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 / 61
Injuries / Deaths:
14 / 0
Average Mileage:
55,529 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.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine misfired while the vehicle was being driven on a hill. In addition, the check engine and low coolant warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with coolant leak into the cylinder. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline and report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
Vehicle overheated and displayed check engine light and overheating was towed to body shop was fixed Overheated 2hours later and was towed back Overheated the next day and was towed where they say nothing is wrong
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while receiving routine maintenance, the mechanic added more oil than the engine required. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine was smoking. There was smoke coming from the tailpipe. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinder EcoBoost. There were also metal shavings inside the engine, and a short block engine replacement was needed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 119,000.
- Charlottesville, VA, USA
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The coolant reservoir on my Ford Escape is leaking, which is a known common problem with these cars. I have had to refill it every couple of months, and there is often a puddle of coolant on the ground when moving my car. Occasionally when driving, the car temperature monitor gets hot, which is incredibly dangerous; sometimes this happens only a week after refilling the reservoir. I took my car to a shop and they noticed the coolant leak and said it would be expensive, but that it is a common problem.
There have been recalls on this year, make and model for substantial coolant leaks in the past. Our vehicle did not make that recall list, but we have been dealing with a similar issue for many years, and even after expensive repairs we are still losing coolant. The vehicle will not hold coolant for more than 24hrs at this point before having to refill it, and we are in need of more work on the coolant system.
The coolant system contuiously leaks which cause my vehicle to over heat and shut down while im driving. I have to add coolant daily sometimes multiple times a day. I have been on the highway and my vehicle starts to overheat and stal. I have almost gotten into wrecks. This has been going on since I brought the car
Recurring coolant leak in engine system, coolant tends to also leak out when poured into reservoir. This puts engine at risk of overheating. Message appears marking low coolant, it has to be replenished every 7-14 days. Mechanic has not been able to locate leak.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled and lost motive power. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure had been persistent. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure could not be duplicated. In addition, the vehicle had been taken to the dealer several times in the past for the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 42,900.
This 2013 Escape has a 1.6L Ecoboost engine with a known engine design flaw that allows coolant to leak and be consumed through cylinders 2 and 3. This is known to cause car fires, overheating of the engine, etc.. I recently experienced the precipitous consumption of coolant through the engine which resulted in abrupt warning messages and an overheating message after which I stopped the car immediately. This could happen to anyone on a freeway or in bad traffic causing immediate safety issues for the driver/passengers. Thankfully I was very near home when this happened. I have had my vehicle inspected, pressure tested and documented confirmation that coolant is in fact leaking into cylinders 2 and 3. The only known remedy is an engine replacement (with one that was redesigned and released by Ford in 2022). I want Ford to recall all cars with the 1.5, 1.6, 2.0 and 2.3L versions of this Ecoboost Engine which has been well documented to have this flaw, and provide said engine replacement at no cost to the owner.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle then began to slowly decelerate. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic, but the vehicle was unable to be diagnosed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.
Always adding coolant, shook on start up, white smoke, eventually completely died which was inspected and had multiple repairs; reconditioned cylinder head, replaced water pump, thermostat and housing, timing belt, headset and head bolts, replace oil filter, fill oil and anti freeze, new battery. Total cost to fix was $3,367.98. The car is available for inspection upon request. Now after paying for all of those repairs, I am once again having the same problem with the car 1.5 years later. There have been no warning lamps either and it-??s been going on for over a year and has been serviced for the same reason in the past. There are many other happenings that have happened revolving around failure of the engine system that have significantly affected the safety of myself and others, most recently extreme exhaust that was emitting a gas and burn type smell and the car was shaking heavily at idle.
This Car has had non-stop coolant problems for years.Constantly looses coolant and low coolant light comes on and have to refill.I replaced coolant bypass valve 7/8/21, and again on 3/22/23.Its ok awhile then starts loosing coolant again.Few days ago low coolant light came on after refilling it just a week ago.This time the engine light came on code p1299, with a message to pull over because my car was overheating and it didn't have any power.
My car will just shut off while I am driving without warning. It will restart but will continue to stop and then it won-??t start back because now the battery is dead. Got a new battery and the next day it was dead. My mechanic said there is something electrical going on because there was a sparks coming for the battery when were disconnecting it to do coil packs and plugs
On 03-17-24 My daughter was driving a few miles away from home, when the dashboard system states "High engine temperature, pull over safely." Within 30 seconds of pulling off the road, the flames came out near the windshield from under the hood. Within 5 minutes the car was fully engulfed and completely destroyed. I am so upset and frustrated that Ford is not taking this matter more seriously as this appears to be a common occurrence with these vehicles. Fortunately my daughter was uninjured.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the engine coolant low message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who replaced the engine sensor; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic, who replaced the coolant bypass valve, but the failure persisted. The contact added coolant to the reservoir. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle had previously been repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V583000 (Engine). The manufacturer advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was unknown.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Barnesville, PA, USA