Freestar, 72,147 miles. Entered hov and car came up to speed then rpms increased and no engagement of transmission. Had to avoid traffic, coast to stop. Put vehicle in park, then tried to re-engage transmission. Tried rev, d, 3, 2, and engine seemed to only be in neutral. Stranded two hours during rush hour on DC beltway waiting for tow truck. Car at repair shop waiting for estimate.

14 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 04/26/2010

Car is kept in garage. All recommended services are up to date. Drove it fine yesterday. Today, vehicle started fine, gear shift works fine but automatic transmission not engaging. Transmission seems locked in neutral. When a gear is selected, the car just revs without going anywhere. Same in all gears.

15 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 01/15/2010

Driving at 70 mph on I-70, slowed down to go through automatic toll both on the turnpike. When I pushed the accelerator to resume speed, the transmission was disengaged. I was able to pull off of the side of the road in time to avoid being rear ended by the cars behind me in the toll booth line. The car is now at the dealer being fixed. They suspect broken output shaft, estimated $1800 to fix.

16 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 12/19/2009

Backing out of the driveway, when I put the vehicle in drive nothing happened. The transmission would not engage. I had to wake up my neighbor and he helped me push the vehicle into the driveway. The vehicle ran fine the night before.

17 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 11/05/2009

I own a 2005 Ford windstar minivan my wife was on her way home from work when the van stopped going and cost to a stop seems the transmission went out and would not engage no matter what and we had went to the Ford dealer a month prior to the extended warranty had expired with the van making odd sounds in the transmission they claimed to have not found any problem.

18 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 08/22/2009

Driving my 2004 Ford Freestar and it suddenly lost drive. The transmission would not engage to drive forward nor in reverse. Was traveling at 40 mph and the vehicle quickly started decelerating and had to pull over to side of road due to no engagement of the transmission going forward or in reverse.

19 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 08/10/2009

The transmission on our 2005 Freestar will not engage either r, d, 3 or 1. There were no warnings whatsoever and the incident took place at a crossing which left my wife & my kids with no power to cross to the other side of the two lane road. This is a serious safety issue that most be address and corrected by the manufacturer.

20 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 06/26/2009

I have a 2004 Ford Freestar with 85,000 miles. I was driving 65 miles an hour down interstate 485 in charlotte, nc and all of a sudden my vehicle just started losing speed. The transmission was not engaging. I was able to make it to the shoulder of the road. I have contacted my mechanic and he said that the transmission was bad.

21 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 06/12/2009

On 5/26/09 we took our 2005 Ford Freestar in for an oil change, fluid, belt and filter checks and front brakes. On 6/12/09 we left NW OH for washington, d. C. We were 18 miles east of cumberland, MD, on rt. 68, going downhill when the van suddenly and without warning, went out of gear. The tachometer raced as if the van had been put in neutral, but we still had the van in drive and my husband had his foot on the gas pedal. After it went out of gear, the master lighting switch icon came on. We coasted over 3 miles to the nearest exit as it was not safe to pull over on the side of the road because we were going downhill. When we got onto the exit ramp and stopped, we turned the engine off and restarted it. The van would go into park, but reverse, neutral and all 3 drives would not engage and the van would roll freely. We checked the transmission fluid and it was still full and clean. It was towed to hagerstown Ford in MD on 6/13/09. On 6/15/09 while we were in virginia beach, we got a call from the service dept. Saying that the transmission was shot and it would cost $3100 to replace it with a brand new transmission. When we asked what inside the transmission was broken, all we were told was that it was shot. We didn't pick it up until 6/19/09 because we were in virginia beach until that date. On 6/22/09 we took the van to our local Ford service shop and explained what had happened. After giving the details of the break down to one of the mechanics, he came back out with a rod with rings ground into it. He told us this part was probably all that was wrong with the transmission and that we probably didn't need to have the entire transmission replaced.

22 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 04/19/2009

2004 Ford Freestar transmission failure at 63,000 miles no warning -- transmission would not engage - van was in motion - thank god I was not on a highway and was able to coast to the side of the road. Reviewing all the complaints this is a huge safety issue -- someone needs to address this before someone is killed because of the defective transmissions in these vehicles!.

23 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 03/23/2009

The transmission on this vehicle has given out twice. From information posted by other owners, this is a common problem with this vehicle. I was in the middle of traffic when the gears disengaged and the transmission failed. I had to maneuver the car out of the way of traffic. I nearly got into an accident, because I was not able to accelerate properly.

24 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 03/13/2009

This is the second time in two years that the transmission has inexplicably gone out in my 2004 Ford Freestar van. This time it had been parked overnight in my driveway and my wife started it and tried to leave for work and the vehicle would not engage any forward or reverse gears when moving gear shift lever. Early morning, cool and dry.

25 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 02/23/2009

Purchased a 2005 Freestar new from a local dealer and has been driven approximately 54,200 miles to date. All maintenance performed was by the dealer with whom we purchased the vehicle. My wife garaged the van as usual. The next morning the transmission would not engage. I contacted the dealer to have the vehicle towed and have the problem diagnosed. I was informed that a transmission fluid pump shaft broke apart requiring the transmission to be pulled for major repairs. We are extremely upset that a vehicle only 3. 5 years old with less than 55,000 miles would require such major drive train repairs. We believe that there must have been an issue with this part at the time of installation. Either the part had some type of defect or was installed improperly to cause this type of damage to a transmission with such low mileage.

26 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2004 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 11/17/2008

My wife had just turned through a traffic signal, and, without warning, the transmission completely disengaged. Fortunately, she was able to coast off of the road and out of traffic without incident. The van had to be towed to a transmission repair shop where we learned that the converter had to be replaced because it was "stripped".

27 Transmission Not Engage problem of the 2005 Ford Freestar

Failure Date: 12/10/2007

We were driving down the interstate and preceding up a hill when the transmission completely disengaged. I was able to make it to the side of the road and get stopped. The transmission would not engage no matter what I tried. Every time I took my foot off the brake we would start rolling down hill. Had purchased extended warranty with Ford. Called the Ford hot line they sent a tow truck and I got a rental. Ford covered the repair and the rental. No warning just disengaged or broke, resulting in engine reviving and van slowing. Dangerous business on a busy interstate. 2005 Ford Freestar with 38,483 transmission replacement handled by Ford. Incident date 12/07. Have over 63000 miles on the van now without further incident.



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