There are 6 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2005 Lincoln Town Carin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
While accelerating approximate @ 30 mph, vehicle speed increased without assistance nearly plummeting into a body of water at a curve... exit 77 on I-95S MD. The car could not handled the curve at that rate of speed. Town Car had to be thrown into neutral and hard press brake pedal in order to stop. Safety issue could have been major accident or my death. I do not desire to reproduce a dangerous scenario with an accelerating vehicle. Dealership and private mechanic refused to reproduce incident. Zero warning lamps and nothing in computer to determine a problem/fix.
WE HAVE A 2005 LINCOLN TOWN CAR WITH 87000 MILES WHEN IT RAINS THE REAR R FLOOR GETS A LOT OF WATER. THE WATER COMES FROM A DEFECTIVE SEAL IN THE AC/HEAT SYSTEM ? PROBABLY AROUND THE FAN MOUNT FOR THE HEATING /COOLING. AND ? MORE TROUBLE ? WHEN WE BACKED OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY IN WET WEATHER ? THE CAR FROZE IN PLACE ? AS IF WE HAD HIT A WALL. IT WOULD STILL GO FORWARD. HAPPENED HALF A DOZEN TIMES ? ALWAYS RAINING. EXCEPT ONE RAINY SUNDAY, JUST OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY LEAVING FOR CHURCH, IT FROZE DRIVING FORWARD. WE TOOK THE CAR TO BOB DAVIDSON FORD PAID THEM 'DIAGNOSTIC FEES' - $250 FOR THE [2] SEPARATE PROBLEMS. [XXX] GAVE US THE REPORT: THE LEAK REPAIR WOULD COST $600 ? AND, MORE OF A CHALLENGE, THE TRANNY, WHICH SHOWED: ?TRANSMISSION INTERNAL FAULT 150? NEEDS REPLACEMENT [ABOUT $4000 PARTS PLUS LABOR] THE LOCAL AAMCO OWNER SAID THIS MODEL LINCOLN ? FOR 2005 [AND THE 5 OTHER YEARS OF THE SAME DESIGN ? IS NOTABLE FOR CONSIDERABLE WATER PROBLEMS. HE HAD NOT HEARD OF WATER CAUSING THE TRANNY PROBLEMS AND HE ASKED ME TO GET THE DIAGNOSTIC CODES FROM [XXX]. HERE IT GETS INTERESTING. ?FAULT 150? IS GENERIC FOR TRANSMISSION. THE SHOP TESTING ? WELL, THERE WAS NO CODE. THERE WAS NO REPORT OF A DEFECT FROM THE CAR'S ON-BOARD COMPUTER. NO FAULT CODES AT ALL. JUST AN INDICATION, TOLD US AS: ?THE ACCUMULATOR WAS LEAKING OR THERE IS A BINDING CONCERN? WHEN THEY TOOK THE CAR OUT FOR A TEST DRIVE CONNECTED TO A DIAGNOSTIC TOOL. AND FROM THIS [XXX] IS ABLE TO TELL US WE NEED TO REPLACE A $4000 TRANSMISSION. PLUS LABOR, OF COURSE. WE PAID $120 TO A LEAK DOCTOR REPAIR TECH TO FIX THE WATER LEAK ON THE ENGINE SIDE OF THE FIREWALL. THE WATER LEAK SEEMS TO BE RESOLVED AND THE TRANNY LOCKING UP PROBLEM HAS NOT HAPPENED AGAIN. EVEN WHEN IT RAINS. ANY HELP YOU CAN GIVE ON THIS WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 LINCOLN TOWN CAR. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND THE SPEED REDUCED TO 12 MPH. THE FAILURE OCCURRED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FROM DIAGNOSIS AND THEY STATED THE MALFUNCTION WAS CONTRIBUTED TO THE TRANSMISSION. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 79,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.
MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING HIS 2005 LINCOLN TOWN CAR DOWN A PRIVATE DRIVEWAY OF OUR COUNTRY RESIDENCE. HIS VEHICLE BECAME STUCK BY THE SIDE OF THE DRIVEWAY. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO DISLODGE HIS VEHICLE FROM THE SIDE OF THE DRIVEWAY, THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID IN HIS VEHICLE OVERHEATED. THE OVERHEATED TRANSMISSION FLUID FORCED THE TRANSMISSION FLUID DIPSTICK OUT OF THE TRANSMISSION FILL TUBE FAR ENOUGH TO ALLOW THE TRANSMISSION FLUID TO OVERFLOW ONTO THE ENGINE OF THE VEHICLE WHERE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE RESULTING FIRE SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE VEHICLE, AND MY HUSBAND, WHO WAS UNABLE TO ESCAPE FROM THE VEHICLE, BURNED TO DEATH. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 LINCOLN TOWN CAR. INTERMITTENTLY, THE VEHICLE SURGED WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TO THE DEALER APPROXIMATELY 9 TIMES, AND 6 FOR THE SURGING PROBLEM. BUT THE FAILURE STILL PERSISTS. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 8,500 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,440. UPDATED 09/24/08. *LJ THE DEALER INFORMED THE CONSUMER THERE WAS A MAJOR DEFECT WITH THE TRANSMISSION. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT SHIFT INTO GEAR. THE TRUNK LID WOULD NOT STAY UP. THE HORN WAS NOT WORKING. UPDATED 10/01/08. *JB
I PURCHASED A NEW 2005 LINCOLN TOWNCAR. WHEN I START TO PASS A CAR AND PRESS THE ACCELERATOR TO THE FLOOR TO GO INTO PASSING GEAR THERE IS A PERIOD OF A FEW SECONDS WHEN THE CAR APPEARS TO LOSE POWER THEN IT SHIFTS DOWN AND ACCELERATES. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME "THAT IS THE WAY IT WORKS AND THERE IS NO WAY TO CORRECT IT". I THINK THIS PUTS ME IN DANGER BECAUSE I CANNOT TELL IF THE CAR IS GOING TO DOWNSHIFT AND GAIN ENOUGH SPEED TO PASS OR NOT. *JB
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026