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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
26,764 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.

2018 Ford Escape drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2018 Ford Escape Owner Comments (Page 4 of 8)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #89

Jun 022023

Escape 4-cyl

  • 32,500 miles

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

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormally loud sound coming from the engine compartment. While continuing to drive the vehicle, the sound dissipated, but the failure reoccurred. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined inconclusively that the flexplate and torque converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle is repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 32,500. The contact is requesting reimbursement for repairs made to the vehicle.

- Sewickley, PA, USA

problem #88

Jun 082023

Escape

  • miles
While driving at night at a speed of approximately 45 mph, the car started grinding and there was a smell of metallic material burning and it was difficult to accelerate. Within seconds the automobile came to a complete stop in the middle of a moderately traveled road in the left hand turning lane. There were no messages or warning lamps that would indicate that there was a problem prior to this complete stoppage. The safety of the driver as well as others is put at risk due to the fact that there were no prior indications or symptoms to this malfunction. Had this happened on a high traffic area while traveling at higher speed, there would have indeed been numerous accidents given the sudden stoppage without any safety lamps or alerts being exhibited on the dashboard that would alert the driver to get to a safer location or pull over. Waiting for a tow at night is dangerous and the safety of a lone driver is at stake. After three days at the dealer, we were advised that the vehicle has complete Transmission Failure. There is a safety recall (22S43) NHTSA 22V413 that deals with a transmission issue. The vehicle now needs a whole new transmission and is only 5 years old. Perhaps this initial recall may eventually lead to complete transmission failure. It was not described as what exactly the failure of the transmission.

- Ivyland, PA, USA

problem #87

Jun 022023

Escape

  • miles
Fly wheel cracks all of a sudden at 85000 miles

- Hopewell, VA, USA

problem #86

Jan 222023

Escape 4-cyl

  • miles

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

2 weeks after our warranty expired for the power train we experienced failure with a misfire of Cylinder 1. We replaced all of the spark plugs at around 41,000 miles. 1 month into replacement cyclinder 1 misfired again, we replaced the spark plug thinking it was that and also the coil. 2 months after we are having the same issue, replaced the spark plug again, and the code will not go away, the check Englishwoman light continues to flash. I brought it to the dealership where it has been preliminarily determined I have a coolant intrusion in cylinder 1 and a new king block will be required at the tune of about 9k. There was tsb 19-2346 on my car and nothing was done to prevent this from happening. We suddenly lost all coolant around the same time we replaced the spark plugs as well. There was no visible leak. Ford needs to cover this repair in full, and issue a recall. My 17 year old drives this vehicle and when she was driving yesterday is when the failure began as she was turning left she had a sudden loss in power, almost getting tboned.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #85

May 202023

Escape

  • miles
The dealership, All American Chevrolet of San Angelo TX, sold me this car 12/14/2022 without fixing the recall that was issued 6/2022. My battery has died 2x within a month, my check engine light came on yesterday but there are only 68k miles on the car. It's against federal law for a dealership to sell a car with an open recall, isn't it?

- San Angelo, TX, USA

problem #84

Mar 152023

Escape

  • miles
The antifreeze is leaking into the cylinders. My car has been diagnosed as being HYDRO-LOCKED. This happened in March. I took the car to REA Ford in Monticello where it was diagnosed. A claim was submitted to the warranty company who said they are not responsible for the repair because the manufacturer knew of this defect and had a Customer Satisfaction Program 21N12 - Short Block Replacement After Coolant Intrusion. This is dated June 09, 2022. There were program limits set in place which ended on November 30, 2022. This issue occurred with my car after this date. It is the same issue and I am being told by everyone that they are not responsible for the repair. The car will not start and had to be towed to REA Ford in Monticello where it is currently sitting. The check engine light came on. I took it to be diagnosed and was told this is the issue. I was told that they could not identify where the leak was until it got to the point that the car was having more difficulty starting and running. The car is now unable to start. My safety was impacted because I was told it was safe to drive but around March 15th, the vehicle would not exceed 6 miles per hour and just stopped moving. It had to be towed to the dealer's garage.

- Monticello, NY, USA

problem #83

Apr 202023

Escape

  • 95,202 miles

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

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle would not properly accelerate while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission was faulty 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 95,202.

- Hyden, KY, USA

problem #82

Apr 212023

Escape

  • 67,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle started losing motive power. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal however, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the RPM gauge was fluctuating however, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced, and that there were metal shavings inside the torque converter. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000.

- Bloomfield Twp., MI, USA

problem #81

Apr 202023

Escape

  • miles
The car began overheating while in operation. The driver immediately pulled over and shut the car off, and the car was towed to the dealership. It was discovered that there was a crack in the gasket, allowing coolant to slowly leak into the engine over time. The engine seized and is no longer operable. This is, as confirmed by my Ford mechanic, and KNOWN and COMMON issue with this particular year/model. Ford is aware that this is a manufacturing defect and has not issued a recall at this time.

- Brockport, NY, USA

problem #80

Apr 162023

Escape

  • miles
The transmission went out while driving down the road and I was barely able to get off the road. According to the dealership the transmission had an internal failure at 61000 miles.

- Sanger, TX, USA

problem #79

Apr 192022

Escape 4-cyl

  • 117,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds the vehicle would overheat and shutoff inadvertently. A message indicating that the vehicle was overheating was displayed. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and opened the hood until the vehicle had cooled down. The contact then restarted the vehicle and continued driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where an unknown filter was replaced; however, the failure reoccurred while driving, with the message "Powertrain Malfunction - Reduced Power" displayed. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer several times. The dealer diagnosed that the coolant pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to a second dealer, Friendly Ford, Inc. (1077 State Route 5&20, Geneva, NY 14456), where it was diagnosed that coolant was leaking into the engine and that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the failure was related to an unknown recall; however, the vehicle could not be repaired under the recall due to the mileage. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 117,000.

- Ovid, NY, USA

problem #78

Mar 112023

Escape

  • 59,150 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would not exceed 40 MPH. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where an unknown repair was completed. The mechanic test drove the vehicle uphill; however, the failure reoccurred. The mechanic referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where an unknown repair was completed; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred 8 times within a two-hour drive. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the torque converter needed to be replaced. The dealer advised the contact to purchase an Extended Warranty coverage. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 59,150. The VIN was unavailable.

- Dubuque, IA, USA

problem #77

Apr 072023

Escape

  • miles
In the past 2 weeks, the check engine light has come on and then turned off several times. April 7 the car overheated and it was found to have no engine coolant and a powertrain warning turned on. After adding coolant, the car ran and errors disappeared. We-??ve been checking the coolant every day and have had to continually add coolant although no leak seems to be occurring. Made an appointment at a shop to have it checked out and in the days leading up to that appointment, it started running roughly. April 12 it took several attempts to start and a powertrain warning came on and it wasn-??t running at full power. After turning the car off, when re started, error disappeared. Repair shop today said the engine coolant was leaking into the engine cylinders and that the engine needs to be replaced.

- South Lyon , MI, USA

problem #76

Apr 072023

Escape

  • miles
The transmission was found to have a leak by my personal mechanic. The suv does not have a dipstick to check if fluid is low so a few weeks ago it start making noise and running weird. It would hesitate while driving, slow acceleration, even sputtering to the point of possible shutting off. Sometimes I am not able to reverse out of the way of traffic. It is dangerous especially if my children are in the car. My mechanic said that at first he just thought it was low on fluid and then he seen a puddle on the pan that collects underneath but he assumed it was oil but that wouldn't be because I just got an oil change from the dealership. Come to find out the transmission has had a slow leak that I would have never even noticed because there is a collection panel underneath. I've tried to contact the dealership multiple times. No help, we've only had the car for 15 months.

- Pawtucket, RI, USA

problem #75

Feb 222023

Escape

  • miles
Pressed gas to move at light and car revved but did not move. Stuck on very busy highway. There was no warning. No warning lights, no weird noises. Nothing. Had car towed to Ford dealership. Advised transmission needs to be replaced. At 63,000 miles.

- Stewartsville , NJ, USA

problem #74

Mar 132023

Escape

  • miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

- Englewood, FL, USA

problem #73

Mar 082023

Escape

  • miles
I was driving around 50 mph. A notice popped up that said service engine now. It then started to run hot. I pulled over on the side of the road and the car wouldn-??t start. The car had no coolant in it at all when my help arrived. It was empty. I now have a message on my Ford app that says power train malfunction. I haven-??t had this car two years. My safety was at risk because my daughter was in the car and it started to run hot. I thought my car was going to catch fire. I can-??t afford to fix this when thousands of other people have had this same issue.

- West Helena, AR, USA

problem #72

Mar 052023

Escape

  • 79,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the message "Transmission Failure" was displayed, and the vehicle hesitated while responding. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was shuddering while driving 35-45 MPH. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the earliest availability for diagnostic test was approximately month away. The vehicle was taken to a transmission specialist, where it was diagnosed that the transmission fluid was abnormally dark, and the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to a local dealer, who had an earlier availability. The contact scheduled an appointment with the dealer for the diagnostic test. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

- Glastonbury, CT, USA

problem #71

Jan 132023

Escape

  • miles
There have been several instances of the vehicle completely shutting off while sitting idle and at red lights. I took it to the dealership and there is coolant leaking into the cylinders causing it to misfire. This is very dangerous and could cause the car to run hot or burn up! The said I should replace the engine but FORD should be responsible as this seems to be a problem in many of their escapes!

- Alexandria, LA, USA

problem #70

Nov 222022

Escape

  • miles
This 2018 Ford Escape Titanium has 32,000 miles on is experiencing chronic, substantive defects in the rear powertrain. Specifically, it is having its second replacement rear differential unit (RDU) installed. This means it will have worn out 3 RDU's in 32,000 miles. -Original RDU was replaced at ~23,000 miles and failed ~30,000 miles. Third RDU in vehicle's life is currently being installed. Additionally, this vehicle has already had its Power Transfer Unit (PTU) replaced at 22,000 miles and is now on its third set of rear brake rotors. My contention is that there are serious, substantive defects in the vehicles rear powertrain causing premature wearing of the brakes and potential for serious accidents related to the loss of rear differential control and brake damage.

- Newington, CT, USA

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