NHTSA Complaint #10326254 — 2005 FORD FREESTAR

2005 FORD FREESTAR LIMITED -- VEHICLE STALLS WHILE DRIVING AND LOSES POWER STEERING AND BRAKES. VEHICLE HAS HAD ACCELERATION AND REVVING OF ENGINE WHEN IDLING IN NEUTRAL, AND ALSO SOMETIMES NO REVERSE GEAR. SOMETIMES IT JUST FAILS TO START. ALL OF THESE PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTED TO BE REPAIRED BY TWO DIFFERENT FORD DEALERSHIP MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENTS AND ANOTHER LOCAL MECHANIC. ALL PROBLEMS APPEAR TO BE RELATED TO THE COMPUTER (PCM) AND/OR TRANSMISSION. THE COMPUTER (PCM) HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE BY FORD IN THE LAST EIGHT MONTHS BUT THE PROBLEM PERSISTS. WATER KEEPS GETTING INTO THE PCM COMPARTMENT AND CAUSING HAVOC. THEY DON'T SEEM TO KNOW HOW TO STOP IT, AND THE PROBLEM KEEPS REPEATING ITSELF. LAST TIME, TWO WEEKS AGO, WE HAD TO CALL 911 WHEN WE STOPPED FOR A RED LIGHT ON A BUSY HIGHWAY. WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN, I STEPPED ON THE GAS, BUT THE VAN DID NOT GO FORWARD. CARS WERE NOW RACING PAST OUR STOPPED VAN, ON BOTH SIDES, AT HIGH SPEED. WE WERE SITTING DUCKS. WE CALLED 911 TO GET POLICE OUT TO STOP TRAFFIC FOR FEAR OF BEING REARENDED AT HIGH SPEED. MYSELF, WIFE AND THREE KIDS (10,7,2) WERE STUCK THERE. GOOD SAMARATIN RISKED HIS LIFE AND STOPPED ALL TRAFFIC BEHIND US WHILE I CARRIED KIDS OUT OF VAN TO SAFETY. OTHERS HELPED PUSH THE VAN OFF THE ROAD. VAN HAS BEEN AT DEALERSHIP SINCE THEN FOR THE LAST TWO WEEKS, BUT THEY SAY "CAN'T DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM" (WHEN THEY KNOW EXACTLY WHAT IT IS). I ASKED THEM TO OPEN COMPUTER AGAIN TO CHECK FOR WATER BUT THEY REFUSE -- SAYING IT'S TOO DIFFICULT AND IT CAN'T BE IN THERE (EVEN THOUGH IT HAS PROVEN TO BE THE PROBLEM ON NUMEROUS PREVIOUS INSTANCES). I REPORTED ISSUE TO FORD NATIONAL "CUSTOMER CARE" HOTLINE SEVERAL TIMES. I HAVE ASKED THEM TO RECALL THE VAN FOR SAFETY ISSUES AND TO HELP ME. THEY REFUSE (CITING "OUT OF WARRANTY"). THE VEHICLE HAS ABOUT 42K MILES ON IT NOW. PROBLEMS BEGAN SPRING 2009 (AT ABOUT 35K MILES) WHEN HEAVY RAINS HAPPENED ALL YEAR. MANY OTHER OWNERS WITH SAME DANGEROUS PROBLEM. *TR