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:
8 / 62
Injuries / Deaths:
14 / 0
Average Mileage:
54,321 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.
There are several recalls on the coolant system with the 2013 Ford Escape, however even though I had to repair this same exact issue on my Escape as the recalls Ford said my VIN wasn't impacted on this issue. Really my 2 current Ford vehicles I own will be my last!
On 2 occasions, 11/4/2019 and 3/10/2020, I turned the ignition of my vehicle on my way to work (after car had cooled down all night). I drove about 5 houses down the street on a Suburban road at 20 mph when the check engine light turned on and the warning indicated that I should pull over immediately because the engine has overheated. At the same time, the car engine stalled and I lost motive power. Both times my car had to be towed because I was unable to restart the vehicle. On both occasions the mechanic added coolant fluid even though there was no sign of a leak or other explanation for the loss of coolant. I am fearful about when this will happen again. I've had all 15 of the recalls for my vehicle fixed in 2018. I believe my situation is just like the pending investigation NHTSA action number PE18007.
Vehicle goes into limp mode due to overheating from the failure of the coolant system. It has happened on the highway going 70mph down to 15mph in a matter of a few seconds with no warning. I have had this problem worked on 5 separate times, twice at the dealers expense and three times at my own expense. The code given from the obm is P26B7, that points to a coolant solenoid C problem. I have replaced the PCM, reset the new PCM, coolant reservoir, and heater hose twice. I smell burning coolant when either the air conditioning or heater is on once the engine warms up. This coolant issue happens about once every 3-4 months. I have attached one service record from Nov 2019. The newest service record is for Feb 2020.
After driving for a length of time longer than 20 minutes when vehicle is placed in park and shut off when restarting the vehicle will turn on and start but after driving a few hundred feet the vehicle will sputter, jerk, rev up the rpms then the engine will shut down and won't restart till it has cooled down
According to the Ford dealership in my local hometown, the coolant has been leaking into the engine and has caused the block to warp. Also it appears as though this is a known issue with many Ford Escape models, I'd like to have our vehicle considered for a recall because the cost is over $7,000. The engine light and coolant light are constantly coming on when driving the vehicle and it indicates that it's overheating
- Sioux Falls, SD, USA
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Engine cooling light keeps coming on and off. There is no evidence of leakage at this time that was inspected as well. Concerned about overheating, safety mode and other issues reported for this 2013 1.6 liter vehicle found on various websites that could follow. Vehicle produced 2/13 that falls out of 2013 earlier recall for coolant/engine problems. Obviously, this issue is outstanding for the entire year model given my similiar issue along with a multitude of other 2013 1.6 L Escape owners. This problem is occurring while driving.
Please see attached documents. Included is a letter written to Ford that was sent today, 3/2/2020, in the mail. As you can see, I have done my research and this evening I continued my research which lead me to stumble upon a facebook group called "Ford ecoboost nightmare" which then furthered my research more. I felt as though I had to file this with the NHTSA in order to keep myself and fellow-drivers safe.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. While driving 50 mph the vehicle speed decreased independently to 30 mph and vehicle lost motive power. The RPM was revved up however, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact detected coolant leaking from vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the contact was informed that the turbo lines are stressed. The contact called john sang Ford 195 upper river rd, gallipolis, oh 45631(800) 272-5179, however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 135,000.
My truck keeps saying high engine temperature stop safely....like it's running hot and it will not let me drive...I had to get it towed twice...this happened to me while driving on a highway twice..I feel like it's very dangerous. There was a recall on it once and I called Ford to tell to have it fixed but did not get a good answer I was looking for.
Engine randomly shuts off while in motion. Ford surprisingly 'can't' reproduce the problem. It's very dangerous and most of the time leaves us stranded in the middle of the road. A couple times it has left us in the middle of busy intersections. Only 87K miles.
Engine keeps stalling after driving for awhile took it to Ford garage a few months ago they said they couldn't find anything. I knew something was wrong I have already replaced the transmission and based on results of new diagnostic test done by a friend and not Ford garage 2103 Ford Escape P0234 I may eventually be replacing another. This is very annoying because the Ford garage can't find the problem.
After driving just 1 mile on city streets at less than 40 mph, my Ford suddenly displayed these alarms: "low coolant level, engine overheating, pull over immediately.". I pulled over, turned off the engine, and had the car towed to the nearest Ford dealer. Mechanic's diagnosis: Warped engine block, which enabled coolant to leak into one of the cylinders. It took 12 weeks and $7,930 to get the engine repaired. I purchased this car new on October 5, 2012. It had approximately 37,000 miles on it when this happened. My research on your website revealed that this car has been the subject of 15 recalls, 3 of which had to do with engine overheating and loss of engine coolant. One of the latter recalls (Ford recall campaign number: 12S39) occurred before I picked up the car, but I confirmed that my engine was one of those affected by that recall. Thus, I have no evidence that the repair related to this recall was ever performed. I took the car to a dealership to have the other recalls (Ford recalls 12S41 and 13S12) attended to. I also discovered that as of 16-July-2018, the Office Of Defects Investigation (ODI) had received 40 vehicle owner questionnaire (voq) reports for model year 2013 Ford Escape vehicles reporting that the vehicle will suddenly stall without warning while driving. The subject vehicles are equipped with a 1.6L gtdi (turbo) engine. Complainants alleged stalling caused by overheating of the engine resulting in delayed or no restart possible. This engine is the one I am writing about. The mechanic who repaired my vehicle also reported that this was the third or fourth such repair that he had personally conducted. My two phone calls to Ford Motor Co. Customer service have been unfulfilling. The car is no longer covered by its 5-year warranty despite that fact that it has only 37,000 miles on it, and I have always had it serviced properly.
My wife driving the car, 2013 Ford Escape with 75000 miles and then the engine light is on. Brought the car to the dealer and diagnosed that some coolant is leaking to the engine cylinder 4
Ford did a diagnostic on it which 2 codes showed but they tested and could not find the issue. So I then took it to the approved service shop. The first time they replaced the PCV valve but when I picked it up the next day, the engine light came back on and was now flashing. The shuddering was now happening while driving 70mph. I took it directly back to the shop where they worked on it for about 3 hours. As it was a Saturday, they asked me to bring it back in on Tuesday when the sr. Tech was there. On that day it was there for another 6 hours. They consulted with their head tech who has been there over 30 years and also with several Ford lead technicians. They replaced the egr valve and asked me to let them know how it was. The next morning I had the same issue. They asked me to bring it back in and they were told by Ford to replace a sensor. Once replaced that did not fix the issue. At that point they decided with Ford to take it to Ford to do another diagnosis. The code shows what they've already fixed. At this point there is not much else they can do. I have a vehicle that can't be fixed and I don't feel safe driving.
Car turns off while driving. Mechanic finally pulled up forced engine shutdown and had no idea what it meant, so I took it to Ford. They cant duplicate the issue they dont know how to fix it. I have no lights on. I am literally afraid for my life. Ford still has my car hoping to duplicate the issue. Ford headquarters are barely helpful. Provided me with a case number and that's all. No indication the car would turn off. Happened 3 times in 2 week span. In and out of the shop I am too scared to take it out this time. Last time I was on the highway with my children. It starts back up again when I press the start engine button but I have to react quick enough in order to dave my life. Not safe!
The engine kept stalling out at idle or just putting into gear. Mechanic diagnosed as gdi pump psi was dropping to 526. He replaced it. It is still stalling out when right after putting it in gear.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle reported a false alert stating that the coolant level was low. The contact stated that the coolant level was at the recommended level. A secondary alert was relayed with instructions to pull over as the vehicle stalled. Woody anderson Ford 2500 jordan ln nw, huntsville, al 35810, was contacted but was unable to schedule an appointment to have the vehicle diagnosed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective coolant level sensor. The independent mechanic linked the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 17V209000 (engine and engine cooling) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 147,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at 55 mph, the vehicle stalled as the check engine light illuminated. The contact had coasted the vehicle off the highway and pulled into a gas station. The contact was able to drive the vehicle in limp mode back to the residence. The vehicle was taken to don wood Ford Lincoln Inc. Located at 2065 E state St, athens, oh 45701, where the vehicle was diagnosed. The contact was informed that the turbo assembly was defective. The vehicle previously repaired under warranty. The vehicle was also informed that the fuel vacuum pump and fuel pressure sensor was defective. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The approximate failure mileage was 56,000.
Vehicle leaking continued leaking coolant after water pump changed. Dealership removed ignition coils & spark plugs looked with borescope, cylinder #3 had coolant recommended engine replacement. Tore down engine found porous casting on block allowing coolant into engine. This coincides with Ford recall #12V431000 engine and engine cooling and recall#13V58300 engine for other manufactured 2013 Ford Escape models but Ford is not extending recall to this Escape stating it was mfg at a different plant and during a different time than the other Escapes that were recalled. As stated by Ford "overheating of the engine cylinder head may cause cracks that could allow oil to leak potentially resulting in engine compartment fire. Ford needs to include these other Escapes in their recall.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Granbury, TX, USA