Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2006 Ford Five Hundred owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2006 Ford Five Hundred. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the instrument cluster lights turned became inoperable. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that the instrument cluster lights illuminated after 5 minutes. The contact was able to continue driving. However, the failure reoccurred on four different occasions. The vehicle was taken to a local Pep Boys who was unable to duplicate the failure. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
when I'm The vehicle and the temperature reaches middle temp ,the car starts to beep and all the dashboard lights go completely out and the head lights and tail lights be blinking as if they are about to go off . Even when I have the heater or a/c on they turns off and I'm a afraid that if or when I'm on the highway all my lights will just stop working on the middle of the highway at night and no one will be able to see me. And that will cause a big wreck and maybe kill myself or worst someone else. I have looked my car up to see if it has a recall but none are given. I'm afraid for the safety of my fellow drivers on the at night . And I don't know what to do about this problem.
Pulled in drop off a donation at a second hand store. I put it in park and turned off the vehicle; opened the trunk; and looked up startled when a guy sitting nearby said that my car was smoking and on fire (about 10 seconds since I switched the car off and got out). He was on the right, so I moved around the car to the right looking towards the engine. An employee of the store that was on the back, left side of the car pointed towards and said, 'look! Your side mirror is on fire!' I then saw the smoke billowing to the left (a strong afternoon breeze was blowing north). I came around and peered in behind the actual 'mirror' part; the fire had just gone out. Looking at it, I could see it was the security light on the bottom side of the mirror; it was completely melted and fused to the mirror housing- a bubbly mess of plastic. It smelled of acrid, melted plastic and burned electronics. …
This is a long on going problem with the electrical problem that has been going on now for Five months. Started out having the battery cluster light on & check charging system. Found charging a little low, had new alternator installed. Then with a week, battery, engine light & airbag light cluster are on, then the fun began, then all the instrument cluster goes off and you have no turn signals, no fans, no radio, no electric windows, no door locks and no break lights, (but break lights do come on when you apply breaks and the back-up lights come on. The system can come and go on and off while moving and setting still. Have had system checked and coded, they can not find a problem except that it is a electric problem, had all wiring checked, cleaned. No,frayed wire founf and no defective coupling. Again I get it a wire that is grounding and causing problem. …
I was on my way home coming down farrow rd. And my car stalled out, so I slowly pulled in the median turn car off and back on. When I got ready to pull out of the median the car wouldn't go no faster than 5 miles and hour. So I had my friend help me pull it out of the road and take me home and tow my car to the house. When I got it home there wasn't any acceleration, rpms wont move at all, car has power and cranks but when I put it in drive it won't go anywhere. It stalls and cuts off, even in neutral no acceleration. Everything lights up and cuts on but no acceleration. …
1. Traveling out of town on a special 40th anniversary celebration in a 2006 Ford 500( has apprx. 64,000 miles on it). 2. While traveling we notice the smell of smoke, thought it was coming from a source outside, no smoke in vehicle, pulled over to investigate, looked under the hood and there was no smell of smoke, proceeded traveling and the smell of smoke continue, passenger notice a small amount of smoke coming from the trunk while looking at the rear window, driver pulled over and popped the trunk, the vehicle became engulfed immediately...80-85% of car was destroyed. 3.nothing. Ford dealership that has serviced the vehicle ( over 25 times during ownership) is denying any responsibility. Updated 05/26/10 according to the fire report, the fire's are of orgin was in the rear section of the vehicle. Udated 06/17/10
While driving, the instrument cluster bottoms out on the speedometer, tach, and all other warnings - backup lights come on and the instrument panel lights go out.. Sometimes it will come back on by pretty quickly, other times it will be that way for a week or more. This is very dangerous and from research I've done is happening to many people. Why has there not been a recall to fix the problem? There is a TSB 06-17-9 dated 9/4/2006 but no remedy by Ford. Also after having the transmission fluid changed at the recommended mileage the transmission then started slipping and had to eventually be replaced.
Car will be driveing 55 and completely shut off. Lossing everything including powerstearing. Have to put in neutral n coast to side of the road, sometimes will restart, others it wont. Also will start bucking and shut off. I can be doing 10mph n go to turn a corner n it shuts off. Can seem to run fine, be in the middle of an intersection and the car shut off and wouldnt restar good thing I can drive and knew what to do or I would have crashed numerous times. Have changed the throttle body and accelerator, n both sensors. Did not fix problem. Now saying it's the PCM shutting the car off.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 60 MPH there was a smelled of smoke. The smell May have been coming from the air conditioner. The vehicle was parked for 8 to 9 hours. When the contact return to the vehicle, it was filled with smoke. The fire department extinguished the fire and determined the fire was of an electrical nature and seemed to originate from the wire in the speaker area located in the rear of the vehicle. A fire department report was filed. There was extensive damage to the vehicle. The dealership and manufacturer have been notified.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Ford Five Hundred. The contact stated that the rear driver side tail light failed to illuminate. When the vehicle was placed in reverse, the reverse lights failed to illuminate. In addition, the control panel and driver side blinkers failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the alternator failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failures recurred. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failures. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.
Electrical complaints in other Five Hundred years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2006 Ford Five Hundred?
NHTSA has 51 complaints about the electrical system of the 2006 Ford Five Hundred, 14% of the model year's 364 complaints. The component named most often is instrument cluster/panel (5 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2006 Ford Five Hundred electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2006 Ford Five Hundred. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2006 Ford Five Hundred electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 87,000 miles, and 10% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 5 fires and 1 injury to electrical system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.