I heard a series of loud pops coming from the vicinity of my driver door hinges, while inside the vehicle with the door closed, over the course of several days. I could not identify exactly where they came from until the driver door stopped operating properly. Upon inspection I could see several small holes in the front inside edge of the driver door and after comparing them to the passenger side door they were clearly the location of spot welds holding the check arm inside the door. I took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that they expected me to pay out of pocket to repair this obvious material defect. I then contacted Ford Customer Relations and was again informed that Ford would offer no remedy for this problem. The complaint number assigned by Ford is CAS-42808154-Y3S6L2. This is a clear safety concern because my driver door no longer operates correctly. The driver window also no longer operates. The door swings wildly without the stability of the check arm and often fails to latch properly when closing. As of the time of filing this complaint, I have not conducted any repair of the defective door because I cannot afford to do so at this time. This means that the problem is still completely available for inspection should anyone desire to do so.

- Collins, NY, USA

Welds holding driver's side door broke inside the door, door makes a crunching noise, is hard to close and window can't be rolled down. Door was not caught by wind or any other strain, no abnormal use. The car has 26,000 miles and the welds just gave out.

- Westbrook, ME, USA

Door started squeaking. Dealership checked and found that, "Door skin spot weld is broken under door weather strip near door check." Door has never been damaged by owner.

- Muncie, IN, USA

The inside run channel which holds the "check strap arm" on the driver-side door has broken loose from the welds. The door would barely open which is a potential safety concern should someone need to exit the vehicle quickly in an emergency. This is the same issue reported in SSM 50150. Ford should issue a recall as this is a widespread issue with this model as reported online by customers and in SSM 50150.

- Brooklyn, MI, USA

The door weld on drivers side door cracked and became unwelded and door will only open partically and win dow does not operate to go down SSM 50150 - 2020-2021 Escape - Cracked Or Broken Spot Welds In The Left Front Door At The Check Arm Attachment Points In The Door Assembly Some 2020-2021 Escape vehicles may exhibit cracks or broken spot welds in the left front door at the check arm attachment point in the door assembly. The door assembly and door check arm replacement is the appropriate repair for this condition. Refer to the parts catalog and Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 501-03 as required to complete the repair. For claiming, use casual part 7823552 and the applicable labor operations of Section 12 and 13 of the Service Lab Took to McRee Ford and they stated not covered under extended warrant and I have to pay over $1100 to repair. This is Clearly a FORD defective workmanship and repairs need to be covered by Ford.

- Texas City, TX, USA

I opened the driver side door after returning home and heard some kind of popping sound, kind of like something in the door was catching on something else and then I opened the door more to see three holes on the door near the middle hinge. I opened the door all the way to get out and am now unable to close the door because the hinge is completely broken. I googled it and have seen other people have this same issue from only opening the door. I have no idea how to even close the door.

- Henrico, VA, USA

The drivers side door hinge broke and the window no longer rolls down. When I took it to the dealership they told me the weld on the hinge broke, that it was not covered under warranty, and that I would need a whole new door. It is the middle hinge that stabilizes the door and stops the top two hinges from becoming damaged. My door is still functional (despite making a very loud popping noise when opening) but the first time it gets opened too hard or far the top or bottom hinge is going to bend. This will result in the door not being able to latch correctly or at all. If it does latch there is a chance it doesn't open if they hinges are bent. They did not diagnose the window. Upon looking online this is a common issue with 2020 Escapes. The part (hinge) did not fail; their weld did. My vehicle currently has 50,400 miles.

- Saginaw, MI, USA

Drivers side door popping from doorwell due to broken arm.

- Wayne, MI, USA

Driver door suddenly began making a very loud sound when opening and shutting as if the hinge is going to break.

- Melbourne, FL, USA

In March my driver-??s side door starting popping or squeaking. I thought my door needed oil. I didn-??t call the dealership because was going on vacation and was going to get it oiled when I returned since my car would just be in the garage. I came home mid April and it was much worse. I was finally able to get in and told it is SSM50150 and that the weld broke and my door needed replaced. My car turned 3 years old on April 11th ( under 31,000 miles), so since I was two weeks past my warranty, it wouldn-??t be covered and would be about $3500 to fix. In addition, I tried to use my lift gate to put something in back a few days ago, and it went up and came slamming down nearly in my head. I rarely use the back and am not sure when I tried it last. I was told today that both motors for the lift gate needed to be replaced because one was badly corroded and the other was cracked. This car is not even 37 months old, not even 31,000 miles, and it needs a complete door replaced and 2 motors on the lift gate"?" This is not right at all, and Ford said sorry, your warranty ended 2 weeks ago!

- Lorain, OH, USA

Broken Drivers side Front Door Check Arm Attachment. Door made a popping sound and dealership states that it is a common problem with this model. This happened without accident or unusual circumstances.

- Petersburg, MI, USA

On 04/18/2023 around 8pm, I drove to a local Dollar General and parked my car. Once parked I opened my driver door to get out and heard a popping noise and the door felt weird when opening. I thought for a second something was caught in the door causing it to sound that way an cause difficulty opening. After looking and not seeing anything caught in the door I got out of the car and went into the store. Upon returning I opened my driver door to get in and the door felt stiff opening and you could hear the loud popping sound still. I got inside the vehicle and closed the driver door; however, closing the door was difficult. I called my mom, who works in a Ford dealership's service department, and told her what was happening while I drove home. I put her on speaker phone as I got out so she could hear the way the door sounded when opening and closing. She told me to stop using the vehicle until I could bring it into the dealership the next morning. When I brought the vehicle in I tried letting my window down during the drive and noticed that now my driver side window was having difficulty going up and down. My mileage at the the time was 37,482. My car has never been in a wreck or had any body damage occur. I purchased an extended warranty which will cover fixing the window now malfunctioning, but not the welding issues that has caused the door to not work properly. Upon researching on the internet this is a problem many Ford 2020 Escape owner's have experienced. Some have reported that the window issue is in direct correlation to the door hinge issue. It astounds me that if so many complaints have been made why is Ford not responding and aiding in getting these cars fixed?

- Junction City, KS, USA

NHTSA ID Number: 10201603 Manufacturer Communication Number: SSM 50150 Summary Some 2020-2021 Escape vehicles may exhibit cracks or broken spot welds in the left front door at the check arm attachment point in the door assembly. Ford has been provided feedback from fleet customers of this condition on some vehicles with high usage profiles. The door assembly and door check arm replacement is the appropriate repair for this condition. Refer to the parts catalog and Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 501-03 as required to complete the repair. For claiming, use casual part 7823552 and the applicable labor operations of Section 12 and 13 of the Service Labor Time Standards (SLTS) Manual.

- Georgetown, KY, USA

Drivers side door will not shut due to spot welds failing which causes the door check assembly to come off the inside of the door.

- Demotte, IN, USA

The spot welds where the check arm bracket attaches at the left (driver's) door failed, causing the internal bracket to detach. Once the bracket was no longer attached to the door, any attempt to close the door was met with resistance. Instead of the check arm receding into the door, the act of closing was trying to have both the check arm and bracket recede into the door; the bracket was at risk of damaging the window mechanism. In order to close the door, I have cut the check arm and removed the bolt that attached it to the car; leaving the small portion of check arm with the bracket to drop in the door slightly. Failure of this part is a safety risk to the driver, as it holds the door open; any gust of wind or even gravity will close the door unexpectedly on a person trying to exit the vehicle. The part is currently available for inspection. I have brought it to the dealer and provided them with SSM 51050 that I found regarding the known issue. As it was out of warranty they suggested I see an auto body shop. Searches online yield many complaints and even videos showing the issue. There were no warning lights. Shortly before failure the door presented with a creaking sound; 3 additional closings and it failed.

- Brookline, NH, USA

While attempting to fuel the vehicle, thinking the hood latch was the fuel door release, the hood latch was pulled (twice). After completing fueling we re-entered the roadway and at about 45 mph, the hood flew up and backwards over the windscreen. We were able to stop the vehicle and close the hood without further incident although there is damage to body panels and the windscreen. Although an operator error was made by confusing the hood latch with the fuel door release, it seems like a poor and dangerous design to be able to completely unlatch the hood (no manual safety under the hood as is customary) allowing it to fly up while underway. Upon further investigation, we determined that the newest generation of these vehicles simply require two pulls of the hood latch to completely release it. The more typical method of one pull of the latch followed by manual release of the safety by reaching under the hood has been abandoned in this design.

- Houston, TX, USA

The driverside door has been popping a little bit since we bought the vehicle in August of 2020. Today the popping got worse and you can see what looks to be spot welds broken behind where the door check is located.

- Lebanon, VA, USA

The welds on the bracket inside the drivers door that attatch to the check arm broke, leaving me with 3 holes in my door and unable to close the door.

- Milan, MO, USA

When I open the door the driver door. It-??s separated from the bracket to the door. Will do keep those pieces together, came apart in the door.

- Jacksonville, FL, USA

faulty spot welds on the drivers door checklink bracket failed and are preventing the door from closing correctly, and now the window wont roll all of the way down. not sure what else is broken inside of the door.

- Woodstown, NJ, USA