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.
They KNOW the headgasket will eventually bust and they don-??t tell you, it needs to be recalled because now I don-??t have a vehicle when it was built to blow. The headgasket doesn-??t have enough space or something and it causes coolant leaks, they have a whole procedure on replacing it because they know they messed up but only if you-??re less than 84k miles!
Have had to have many sparks plug replaced, coolant needs replaced frequently, hesitating, hard start, blue smoke from exhaust, chugging, stalling, check engine light on. Two different mechanics have told me that coolant is leaking into cylinders causing engine failure. I purchased this vehicle new, and only owner. Have had to have transmission replaced as well. Costs estimate about 10k to replace motor. This has been happening since 100k miles.
Engine light came on. It came up as misfire cylinder 3 needing spark plugs/Ignition coil so I made an appointment to get that fixed. On my way to my appointment today, the -??engine overheating stop vehicle-?? warning came on. Turns out this is the known coolant intrusion into the engine block problem that has caused the engine to crack and now needs replaced. Called Ford customer service and just like what they are telling everyone else, there is nothing they can do to help. Yes it-??s a known problem by Ford but they will not fix it because my car does not meet mileage criteria. It has 130,000 miles.
Experience misfire + engine issues that resulted in white smoke coming out from my exhaust. When brining it into the shop it is apparently a common known issue with Ford Escapes from 2017-2019 where coolant leaks into the motor from a while in the short block. The short block requires $9000 to be replaced. When doing my research Ford released a customer survey back in 2022 that I did not receive where they acknowledged the issue and offered to replace. But since I did not receive this letter I did not get the opportunity to and now am out a car that I still owe money on. Why is this not legally required to be a recall?
My motor had to be replaced due to coolant intrusion. Now my transmission has to be replaced as well. It was definitely faulty. I have letters from the Ford dealership that worked on my car and put the new motor in. It was caused by coolant intrusion.
- Marietta , GA, USA
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I bought a 2018 Ford escape with the 1.5 eco boost. The car only has 74280 miles on it, and the engine coolant was low. I filled it up, and had my daughter drive the car to her home, and asked her to check it. It was just a little lower than I filled it, so she was going to monitor the level. On her way to a friends the warning for, "High engine temperature" (not the exact message) came on. She pulled it over to the side of the road, and I had her tow the vehicle to her friends house. Now it appears there is an issue with the water pump, and the engine not holding a vacuum in the cooling system. I researched this issue on line, and found Ford has an issue with this particular year due to the engine cooling system design between the cylinders. She is NOT able to afford a new engine. This is with out a doubt a FORD recall issue. What can I do to get this covered by FORD? Thanks for your help. [XXX] [XXX] I do not have the towing receipt, but can get it from my daughter. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
To whom it may concern, I am writing to express my deep frustration regarding a serious issue with my Ford vehicle. My vehicle recently displayed code P0302 -?" Misfire Cylinder 2, which has been diagnosed as coolant intrusion into the cylinder. The recommended repair is a replacement long block, along with new hardware and seals. This is a known issue with certain Ford engines -?" one that Ford previously covered under warranty or service campaigns prior to 2023. My vehicle has fewer than 60,000 miles, yet it has suffered a major engine failure clearly tied to a manufacturing defect. Ford and even U.S. government agencies are aware of this widespread issue. Unfortunately, Ford is now refusing to take responsibility for a defect they have long known about. It-??s extremely disappointing to see such disregard for loyal customers. This experience has completely eroded my trust in Ford. It-??s clear why so many Americans are turning to foreign manufacturers -?" companies that take accountability and fix known problems instead of ignoring them. I will never purchase a Ford again, and I will be sharing my experience so that others are aware of how these issues are being handled.
Our 2018 ford escape was experiencing rough idle with no indicator light. Left work one day and the engine light came on. I took it to a local shop they read the computer and said that we had low coolant levels and that we have coolant intrusion into cylinders and needed a new short block. This is a well known defect in these motors.This poses a great safety risk to the automobile as the engine can seize going down the road making the automobile totally inoperable. The 2018 escape was taken to the ford dealer, the dealership applied for financial assistance with the repair and we were denied by Ford. The escape had 63,500 miles at the time of failure. We paid for repair out of our pockets. It cost us $5,272.01. This is a huge expense for us considering so few miles on the motor. This Escape is out of warranty, but this is a defect and should be recalled.
My understanding is that ford knew about flaws in there 1.5 and 2.0 economist engines. I am experiencing the problems that have been experienced from the 2018 ford escape.
Coolant intrusion due to faulty manufactured engine. Which they are well aware of and won-??t do anything to help fix an issue that many people are dealing with. Getting quoted over $12000 to for a new engine.
The small block of my engine needs to be replaced. Ford has told me that it is a known problem and that is why they extended the powertrain warranty to 85,000 miles because of it. My car has 125,000 miles on it so I was told they can-??t do anything. I don-??t understand why, if this is a KNOWN problem with this car, why I should have to pay for it because I took good care of it so it didn-??t happen until 125,000 miles. This should be a recall. I have an incident claim at ford because of this. I spent $4000 already trying to fix it before finding out it was the small block the whole time and it-??s going to cost $78000.
I drive a 2018 Ford Escape with only 73,000 miles. Engine misfiring upon startup and check engine light caused me to immediately take my car to the mechanic. They diagnosed my vehicle with a coolant leak into cylinder 3 in my engine and a crack in the engine head. This is a known issue in my year/make/model which has affected enough consumers that it is pending class action lawsuit. If I continue to drive my car in the state it is in, without spending 7-8k repairing this issue, it is likely to be a hazard to myself and any drivers around should my engine overheat and sustain greater damage while on the road.
The engine is leaking coolant into cylinder 2. Ford dealership on October 1, 2025, confirmed this and has recommended a long block engine replacement due to warping of internal engine parts. No overheating of engine as of yet. Engine warning lamp did illuminated once indicating an engine misfire per code reader. Warning lamp was a few months before dealership diagnosed the problem as a bad engine. Vehicle has 97,048 miles and has been very well taken care of with records showing all routine scheduled maintenance.
Early May 2025 the check engine light came on. Had towed to my mechanic 95 miles away (I live remotely), they changed the spark plugs. Within one week the check engine light came on a, took to a local garage (inside the national park where my residence is) and they chaned the spark plugs again. The nect week I heard my coolant system making noises (it never made this before), checked and refilled fluids, but it continued and tye check engine light came on again. Had it towed to my mechanic again. They advised me the headgasget blew and the coolant system went with it. Had to pay to have it towed to my home.
Coolant intrusion due to bad engine built. I was driving and the car stated it was overheating. Had to hurry and pull over on a highway with my children in the car. Started smelling like something was burning. I had just had a full work up on my car in July. No warning lights on my vehicle. It-??s currently at a ford dealership and they will not cover the costs for a new engine which is needed.
2018 Ford Escape. Purchased in 2021with 31,000 miles. vehicle has been maintained in compliance with all Ford standards. at 62,000 miles engine light came on, car slowed to less than 8 miles an hour almost immediately. Was told computer went into some type of safety mode. took to a Ford dealership was told that there was a coolant intrusion into cyl 2. I was told by the technician that this was a somewhat common issue in these vehicles due to poor engine design. Entire engine would need to be replaced for $13K. Obviously, the safety issue is the car automatically going into a safety mode. If I had been on a highway the immediate stall could have caused a major accident. Thankfully i was on a low travelled road. Researching these issue it looks like there are thousands of buyers with the same problems happening within months of purchase to years, time and mileage doesn't seem to matter. There are tens of thousands of these vehicles still on the road like a ticking timebomb
The car was serviced in 8/2022 after warning light came on leaving wife stranded while on nursing call. Towed to Ford dealership. Changed spark plugs @ 40,000 miles. Same issue repaired at local shop in 5/2025 @ 86,000 miles. Same issue @ 92,000 miles 9/2025. Diagnosed by Ford dealer to be coolant intrusion. Ford refuses to correct. This engine has known defects and has stopped in traffic which is a possible safety hazard.
The exhaust started emitting white smoke with an off smell upon cranking. We took it to a mechanic, and it is likely it is coolant intrusion into the engine block. The burning coolant is likely causing the white smoke. The check engine light has not come on even after the white smoke started. So, far there doesn't appear to be a safety issue, and coolant level is checked periodically. No person or entity has inspected the vehicle other than the mechanic. The concern is that coolant intrusion is not normal, and the coolant level will always be dropping. I don't believe this issue is conducive to long-term operation of the vehicle.
Check-engine light came on, error code showed misfire on cylinder 2. A couple months later, high engine temperature warning came on. Took it to a mechanic and said the coolant was completely empty, and there were over 1500 hydrocarbons in the cooling system. A full engine replacement is the only true fix due to a defect in the engine itself. Mechanic stated they had seen a few of these in the past, and pointed to Bulletin # 22-2322, which discusses the coolant issue.
Ford Recall 21N12 -?" Coolant Intrusion Issue Affected Vehicles: Ford Escape (2017-?"2019) built between 9/17/15 -?" 4/9/19 Ford Fusion (2017) built between 10/1/15 -?" 10/16/15 Ford Fusion (2017-?"2019) built between 10/6/15 -?" 6/10/19 Issue: Coolant intrusion into the engine cylinders, causing engine misfires. I am writing regarding my 2018 Ford Escape, which falls within the production window affected by recall 21N12. My vehicle is in excellent condition with low mileage (87,050 miles). In August, I experienced a noticeable engine shutter and took the vehicle to an authorized Ford dealer. After inspection, the dealer confirmed that the engine was affected by the known coolant intrusion issue and that the solution required a complete engine block replacement -?" quoted at $11,000. Unfortunately, I was informed that my vehicle falls just outside Ford-??s extended warranty coverage (7 years or 84,000 miles) for this issue. I find this extremely disappointing, as this is a known manufacturing defect that affects a broad range of vehicles, and Ford has chosen to draw an arbitrary line, rather than taking full responsibility for all impacted vehicles. I contacted Ford-??s customer service and complaint department both by phone and in writing. Despite my explanation and supporting documentation, Ford refused to offer any assistance or goodwill resolution, citing only that I was beyond the mileage and time limits. It is extremely frustrating that my vehicle -?" well within the affected build range and with relatively low miles -?" is now undrivable for over six weeks due to a defective engine, and Ford will not take accountability for an issue they are fully aware of. It is particularly disheartening to see Ford invest in expanding its world headquarters in Dearborn while choosing not to stand behind their products or support loyal customers who are left with major repair bills for known defects.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Vermilion , OH, USA