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CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2007 Ford Escape looks pretty good compared to other Ford Escape model years, but still has a trend of transmission problems, so it's not a model year we can recommend.

Also the base model Escape did not come with side airbags so it received a "Poor" rating from the IIHS for side impact protection. Other similar 2007 models like the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V & Hyundai Santa Fe scored far better.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
66,724 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.

2007 Ford Escape brakes problems

brakes problem

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2007 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #30

Jun 022022

Escape

  • miles

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

ABS service system warning came up on my dash along with the brake light and the abs light, immediately after the lights came on the ability to stop and stay stopped vanished.

- Burlington, NC, USA

problem #29

Jun 022022

Escape

  • miles
ABS service light comes on intermittently, when light is on a "service brake system" warning comes across the guage cluster. While this service light is on the escape has little to no braking and requires upwards of 300ft to stop when going 45mph. Once the vehicle is brought to a stop you can hear the brake system attempting to pressurize but only making a repeated grinding noise directly in front of the driver in the engine bay. Once vehicle is parked and shut off the brakes continue to make the same grinding noise. After allowing the vehicle to sit over night you may get lucky and have fully functioning brakes or you may unlock the door and hear the grinding noise letting you know the abs warning will be illuminated once the car is started. I have currently rear-ended another vehicle while stopped at a red light because no matter how hard I pressed on the brakes my vehicle continued to roll forward into another vehicle. My vehicle passed inspection with zero obdII codes the day I bought the escape Friday, May 27, 2022. Exactly a week later on June 2, 2022 I experienced severe brake failure and rear ended a 2021 Toyota 4runner. No major damage was caused to either vehicle. Two days later on June 4, 2022 the brake system failed once again causing me to drive my vehicle off the road into the median to avoid an impact at 65mph on interstate I-85. I am a father to my 3 year old daughter, but I am unable to transport my daughter in fear of endangering her life because of a faulty brake system Ford refuses to recall.

- Burlington, NC, USA

problem #28

Dec 182021

Escape 4-cyl

  • miles
On 12/10/21 the accelerator stuck. I had to pull off the road, because I was losing power. But what if it got stuck at a high rate of speed? How would I stop, other than the hand brake and pray that it works. It had happened another time that week, but I thought it was a fluke as the car only has 85000 miles on it. I bought it in Sept 2021. It happened again on the 11th. Had my family member look at it and they lubricated the accelerator and a cable in the engine compartment. It has not done it since. Here is the VIN # [XXX]. 12/18/21 Drove to church. No problem with anything. No lights on.... the dash. Family member left to go home for the afternoon and stated that they almost hit a herd of deer, because the brakes went straight to the floor. They drove back for the evening program, with the same problem. I drove home about 35 miles an hour, and the brake pedal goes straight to the floor. No noise of any kind, no warning, no puddles where the car was parked at church or at home. The brake light is on now. What in the world. This could be fatal... both of these issues. FORD just told me there are no recalls, and then sent me to a survey. They need to look into these issues....Poor customer service in my opinion and could be a fatal situation. Last week was unable to get in for an appointment within a 50 mile radius to get that problem looked at. NOT able to be seen till after the new year.... INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Allegan, MI, USA

problem #27

Apr 032021

Escape

  • 45,000 miles

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

Purchased this pre-owned with only 40K miles. It's now only at 45K miles and randomly the ABS light and service brakes notification came on the dashboard. Took it to a garage and had them scan and it seems to be ABS related. Still have no repaired but from reading all over forums, reddit, google searches, and more this seems to be an extremely common problem that costs a ton to repair. Ford should handle this as a recall if it is a regular issue with this make and model. How is there no class action lawsuit yet" it seems countless people are mentioning that the brakes outright failed while driving on the road or even highways. What if someone dies" this is not acceptable.

- Edison, NJ, USA

problem #26

Feb 072021

Escape

  • 142,000 miles
Hello, I have a 2007 Ford Escape hybrid. The car is in excellent condition inside and out except for the braking system. The braking system has been systematically hard to press the pedal since I have owned it due to being a hybrid, however, the braking system is failing as of 2 days ago. Consistent with many, many other Ford Escape hybrids, the braking system warning lights, ABS warning lights and brake system service warning will sporadically engage on the vehicle. Even without the warning lights, this vehicles brakes will now fail, often dropping completely to the floor of the vehicle without warning. As the brakes are a vital component of the vehicle the failure has come during critical times, via stop signs, stop lights, stopped traffic, nearly causing serious injuries or fatalities. When the warning lights engage, the braking pedal is hard, but does fail as well. An immediate service performed at the local garage determined the car malfunctioning brake system is due to the master brake cylinder and hydraulic brake pump, connected to the hybrid system which is highly consistent with all early model Ford Escapes. Repair estimates exceed $5000-7000 usd. The braking problem with the early generation Ford Escape problems is endemic, and deserving of additional scrutiny and attention from the nthsa. These cars are deadly as set, and thankfully my family has not had an accident or death. Please give these vehicles additional scrutiny, as it is not obscure to see widespread braking malfunctions nationwide. Ford will not acknowledge the problem.

- Eureka, MT, USA

problem #25

Jul 272020

Escape

  • 71,600 miles
My wife approached a stop sign at 15 mph, the brake pedal went to the floor, the vehicle was not stopping when brakes applied. She thought the accelerator was stuck. She managed to return home. I inspected the car and found the front right brake hose ruptured, the brake reservoir drained to the separating partition. The failed hose had ruptured at the strut attach bracket, obviously a flex point. There were other failure points in the hose rubber coating visible. I replaced the hose and inspected the front left hose. Same failure pattern, very early leakage noted at the body hardline connection and the strut attach bracket. I replaced that hose as well. Rear hoses appeared completely intact and no issues noted. 71,600 miles on the vehicle. This is a serious common issue across the Ford Escape line which is also sold as the Mazda tribute. NHTSA notes only one incident, I found 38 on one site alone, https://a failure of one system puts all the pressure on the remaining system. As seen in our case the remaining system was severely compromised. I find it deeply disturbing that NHTSA has nothing in the recall arena on this yet has 2 minor recalls, one being for after market airbag -seat cover interference issues. Really" perhaps if the brakes work the airbag wouldn't be deployed" I have several more pictures if needed.

- Anchorage, AK, USA

problem #24

Mar 042020

Escape 4-cyl

  • 143,000 miles

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

Brake warming light and message. Brakes work but only partly - okay for general driving but not for emergency stops. Diagnosed by Ford dealer for over $5000 in repair. Quick internet search reveals that this is a common problem in Ford Escape hybrid vehicles, but Ford refuses to repair the obviously faulty units. This should be a recall on all units, or at least free repair for failed units. The replacement is more than the vehicle is worth. There are only 143,000 miles on the car, and otherwise it works fine.

- Morgantown, WV, USA

problem #23

Feb 192020

Escape

  • 150,000 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The ABS warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.

- Blooming Prairie, MN, USA

problem #22

Dec 312019

Escape

  • 7,000 miles
Within a month of purchasing vehicle, mileage 67,000, complete brake system failure. Could have been fatal and will be if not corrected. Many exact complaints found online. Vehicle failed to stop coming to light. Had to pull off the side of the road into a wooded area for the vehicle to stop. Felt like vehicle was sliding on road. Later realized it was a ABS system failure not sliding. ABS light is on. Brake system needs service light on. Emergency brake light stays on. Approximately 75% of the time, when first driving vehicle, only the service brake display is on. The vehicle will begin to buck/stutter, steering wheel shakes, and traction control warning light illuminates. After accelerating, that stops and returns to what I described.above. I read since there were no fatalities reported Ford will not recall. I am certain there have been fatalities due to this problem, just not identified.

- Voorhees, NJ, USA

problem #21

Oct 312018

Escape

  • 114,000 miles
Brake system quit working on my Ford Escape hybrid. It is a known broblem. Dealer wants $7000 to fix it. Hydraulic pumps burn out in them. You loose the complete braking system in the car.

- Dexter, MI, USA

problem #20

Nov 122018

Escape

  • 141,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2007 Ford Escape. While driving 50 mph, the brakes failed to operate when the brake pedal was depressed. The contact stated that the brake lights illuminated on and off. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the exciter ring was fractured. The mechanic attempted to glue the piece back together, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 141,000.

- Wilkes Barre, PA, USA

problem #19

Jun 212018

Escape

  • 98,000 miles
The brakes failed at a stop sign and sent my daughter into traffic that was going 50 mph. Fortunately she put it in reverse and got out before an accident was caused. The ABS light came on and mechanic says it will cost over $4000 to fix. After research we see that hundreds of others have had this exact problem. Hydraulic control unit is faulty and a bad design that recurs.

- Santa Rosa, CA, USA

problem #18

Jun 242018

Escape

  • 187 miles
Brake failed the regen system failure and ABS brake failure caused an almost serious accident $7000 for repairs for something that has numerous problems from 1000S of others having the same issue it is a 2007 Ford Escape 2 wheel drive hybrid

- New Palestine, IN, USA

problem #17

Sep 222017

Escape

  • miles
I have replaced the ABS tone rings in my vehicle 3 times in the last 4 years. Two of the times it broke I was driving the vehicle. I was on a major road when this happened. This part needs to be recalled. There is no reason for it to break this often. To make matters worse it can only be fixed by a Ford dealer because of the computer system.

- Newfeild, NJ, USA

problem #16

Feb 262015

Escape

  • 91,000 miles
The contact owns a 2007 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while parked and the key was turned, the vehicle had a loud noise from the front end, the instrument panel illuminated and the panel read "brake service needed" in addition, the ABS and the brake warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was restarted and all of the warning lights turned off. The vehicle was driven to the dealer. The hydraulic brake system was replaced but the failure recurred numerous times. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 91,000. Updated 05/04/17

- Chesterfield, VA, USA

problem #15

Jan 272012

Escape

  • 61,000 miles
Started to drive and the ABS/4WD light came on. Went to dealer and had to replace the cracked front ABS ring. This happened on 27jan2012 and again on 23dec2013

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #14

Dec 232013

Escape

  • 74,000 miles
Pulled out of my parking spot and the ABS/4WD light came on. Went to dealer and had to replace the cracked front ABS ring for the second time

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #13

Oct 232015

Escape

  • 125,588 miles
Broken tone ring right front

- Wellington, FL, USA

problem #12

Aug 302015

Escape

  • 42,000 miles
The passenger rear right brake/tail bulb went out, when I went to replace the bulb I found that the socket was burned, very dark brown splotchy areas, and had a distinctive odor. I checked the left, driver side and found that the socket on that brake/tail light was also turning brown at the pin site. It concerns me that I am finding this issue to be a consistent problem around the internet.

- Albany, OR, USA

problem #11

May 122015

Escape

  • miles
Three lights turned on simultaneously, brake, ABS, and the "wrench" icon indicating a major failure. Brake pedal went to the floor and I experienced an 80% loss of braking power narrowly avoiding a collision with cars stopped in front of me. Lights remained on and brakes were severely compromised with very little braking ability. Turned the car off. When I restarted the car all systems were operational and all lights were off. Drove the car to a Ford dealer the following day for evaluation. Dealer diagnosed and told me they ran a computer test and no reports. I asked them if they test drove the car, they said no. A week latter the same thing happened and I almost T-boned a car. A very loud sound was coming from the rear of the car. I shut the car off and the system "reset". I was able to drive home but I do not feel safe. I can not get a any Ford dealer to tell me what is going on.

- Glenpool, OK, USA

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