CarComplaints.com Notes: The top problem trend for the 2014 Escape is transmission failure at around 70k miles.
This is relatively low mileage for an expensive transmission failure ($4,500 average to fix), but unless the trend becomes more established, we are only awarding the 2014 Escape our "Beware of the Clunker" badge for now.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
10 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
65,278 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 low coolant level came on the car. We were told that they sensor needed to be replaced. We paid $1500 to replace that. The low coolant level light has back on 5 times, then the check engine light comes on and the car shuts off. It has left me, and my daughter stranded on the side of the road and in the middle of the highway. We were told they are not sure what else to do, here is a bottle of coolant from the dealership and keep bringing it back in. Next issues are it won't go over 20 MPG, my daughter was crossing a major highway, she lost power and the car started to shake. We are now told that it is the transmission. There was a recall replaced on it back in 2023. Not happy at all with ford and very unsafe.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle began to decelerate and failed to exceed 70 MPH. The transmission service required message was displayed. The contact stated while shifting gear, the vehicle hesitated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 115,000.
veh running hot and low on coolant; took nearly a gallon to set coolant level when checked. after cycling coolant & getting heat into engine found coolant entering the combustion chamber cracked head or gasket. engine misfire upon start up; white exhaust smoke. check engine light also on.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle unintendedly decelerated to 30 MPH. The check engine warning light and an unknown sensor warning light were illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that he turned off and restarted the vehicle and was able to continue driving. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving the following day, and the vehicle decelerated from 65 MPH to 10 MPH, nearly causing a semi-truck to crash into the vehicle. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle for 15 minutes. The contact stated that he restarted the vehicle, activated the hazard lights, and continued driving at 40-50 MPH. The contact stated that the failure mostly occurred while driving and exceeding 60 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be inspected. The dealer determined that an unknown sensor had failed, and the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V495000 (Electrical System); however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered due to the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.
Transmission failed without warning while driving on March 18, 2024. There were no previous issues, warning lights, symptoms, etc. The acceleration suddenly stopped, and the car struggled to move. This put me and other drivers at great risk of physical harm. The problem has been confirmed to be a serious transmission issue by our master mechanic and now needs to be replaced.
- Parma, OH, USA
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My engine coolant kept disappearing with no signs of a leak and no overheating. Then one day it was driving fine when I stopped at a red light and it stalled so I tried to restart it but every time I put it in gear it stalled so I had to get it towed to a mechanic and the diagnosed it as transmission failure. It never showed signs of transmission issues and never had a check engine light on or anything. Worst buy ever
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle made a popping sound and then lost motive power. An unknown message was displayed. The contact pulled over and restarted the vehicle, but the transmission failed to shift into reverse(R) or drive(D). The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 99,000.
Coolant circulation as part of recall 17S09. Not sure if my car was affected but it-??s not right. We have change coolant bottle and coolant seems to be going somewhere and can-??t figure out if my car was with this recall. Also already had to rebuild transmission. It was destroyed. $5000. Will never buy a ford again
The contact's girlfriend owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at approximately 10 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The transmission warning light illuminated later. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
While driving down the interstate, this car started smoking and i was unable to use the brakes. Its like the braking system locked up. I couldn't push the brakes because it was down to the floor hard with NO intentions on stopping. Emergency brakes were needed to stop this vehicle. The gear shift does not seem to in the correct position. Seems to be some type of powertrain issue. The coolant was leaking and there was no vacuum on the motor. The drivers door latch is defective, when opening the door it doesn't retreat, the latch stays in the open position. The backup camera is defective, doesn't show you are backing up. Dashboard shows brake lamp default an brake lights not out.
With no warning or indication the car would not go into gear. When put in reverse the car went forward. The car then bucked and the wheels kept spinning. I shut the car off and turned it back on. I had my children in the car. I was able to drive up the road and then the car made some crazy noises and would no longer accelerate. The car then indicated it needed to be serviced due to the transmission. No warning. No indication. Just died. I got this car a month ago.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the temperature indicated that the vehicle was overheating, and the contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed that the coolant reservoir was abnormally low. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the coolant intrusion had damaged the engine, requiring the long block to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N12. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 50,000.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle was shifted from park to reverse but failed to reverse. The vehicle was pushed out of the parking space and the vehicle was able to be driven. No warning lights were illuminated at the time of the failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the cause of the failure could not be determined. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The mechanic stated that the transmission port needed to be repaired; however, the vehicle was not repaired as of yet. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 98,750.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly jerked. The contact stated that after shifting into drive, the message -??Shift to Park-?? message was displayed. The service transmission warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a general failure with the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train) but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 149,000.
My car's coolant is leaking, this may lead to many belts breaking and engine failure. There are many reports online about coolant leaking and totaling the Ford Escapes. This puts me and others at risk because my car could stop working at any time while driving it. My dealership has noted that the coolant was leaking, but did not notify me about it. No warnings or lights came up on my car besides telling me my coolant was low, I refilled it multiple times.
My entire automatic transmission system failed at 122,000 miles without warning as I was driving down the highway. I heard a whirring noise and as I accelerated and started jumping and making clunking noises as it shifted gears. Eventually I was unable to move at all and turned and rolled to the side of the road. This could easily cause an accident as there was never any warning signs my transmission would go out. The car never pulled up a code or flashed a warning system before I was left stranded. The car was checked out by a mechanic and the transmission is completely finished. After researching the problem cars of my same make and model have been experiencing this issues around 80,000-120,000 miles for years and ford has made no attempt to rectify the situation or solve the issue.
The car takes off late (delayed) after pushing on the gas pedal. The shifting is also not responding, for example, I placed the car in -??REVERSE-?? gear and the car actually went forward like it was in DRIVE.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while shifting into reverse or drive, there was a loud slamming sound coming from the transmission. Also, while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would not properly accelerate. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who completed NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train) repair and informed the contact that the failure had been remedied during the recall repair. The contact stated that the failure continued to occur and later caused the vehicle to stall. The vehicle was examined at the local mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission axle was damaged and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 136,000.
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated that upon depression of the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated without warning and the vehicle failed to shift out of first gear. The contact also stated that the vehicle failed to move once shifted in reverse(R). The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact recently had the vehicle serviced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train) which she linked to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 121,000.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Hamlet, IN, USA