I was driving on I-81 at night, I operated my left turn signal while accelerating to about 75 mph to pass a truck and my headlights went out. I accidently forced the high beam on by flipping the turn/high beam lever and I held the lever in that position until I could return to the right lane behind the truck and stop on the roadside. To say I thought I was going to die is not simply drama. The worst part was not knowing if my brake lights were working. While off the road, I could not duplicate the failure. I put on the low beam and proceeded on I-81. After some miles, I again tried the left turn signal and again the lights went out. This time I was ready, and used the high beam lever to get to the roadside. Again I could not duplicate the failure. I exited as soon as possible, running on low beam, and the lights went out again on the ramp when I operated the left turn signal. I continued to ocala by way of atlanta, running in daylight only. I took the car to ocala Ford as soon as I arrived in ocala. The dealer had the car several days and finally duplicated the failure. They replaced a module at the cost of $786 and said the car was safe to drive. No repair was done to the turn signal. I got the module from the dealer and sent it to NHTSA for testing to determine if it actually was defective. If not, then my car presents a risk to everyone sharing the highway with me at night, because the problem would still be there. In my opinion, sudden and catastrophic failure such as this presents fatal risk to anyone involved in a crash, including the general public. This failure has nothing to do with reasonable wear and tear, it is a design/manufacturing defect, worsened by a failure by Ford to provide a diagnostic program. Since the problem is intermittent, people may have already died and no trace of the failure would be found by examining the wreck. Updated 01/19/11/ updated 01/20/11

- Ocala, FL, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph, the headlights and taillights failed. The failure occurred on a intermittent basis. The vehicle was inspected by a dealer who informed the contact that that failure was caused by a defect in the lighting control module. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.

- Brownfield, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact stated that the headlights shut on and off intermittently; however, the high beams continue to function. The headlight switch was replaced, but that did not correct the failure. The dealer stated that headlight module caused the failure. The contact was concerned about the safety issue. The failure and current mileages were 60000. Updated 03/07/11

- Centre, AL, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 mph, the headlights would intermittently turn off and back on. The vehicle was inspected by a independent mechanic who replaced the turn signal switch but the failure continued. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.

- Oakland, OR, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. While driving at any speed, the contact noticed that all the lights on the vehicle would suddenly shut off without warning and the contact was forced to use the hazard lights. The dealer was notified but was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was informed and the contact was awaiting a response. The vehicle was not repaired. The current and failure mileages were approximately 59,000.

- Princeton , NC, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. While driving 25 mph at night, both headlights failed. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that he would have to replace the entire unit. The vehicle was then taken to a local repair shop where the lights were repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000. Updated 03/16/11

- South St. Paul, MN, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. While driving approximately 55 mph all of the exterior lights shut off. The vehicle was driven onto the emergency lane and after tapping on the dashboard the lights came back on. The failure had since recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and repaired; yet, the failure continued to occur. The failure mileage was 87,000. The current mileage was 87,500.

- Lewistown, PA, USA

Was driving on frreway at night when lights turned off pulled over on side of the freeway switch the lights on off for about 3 min then they turned on. Since then it has been a very life threatning situation when driving at night lights turn off more freaquenty ready to sue Ford for not takeing responsobility and issuing a national recall for this deffect. I was told by a close friend that works for a Mercury dealer that it is the lighting control module and that all police vehicles with this problem had them replaced.

- N Las Vegas, NV, USA

Headlights turn off without warning, driving on dark streets at night could be dangerous. After a search found thousands of same complaints, lighting control module seems to be the problem. The part is very expensive, not counting labor.

- Rock Island, TN, USA

2005 Mercury Grand Marquis 85,000 miles, headlights go out at any speed when hitting a bump or pot hole. No high beam or low beams but flash to pass will light both high and low if turn signal arm is held back.

- Lexington, SC, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact was driving at night approximately 40 mph with the headlights activated, and after thirty minutes, the headlights became inoperative. The contact activated the hi-beams and continued driving. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where they stated that the lighting control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 85,000. Updated 02/23/11 the consumer stated the headlights continue to malfunction. The lights would go out while the consumer was driving. Updated 03/07/11

- Arlington, TX, USA

2005 Mercury Grand Marquis headlamp failure headlamps fail to come on, can not see to drive at night unless holding high beams on. The head lamps on low beam do not work at, I am only able to drive this car during the day time because I am unable to pay the $730 to repair the module. The car is only 5 years old. I have been unsuccessful at finding a used part. The problem started in July of 2010 and it now October.

- Chester, SC, USA

The headlights of my 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis suddenly went off and the only way to continue traveling was to hold the high beam flash lever. According to Ford it is the automatic headlight controller and it cost 900 to repair. I almost crashed during a rain storm when the lights suddenly went off and unable to get them to come back on. Driving with high beams on is dangerous and having to hold the flash lever while driving causes a safety issue as well.

- N Ft Myers, FL, USA

The headlights will turn off intermittently. Always at night. This happens when the light switch is in the auto and manual positions. When the lights turn off, putting the light switch to either auto or manual on, does not turn the headlights back on. Only, after waiting for 20, 30, 40 or more seconds will the lights come on when operating the light switch. The has happened when the car is parked and while driving (city streets, freeway). This cycle of turning off and on has occurred when getting onto a freeway and repeats at intervals for 30 minutes or more. The problem was only observed by the Ford dealer technician when he could drive the auto home at night for two consecutive nights. It was determined that a lighting control module was at fault. The part number is 5W7Z-13C788-ac. The old part is not available.

- San Lorenzo, CA, USA

We have a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis with automatic headlamps. While driving on Sept 18,2010 in the evening I noticed dash light were on but it did not appear to have headlamps on. I tried manual switching and still no headlights. I was able to continue home when I found out high beams worked. 1st trip to dealer was possible loose pin. Lost headlights on the way home from dealer. Brought car back and headlights started working again. Dealer just called and said headlight module was bad and has to be replaced. One week wait because dealer said it is unusual. Checked on line and found a couple of hundred complaints of same exact problem and remedy. $750 plus. Could have been disastrous later in evening on the interstate at 70 mph. I am requesting old part from dealer thank you

- Hinesville, GA, USA

There are some things in a car that should just work right for the life of the car if nothing has happened to them'and headlights that come on is one of those things. I have a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis (I have owned Lincoln Mercury products for years) and while driving back from my daughter's house one night, my headlights went off. I was traveling 50 mph and there were no lights on the road. My interior lights were still on, but I suddenly could not see the road. Fortunately, there was no one behind me and I pulled over (and fortunately, there was a shoulder on that road). I flipped the light switch back and forth a few times and they came back on. I finished the drive home, wondering what in the world caused that. A week later, I was driving home on I-10 at 9:00 P.M. when suddenly, the lights went off again. This time I was traveling at 70 mph and was in the middle of a steady stream of traffic. I'm alive to tell you about the rest of the trip home. I was in the middle lane and was sure that most of the cars in that 'pack' had seen me before the lights went off. I let everyone pass me as I slowed down and quickly got into the right lane when there was a break in traffic. I got on the shoulder of the road going about 50 mph now and slowed down after I got on the shoulder, so I wouldn't be hit. This time I sat there counting my blessings for a while, then flicked the switch a few more times and they came back on. I got back out on the road and almost made it to my exit before it happened again. This time I was going slower so I was able to pull to the shoulder. I put on my emergency flashers and made it to my exit then cautiously home. The headlights came back on and went off three times during the rest of the ride home. My point in writing is to ask Ford Motor Company to reconsider its opinion that this problem should not be fixed by an official recall. I have read that there have been 3,064 complaints about this problem.

- Biloxi, MS, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis. The contact stated that while driving at night the headlights would not shut off. Usually within 5 minutes or so they would come back on. The vehicle was repaired in June 2010 by replacing the lighting module at her expense. The VIN was not available. The current and failure mileages were approximately 18,000.

- Summerfield , FL, USA

8/27/10 Chicago-Illinois 2005 Grand Marquis - headlights go off when driving. You hear a click and sometimes they come back on and sometimes they don't. extremely dangerous to be driving down the road in the dark and to have your headlights go out. The Ford dealership advised me that it was the lighting control module that was bad. They charged me $143.75 to tell me this, then they wanted another $930 to replace it. Even though I have an extended warranty, I was advised that this particular module is not covered. I am now only driving this vehicle in the day time.

- Bensenville, IL, USA

Trunk latch on key fob does not require as much pressure as say the button to unlock, lock, or panic(emergency). At the slightest swipe over the trunk icon the release is engaged, the trunk on this vehicle has been left open and unattended several times. This can cause loss to an occupant who may be traveling with valuables. When entering a passage on the freeway such as a tunnel, the exterior bright lights turn on by themselves. The reason we know is because the highbeam icon becomes illuminated to blue on the dash panel.

- Maple Grove , MN, USA

2005 Grand Marquis - headlights go off when driving. You hear a click and sometimes they come back on and sometimes they don't. extremely dangerous to be driving down the road in the dark and to have your headlights go out. The Ford dealership advised me that it was the lighting control module that was bad. They charged me $143.75 to tell me this, then they wanted another $930 to replace it. Even though I have an extended warranty, I was advised that this particular module is not covered. I am now only driving this vehicle in the day time.

- Hawkinsville, GA, USA