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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
57,044 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.

2016 Ford Escape drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2016 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 10 of 13)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #64

Apr 112020

Escape

  • 92,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle made an abnormal sound and decelerated independently. The check engine light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who found two unknown codes and told the contact to take the vehicle to the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000.

- St. Louis, MO, USA

problem #63

Mar 042020

Escape

  • 85,000 miles
My 2016 Ford Escape torque converter in my transmission exploded at 85,000 miles. Aamco told me its a known problem with this transmission. Ford should have a recall on this part. When the transmission failed, I was in heavy traffic and travelling around 30 mph. Cost $5400 to repair because the metal shavings went back into the transmission. Very dangerous!

- Hillsborough, NM, USA

problem #62

Oct 182019

Escape

  • 63,500 miles
Slowed at flashing yellow light on highway, when accelerating after light, transmission slipped. Was in the middle of a long trip. Slippage occurred intermittently, then frequently and "service transmission now" message appeared. Slippage occurred whenever car was slowed and transmission attempted to downshift and then accelerate afterward. Very dangerous at intersections, especially when taking left hand turns in traffic. Vehicle less than three years old and slightly over 60K mile warrantee limit. Transmission had to be replaced for $6500.

- Newport, VT, USA

problem #61

Mar 122020

Escape

  • 100,000 miles

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

While driving, without any warnings....no engine lights, the vehicle jerked then when trying to accelerate it wouldn't move, only engine would rev up. Vehicle stalled one time and after starting back up it was able to accelerate but no more than 20-40mph. Had to keep pulling over and restarting to get vehicle to keep moving to get to a safe place. Warning message finally came up to service transmission now. Had no previous transmission issues or messages. This all happened during rush hour traffic on the highway.

- Plymouth, MN, USA

problem #60

Feb 182020

Escape

  • 71,000 miles
My car stopped while driving on a side street. Autonation Ford claimed there was a malfunction which led to the transmission failure. They wanted $7K to repair. I took it elsewhere for repair and within 1 week after repair the car engine caught on fire while driving. I had been on the interstate but had just exited to a nearby residential area. The entire front of the car was melted. The car is totaled and has been turned over to my insurance company, allstate.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #59

Feb 032020

Escape

  • miles
Transmission failed on my 2016. It's not even 5 years old. No warning of issues. My vehicle is regularly has oil changes. It just stop on me and would move forward.

- Odem, TX, USA

problem #58

Jan 302020

Escape

  • 59,300 miles

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

Ford Escape 2016, while driving on the street my car started smoking from the hood I stopped immediately checked for water, coolant water was empty so I filled water and I took to the mechanic shop they said its coolant reservoir

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #57

Jan 242020

Escape

  • 62,500 miles
My 2016 Ford Escape broke down on the morning of Friday, January 24th. No warning, no prior issues occurred. It was a complete shock. The warning light, 'transmission fault service now, ' came on only when the car broke down. Not only was it scary, but it was extremely dangerous. As a result, we had to tow the car to the anderson Ford dealership (anderson, SC) where we purchased the car. Unfortunately, the car's warranty had just expired. My car has 62.5K miles. The local dealership was of no help. Even contacting the Ford corporation brought very little if any relief. There's no doubt in my mind that this is a faulty part. I've not seen a recall, but I have noticed many similar issues have been posted. Please help!

- Clemson, SC, USA

problem #56

Jan 072020

Escape

  • 87,000 miles
I've had this car for a little over 3 years and have been on time with every single normal upkeep and maintenance service. It currently has 87,000 miles on it, and while driving home from work, I felt the car shudder when I tried to accelerate, the gears slipped several times, and the engine would alternate between revving when I was barely touching the gas, to not going anywhere at all when I had the pedal to the floor. I had to have it towed and was told that it had major transmission issues. Mechanic said that there was a gasket that failed and caused a transmission leak. And thanks to the design transmission fluid is not something that I can check myself.

- Ridge, NY, USA

problem #55

Jan 162020

Escape

  • 86,850 miles
I've had this car for less than 3 years and have been on time with every single normal upkeep and maintenance service. I bought this car because I thought it would be reliable after I had my daughter. It currently has 86,850 miles on it, and while driving home from work, thankfully on back roads, I felt the car shudder when I tried to accelerate, the gears slipped several times, and the engine would alternate between revving when I was barely touching the gas, to not going anywhere at all when I had the pedal to the floor. I had to have it towed and was told that it had major transmission issues. My mechanic tried a flush, which had it working long enough for me to get 5 miles down the road, where it completely quit accelerating after I stopped at a stop sign. This car is in impeccable shape otherwise, has less than 90K miles on it, and is less than 3 years old. There is absolutely no reason it should be needing a completely new transmission.

- Citrus Springs, FL, USA

problem #54

Jan 132020

Escape

  • 74,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while parked, the shifter cable bushing fractured without warning. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was repaired and the shifter cable bushing was replaced. Upon investigation, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 18V471000 (power train). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 74,000.

- Danielson, CT, USA

problem #53

Jan 162020

Escape

  • 87,000 miles
Failure of the shift interlock cable. Car will not go into park or reverse. Vehicle was at a hospital parking lot and my wife thought it was in park removed the keys from the ignition, exited vehicle and the vehicle rolled backwards into the parking lot traffic. She immediately jump back in the car and applied the foot break, placed the emergency brake on and turned on flashers.

- Grand Haven, MI, USA

problem #52

Jan 012020

Escape

  • 65,100 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds the vehicle independently decelerated without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The local dealer jim shorkey Ford located at 1234 long run rd. White oak pa, was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was contacted and notified of the failure, case number: 2194740). No additional assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 65,100.

- Munhall, PA, USA

problem #51

Dec 272019

Escape

  • 90,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while attempting to move off from an intersection, the accelerator pedal was depressed however, the vehicle failed to respond. There was no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to glacier valley Ford located at 1243 South blvd, baraboo, wi 53913, (608) 356-2222 where it was diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle at was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

- Avocha, WI, USA

problem #50

Jan 052020

Escape

  • 92,000 miles
Car began to show hesitation when accelerating on highway onramp. The next day, transmission disengaged while at a drive through. Car would not move at all. I then shifted into park and back into drive. Car violently jumped and then began to crawl. Was able to slowly move in an attempt to get it home. Transmission again disengaged while driving causing RPM to shoot up. Was able to push to parking lot and get it towed to local Ford dealership. I have seen many reports online of this same activity and care is less than 4 years old. Most owners have just passed the 60K mileage mark that the powertrain warranty covers. Ridiculous - Ford has already had recalls for other year models of the Escape and for other vehicles in the same year for this same issue. The 2016 Escape needs to be included in these transmission recalls!

- Bentonville, AR, USA

problem #49

Sep 162019

Escape

  • 31,500 miles
I bought it around Aug 1, 2019 with about 30,000 mi. Less 2 months after I bought it, it started intermittently going to limp mode, where I can't accelerate past ~1500 rpms. Restarting the car usually makes it go back to normal. Though sometimes I have to restart the car several times, which sometimes triggers the check engine light, and/or turn it off and wait a couple min to make it go away. If I restart the car, and it immediately goes back to limp mode, I can hear/see the rpms go abnormally high for sec then go back down. When in limp mode, the traction control warning light, airbnb warning light, "hill start assist not available" message, and "engine fault service now" message come on. It usually goes into limp mode at low speeds in stop and go traffic when I'm stopping and sometimes when accelerating, especially on hills. Though it came once on the interstate when I was just slight braking going from ~ 70 mph to 65 mph, requiring me to dangerously pull over onto the shoulder of the interstate at night. I took it to the toothman Ford dealer in grafton, wv where I bought the car, and they the found code P2107 about the throttle actuator. They told me that the throttle body needs replaced. I had that done 2 times with 2 different throttle bodies but that didn't fix it. I took it to another Ford dealer for a 2nd opinion while it was in limp mode, and they found a code about a problem with the throttle body circuitry/wiring, but they checked all the wiring and couldn't find anything wrong. Also, once when I did a cold start after my car was parked in the rain all day, the car went straight into limp mode as soon as I turned it on.also, one time in limp mode I smelled gas burning. I took it to an independent shop to diagnose the odor and was told the gas wasn't getting to all the cylinders. Restarting the car temporarily made the problems go away these times too.

- Morgantown, WV, USA

problem #48

Nov 222019

Escape

  • 75,000 miles
I've owned the car for a little over 3 years. The other day I was at a stop sign and when I went to accelerate my car would move. The RPM went up but no movement. Finally in slammed into gear so I could move and park. Up until this day I had no issues that would make me suspect that my transmission was going bad. So I had it towed to the dealership and was told that I definitely needed a new transmission. When my husband spoke to the man he asked if it was common in that vehicle for the transmission not to last. The man told him yes that it is a faulty design on Ford part and that they actually have another one at there shop for the same.problem. I am by no means hard in my vehicle and I dont feel that transmission problems should be something to worry about in a vehicle that is 3 years old.

- West Alexander, PA, USA

problem #47

Nov 132019

Escape

  • 61,700 miles
While driving in highway, car began to increase acceleration suddenly and began to lose speed. Transmission could not engage and vehicle would not move. Stranded in highway. Car was towed to Ford dealer. Mileage was 61,700 and Ford refused cover under 60K powertrain warranty. Transmission was rebuilt by dealer at a cost of $3,400.

- Lexington, KY, USA

problem #46

Nov 122019

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the gear shifter failed and could not be shifted out of reverse. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was not available.

- Nashville, TN, USA

problem #45

Nov 162019

Escape

  • 114,340 miles
The car was placed in park and the dash showed neutral. The key could be removed and the car turned on and off but unable to shift the car into any gear such as drive or reverse. Using google and a youtube video I was able to locate the override for the shifter and put car in drive and drive the one mile to the dealership. The dealership offered no real assistance or advise on what to do other than 'get the car to them' and a statement that the issue sounded 'just like a recall' - 'but the recall is not on your car'. per the dealership the shift cable bushing was worn and cable came loose from transmission. This appears to be the exact same defect as NHTSA campaign number: 19V362000 however my vehicle is not included in the recall and I was charged $258 for replacement of a $6.35 part that is known to be an issue. This recall should be reviewed and expanded if additional vehicles are affected. This is a huge safety concern to have your shifter and transmission cease communication.

- Millington, MI, USA

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