Without warning, the power steering on my 2008 Ford Escape simply went out. I had no issues or indication that the steering was about to fail and suddenly, the power steering simply stopped working. Fortunately, this loss of power steering didn't result in a crash in my case. I quickly scheduled an inspection at the Ford dealership and they confirmed that the power steering had in fact failed. In researching this issue on the internet, I have found scores of other people with the same issue. I discovered that Ford had changed from a hydraulic power steering system to an electric system starting in 2008. Clearly this system is defective and should be looked into immediately. I was lucky not to have had an accident but one day some one will be killed when this system fails again. Don't let this turn into another issue like is currently happening with GM ignitions and lives are lost.

- Chesterfield, MI, USA

I was driving down the highway slowing down to make a left hand turn and was unable to turn wheel. After researching it found out if you have the heat on it will cause the sensor to over heat. This is unacceptable.

- Evansville, IN, USA

For the last couple of days, whenever I put my car in reverse and begin to back up, I lose my steering ability. The only way I can get my steering wheel to work again is if I turn my car off and then turn it back on again. Well, today, it happened again, but this time I tried multiple times to turn my car off and turn it back on and my power steering would not kick back in. I have read through many complaints on here as well as other sites and see that a lot of people are having the same issue with their 2008 Escape. I have seen that it can cost over $1400 to get it fixed!! I do not have that kind of money right now!! the fact that there was no warning light to tell me that something in the power steering was going is ridiculous!! in the past 2 years I have had to replace the transmission, get a new battery, get brakes, tires, new gas tank, new sensor for the heating control, and the list continues. This car is only 6 years old and just past 100,000 miles!!! I should not have had to replace all these things already!! I am not about to put another $1400+ in this vehicle especially since it seems to be an ongoing problem with many other Escapes. Time to do a recall people or you can gladly take this car back!!

- Franklin, PA, USA

While driving I lost all power steering. The SUV became very difficult to steer. Once I was able to muscle it over to the side of the road the steering wheel started to shake back and forth on its own. After turning the car off then back on this went away for a short time. Then after about a month or so it happened again. Now this happens frequently. I cant drive without this happening. This is very dangerous and needs to be recalled.

- Nashua, NH, USA

This happens multiple times on a long drive over 30 minutes. As I am driving the power steering in my 2008 Ford Escape XLT will fail and I will lose the ability to steer my vehicle. I have almost had several severe accidents on the highway when it happens at 70mph. This is a huge safety issue and there are many reports of this happening online to similar 2008 Escapes. Ford has been silent on the issue. This needs a recall in place immediately. Ford is aware of the problem and how to fix it. Average repair costs are >1400. I can not afford that and will continue to drive/risk my life until this is recalled because I have no other options. The problem resolves itself after restarting the vehicle but happens a short time later. Please look into this, I don't feel safe and this is a huge safety issue.

- San Marcos, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape.. the contact stated when he attempted to pull out of the parking space, he was unable to steer. The contact stated that the failure had occurred multiple times. The vehicle had not been taken the dealer or independent mechanic for a diagnoses of the failure.the manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. The failure mileage was aproximately 119,000.

- New Albany, MS, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the power steering assist failed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Lubbock, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, the steering wheel became very difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the power steering column sensor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 118,000.

- West Orange, NJ, USA

At idle and while driving the steering wheel twitches from left to right uncontrollably and without warning. Many consumers I've researched are having same problem followed by total power steering failure and extreme difficulty in steering.

- Northville, MI, USA

When I was driving and then going to make a turn the car gas and steering shut down and the car would not move any longer. The steering wheel also got stuck in the process of turning and. The gas peddle also have been getting stuck before this incident it has been going on for at least 3yrs 2011 until 2014 the present we have gone to check it put no diagnosis was done to let us know the steering column system was out until this year when the car went out completely. This is not an acceptable problem and I should not have to pay to get it repaired.

- Charlotte, NC, USA

Happened several times since Nov 2013, while pulling from parked position, steering is very difficult to turn. Have to turn off engine and restart to have steering operational. Has occurred 6 times.

- Eagle River, AK, USA

The steering on the subject vehicle "failed" intermittently. In essence, the power steering became non-power steering without any warning on 3 or 4 occasions. The vehicle was much more difficult to steer than a car that had standard steering. If the car was re-started, on occasion it would recover the power steering. I needed to have the entire steering column replaced, which was a repair that cost $970.60. More importantly, this is a serious safety issue.

- Rochester Hills, MI, USA

Driving down the road, turned down a busy street, wheel locked up. Completely frozen, took an incredible amount of strength to turn into a parking lot to safety. Restarted car and it was fixed. Happened again later that day going down the highway, steering wheel locked. (it's like I have no power steering at all, but it is all electric). The wheel has continued to lock at random times, with no warning what so ever for 20 (twenty!) more times, I have documented them all. Nothing provokes this happening, like turning, going up or down hill, slow speeds, nothing, it just happens out of no where. This is extremely dangerous, numerous times I have been in very heavy traffic with no outlet available for me to turn into. It has happened waiting at a stoplight in a turn only lane, but I can't turn the wheel. It has happened again while in the middle lane of a busy highway and I've had to very forcefully angle the wheel so I could get on the shoulder. The wheel unlocks after you restart the car. My stability control light turns on every time the wheel locks. I have done research this is a known problem, hundreds of complaints and Ford is doing nothing about it. From what I have read, you have to replace the entire steering column (a $1,300 fix) due to a faulty switch. This is extremely dangerous and I could very easily wreck if it happens in a bad time or bad location. I have had numerous very close calls already and I am afraid to continue driving every day. Ford needs to recall this immediately.

- Kyle, TX, USA

The power steering suddenly stopped functioning while traveling 45 mph on the highway. I was able to pull the car over to the side of the road and call for assistance. After getting the car to a nearby garage they informed me nothing was wrong once the car was turned off and then on again. I took the car to a Ford dealer where they knew of the issue and said it was a common failure in the 2008 Ford Escapes. The fix was to replace the entire steering column. A quick search of the internet for 2008 Ford Escape power steering fail yielded multiple results and a pending recall in Canada for an issue with the power steering sensor.

- Shavertown, PA, USA

Without warning, the power steering on my 2008 Ford Escape simply went out. I had no issues or indication that the steering was about to fail and suddenly, the power steering simply stopped working. Fortunately, this loss of power steering didn't result in a crash in my case. I quickly scheduled an inspection at the Ford dealership and they confirmed that the power steering had in fact failed requiring replacement of my steering column. This was almost a $1,600 repair but had to be done immediately due to the serious nature of the failure. In researching this issue on the internet, I have found scores of other people with the same issue. I discovered that Ford had changed from a hydraulic power steering system to an electric system starting in 2008. Clearly this system is defective and should be looked into immediately. I was lucky not to have had an accident but one day some one will be killed when this system fails again. Don't let this turn into another issue like is currently happening with GM ignitions and lives are lost.

- Oregon, WI, USA

The power steering goes out without any warning, making the car impossible to control. This is a problem many many people have reported, I can only hope enough people report it so that you perform a recall. The power steering can come on and go off again intermittently, but this only gives the driver a false sense of security and allows the problem to go unchecked a little longer!

- Granger, IN, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the power steering failed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage and VIN was not available.

- Shirley, MA, USA

Lost power steering when turning from a stop. Pulled over stopped and restarted the car and the steering came back. Happened again 2 weeks later. When the steering goes out it is nearly impossible to steer the car. The second time it happened was at 30 mph and was lucky enough to be near a shopping center where I could pull in, stop and restart the car. There is no warning when this happens it just goes!

- Naugatuck, CT, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the power steering failed without warning. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for a diagnostic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure approximate failure mileage was 87,000 and the current mileage was 87,500. The VIN was not available.

- Garden City , MI, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the power steering failed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was found that the electronic power steering had failed. The vehicle was being repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000.

- Three Rivers, MI, USA