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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:
10 / 2
Injuries / Deaths:
13 / 0
Average Mileage:
46,366 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 seat belts / air bags problems

seat belts / air bags problem

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2013 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 1 of 3)

problem #50

Jun 222020

Escape

  • miles

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

I purchased my vehicle may 6,2020 Accident accord in Winnie, Tx June 22,2020 on the highway me and my kids father were on the highway at the time the highway was getting construction work done as we were driving down the highway street someone hit us broke one of my ribs and my left elbow as well I didn-??t have any knowledge of knowing my vehicle had a recall until I just realize searching on my vehicle I purchased and the reason why it wasn-??t taken cared before I had family matters sorry so late Briana Roy

- Lafayette , LA, USA

problem #49

May 132023

Escape

  • miles
I was in an accident on 5/13/2023 and I got hit head on in the front. None of my airbags came out.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #48

Jun 142022

Escape

  • 99,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while on the highway during rush hour driving at 30 MPH, the vehicle behind failed to slow down causing her to crash into the vehicle in front when her vehicle was rear-ended. The contact stated the seat belt's pretensions failed to function, and the air bags failed to deploy. During the impact, the contact hit her head on the steering wheel. In addition, the contact sustained a fractured nose, facial bruises, and neck injuries. An ambulance arrived at the scene and treated the contact then transported her to the emergency room where a MRI and CT scan was performed. The police arrived on the scene and filed a police report. There was damage to the front bumpers and grill and rear of the vehicle, but it was drivable. The vehicle failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V597000 (Air Bags, Seat Belts). The approximate failure mileage was 99,000.

- Swampscott, MA, USA

problem #47

Nov 032020

Escape

  • miles

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

Bought my 2013 Ford Escape SEL 2 years ago. The airbag light has been on the whole time. I went and had it checked after I was hit in the passenger front side and airbags did not depoly. My husband got hurt. I was told it needs a part replaced. I know there was a recall on the airbags on this vehicle and the owner stated never had it replaced thru recall. I always have my 2 youngest grandbabies with me and I want to keep them safe. This is very important. Please help. 2nd issue is the front suspension, I can go over a rough road and it sounds awful making noise the whole time.

- Central City, KY, USA

problem #46

Jun 102021

Escape

  • 106,200 miles
The contact owned a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at 75 mph, a deer unexpectedly ran across the freeway. As a result, the vehicle ran into the deer. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed. There were no injuries sustained but the contact suffered a sore back. The vehicle was not drivable and was towed to their home address. The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic as a total loss. The vehicle was not repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 106,200.

- Decatur, IL, USA

problem #45

May 022020

Escape 4-cyl

  • 1,350,009 miles
This car was involved in an accident the car struck several trees hitting the front end of the car and then landed on the driver side. The front airbags never deployed not did the driver side airbag. My teenager was driving the car when it turned over he has been concerned with why the airbags never deployed. The side airbag should have with the way the car landed on its side. If the airbag had of deployed then his head would have never hit the window. There is no way that when you look at the pictures I feel that someone can honestly tell me that it just didn't hit where the sensor was and that's the reason. Has there been a recall on the airbags that we aren't aware of or could there be an issue. This has us concerned because this accident could have been worse than it was and maybe if the airbags had of deployed there might have been more injuries but something just doesn't seem right. The accident happen on a side street the speed was about 40 mph going around a curve moved over to the edge of the road due to car being in his lane. When moving over the car started sliding into the wet grass tried bringing back but over corrected then the car struck a tree head an embankment then turned over in driver side.

- West Point, VA, USA

problem #44

Jan 132020

Escape

  • 92,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked the air bag above the front passenger's side window deployed inadvertently. The vehicle was towed to newins bay shore Ford located at (219 w main St, bay shore, NY 11706 631-665-1300) but was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 92,000.

- East Islip, NY, USA

problem #43

Feb 022020

Escape

  • 69,000 miles
My vehicle was stationary. I was rear ended by a mid size car going at least 55mph. The vehicle did not break before colliding with my vehicle. My air bags did not deploy. Both my drivers seat and my passengers seas broke. The plastic surrounding the base of my seat was dislodged and cracked. The metal structure of the seats also broke. Both my drivers seat and front passengers seat were completely laid back and did not raise after the collision. The seats before the collision were in the upright position. Due to the air bags not deploying my head contacted the steering wheel.

- Bel Aire, KS, USA

problem #42

Sep 202019

Escape 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. While operating the vehicle, the air bag warning indicator remained illuminated after buckling the driver's seat belt. Additionally the driver's side seat belt alarm was inoperable and did not chime when the seat belt was not fastened. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the seat belt sensor was faulty. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 60,000.

- Mckees Rocks, PA, USA

problem #41

Nov 232016

Escape

  • miles
My fianc and I were pulling out of our driveway when the vehicle suddenly stalled and stopped completely. The vehicle was then hit by another vehicle the side airbag didn't deploy and my fianc is very lucky to be alive! it wasn't until we purchased this vehicle that we realized that this particular vehicle has had so many recalls. There also has been so many official stalling complaints that an investigation had beeen necessary! since the accident, the stalling issue has not improved but worsens and is now stalling everytime we put gas into the vehicle. It stalls and won't start again. He was driving on a major highway; upon exiting the highway the vehicle stalled and shut completely off at the highway exit ramp luckily he was able to pull the vehicle off on the shoulder or he would have been involved in yet another accident and potentially killed! Ford really needs to address this problem! these vehicles have been well maintained and from what I have read most are having this same issue from the beginning of owning the vehicle. When my fianc was injured in the first stalling accident we weren't the owners of the vehicle, my aunt was allowing us to borrow her vehicle and she recently sold it to us; now that we own the vehicle we realize that the accident could have been prevented and should have! also I understand the side airbag not deploying is another recall issue that hasn't been addressed with our SUV!

- Saint Augustine, FL, USA

problem #40

Jul 112018

Escape

  • 66,000 miles

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

Car randomly shuts off has shut off 3 times since getting it back from dealer... car was parked for 4 hours after starting the car and waiting for the RPM to drop when I put it in drive and accelerated the engine shut off power was still on. The second time the engine shut off car was idling for 10 mins after a 25 min srive from work whwn I drove off made a turn a block away engine shut off had hit hazards throw gear into neutral roling to a safe distance from corner yo stop. The last time this happen car was not idle after driving several blocks after a rolling stop sign my csr shut offf in the middle dfle off intersection. Car has said to be fixed by dealership but its not aur bag light stays went off after taking it in but is now lit afain

- Elizabeth, NJ, USA

problem #39

Nov 012017

Escape

  • 65,000 miles
Just because the VIN on this specific 2013 Escape doesn't match all the recalls doesn't mean it doesn't have the same issues. I've already had to have the water pump replaced and the transmission rebuilt. There's electrical issues, HVAC issues, door issues, delayed acceleration issues, the list goes on and on and on with this vehicle. I reached out to Ford and they offered no help. Your system only allows me to check three problems.

- Redwood City, CA, USA

problem #38

Mar 172016

Escape

  • 40,000 miles
Vehicle sold to me as part of military car sales program overseas. When attempting to fulfill recalls at overseas location, Ford dealership said they are unable to acquire the parts necessary for completing the recalls in the uk.

- Apo, AE, USA

problem #37

Jul 262015

Escape

  • 30,000 miles
I was in a car accident on July 26, 2015 and the side impact airbag did not deploy after I had received a recall notice many months prior to the accident> every time I took it to the dealership for maintenance, they said there was no "fix" yet at the time. My 2013 Ford Escape was totaled in the accident. I was driving at a rate of about 20/25 mph westbound on the 2600 block on elm street on Sunday 07/26/15 at about 1:30 pm cst. I was on the left lane when a car in the left lane made an illegal left turn from his lane in an attempt to park and T-boned my car instead. All airbags deployed except for the side impact bag on the drivers see that was on the recall. My head struck the door frame and I suffered a concussion, multiple soft tissue injuries and a temporal mandibular disorder

- Dallas, TX, USA

problem #36

Aug 102016

Escape

  • 138,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. While driving approximately 55 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact coasted the vehicle to the side of the road, waited a few minutes, and was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. In addition, the front passenger door failed to remain locked. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign numbers: 14V237000 (air bags), 14V239000 (structure), 14V597000 (air bags, seat belts), and 16V643000 (latches/locks/linkages). The parts needed for the repairs were not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 138,000. Parts distribution disconnect and VIN tool confirms parts not available.

- Louisville, MS, USA

problem #35

Mar 142017

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign numbers: 14V597000 (air bags) and 16V643000 (latches/locks/linkages). The parts for the recall repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The contact had not experienced a failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the recall issues. VIN tool confirms parts not available and parts distribution disconnect.

- Sullivan, MO, USA

problem #34

Jan 022017

Escape 4WD 4-cyl

  • miles
2013 Ford Escape. Consumer writes in regards to driver side door latch problems is identical to passenger side door latch recall notice. Consumer requests recall for driver side door latch.

- Dearborn Heights, MI, USA

problem #33

Nov 032016

Escape 4WD 4-cyl

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign numbers: 14V597000 (air bags, seat belts) and 16V643000 (latches/ locks/linkages). The parts needed for the repair were not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. Updated 01/06/2017 updated 01/17/17.

- Elk Park, NC, USA

problem #32

Jan 282015

Escape

  • 12,583 miles
On January 28, 2015, while driving the vehicle in the city of trujillo peru. The engine stopped, the witnesses of the engine, oil and also the battery sign lit up. So I decided to take the vehicle to the authorized Ford, , where Ford mechanics determined that the engine had no oil, intercooler and ducts, spark burnt with oil residue workshop. Then the workshop asks me to authorize disassemble the engine to repair, the vehicle had 12.583 km long, and is within the factory warranty then, ask the college of engineering of the city of trujillo to conduct an ocular inspection. To determine the cause of the fault and the determination of the severity occurred in the vehicle, of course with the consent of Ford peru, Ford which he refused to perform an expert.

- Trujillo, KS, USA

problem #31

Sep 122015

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 14V597000 (air bags, seat belts); 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 not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

- Manvel, TX, USA

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