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.
One month ago, July 2016 the rear driver's side door suddenly opened and would not latch. We tried everything; we could not drive the car because during turns the door would swing open and the alarm would not stop dinging. I did some research and saw that this has been an on going problem/recall with this year 2013 Escapes. I took the car in to the Ford dealer and was told my car was not part of the recall. I called Ford, spoke with customer service and was again told, my car not part of recall. I expressed my concern that this could happen again and it was very dangerous! they said if recall is expanded I can get a refund for my repair. One month and 7 days later the same thing happens to the rear passenger door. My dog nearly flew out of the car. I am furious that Ford knows there is an issue and refuses to take responsibility. This is not a minor issue. Someone or something is going to fly out of a car. When turning left, the door just flies open. There is also no way to lock car. The door will not latch. I will again never purchase a Ford.
While driving down the road in a residential neighborhood, the "door ajar" alert appeared on the dashboard display screen. After pulling over to close the rear passenger door I noticed it would not close. After each attempt to close the door it would not latch. It would just bounce back open. The latching mechanism would not function, so I had to tie the door shut with a rope in order for it to not swing open while driving the vehicle back home. Faulty door latch seems to be the issue here.
While in motion the passenger door flew open while turning. The latch inside the door broke for no apparent reason. There have been many recalls of other Ford vehicles that have had the same problem. But Escapes have not been included. We are fortunate that no one fell out of the vehicle while turning the corner. The car was on a city highway turning onto another city highway.
The door latch on the rear door failed to latch. The car could not be driven because the door would not latch and opened when making a turn. This is the same door latch that has been recalled on other Ford models. Why is this recalled part on other models not recalled in the Ford Escape. It is the same part.
The liftgate is malfunctioning. The powered lift gate raises up after the button is pushed, opens full, stops fully opened for a split second before slamming down without warning. The liftgate will not stay open on its own, no matter how you open it. Warning: Could cause bodily injury, be aware of the liftgate at all times.
Twice the passenger interior door frames have separated from the door and became caught on items inside the vehicle such as the seat etc. This causes the door to become stuck and unable to open. Both times it took we well over 30 minutes to dislodge the frame and reattach to the frame to be able to open the door. Both times, the vehicle had been just parked and I was trying to retrieve my infant daughter from the back seat. I fear that if I had been in an accident I would not be able to safely retrieve my daughter from the vehicle. If this occurs with no impact, what would happen in case of an impact" would all 4 doors become lodged"
On December 20, 2014 at approximately 3:30 pm we were driving on I15 - into salt lake city - 19 miles South of I-80. Passenger moon roof shattered with a loud bang! sounded like an explosion. It raised up the glass on the outside of the car. The temperature was 41 degrees outside & 71 degrees inside care. My husband & I were the only people in the car. We were in 5-6 lanes of traffic & did not stop until we got off the highway. Rain was coming so we took pictures with our camera & I phone & taped up the roof over the cracks & covered it with a tarp. We returned to boise area the following day. We parked it in our garage until we could deliver the car to lithia Ford in boise on 12/22/14. (we purchased it from lithia Ford) the service tech said he thought it would be covered by warranty but would have to contact Ford & get back with us. We researched this problem & saw in the past that this has happened. Ford made the decision, it was something we did & we therefore had to turn it into our insurance & we had to pay the deductible. We believe Ford should have covered this damage, not our insurance company.
I own a Ford Escape SE 2013, this last weekend (10/13/2014) my wife was getting off the car when suddenly the door was pushed out by the wind, her finger was injured with a small edge corner right at the far end of the passenger door, a little metal exposed. I got pictures of the thing and the finger. So be really careful specially if your kids are at the same height as the sharp point on the door; they can get injured on the face!!
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 45 mph the heat shield tore from the piping due to snowy weather conditions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed the heat shield needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 18,000. The current mileage was 22,134. Updated 07/16/14
Engine caught fire due to a Ford recall notice, burning vehicle. Vehicle is a total loss. Ford did not have the replacement parts available to repair the vehicle at the time of loss. As of this date (April 26) Ford has not accepted responsibility for this fire loss.
Very disappointed by the design. Wheel well are extremely difficult to remove ice and slush they are too small and can't remove debris. Wipers in the front is not the greatest. Loses contact on windshield have a heard time seeing where I am going. Terrible wipers when purchased new wipers required. Engine having really odd noise and sluggish. I supposed they replaced the injectors. Had some torque but sounds like timing chain loose or lifters issue. Seats are not comfortable in the rear. Not enough cushion. Windows barely went up and down. Lots of give... too much replaced front window motors.
When closing the rear hatch using the inside handle, the flair at the base of the door hit me on the bridge of the nose. My glasses were knocked to the ground after they cut into the skin. I had to have 4 stitches to close the wound. The door is difficult to close from the outside without using the interior handle, but because of the location of the handle and the length of the door from bottom edge to handle, it is longer than a typical rear hatch. I was injured immediately after renting this car and had several close calls over the next several days.
Inside rear hatch handle came off when pulling the hatch down to close. Took to dealer and they found a screw inside the hatch panel had came out. Replaced with new screw then snapped handle back in place. This handle is weak and poorly designed. Especially since it is just snaps on. The stress the handle and panel must take as to pull the weight of the heavy hatch down before you can place your hand on the outside of the hatch to close needs to be redesigned in the newer models. I am now not so relaxed when closing the hatch on my own car.
The car was parked, I turn on the engine my son was in the front passenger side with his right leg out the car and door open. I was packing some stuff to the back sit. When the SUV went on reverse while the gear was on park. There is no explanation of how the car went on reverse. The right door was opened and hit a brick fence that was on the sidewalk the inside panel of the broke with the impact and cut my son's leg. Ambulance took him to the emergency room and 10 stitches inside and outside were done to his leg. I complaint to Ford and they told me to take the car to the dealer where I purchased the car 4 days before the accident for proper inspection. The process may take 1 to 2 months. I received a call from service dept saying the there where no mechanical problems found and to pick up the car.police report was submitted and no legal paperwork was received yet from Ford. There are other people complaining about something similar happened but Ford is not recognizing the problem. How I know that a proper inspection was made and that this car is safe?
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the driver's side rear exterior door handle did not return to the closed position, causing the door to not latch. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. After diagnosis, they advised him that the child safety lock caused the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 10. The current mileage was approximately 1,200. The VIN was unavailable.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Cathedral City, CA, USA