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CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2013 Ford Escape has been in the news quite a bit and for all the wrong reasons. Within a few months of its release the SUV was recalled three times, twice because of engine fires.

In July 2012, due to a fuel line that could split and leak, Ford told owners to park their cars because even driving to the dealership for repairs was deemed too dangerous. Instead, in a somewhat unprecedented move, Ford sent tow trucks to pick up the affected vehicles and handed out rental cars while the owners waited for repairs.

A few months later the Escape was recalled again because antifreeze could leak out onto the engine due to a freeze plug becoming dislodged. As the coolant hit the hot engine there was, once again, a threat for fire.

The 2013 is the first model year of the Escape's 3rd generation and proves once again that you want to avoid the first model year when at all possible.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 4
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
33,811 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2013 Ford Escape body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2013 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 2 of 3)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #39

Jan 012017

Escape

  • 35,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Windshield has been leaking for awhile. Did not notice until stain appeared inside on the headliner.

- St Augustine, FL, USA

problem #38

Mar 292018

Escape

  • miles
Windshields with no seal causing lots of air nosies like the windows are down

- Hodgenville, KY, USA

problem #37

Mar 152018

Escape

  • 15,995 miles
Rear driver's side door remains locked. Cannot unlock and open door. This can be a safety issue for rear seat passenger.

- Fullerton, CA, USA

problem #36

Nov 172017

Escape

  • 90,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Hood latch won't release, it's completely stuck after popping the hood lever. I notice this after the door latches went bad and I had service them under a known recall issue.

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #35

Feb 152018

Escape

  • miles
I went to open the driver side door and the handle and lock fell off. This, I am sure is not normal. I have and I own older vehicles where the handle had never fallen off. I am able to but the handle back on temporarily but I cant get the lock to stay in.

- Butler, OH, USA

problem #34

Feb 082018

Escape

  • 39,306 miles
Drivers door outside handle sticks in the open position when pulled on to open door. Sometimes sticking open several seconds and longer.

- Mechanicsburg, PA, USA

problem #33

Dec 132017

Escape

  • 63,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving the vehicle at low speed (thank god) I attempted to turn and the steering hung up. I could feel the floor board under my feet move as I tried to turn the wheel. I forced it to turn and then stopping, I looked under the car only to find a large piece or the whole piece of the heat shield had come loose and was laying on top of the exhaust system and the steering. I pulled it loose, some was torn up, and pushed the rest out of the way of the steering. Drove home. Was informed it was not under warranty. Car has 63,000 miles on it. Never driven hard.

- Thompson, MO, USA

problem #32

Oct 182017

Escape

  • 60,000 miles
I was driving down I49, shreveport, la. At approximately 65 mph, high tempature warning came on followed by engine failure warning, as I was making my way to the roadside engine shut down. Steam started coming from under the hood, when the vehical came to a stop, I popped the hood, as I got out of the car I noticed a small amount of blue smoke, followed by black smoke, I did not open hood, 30 seconds latter flames were shooting from under the hood, I called 911 as the flames engulfed the front of the car

- Shreveport, LA, USA

problem #31

Jul 042017

Escape

  • 27,100 miles
Both rear doors are rusting from the inside out at the bottom of the doors. This was noticed two months ago.

- Gurnee, IL, USA

problem #30

Aug 062017

Escape

  • 67,000 miles
First complaint is the internal door panels do not properly fit and come loose becoming caught on the frame of the car not allowing you to open the door to exit the vehicle which is highly dangerous in an emergency. 2) the shift selector switch broke as my spouse was driving the car not allowing him to shift the car into park or shut it off. This is highly dangerous and quite common a mechanics told us.

- Indianapolis, IN, USA

problem #29

Jun 042017

Escape

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Recall 16V-643 received recall notice. When I tried to make an apt for repairs told call back in a month" I Transport children and why when I receive a letter telling me to call they do not have the parts" I own two 2013 Escapes. Totally unprepared for this recall.

- O'fallon, MO, USA

problem #28

Mar 012017

Escape

  • 77,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. While the vehicle was stationary, the contact's foot became stuck between the brake pedal and the center console. The contact referenced manufacturer recall number: 12S34, which originally remedied vehicles manufactured between March 8, 2012 and June 7, 2012; however, the contact's vehicle was not included. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 77,000.

- Taylor, MI, USA

problem #27

Mar 062017

Escape

  • miles
Recall was issued for defective door latch on September 2, 2016 (NHTSA recall number 16V643). It is now March 6, 2017, over six months later, and still no remedy has been offered by Ford. I have called the dealer once per month trying to get the faulty part replaced and have been told that there is no estimate for when it will be available. Ford should be held accountable for remedying this recall in a timely manner and should be penalized for failing to do so.

- Santa Monica, CA, USA

problem #26

Mar 012017

Escape

  • 90,000 miles
I was driving with a passenger in the front seat when the passenger front door opened as I was driving. I was driving about 50mph. I pulled over to try and shut the door, but it would not latch. I had to bungee cord the door to the seat in order to get to the dealership.

- Catawba, NC, USA

problem #25

Feb 242017

Escape

  • 52,000 miles
Driving my 2013 Ford Escape sel with only 52000 miles on it home from shopping in reno, Nevada. I was in washoe valley, nv when I though the high winds were keeping my car from speeding up, when I could not accelerate I pulled to the slow lane and then onto the shoulder. I put the car in park and look at my dash to see if I was overheating or any other issues were apparent. My dash showed nothing wrong at all. No lights or warnings of any kind. The gages were all running normal. I put my car in park and within a second or two a large very black billow of smoke came up back part of the engine nearest to he drivers side window. Then second later larger fire flames came right behind it that went over the top of my car. My car went up in flames in just moments. I had to jump from the burning car to safely.

- Dayton, NV, USA

problem #24

Sep 012016

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the recall notice for NHTSA campaign number: 16V643000(stucture) was received in September of 2016. After contacting the dealer and the manufacturer on multiple occasions, the contact was informed that the parts needed for the recall remedy were still not available and no estimated time for receiving the parts could be provided. The VIN was invalid. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available...updated 05/23/17

- South San Francisco, CA, USA

problem #23

Feb 172017

Escape

  • 44,900 miles
I experienced door latch recall issue after hours on Friday, February 17th while driving! I called the company on Saturday morning and was told that the service department was not open. On Monday I contacted them again several times to be told by the service department that the computer system was down. I even went to the dealership and got no help, being told that the replacement parts were not expected until 2nd quarter of the year. What" my door is broken now!!! I even asked if they could replace it with a defective part if they had any on-hand so that my car could be drivable. Up to now I have gotten no response because their system was down. Called a personal contact on Tuesday afternoon and was asked to call back on Wednesday morning. I did. I was asked if I received a letter, to which I replied no, but I do have the problem and do I need to have a letter to get the obviously defective part replaced" I shared my VIN number as requested and am still awaiting feedback on this. This is absolutely unacceptable business practice. I started looking into purchasing the part, but that should not be necessary.

- Charlotte Amalie, VI, USA

problem #22

Oct 012016

Escape 4-cyl

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 16V643000 (latches/locks/linkages); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. Updated 04/18/17

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #21

Dec 082016

Escape

  • 30,000 miles
Recall and dealer has not taken action or notified us.

- Fernandina Beach, FL, USA

problem #20

Aug 052016

Escape 4-cyl

  • 69,500 miles
Recall notice 16S30 I contacted miracle Ford in gallatin, tn phone: (615) 452-5267. The dealer said they did not have the part for the recall until the 2nd quarter of 2017. I am not sure what the 2nd quarter of 2017 is because I don't know their business calendar. I called Ford directly 1 (800) 392-3673 and I talked with a person. At the end of the call on Oct 21st around 5:15pm cst, Ford sent me back to the dealer. The dealer voice message was full. I am not sure what to do next since neither parties have the tools and resources in place to fix my recall. The door on the passenger side as opened 4-5 times as I take a turn from left to right. The car was in motion going about 15-25 mph. Please contact me at [xxx]. my name is [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Hendersonville, TN, USA

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