Throttle body is giving me trouble. When I am at a light or stopped my car accelerates by itself. Is a safety issue as sometimes I am at a pedestrian crosswalk or just at a light. Very concerned about this issue.

- Canovanas, PR, USA

Purchased used Ford Freestyle December 2010. Ran fine until warm weather and use of air conditioner. With A/C on, the electronic throttle control seems to often greatly overshoot the correct setting when shifting from neutral to drive or reverse, which causes a significant engine RPM increase and a momentary "lunge" if the brake is not applied very firmly. Many vehicles do this to a minor extent but the Freestyle is far and away the worst I've ever seen. This does cause unanticipated vehicle movement and could injure a child, passerby etc or cause a vehicle to enter an intersection. My wife is certainly unnerved by it. Effect is in fact sometimes there in cool weather but to a much lesser extent. Reading forums and thinking about this (I'm an engineer and sae member) it may very well be something like a worn throttle position sensor interacting with an ECU software glitch, may very well be fixable in software. Annoyingly the tps on this vehicle is integrated into the throttle body or I'd just replace the tps.

- Richmond, VA, USA

Lunging, surging, and jumping while A/C is on.

- Libby, MT, USA

We have experienced numerous problems with our Freestyle, and at this point are faced with a failed throttle body, which will cost $900 to replace (dealer quote). Searching the internet reveals that this is a very common, known problem with the Freestyle, and its sister cars (the 500 & Sable) all build by Ford with the same engine. The problem causes the vehicle to lurch while at idle, to perhaps 5-10 mph, endangering anyone in the vehicle's path (ie, pedestrians, cars ahead in a drive-thru lane, etc.) Ford has produced several successive variants of the throttle body, indicating the newer ones do not have the fatal design flaw that plagues the original. Why am I forced to purchase a replacement for an obviously (at this point) badly designed product? these cars should be recalled, and we should be reimbursed for the expense.

- Macedonia, OH, USA

Throttle body problem, car doesn't start. When it does start black, smelly spoke comes out of the tail pipe. Issue started around March brought to garage said it was in need of a tune up. Had that done $400 car still did they same thing not starting. Worked fine for awhile. Again the cold weather hit. Not starting again. Brought car in again. Took 5 days to figure out the issue. $600 part plus labor $500 plus rental for 5 days $400. After reading several complaint on the same issue I am very surprised this hasn't been taken care of already. This part should be recalled and Ford should refund all costs associated with it.

- Chichester, NH, USA

After starting the vehicle and putting it in gear, the car lungs (accelerates). This happens in reverse or forward motion.

- Havelock, NC, USA

I purchase my 2005 Ford Freestyle in June 2005. July 2005 traveling to Georgia between 55/60 mph, the check engine light and transmission icon appeared. Upon trying to accelerate, I could not move no more than 30-40 mph with the RPM's racing. I had to pull over and let the car rest approximately 15-20 minutes. Upon starting the car and putting into drive gear it was very hard and lunged. The car sounds like you're racing the engine with the vehicle in park. The frequency of the engine/transmission light with trying to accelerate and can not is a persistent issue. It also lunges when the air conditioner is turned on. Once the car is shut off and started again, while your foot is on the brake which has to be with more pressure than usual to control the lunge. Sitting in traffic with the air on with cars ahead of you is frightening since it will lunge then also. This has been an ongoing issue since the purchase of this vehicle. I've also had the brakes repaired more than normal. Since acquiring this car. Recently, I've gotten the brakes done in February, may and currently need another repair with all the squealing.

- Hamilton, NJ, USA

At slow speeds, at various times, there are unintended surges in speed. They are usually more common when the air conditioning is in use. The may occur when in forward or reverse. My local dealer advised that Ford was looking into the problem, but I have nothing definite about what the problem is and whether or not Ford will pay for any repairs. I have since learned that the problem is quite common and is being investigated. I do not recall filing a formal complaint before.

- Fort Collins, CO, USA

First incident resulted in the car stalling multiple times, when started it would stutter, rpms couldn't get into normal range and when trying to put in gear it would stall out. The wrench light came on and I was finally able to start while keeping my foot on the gas pedal. Once driving could only reach 40mph. Since the first incident the frequency of problems has increased. Shortly after that first incident it started surging (RPM's rev way up when putting it in to gear) to the point that it happens now practically every time I start the car. At times, the surge is so strong that even with my foot firmly pressed on the brake, the car still moves. A huge concern of ours is in parking areas, it is very scary to have the car surge with people moving in front or in back of the vehicle. I recently had a collision with a tree while backing up. I firmly believe the car surged after I had started backing up resulting in the collision. I have called the dealership multiple times and understand that the throttle body linkage is thought to be the issue. My sister has a Lincoln ls that was recalled for this exact issue - she had the part replaced as a result of the recall even though she had never experienced the surging/stalling described. After doing some research, I found that this problem is much more prevalent than I thought and hope that a recall will be issued to get this corrected before someone gets hurt.

- Marshall, MI, USA

On Tuesday, our car lost engine power in traffic. The check engine light came on and "engine in failsafe mode" appeared on the dash. She turned the car off and on, and it worked fine. She checked online and found identical problems, and solutions in turning the car off and on. I checked online, found identical failures, a longstanding shortage of throttle parts, presumed a defect in the throttle control, found no fhtsa recalls, but discovered surging documented in PE11-018 (opened May 11, 2011). Our car has also had high RPM surges, occurring infrequently, but usually when the engine is cold. Our au pair experienced surging 2 weeks earlier when she backed out of a garage parking lot and bumped another car. Below are representative websites that document 21 instances of sudden power loss and engine warning "failsafe mode" in the Ford Freestyle described as sudden stalling, car going to idle, engine dying, running limp, and going into "neutral." My wife's experience is consistent with these descriptions. Also, many complaints report surges (PE11-018) and loss of power in the same vehicle complaint, also consistent with our experience: www.myfordfreestyle.com/forums/viewtopic.php?F=1&T=2197&sid=78cbeb4F4aaa7dd9C571F0cf9C804D74&start=0 15 complaints: Fraggle, tmad, mrdinmn, lmarqueling, fordman351, sanlen, fuxxy, gavin, stock mach, scoutman97, lmtech, metalages, indiefilmguy, boston_freestyle, mkramer answers.edmunds.com/question-Ford-Freestyle-throttle-control-transmission-light-came-on-also-engine-failsafe-mode-activated-what-S-wrong-40589.aspx 1 complaint: Boots7714 www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Freestyle/2005/engine/throttle_body_malfunction.shtml 4 complaints: Michelle O, dennal, sally w, oldschool77 www.fixya.com/cars/T1531392-enigine_fail_safe_mode 1 complaint: Handyt.

- Alexandria, VA, USA

Car wont accelerate from a stop and will surge from a stop and when backing up. Took it to mccarthy Ford in Chicago where they informed me it was the mass flow sensor, six days later I'm having same problem and now being told it's the throttle body.

- Chicago, IL, USA

The car started showing hesitation when accelerating and making a strange noise early in 2010. This condition got progressively worse until one day, while driving on the freeway, the engine would not respond to the gas pedal being depressed, the wrench light came on, and I was forced to coast to the side of the road. I turned the car off for a few minutes and when I attempted to restart it, the gas pedal seemed to be working again. Took the car to jones Ford the next day and they told me the throttle body was bad and replaced it to the tune of $638.97. Date of service was April 1, 2020. Mileage at time of failure was 61,540 everything seemed fine for a few months but I started noticing the hesitation on acceleration again. Took it to summerville Ford on July 21, 2010. I didn't wait for a complete failure since it was extremely dangerous to lose power on the freeway with a whole car load of kids! jones Ford said the throttle body was bad again and replaced it under warranty this time. Checked for codes and got code #U0141. Mileage at time of replacement was 65,207. Within the last couple of weeks I have noticed similar conditions to the last two times the throttle body failed. Yesterday I was parking and the car surged forward as I let my foot of the brake, almost causing me to hit the car in the spot in front of me. I have no choice but to keep driving it until something is done by Ford about this dangerous condition. I was also told that the motor mount needs to be replaced. I also have replaced the 2/3 row seat pivot once during warranty but it failed again in 2010 and I haven't been able to afford to replace it. The A/C compressor stopped working this summer. Still not fixed. I have replaced my tires twice in seven years. I have replaced both sets of brakes. Ford needs to address these common failures. Before someone gets hurt!

- Charleston, SC, USA

My Ford Freestyle 2005 has been lunging for months. I purchased this vehicle used from a private party. Of course if the previous owner had any issues he did not share them with me.the vehicle did have some minor dings which he claimed occurred when he backed into a fence.he had been having some severe medical problems so I am wondering did he just think it was his fault, not realizing the car had lunged. I see a lot of other people on the internet are having the same problems. When are you going to recall this vehicle? it is very scary and does it in forward and reverse. I have been afraid to park in any tight spaces where it may lung and cause a accident or injure someone.I have a handicap parking tag but have been leary of parking in those spaces should this happen. Also the air conditioning only operates when the vehicle is accelerating, I saw others have that issue also. Please take action soon before these vehicles suddenly lunge on a interstate and cause serious injuries or death. Thank you.

- Shady Side, MD, USA

The vehicle started surging without foot on the gas pedal. This occurs at low speeds or when stopping. Have had to rapidly press the brake pedal and hold it to avoid accidents. When the surging occurs, many times the vehicle goes into fail-safe engine mode which does not allow one to shift into higher gears. This caused a problem on the interstate when caught in stop and go traffic. Could not accelerate after surge-engine dying-failsafe engine mode. Check engine light stays on after occurrence and failsafe engine mode was solved by pulling over, killing the motor, waiting, and then restarting. Surging is causing a stress on the transmission which now appears to have slack in it.

- Grayson, LA, USA

Engine / speed surging especially noticeable when parking. Whether in drive or reverse engine moderates only slightly but car lurches. This has happened to three different drivers of the same car, same day, similar experiences. Extra pressure was needed on brake to prevent car from hitting other cars in parking lot.... circumstances: Hot day ( 90+ F), air conditioning on, engine at idle speed while maneuvering into / out from parking, turning wheel or holding wheel turned during maneuver.

- Portland, OR, USA

My 2005 Ford Freestyle sel has experiences issues with surging, stalling and inability to accelerate. The problems started at least 2 years ago (2009) at which time I called my local dealership to inquire on recalls (warranty was out) and was told there were no recalls to fix this issue. Since the surge has increased in frequency, most any time I start the vehicle and put it in gear, it will surge (RPM's rev up on their own). Having my foot on the brake at times still does not hold the car completely still and has concerned me on more occasions than not when in parking lots at stores with people moving around my vehicle. The stall & inability to accelerate happens less frequently but has happened a handful of times and always results in the check engine light (wrench) coming on. The vehicle will not perform as it should until the check engine has been cleared. I recently backed into a tree at my work and firmly believe it happened due to a surge after I put the car in gear and started backing up. I did not have enough time to react (stopping the vehicle) before it hit the tree. I've owned my car since 2007 - my sister has a Lincoln ls that was recalled just before my car started these episodes. Her car was recalled for everything I've stated above (even though it had never done it) - the throttle body linkage was replaced. I've called the dealership on numerous occasions, even stating that her Lincoln received the recall that my car needs, with absolutely no help or suggestions.

- Marshall, MI, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Ford Freestyle. The contact was driving 65 mph when the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road and had the vehicle towed to a dealer. The dealer stated that the throttle body needed to be cleaned but the throttle body cleaning did not remedy the issue. The vehicle continued to stall. The contact took the vehicle back to the dealer who was unaware of the cause of the failure. The failure mileage was 76,000.

- Camp Hill, PA, USA

2005 Ford Freestyle surges at low speeds when foot is not on accelerator, or suddenly speeds up at low speeds such as parking or backing up.I have had several near misses almost drove into traffic, and rear ended car in front. This is the second issue with this event. First occurred in 02/July/2009 Ford replaced throttle body motor this fixed the problem until this week.

- Richland, MS, USA

Vehicle will lunge and jerk while backing or under braking. Engine will rev and then stall as well. Check engine light with come on or it will go into "fail-safe" mode. Took it to a local Ford dealership and they advised it needed a new throttle body. After researching the issue we discovered this is a common problem with this model and year.

- Bettendorf, IA, USA

About a month ago, I received error messages on my dashboard ranging from check engine light to critical engine failure. I took my car to the local dealership and he said there were all sorts of error codes that needed to be cleared out. He said this was common and happens every 3 to 4 years. I paid the money, had the error messages / computer chip reset, and went on my way. During the last couple of weeks, my car will surge while I'm temporarily stopped (at a stop light, drive through window, etc), and the engine dies about 50% of the time. The car will lunge 3 to 5 feet as soon as I take my foot off of the break and before I can touch the gas pedal. It is extremely unnerving, it has been very hot in Arkansas during the last few weeks (temps in the high 90S / low 100S) and my air conditioner is on while this happens. It appears from similar comments posted, I have a throttle body that is failing.

- Little Rock, AR, USA