10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 6 / 10
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 5 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 23,369 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
Have replaced the turbo. Have replaced the transmission. Had coolant leak fixed in October getting into the cylinders. Now again in July coolant is leaking again into the the engine, causing potential fire. Lots of smoke and engine is overheating.
- Etowah, NC, USA
My engine is misfiring due to coolant intrusion into the cylinders. The issue has been confirmed by the dealer, and is currently being repaired. It is a safety issue because the engine failing due to lack of coolant could render the vehicle undrivable. It has also caused random jerking movements in times of acceleration. It was inspected by the dealer, and before that, my usual mechanic. Check engine light is on, and the engine is rumbly at start.
- Wilmington, DE, USA
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine had misfired, and spark plug #1 needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The contact stated that at start-up, the engine rumbled, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that coolant had leaked into the engine and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacture was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was placed on a diagnostic machine and produced fault codes: P0316 and P0300. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in a recall and advised to call the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 58,870.
- Gray, GA, USA
2017 Escape 2.0: Ongoing issue with check engine light coming on and running rough. Had issues with traffic with engine suddenly stop running. I am concerned for myself and safety of my daughter. Took to first place and they replaced spark plugs and coil packs. Issue came right back running rough and check engine light back on. Took to Ford dealer to be diagnosed. They found coolant in cylinder. TSB has correction to replace complete engine. Estimate is approximately $9500. Do not understand why this is not a recall since its a known MFG issue.
- Morrow, OH, USA
On June 15th I took my car to AllStar Ford in Palestine Texas because my check engine came on flashing and I started my car it was running rough and having trouble accelerating. I was called later that day and told I needed 1 new spark plug. I told them to replace all of them and they also did a tune-up. I picked my car up on June 21st and it seemed to be fine. The next morning my check engine light was flashing again. I took it back and was later told there was a cracked spark plug. Skip to July 14th and my check engine light was back on. I took it back to the dealership. On July 20th they called to tell me there was a leak in my coolant reservoir and they found coolant intrusion in cylinders. Now I'm being told I have to replace my engine. There has been a recall on 2014 to 2019 Ford EcoBoost because of the very same issue. For some reason my car was not part of that. I have researched this issue and found a lot of owners having the same problem and being told the cost is on them. There are also class action lawsuits in California for this problem. Had I know these cars had this severe problem I would have purchased something different. My car could over heat and blow the motor and even catch on fire. I owe less on my car than what it will cost to fix and that doesn't guarantee it won't happen again.
- Elkhart, TX, USA
Check engine light came on, vehicle overheated. When towed to local Ford dealership we were informed that water had gotten into engine and whole engine needed to be replaced. The car is less than 6 years old and only has 59,000 miles on it. We were one month shy of paying off the vehicle when this happened. We were quoted $8,300 to replace engine. Ford offered only $4,000 in credit to cover the replacement. Dealership stated during our communication that this is a known defect with this make, model and year Ecoboost engine.
- Pasadena, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the contact saw smoke coming from underneath the hood. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and was diagnosed with coolant leaking into the engine cylinders. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 114,300.
- Rochester, NY, USA
In January 2023, my transmission went, and it was towed to the dealership. It sat for SIX MONTHS until it was fixed. I got the back 1 month ago, 2 weeks later, it broke down, stopped driving, on a VERY BUSY highway. It has now been sitting for 2 weeks and I do not have any answers as to what is wrong with my car.
- Vernon, NJ, USA
As I was driving one evening my vehicle started acting weird. Anytime I would press the brakes at a stop light, when the light would turn green, as I would press the gas the gears would remain at neutral for a few seconds before going into drive mode. After a couple of days, the problem had gotten a little worst. I did check with Ford to see if another recall was done on my vehicle and it wasn't. At the time when the previous recall occurred, my vehicle was not having any issues. Almost a year later, my vehicle now has the exact issues that the recall had stated occurred, in which makes no sense.
- Columbia, SC, USA
2017 Ford Escape Titanium with just over 65k miles taken to dealership with warning light on. Dealer diagnosed it with coolant to leaking into the cylinders, requiring a full engine replacement with cost of over $7,000. This same issue can be found after a simple internet search and is reported as a known Ford issue where they have an internal tech bullet but no support for the cost of the repair.
- Bartlett, IL, USA
misfire of engine with white blueish smoke from both exhaust pipes for short period.
- Dingmans Ferry, PA, USA
My complaint is not about the recall; that is being repaired currently. My complaint is that the engine block on my 2017 Escape has failed at only 57,000 miles. The cost to repair is $10,000 including parts, labor, and tax. I did purchase an extended warranty; however it was for $100,000 miles or 5 years. An engine completely failing at 57,000 miles is a safety issue. I took great care of that car, did not put pressure on the engine, parked it in my garage, rotated the tires, got oil changes on schedule, etc. Ford should be embarrassed about this and issue a recall. I will never purchase a Ford again (which is sad because my dad worked for Ford his entire life). Thank you for your attention to this matter.
- Snoqualmie, WA, USA
Car misfires and shuddering at certain speeds. It was determined that coolant was leaking into the engine. $7500 bill to replace the 2.0L engine. Car had around 130km. Ford would not cover any of the costs. This should not be happening with a car of the age/mileage. Ford needs to do something about this and cover the cost.
- Nashville, TN, USA
The vehicle overheats then slows down to about 2-5mph. Continued overheating and low coolant level. The ford dealership customer service representative told me that it-??s a very common problem with my model vehicle and accurately predicted that the diagnostic review of the vehicle would find that the coolant is leaking into the cylinders of the vehicle and that the only solution is a new engine that has a properly built engine block.
- Thompson's Station, TN, USA
In June 2023 I took my Grandson on vacation. I filled up my gas and the next day my car began running extremely rough. Once I got home I filled it with premium gas and put fuel injector in hoping it was just bad gas. Did NOT fix problem. Few days later I was driving and the engine just died. Several cars swerved to avoid hitting me. I turned the ignition and the high temperature pull over safely alert came on. I turned the defroster on high hoping that would cool the engine enough for me to get back home. IT took SEVERAL times of me restarting the car for me to creep back home. I was on a very busy road and was afraid someone would hit me. I then called the local ford dealership and told them what happened and was informed this was an on-going issue with Ford Motor Co. 1.5 ltr engines. I bought this car in October, 2020 with 24,900 miles. It now has 50,900! I maintain my vehicle regularly. This should NOT happen to a vehicle with 50,000. Ford Motor Co should offer a buy-out. I DO NOT FEEL SAFE driving this car and certainly not with my grandson. I thought this was a safe, dependable vehicle. I was wrong.
- Van Buren Twp, MI, USA
I was on the highway doing 70+ and my car overheated and shut off. When i turned it back on the engine light was on and it was shaking like crazy. I took it to the dealership and they told me that it is a known prob and it has a coolant leak into the engine. I can see online that this is happening to thousands of people and ford is refusing to fix it. I could be dead right now. They-??ve known about this problem for years but will not replace my engine.
- Eagleville, PA, USA
I own a 2017 Ford Escape with a 2.0L ecoboost engine. The engine began running rough and the check engine light came on on July 10, 2023. I took it to the Ford dealer where it was purchased new. I was informed that there was a failure in the engine block which caused coolant to enter cylinder 3. The technician did not go any further into the cause but informed me that the engine needed to be replaced and I was responsible for the cost. I learned that the Ford 1.5L engine had the same problem and was subject to a voluntary recall by Ford in the past. Ford is aware of this problem with both engines. I contacted customer service at the Ford Corporate Office and was told there was nothing they would do to address this issue. I am reporting this in the hope that the government will require Ford to extend warranty protection on this engine and force a recall. Ford is aware of the defect and has shifted responsibility to the consumer. This is a safety issue because this condition can result in engine fires, stalls on the highway, loss of engine power in hilly areas, all of which can put drivers and passengers in danger of serious injury or death.
- Crest Hill, IL, USA
In 2020, Ford issued a recall on my 2017 due to defects in the short block of the engine. The repairs (parts and labor) were covered under the recall notice and a new short block was installed. Early this month - July 2023, I began to notice white smoke coming from my exhaust. I took the car to Wayne County Ford in Honesdale, PA where I was told that the short block had failed and was leaking coolant into the engine. I was told that there was no warranty on the previous short block replacement as was quoted $6,000 in parts and labor to, once again, replace the short block. For a short block to fail in 3 years (about 20K miles) is simply absurd and points to a continued defect in the Ford short block.
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
- St. Paul, MN, USA