In my first comment I put the wrong engine type - it was actually a 2.0, not a 3.6. Anyway I replaced both the coupler bolt and the vacuum pump. When I remove the original vacuum pump I found that the coupler was broken and the bolt part was still inside the cam shaft drive, so I had to go to the hardware store and buy an easy out kit. It was not simple by any means but eventually I’ve managed to ease the bolt out.

I first practiced this on the broken top of the bolt so that I would know how difficult it was to center it, and it proved to be very difficult. After I replaced the bolt and the vacuum pump, it does still have a wobble after replacing them, so after a quick test drive I took it back home, and pulled it all back apart so I could make sure I had the pump in correctly.

I have not test driven yet but I plan to tomorrow. I had purchased an extended warranty but when moving I lost my maintenance records (which I do my own oil on). I did not have receipts for anything, therefore the underwriters would not cover my repairs. Not sure how much the dealer would charge me but I am going to assume it would be too much so I opted to attempt the repairs myself. I'm not sure if that was a good or a bad idea at this point, I will update after my test drive tomorrow.

Was driving on highway 2, put on my turn signal to turn left onto highway 56, applied the brakes and nothing happened. The brake pedal was really stiff - I had to put both my feet on the pedal and use my seat to apply enough pressure and using the emergency brake to get it to stop. There was no warning, no lights, nothing to tell me that my brakes were failing… And even with all that, it still took about a minute to do. And finally was able to pull over to the shoulder, If there had been anyone in front of me, I'm most certain there would have been either a collision or me veering off the road. It was really scary. I am surprised they have not done a recall - I have seen many cases with the Ford Escape from 2014 where they have had the exact same problem. This is ridiculous - we’re responsible to pay for something that’s also failed in the Ford Rangers but they haven’t been a recall on the Ford Escapes. That’s stupid.