What breaks most · 2002 to 2007 model years
Ford Freestyle problems by year
Owners have filed 3,572 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Ford Freestyle across model years 2002 to 2007. Three years stand out: 2005 for speed control and throttle complaints, 2006 for speed control and throttle complaints and 2007 for speed control and throttle complaints.
- Years to check closely: 2005, 2006, 2007
- Complaints on file
- 35722002 to 2007, all trims
- Worst year
- 20051426 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 9812 fires · 33 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 73kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 3Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Latches and locks (1) | |
| 12 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (6) | |
| 1426 | 30 | 2 | Speed control and throttle (578) | |
| 1264 | 41 | 1 | Speed control and throttle (591) | |
| 869 | 27 | 0 | Speed control and throttle (424) |
What fails on the 2005 Ford Freestyle
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 41% |
578 | 15 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 31% |
439 | 8 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 10% |
137 | 2 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 9% |
129 | 0 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 8% |
113 | 3 | Shop engine parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 7% |
95 | 1 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 6% |
85 | 2 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 2005 Ford Freestyle |
| Unknown or other | 4% |
63 | 3 | — |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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At low speed or stopped while in drive the car lunges forwards. I was at a drive through and it lunged forward almost hitting a pedestrian. Also while driving in a lower speed zone 20-35 (school zones and neighborhood streets) the rpm's start pulsing causing the car to lunge every time.
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This car has many problems. I wouldn't buy this car again. I have invested too much money for repairs. The air bag sensor keeps coming on. The car has no speed after i had the transmission replaced. The lights on dash are off and on.
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My car randomly surges. This usualy happens at low speeds when the car is at or close to idle. The car will sugre like the gass is being pressed but it is definetly not. It also surges randomly when shifted into different gears park,reverse,neutral. It is very dangerous as it is inpredictable.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Ford Freestyle years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2005, 2006, 2007 carry the most filings on the Ford Freestyle. The 2005 alone has 1426 complaints, led by speed control and throttle.
What is the most common Ford Freestyle problem?
On the 2005 model year, the most-reported component is speed control and throttle with 578 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Ford Freestyle problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Ford Freestyle complaints that include mileage is about 73,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.