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.
During highway driving at approximately 40 mph the vehicle suddenly lost acceleration, stalling, and the throttle/power train indicator light came on. I was forced to pull over on the side on the road, turn off the vehicle and restart. The care drove for approximately 3 more miles and then the issue recurred. I immediately proceeded to my local dealership (dealership where vehicle was purchased). During that trip, the "check engine" light came on. I was advised by the service technician that this was due to a faulty/failed throttle body but that the parts were on back order indefinitely with no word from Ford as to when they would be available. I was advised to continue to drive the vehicle in its current state until such time as the part was available.
Driving on the interstate at 60 mph, vehicle without warning is unable to accelerate while attempting to change lanes. Again on 6/12, accelerated from a stop light, without warning the car is unable to continue to accelerate and stops in the middle of an intersection during rush hour traffic. Turned car off, turned it back on again, was able to get out of the intersection and pull over to the right hand lane before it stopped accelerating again. Vehicle was towed to Ford dealership they found that the throttle body needed to be replaced.
This first started several weeks one day after filling up my car all of sudden it would not go. I pulled over barely missing being hit. I turned the car off for a few minutes and it would start up and I could go. This didn't happen again for a couple of weeks. The next time I was low on gas. It happened two more times. I kept thinking I had bad gas. Then last Saturday I was out shopping and it happened numerous times. I was so scared by the time I went home I was a nervous wreck. I can't tell you how many times I was almost hit. Even the morning I took it into the car dealer it died four times on the way. My car acted just like the situations in your article. Now the dealership at Ford is making me rent a car. I can't drive mine. Ford is saying they don't know if it is a week or a month before they get these parts in. They can't fix my car because there is such a big back order for this part. Somebody needs to get these motels recalled and get them fixed.
1st time: At traffic light making a left. Light changed, hit the gas, car went forwards then lost power, brakes and steering worked had to coast through the light to the shoulder, idling rough. Wrench symbol on dash was lit. Turned car off, checked manual, wrench symbol not in manual. Turned car back on and ran fine. 2nd time, 300 miles later. Driving when the car lost power, dropped to idle while driving, brakes and steering worked. Coasted to side of the road, wrench symbol was lit on the dash. Idling rough. Ran a vehicle health report and it showed: Urgent powertrain malfunction / reduced power turned off car, let sit for a minute, restarted and drove fine. Took car to dealers, states its the throttle body, on national backorder with no idea on availability.
- Paramus, NJ, USA
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While driving on the expressway I suddenly lost acceleration, began to lose speed and noticed the wrench light on the dashboard came on. I had to pull over onto the shoulder while semi trucks and cars blew past me. As I was trying to contact roadside assistance, I restarted the car and noticed the wrench light was gone. I was then able to get back on the road and continued to my destination without further incident. I took my car into a certified Ford dealership for service and they advised they found nothing wrong with the vehicle and located no stored codes in the computer. Yesterday on 06/11/2013 the same thing happened again while I was on the expressway. I had to get on the shoulder wait a few minutes and restart the car. Both times I was so grateful my 19 month was not in the car with me which is unusual. I plan on taking it again to have it checked out but I'm anticipating the same response.
As we were driving down the road we lost power, had to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle then started lurching forward and we had to turn the car off to make it stop. When we restarted the car it would drive fine for a few miles then lose power again and again begin to lurch forward. This happened 4 separate times before we had the car towed to the nearest dealership. This is a common problem in this model Ford and it needs to be recalled.
Driving on highway, at 65 mph. Car loses power and have to cost to a stop. Very dangerous situations trying to cross 4 lanes of traffic to get to shoulder of highway and stop safely. This happened once on 4/26/13, took to dealership, they said nothing wrong. Continued to drive until happened again. Happened on 5/30 and 5/31 repeatedly until got the vehicle to a repair shop. Repair shop has had the vehicle for 10 days due to part not available. Part is not available because this is a recurring problem for Ford and these vehicles. This is a very serious safety issue and needs to be recalled! please do something!
In a 35 mph zone, when accelerating after slowing to allow vehicle in front to turn, throttle stuck open & car lost power. Was able to get to side of road and restart car and proceed. Same thing happened 4 additional times that day at various speeds accelerating to speed following a stop or using an on-ramp to highway speed. Have experienced "surging" previously but dealer ignored reports as "intermittent". car was towed to dealer on 22 may and is still there awaiting a new throttle control body. Shipment of new part is estimated as 17 June. Dealer is not providing loaner or rental car as the part is not considered part of the powertrain & is therefore approx. 6 months out of warranty. Since the car cannot "go" without the throttle control body - why is it considered part of the emission system vice the powertrain? with so many cars down for this part, it should be a recall.
I was stopped at a red light preparing to turn right. While at a complete stop, the vehicle jolted forward momentarily and again came to a stop. I turned right and immediately my accelerator failed and the car would only move forward at a speed less than 5 miles per hour. I coasted into a parking lot where I turned off the vehicle and restarted it. It accelerated normally for a moment before failing again. The warning light that appeared was correlated with the power train, per the vehicle's instruction manual. When inspected by a Ford dealership, the mechanic said the throttle system had failed and needed to be replaced. All inspections and services related to the vehicle were up-to-date and there were no other problems detected. No one was injured.
Throttle body failure, making my 2010 Ford Escape inoperable. It shuts down completely on the highway. I lost power on the interstate while in traffic. This happened 3 times and I've had to rent a car while I wait for the throttle body part which is on back order.
I was driving at 45 mph when the vehicle shuddered and lost power. It began coasting and I had no response from the gas pedal. I pulled the vehicle over and put it in park. I realized it was still running, just very roughly. I shut the vehicle off and restarted it, after which it drove fine. Since then, it has happened between 5-6 times in a 2 week period. I took the vehicle to the dealer to be diagnosed and they told me I needed a new throttle body, which is not covered under the power-train warranty.
5/17 while starting from a red light stopped, the vehicle accelerated but suddenly lost acceleration. Wrench light came on. I was able to move the vehicle to a parking lot and call for a tow. The technician said the issue was with the fuel line and I had my vehicle back. 6/7 similar deceleration happened and this time the vehicle starting knocking a lot at low speeds. Wrench and engine light came one. After turning off and starting again, the vehicle drove fine. I brought it home and one Monday (6/10) started it again to take it to the dealer. The vehicle drove fine for half a mile before exhibiting the same behavior or deceleration and frequent knocking. I pulled the vehicle over and called the tow. I have been told by the mechanic that the throttle body needs replacing and it is back ordered nationally.
The first time I had just left a stop light and was accelerating and suddenly the vehicle lost acceleration and even with my foot pushing the gas pedal to the floor, it would not accelerate. I pulled over, let the car sit for a few minutes, cranked it back up and it drove fine for 2-3 weeks. (6/7/13) then after driving for 4 hours at highway speeds, this problem occurred again. It occurred three times before I got to my destination, all within a 30 minute timeframe. Each time it was able to be corrected by turning it off and restarting. Upon arrival at my destination I let the car sit for about 15 minutes then we took the car out again. It de-celerated one time at highway speed and one time at approximately 45 miles an hour. In this last set of occurrences the emission/check engine light symbol came on as well as the wrench symbol. Both times it was again able to be restarted - the two times in this round of occurrences happened within 10 minutes of each other. The car then sat overnight (6/8/13) and as I pulled out of the driveway to take it to a mechanic yet another occurrence happened. Again it was able to be restarted and I was able to drive to the mechanic and back (round trip of about 30 miles). While at the mechanic shop they ran a diagnostic and it came up as a problem with the throttle actuator control system. I do not have the error numbers at this time to notate.
The engine stalled while I was driving on the express way. With no power I coasted (luckily) to the shoulder. The same thing happened to my wife in the same vehicle the previous Monday. It was towed to a mechanics garage where it was diagnosed with a throttle body problem. He cleaned it, test drove it and sent her on her way. Obviously there is still a problem.
I pulled out of my driveway and around the corner when the car would no longer accelerate and a wrench warning light appeared on dashboard. I pulled to side and checked the owner's manual to find out the wrench meant something was wrong with the throttle/powertrain. I turned the car off then back on. The wrench disappeared and I was able to drive it home. When I got home, I called our usual Ford service guy and was told it could have been something lodged in the air filter but that if it happened again to call them. I was able to drive it to work and run some errands however I felt like it was jerking. Then later that afternoon, while driving approximately 40 mph on a main road, it happened again. Once again, I was able to pull to the side somewhat (it was a long right hand turn lane). I turned off the car and back on, the wrench went away so I tried to move forward and it happened again just after a few feet. I turned the car off and one again and this time the wrench disappeared however the check engine warning light came on and that's when I knew I could not trust driving this car any longer. I called Ford, called a tow truck and it is at the dealer now. We were informed it was a bad throttle body. I had done some online research after it happened that morning and found out there were many, many instances just like mine so when it happened again in the afternoon, I pretty much knew that was going to be the outcome. We were told by the dealer that they've been having an issue getting the part lately so it'll be another 5 days before they'll receive it and it'll cost $488+tax because it's not covered under warranty.
I was driving on the highway when the motor in the Escape just died, I was forced to move from the left lane of the highway to the right with almost no power. No accident occurred I took the truck to the Ford dealership and they say that part is on national backorder Ford is making 4000 of the throttle bodies in order to keep with the demand.
While driving at roughly 25-30 mph vehicle stopped accelerating and coasted regardless of pressure to gas pedal. I was in a busy intersection and was unable to get out of the way. Wrench light came on when vehicle stopped accelerating. I coasted to a driveway (no shoulder) and shut off the engine and restarted the vehicle. At this time, the engine light was on with no wrench light. Car accelerated fine so I continued home. In the span of 5 miles, this same incident occurred 4 times. Turning the car off and on would temporarily fix the issue, but the engine light never left. In route, I stayed on roads with shoulder allowances or frequent turnoffs, where possible. The following day, I took the vehicle to a mechanic who ran diagnostic and determined it was the throttle actuator control system. Currently having trouble finding the part to fix the issue, because of its current high demand. I'm told it could be a month.
I purchased a 2010 Ford Escape limited in October 2010. In just two and half of years of having the vehicle and under 50,000 miles, I had to replace the throttle body costing me $385 (after talking the service guy down to that price). The incident occurred on April 24, 2013 while driving home from work for lunch. I was driving on a busy road when my car's speed started to slow down automatically. I tried to press the gas but it would not accelerate although the engine was still on. There were no lights on indicating a problem, so I pulled into the first place I could, turned off the car and turned it back on. It started right back up so I didn't think anything of it and pulled back out onto the street. It happened two more times on my way home before I saw the first mechanic shop and turned in. By the third time the (wrench) light came on. Since I was still under the powertrain warranty the mechanic told me it was best to go to the closest Ford location. After looking at my car they told me the throttle body needed to be replaced and due to what type of part it was, the repair was not covered under my warranty so I had to pay the full amount. This does not seem normal given that the car is only a few years old and less than 50,000 miles. I am fearful that more problems are to come...
As I was driving my 2010 Ford Escape on the highway, it started to buckle and it eventually turned off by itself. The only thing that was remaining on was my radio. I had no steering, and the gas pedal did not even work. On a busy highway, I had to some how pull over, put the car in park, and, had to restart it. I did notice a wrench symbol on my dashboard that lighted up. Didn't know what it meant, so, I went ahead and got my manual out. The symbol has stated that it was "the throttle/powertrain" and I needed to see a dealer as soon as possible. This incident has happened before, I just did not keep track of it. This time it was more worse than the others. On June 1st 2013 it actually did it twice in one day. Thankfully the second time around I was in the clear and pulled over into an office complex. Had to do the same thing over again. Please check into this defect. It is really dangerous, scary, and its an accident waiting to happen. Luckily for me, that this did not happen. As of June 3rd 2013 the dealer replaced my throttle auto body. I am hoping that this doesn't happen to anybody else. It can cause serious damage to another person, if, they are not careful, and, don't know what to do. Thank god, I had my husband with me when this happened. The other times, I was actually by myself and scared out of my mind. I was in the middle of the road and on a busy bridge when my truck completely stalled on me. I could have killed somebody or myself. My total bill for this part to be replaced was $455. I am hoping you can check into this problem for other drivers as well. One day this is going to happen to somebody, and, it will cause a very serious accident.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Charlotte, NC, USA