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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:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
83,530 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.

2013 Ford Escape engine problems

engine problem

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2013 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 5 of 7)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #52

Jul 142018

Escape

  • miles

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

I-??m having problems with my coolant leaking and overheating as a result. My coolant leaks out about a day or 2 after I fill it which causes my car to overheat. There is a recall on the leaking coolant but my vehicle vin does not show that it-??s in the system. It-??s not a big coincidence that my vehicle is having the problem that you recalled but I-??d not listed. Please fix my vehicle with this recall. This is a safety issue that needs to be resolved. Thanks

- Washington , DC, USA

problem #51

Jan 152019

Escape

  • 65,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was losing coolant, causing her vehicle to overheat. The contact had to add coolant several times per week. The low coolant level warning light would illuminate whenever the coolant level was extremely low. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the failure as a coolant leak. The contact was referred to the local dealer and was also notified of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

- Temple Hills, MD, USA

problem #50

Feb 032020

Escape 4-cyl

  • 90,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle overheated, lost motive power, and stall with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic where it was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The contact was referred to NHTSA for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

- Hopewell, NJ, USA

problem #49

Jan 092022

Escape 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 54,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the "Low Coolant", "Pull Over Car Overheating" warning messages were displayed, and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with a coolant level sensor kit failure. The vehicle was not repaired and remained with the independent mechanic. The dealer and manufacturer were made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 54,000. Consumer stated while driving in a school zone approximately 20mph, current temperature was 14 degrees. This has been a recurring problem.

- Buffalo, NY, USA

problem #48

Dec 012021

Escape

  • 90,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated the vehicle was losing coolant. The low coolant indicator light was illuminated. The contact added coolant to the vehicle and the warning indicator light went away. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who referred the contact to the local dealer. The contact called the local dealer and was referred to the manufacturer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified however, no further assistance was provided. The contact stated the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V431000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

- Clinton Township, MI, USA

problem #47

Jan 212022

Escape

  • 113,500 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that after returning from an independent mechanic and driving at 55 MPH, the vehicle shut-off with the "coolant level low" warning message illuminated on the instrument panel. With the assistance of a State Trooper, the contact was able to pull the vehicle off to the side of the highway and add water to the coolant reservoir. The contact then took the vehicle back to the mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective coolant level sensor. The dealer was then notified of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was provided a case number. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 113,500.

- Summerfield, FL, USA

problem #46

Nov 012021

Escape

  • 100,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle lost all power and the contact stated that the engine overheating warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over and refilled the coolant reservoir and was able to restart the vehicle after waiting approximately 2 hours. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V583000 (Engine) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

- Fredericksburg, VA, USA

problem #45

Nov 082021

Escape

  • miles
When heater is turned on in my vehicle (2013 Ford Escape) during winter, the radiator light and check engine lights come on. Oil is visible on the engine. I refill the radiator and radiator light goes off. There is oil spewed under the vehicle's hood and on the motor. It is my understanding that there was a recall for the powerplant, which overheats and leaks oil and other fluids onto the engine which could possibly result in fire. I would prefer to avoid this

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #44

Jun 012021

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would overheat with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the vehicle would stall and independently enter safe mode as the temperature gauge would indicate that the engine was hot. The contact had initially taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who could not determine the cause of the failure. The mechanic then took the vehicle to a dealer where he was instructed on how to repair the failure. Upon return of the vehicle, the contact stated that the vehicle no longer stalled; however, coolant and oil began to leak from the vehicle. The contact then took the vehicle to the dealer where they informed her that they could not service the vehicle in a timely manner. The contact then called the manufacturer who informed her that her vehicle was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Stone Mountain, GA, USA

problem #43

Dec 092021

Escape

  • miles
While driving on the morning of 12/9/2021, the low engine coolant warning came on. Vehicle is leaking engine coolant from undiscovered location.

- Osceola, AR, USA

problem #42

Oct 012021

Escape

  • 141,460 miles

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

The contact's wife owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, a warning alert would frequently chime as the low coolant warning message would illuminate on the instrument panel. The contact had to frequently replenish the coolant due to the failure. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed him that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V431000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and provided the same information as the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 141,460.

- Union City, TN, USA

problem #41

Oct 152021

Escape

  • 100,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that her daughter had to add coolant to the vehicle. The coolant warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic contact who stated the vehicle was leaking coolant internally. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

- Tallahassee, FL, USA

problem #40

Apr 012014

Escape

  • 130,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the low coolant warning light was illuminated. The message to -??Pull Over Immediately-?? was displayed on the instrument panel before the vehicle lost motive power. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer three times to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that coolant was leaking into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided the contact the NHTSA.gov website to file a complaint. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.

- Livonia, MI, USA

problem #39

Mar 012020

Escape

  • 160,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that she had initially observed spots on her driveway due to an unknown leak. The contact had taken the vehicle to several independent mechanics however, none of the mechanics could find the source of the leak. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle began to shake with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact had discovered that the coolant reservoir was empty. While refilling the coolant reservoir, the coolant spilled out of the vehicle. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to her residence. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) which she linked to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed her that the VIN was not included in the recall. The contact was provided a case number and was referred to NHTSA for assistance. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #38

Feb 262021

Escape

  • miles
2nd day I had it temp out side was -15? in Feb. I started my car and warning lamp said low coolant service immediately not even 2 minutes it said pull over safely engine will shut down. dealership came got it said it was a coolant hose.... they lied. it was the coolant bypass valve that was malfunctioning. I got the car back and it was okay for a couple weeks then said low coolant. I've been dealing with pretty significant coolant bypass valve problem since. so I got to researching and found that there was infact a recall on my year, make and model car but yet my vin wasn't included. this is seriously going to cause me or my family serious injury if not fixed and I do not believe I should have to pay for repairs on something that's known to be faulty.

- Independence , IA, USA

problem #37

Aug 242021

Escape

  • miles
Smelling fuel & coolant leak took to ford & had diagnostic test done they replaced hose's..picked back up drove 1day & started doing same thing saying low coolant pulled over and it was steaming bad.. looked at overflow tank & it was almost full so I just left it in my driveway came out to look at it again and it was empty.... I don't understand why it's leaking coolant and why it's doing this if hose's have been replaced why it loosing coolant where is coolant going doesn't make any sense.... I seen where there was recall on 2013 model with coolant leak / freeze plug & fuel leak in lines??

- Rainsville, AL, USA

problem #36

Aug 012021

Escape

  • miles
2013 Ford Escape 1.6 ecoboost engine started to show signs of coolant loss at around 32,000 miles. No visible leaks but coolant level in reservoir was low. Reported this to Ford Dealer service department. They pressure tested system but found no leaks so they just added more coolant. Coolant loss persisted but was very slow. Now at aproximately 53,000 miles, vehicle has been diagnosed by Ford service with an internal coolant leak. Coolant leaking into cylinder 1. Engine replacement needed.

- South Daytona, FL, USA

problem #35

Apr 152021

Escape

  • 75,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle started to overheat. The message "Check Coolant, Coolant Low" appeared on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was not repaired however, the engine coolant was refilled. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the engine coolant was leaking. The engine coolant was refilled however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact the vehicle was not included in a recall and offered no further assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 75,000.

- Jackson Township, NJ, USA

problem #34

Aug 032021

Escape

  • miles
There was a pop noise and then screeching under the hood for a short period & then the noise stopped. Pulled into my garage for the night. Pulled out the next morning to go to work and the car overheated, low coolant warning light came on. I pulled over into a gas station to let it cool down and added coolant. had it towed to a repair shop & diagnosis is: Water pump bearing failed and leaked engine coolant leading to engine overheating and cracked block and is now leaking oil. Car is available for inspection.

- Birmingham, AL, USA

problem #33

Apr 032021

Escape

  • 110,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the engine started to shake violently and was leaking coolant. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

- Lowell, MA, USA

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