Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | ||||||
| PE10033 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 08/23/2010 | 07/15/2011 | Engine Stalling | ||
| The subject vehicles suffered from a design issue whereby water could run down onto the cowling under the hood and located in the area of the windshield wipers and then drip onto a computer module, the powertrain control module (pcm), which could be manifested in a variety of symptoms depending on which part of the circuit board became wet or which of the connector pins shorted out.in addition to causing an engine to stall, which may or may not then restart, the water intrusion could also cause the transmission to shift poorly, the vehicle to have erratic power, a malfunction indicator light to come on, or result in an inability to start the vehicle, an inability to shift the vehicle into either forward or reverse. also the problem could cause a higher than normal idle rpm in park, or for the radio to malfunction, or the interior lights to stay on.during this investigation odi was concerned with the effect of the engine stalling or a drastic and sudden loss of power either of which may create a safety risk.in reviewing the actual number of these types of incidents, collectively referred to here as engine stalls, the number was found to be below what would be considered a defect trend.for example, the number of engine stalls identified in ford's warranty claims for the model year (my) 2004 subject vehicles, the my with the most failures, was 200 out of population of 125,865, for a failure rate of 0.16%.the one crash recorded by a complainant to nhtsa, voq 10311522, alleged that the engine stalled, due to water intrusion into the pcm, while the road was turning causing her to go off the road and according to the police report the vehicle then hit an embankment and a tree stump. ford reported in their response that there were three alleged crashes but none of these were validated as being caused by a problem with water intrusion into the pcm causing a stall.accordingly this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that a safety-related defect does not exist.the agency will continue to monitor complaints and other information relating to the alleged defect in the subject vehicles and take further action in the future if warranted. | ||||||
| PE10033 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 08/23/2010 | Engine stalling | |||
| This preliminary evaluation (pe) is being opened based on information obtained during the investigation dp09-004, which was specifically related to model year (my) 2004 ford freestar vehicles.the manufacturer's numbers presented on the failure report of the opening of this pe are for my 2004 ford freestar vehicles only, the odi number represents 15 my 2004 complaints and 12 my 2005 complaints; the scope of this pe investigation for my 2004 to 2007 freestars and montereys is based on complaints received to odi and on ford's technical service bulletin tsb 06-14-10. the one crash noted is for a my freestar, voq #10311522.this pe has been opened to assess the scope, frequency, and potential safety-related consequences of the alleged defect. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | |||
| 09/19/2011 | 124800 | ||
| It is a well cared for 2004 that all of a sudden started to have a little shake when accelerating. once i got up past 50-55ish it almost went away. i assumed i had a wheel out of balance so when i had it in for an oil change a few days later, i had them do a rotation and balance. that really didn't fix anything and it got worse. if i was accelerating up hill(which i have to do a lot since i live at the bottom of a hill) then it was like i was driving over hundreds of broomsticks that someone had lay across the road. i took it to a shop (not my usual one, but it was very close to home) to see what they thought. they looked and said cv shaft. when i was able to get it into my regular shop two days later, they looked at it and said 'found transaxle output shaft bearing on right side axle very loose causing excessive movement with right axle.' he said the right axle was basically loose where it attached to the transmission. they said they would have to research if it was actually a bushing or a bearing in order to tell me the repair cost. monday morning i get a call saying basically i need a new transmission. now the vibration isn't as bad, but is still there. it also feels like it is wanting to take off while i am driving at a constant speed. not chugging out, but like all of a sudden it gets a little surge of power then stops. almost as if someone else is tapping on the gas pedal, then letting off. this happens whether i am using the cruise control or not. | |||
| 08/15/2009 | 50000 | ||
| I have brought my vehicle into southgate lincoln mercury in southgate mi several times prior to the torque converter repair. since the repair i have continued to experience problems with drivability. gas mileage has reduced greatly (was around 17-19) down to 13.8. the vehicle drives at high rpm's and i still experience where the rpm will kick up briefly then will go back down. my complaint to the dealer was submitted again just prior to warranty expiring and now i am stuck with a vehicle that they can't seem to repair. i continue to get that they can't identify a problem.*cw | |||
| 12/19/2009 | 49000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. after turning on the vehicle , she applied the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle would not move. she shifted the vehicle into reverse, and the vehicle began to move slowly. a technician from the dealer stated that the speed censor failed. however, they ran a second diagnostic test, and could not determine the cause of the failure. no repairs were made. the vehicle was taken home and the failure re-occured. the failure and current mileages were 49000. | |||
| 01/10/2008 | 33800 | 1 | 07/17/2007 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2004 mercury monterey. while driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle began to hesitate. the contact depressed the accelerator pedal, but the speed decreased and the rpms increased. the contact pulled over and exited the vehicle. the vehicle then caught fire under the hood near the windshield. there were no injuries. the dealer has been notified. the current and failure mileages were 33,800. | |||