10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
22,020 miles

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #330

Feb 082024

Escape

  • miles
this car had an engine light go off and there was a cylinder 2 misfire. When I brought it into the dealership they said that there is a known issue that the coolant is intruding into the motor. Ford knows about this as a problem and has a faulty design and avoided telling people about it. I only realized the thousands of people who are being put at risk of the engine blowing while driving it down the road. My car was not the only one at the dealership with the same exact problem. These cars need to be recalled and corrected

- Pilot Mountain, NC, USA

problem #329

Jan 142024

Escape

  • miles
Prior to this, my had no issues and I had been driving it all day. When coming home from some errands, the engine light suddenly came on and and then my car began shutting off on the highway. We were in the middle lane with cars going 70 miles a hour with no power in our own car, putting us in extreme danger. We were able to get it to the side of the highway and go through a series of starting it, having it run for a mile or so, and then having the engine shut down again. We were able to get it to a Ford dealership and it was inspected. Our garage immediately knew to look at the coolant cylinder to see if it was cracked and leaking as they have seen this issue multiple times. It was, in fact, cracked and coolant was leaking into our engine. Both a Ford representative and the dealership confirmed this is an issue with multiple of these engines but no recall has been enacted. They suggested we write a complaint to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration.

- Howell, MI, USA

problem #328

Jan 102024

Escape

  • miles
Coolant intrusion into motor. Coolant leak causing multiple misfires and my vehicle to lose power while driving and not to over 30mph. I have had the spark plugs, injectors, and coil packs all changed and problem persisted. Taking my car back to mechanic a test was done and there is coolant in the pistons.

- Lexington, NC, USA

problem #327

Feb 012023

Escape

  • miles
Coolant has leaked into my engine block causing damage to the engine. I have brought my car into the dealership on 3 different occasions with the same issue only to be told that something else was wrong with my vehicle. The first time I brought my vehicle in, it was covered (unknown to me) by a special service bulletin. I believe that I was intentionally misled so that the repair would not have to be covered. The first incident was on or around 2/1/23, the second incident was on or around 5/1/23, the third around 10/1/23 and most recently on 2/13/24

- Barnum, MN, USA

problem #326

Jan 082024

Escape

  • miles
I bought this car 8 months ago and one day it just wouldn-??t start. the coolant leak has caused my engine to quit. I cannot afford to replace the engine, especially when ford knows this is an issue. My extended warranty also won-??t cover it, the dealership said this is fords issue and they need to cover it. Ford has not issued a recall even though there is a service bulletin about it.

- Norwich, CT, USA

problem #325

Feb 042024

Escape

  • 100,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the check engine warning light started flickering and the vehicle vibrated and lost motive power upon depression of the accelerator pedal. The contact inspected the engine and discovered white rust on the spark plugs. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where a diagnostic machine showed an engine misfire in engine cylinders #3 and #4. Upon further inspection, the mechanic discovered coolant intrusion into engine cylinders #3 and #4. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

- Saint Cloud, FL, USA

problem #324

Jan 302024

Escape

  • miles
While driving on the highway on [XXX] at normal highway speed, the instrumental panel suddenly displayed a warning to pull over and shut-off the engine. There were no prior indications of a malfunction. My daughter was alone on the highway shoulder with a car that instructed her to pull over and shut off the engine. After about 15 minutes, the car was restarted and driven to a near-by tire store. They noticed the coolant system was very low on coolant and topped it off. The next day, it was driven to Bob Maxey Ford in Howell, MI, where the codes P0217 (coolant over temp), P0303 (#3 misfire), P0316 (misfire on start), P1285 (cylinder over temp), P1299 (protection activated), P2601 (coolant pump A control circuit) were retrieved. The car has about 51K miles on it. That info was conveyed to Ford and authorization was quickly given by them to perform the engine block and head replacement process under the extended powertrain warranty I purchased when I bought the car. This is my 2nd occurrence with this failure mode with Escapes. The first occurred on a 2013 1.6 liter Escape in 2021 [XXX] ) with about 56K miles on it. I did not have warranty coverage and scrapped the car for $2700 (with good engine worth about $8K) since the remedy was more money that the car's worth. I think Ford should extend powertrain warranty coverage at no cost for all potentially affected Escape owners and refund the money paid by consumers to buy the extended coverage on potentially affected vehicles. Ford knew of this potential defect and its effects and was slow to fix it and by doing so exposed thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, of people like me to deal with the mess they created and allowed to continue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Livonia, MI, USA

problem #323

Feb 012024

Escape

  • miles
We purchased our 2018 Ford Escape used with 88,000 miles. At around 96,000 miles the check engine light came on and it threw the P0302 code for a misfire on cylinder 2. We took the car in to Greene Ford Co. in Gainesville, GA. They replaced the coil pack and sparkplug and the car ran well for ~10,000 miles before the check engine light came back on and the car started to sputter and run rough. Took it back to the Ford dealer and they informed us the cylinders were full of coolant and there was a leak allowing coolant to flood the engine block. They said the block was damaged and we would need to purchase a whole new engine. They also told us this was a very common complaint with certain Ford SUVs made in the late 2010s. Our car is completely unsafe to drive now and it almost left my wife stranded on the side of the road (luckily she was able to coast into the Ford dealership). Ford has known this is a problem for almost two years and has refused to do anything about it. This is dangerous and Ford should be required to pay for the repairs to a faulty engine they have install in thousands of cars.

- Oakwood, GA, USA

problem #322

Jan 242024

Escape

  • miles
Cylinder 3 cracked, needs a new long block. Car is at 100k miles. Needs a new engine.

- Lititz, PA, USA

problem #321

Jan 202024

Escape

  • miles
High engine temp notification came on, car would not accelerate. I pulled over and had it towed to the dealer. The dealer said the engine had a coolant intrusion so a new short block is needed. My warranty company denied my claim for the short block claiming this was a recall with ford [XXX] ). Ford confirmed this was a VIN specific customer satisfaction program, and confirmed my VIN was not issued [XXX] and it is not included on my VIN. The warranty company refuses to pay since all 2018 ford escapes should be under [XXX]. Now I have a 10,000 engine repair estimate and ford or the warranty company will not replace my engine. I want to know why my VIN was left off [XXX] since it-??s the same year and same manufacturer. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Minneapolis, MN, USA

problem #320

Dec 272023

Escape

  • miles
On Dec 27, I was told my water pump was leaking after an oil change. I brought my car to the dealership for extended warranty repairs on January 18. After an expection it was confirmed the water pump was leaking but also there were other possible leaks of the coolant into the cylindars. And the entire motor would need replacing. There were no service lights / check engine lights on before this happened.

- Coon Rapids, MN, USA

problem #319

Jan 122024

Escape

  • miles
My engine threw a check engine light for code P0302, Misfire on Cylinder 2. Took it to two mechanics and had work done (Coilpack, Plugs, Wires, then Camshaft and Crankshaft sensors) before it was noted that there was coolant intrusion. Was alerted to Technical Service Bulletin 22-2134/Customer Satisfaction Program 21N12 for "Certain 2017 - 2019 Model Year Fusion and Escape Vehicles Equipped with a 1.5L GTDI Engine-Short Block Replacement After Coolant Intrusion. I took it to the dealer and the technician diagnosed it the same: coolant intrusion in cylinder #2. This is a common issue in EcoBoost (GTDI) engines that Ford has not issued a recall on, but did send out Customer Satisfaction Program. Did not receive notice for this. I have contacted Ford about compensating me for a new engine on a 6-year old car at 75,000 miles. Both meet the above CSP/TSB as less than 7 years/84,000 miles. Stated that US DOT/NHTSA did not include my VIN in the recall, so they won't offer no-cost replacement. I would like to request that NHTSA add my VIN to this recall so that I can have the engine replaced.

- Joshua, TX, USA

problem #318

Jan 192024

Escape

  • 129,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 62 MPH, the service engine light illuminated. While driving, the engine light started to flash, and the vehicle was running rough. The contact pulled off the roadway. The vehicle was taken to a tire center, but no assistance was provided. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the head gasket had failed, and coolant had intruded into the engine. There was a misfire. The dealer recommended an engine replacement. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who opened a case and referred him to the NHTSA Hotline. The contact stated that the failure was related to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N12. The failure mileage was approximately 129,000.

- Clarkston, MI, USA

problem #317

Jan 112024

Escape

  • miles
My engine gave a warning, check engine light went on. I took it to the dealer and the mechanic said the engine failed due to coolant intrusion. Upon searching the issue, this is apparently a common issue in these ecoBoost engine cars that Ford has not issued a recall on, but did send out some satisfaction notice. I never received this notice for some reason. The notice indicates the need to monitor coolant leak, but I never noticed any and wasn't looking for it since I never received the notice. I have contacted Ford about compensating me for a new engine on a 5 year old car, to which they said no because my car is over 84,000 miles (it is as 85,487). I need Ford to recall this issue and frankly it should be criminal not to actively pursue a fix for a known huge and expensive issue that I honestly cannot afford to repair.

- Wilbraham, MA, USA

problem #316

Jan 112024

Escape

  • miles
Coolant leaked into one of the Cylinders which is requiring major engine block repairs. It only has 80K miles on the car and is in great condition. No warnings happened before it almost overheated and threw a error code.

- Indianapolis, IN, USA

problem #315

Jan 092024

Escape

  • miles
While driving this vehicle (~88,000 miles) on a route of ~100 miles, the car started shuddering / shaking at highway speed for 30 - 90 seconds every 10 - 15 minutes. I was 50 miles in to the drive when the shaking began. The shaking was startling and distracting. I drove the car to the dealer that night. While driving to the dealer, the car continued to shudder / shake for even longer durations at greater frequency. Additionally, the car had weak acceleration when the gas pedal was compressed. This created significant challenges when trying to navigate traffic (merging on to highway, accelerating car from stop, etc.). I have a video of the dash which shows the car exceeding 4000 RPM and not exceeding 25mph. I can share this video over e-mail, but could not attach to this form. - The dealer believes this is a malfunction of the powertrain (transmission). It is available for inspection at the time of this writing. However, I am working with Ford and the dealer on a repair solution as this is my primary car. - My safety was at risk because the car shaking was distracting and the lack of acceleration presented challenges with merging, passing cars, accelerating from stop, etc. - Vehicle is currently with dealer beginning inspection - initial suspicion is transmission issue. - No warning lights came on as I was experiencing this issue.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #314

Nov 122023

Escape

  • miles
While driving this vehicle (~87,000 miles), the engine began to overheat. The engine light had come on the day before (Saturday). The engine began to overheat the next day (Sunday) while driving on the highway. I quickly pulled off the highway and drove the vehicle back home while staying at a low speed. If I had not taken this action, the engine overheating could have posed a safety risk. Upon receiving repairs at a Ford dealer, I later learned that this engine overheating is a known issue by Ford. It is caused by coolant intrusion to the engine. Two customer satisfaction programs have been issued for this problem: 19B37, 21N12. However, given the safety issue (engine overheating), I was surprised this repair was not fully covered. This issue happened in my vehicle after the extended warranty period of 84,000 miles.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #313

Dec 302023

Escape

  • 109,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the Engine Overheated message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The contact was informed that the VIN was included in Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N12 (Short Block Replacement After Coolant Intrusion); however, the mileage warranty had expired. The contact stated that he had not received notification of the Customer Satisfaction Program. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.

- Pilot, VA, USA

problem #312

Dec 112023

Escape

  • miles
I Purchased a 2018 Ford Escape SE (VIN# [XXX] ) with 1.5 EcoBoost Engine on 9/24/2023 with 89,726 miles. On 12/10/2023 my 16 year old son was operating vehicle when he experienced a catastrophic engine failure and the vehicle is unserviceable. The vehicle had 90,766 miles on it at the time of the failure. Vehicle was diagnosed on 12/18/2023 and it was determined that there was coolant intrusion into the #2 and #3 cylinder and that the engine will need to replaced. Diagnosis showed that Ford had issued (2) Customer Satisfaction Program alerts on the vehicle for this issue Ford CSP 21N12 and 19B37 on 06/9/2022. I contacted Ford Motor Company and my local dealer to report the issue. I was advised this is a known issue with this specific engine although the vehicle is beyond the extended warranty under the Ford CSP's above. This known issue on this vehicle was not disclosed to my at the time of purchase and Ford will not cover any cost associated with the repair. I feel this known issue should be a recall due to the fact that this catastrophic engine failure does pose a significant safety risk to the vehicle operator and other traveling public. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Oxford, CT, USA

problem #311

Dec 262023

Escape

  • miles
The system that had failed is the engine. According to the dealership where I took my car, which is the same dealership I purchased the car from, the engine has a coolant intrusion in cylinder #2 that has compromised the engine. There is a technical service bulletin [XXX] stating similar issues in Ford Escapes and my VIN # is not included in that service bulletin. The problem has been confirmed by the Ford dealership where I have taken my car. According to the service manager, many Ford Escapes have encountered similar issues. The vehicle is readily available for inspection at the Ford dealership. While driving, a temperature notification informed me of an issue, but the temperature gauge was not affected. A 2018 vehicle is excellent condition with only 78,516 should not have this kind of engine malfunction. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- White Lake, MI, USA

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