2016 Ford Escape complaints

The transmission is shot at only 130,000 miles on a car with regular maintenance. The repair will be over $4000 to replace the transmission as it is not repairable. This is now a common problem with the 2016 ford escapes.

Abs, hill assist, in and out of smart 4WD, does not brake correctly

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 MPH, the vehicle started losing motive power, decelerated, and then stalled. The contact indicated that the vehicle would no longer drive forward or in reverse however, the engine was still running. 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 100,150.

Transmission failed while in motion; car slipped into reverse while at a light. Had to pull off and have car towed. It is now undrivable. Transmission must be replaced.

Driving down the interstate and all of a sudden rims shot all the way up and loss power to the vehicle. As If it slipped into neutral. Made it over to the side of the road. Turned vehicle off amd back on and it worked fine for about 100 feet. Made it to a empty park and ride where I'm currently awaiting a tow service. Now in any gear while vehicle is on there appears to be a whine coming from the top of the transmissions bell housing. Car will not move now. Seems as though the transmission went out on it. Looked around online and it appears to be very common with this specific ford vehicle. One website even mentioned a class action lawsuit about it but didn't give specifics.

TRANSMISSION FAILURE

While operating vehicle, it suddenly made a noise, almost like a bang. Then engine then revved to 8000 rpm. Immediately following that I could no longer advance forward while pressing the gas pedal. I had to get to the side of the road as best I could. I was in a dangerous situation. Once at the side of the road, the vehicle would not advance forward or backward. There were no warning lights illuminated on the console. I looked under the hood and did not see anything leaking or out of the ordinary. My vehicle had to be towed. I towed it to my usual mechanic who evaluated it and said the transmission was no longer functional and needs to be replaced or rebuilt. He checked the transmission fluid and stated it was at the appropriate level and the appropriate color/clarity. He checked for recalls and stated there were none, but saw there were many other complaints of this same issue.

I had no warning signs nor lights on dashboard; pulled to a stop and went to leave and put it in drive and heard a major clunking noise inwhich I thought I hit a rock, the car would not go in any of the gears. If I had been driving while the transmission went out or dropped I could have caused an accident or even worse killed someone or myself. The car is being towed to dealership now. I just spent $1100 replacing arms and outer tie rods ends yesterday at the dealership. I am extremely upset and I know there are over 350 complaints about the 2016 Ford escape transmission problems!

Engine failed while traveling on state highway Had to coast to a safe parking area Vehicle started after several minutes Engine lights visible before engine failure as engine ran rough Incident occurred twice before returning home. Informed by service mechanic that vehicle needed a purge valve which the local Ford dealer has several valves on back order with no replacement date. Vehicle cannot be driven as losing engine power would be a disaster if I was on a heavily traveled highway. This vehicle has less than 30,000 miles.4

The Ford Escape has been a problem since I bought it the tranny went out at 110,000 and the head gasket blew at 140,000 still paying on the car with major problems

2016 Ford Focus SE check engine light code P1450 Malfunctioning Canister Purge Valve / Fuel Tank Vacuum. This error is common and known. This causes the engine to not start after fueling. And engine to buck / stall while in Motion / driving. Yet no recall notice on file for vin.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at 5 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the vehicle was misfiring. Additionally, the independent mechanic diagnosed that cylinder #2 and the spark plugs needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic where cylinder #2 was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to another independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that coolant was leaking into cylinder #2 and the engine needed to be replaced. The independent mechanic informed the contact that it was a manufactured defect. The vehicle was being taken to a third independent mechanic for engine replacement. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they were aware of the failure; however, they could not assist as the VIN was not included in a recall regarding the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.

Turbocharger failed, leaking exhaust fumes directly into the car cabin. Turbocharger flange warped on the high heat exhaust side due to two of the three support bolts shearing off. Bolts failed because they were a dissimilar metal to the part they were threaded into, and the chemical process between the dissimilar metals weakened the overall strength of the bolts. Once the bolts sheared off, the flange face warped, allowing exhaust fumes to leak into the cabin. The exhaust fumes into the cabin were quite excessive, especially noticeable while parked, and caused headaches and lightheadedness for the occupants. This is a clear manufacturing defect, as any engineer knows not to mix metals in this fashion, and the result was very dangerous to the occupants.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a faulty driver's side air bag. The dealer informed the contact that the driver's side air bag 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. The failure mileage was 78,972.

Ford Sync 3 system malfunctions randomly. GPS will show inaccurate location and inaccurate directions leading to misguiding down wrong street or wrong ways. Additionally, backup camera may not display on the screen which is a safety hazard when backing up. Problem may be related to the APIM which is a known issue in many of their other vehicles.

I had service at Corwin Ford and inspection showed my lug nuts were in bad need of replacements. We were told there was a defect that was causing them to swell and become unsafe. No recall yet, but we were told add your name to the complaint list so they know how frequent this was a problem.

APIM is currently inoperative - no rear camera view. No power to the unit.

I was heading home when my vehicle stopped accelerating or kicking into gear. Fortunately, I was in the neighborhood when this happened, but there were no warning lights when the incident occurred. If this had happened on the interstate, I am sure I would not have been able to safely maneuver the car to the side of the road. I had to completely stop and restart my car for it to kick into gear again. I cannot go more than a quarter mile without it failing. It only has 113,000 miles on it, and the first fluid change was not required until 150,000 miles. I've been told by a mechanic that the entire transmission needs to be replaced. I have been waiting since January 1, and the part is STILL on back-order.

Vehicle tire became flat after striking an object in the road. Using the Ford provided equipment in the vehicle I was unable to use the lug nut wrench to remove the original Ford lug nuts from the wheel. It appears the lug nuts had become swollen/deformed and would no longer fit into the provided wrench thereby not allowing me to safely remove the affected tire and install the temporary spare. The vehicle was brought to a Ford dealership for repair. The dealer stated this is a known issue. The lug nuts are at the dealership for inspection if needed. My safety was put at risk as I was unable to remove the flat tire and install the emergency spare. A complaint was filed with Ford Motor Company as well.

Was with my children leaving a parking lot. Merged onto a busy highway and while trying to accelerate, the car wouldn’t move and RPM’s revved up. Cars were approaching the back of my car very quickly and we were almost rear ended at a high speed. I was able to pull off to the side and call for a tow truck. My very well maintained, 2016 Ford Escape had a transmission failure requiring a replacement with no warning! No warning lights illuminated and the car was not acting up before the failure.

Transmission failure transmission just quit pulling motor accelerated but transmission was like it was in neutral then started making a winning noise had to have vehicle towed home can’t drive it to have it checked calling Ford motor company tomorrow but according to other complaints about this issue probably not going to do anything about it unless somebody makes them recall it sure glad my wife wasn’t on the interstate could have caused a terrible accident so many complaints on the vehicles vehicle did give transmission fault but then went off

The contact owned a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated when attempting to park, the steering wheel locked and the engine accelerated independently fast. As a result, the contact crashed into a curb, over a snow-bank, down the ditch, and came to a stop crashing into a tree. There were no injuries sustained. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot. The vehicle was totaled. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving the vehicle was shaking and failed to accelerate above 3 MPH. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. Additional while, driving the engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the same dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the bulb was touching a wire. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted however, no further assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 106,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact noticed that there was a burn mark and a bubble in the front driver’s side fog light. The contact stated that heat from the bulb melted the cover. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

APIM MODULE SHUTS DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF DRIVING CAUSING GPS, RADIO, BACK UP CAMERA AND REST OF DASH TO GO BLACK

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving uphill at 35 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently started jerking. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that he released the accelerator pedal and the failure stopped. The contact was able to continue to drive the vehicle; however, the failure reoccurred several times while driving uphill and while passing other vehicles. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who informed the contact that he would be responsible for the cost of the repair because the VIN was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist because the VIN was not included in an unknown engine recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to NHTSA for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Car gets stuck in overdrive. I was told by someone it has something to do with the turbo boost

Had to change the front parking lamp. To do this it was necessary to remove the front wheel. Due to swollen lug nuts I could not remove the tire. Tried the wrench on all remaining nuts and found it would not fit on any of them. It is impossible to change a flat tire. Faulty design/manufacturing. I had to replace all 20 lug nuts.

Blown head gasket. Class action lawsuit pending against current issue I am having due to setup of motor and allowing water to sit and deteriorate gaskets. Caused vehicle to overheat while driving. Confirmed by mechanic shop.

The airbag icon came on and I did not have an accident. I did not bump into anything. I took it to the dealership and they nothing about it. I also had problems with my transmission. The icon never came on about my transmission. I was driving home and the car stop shifting gears. My vehicle is only 5 years old and it should not have a transmission problem. I have only taken my car to the dealership. No other person or mechanic has ever worked on my car. Ford is selling cars that are not operable and safe for the consumer. Ford knows about this problem and they want to charge me over $6,000 for transmission fix. This 2016 Ford Escape should be recalled.

My car has 25000.00 miles on it. This started last year. It is a 2016 escape. Runs fine until I put gas in it. The car will not start after I fill up. I thought I was crazy, as that is the only time it does this. Once I get it started it is fine until I fill up again. I look online to see if anyone else had this problem and found out it is common with this car. I spent 257.00 for new purge valve and it fixed the problem. The car never showed a check engine or code. This is a comon problem and should be recalled!

During routine oil change, the mechanic informed me that the tires could not be rotated due to swollen lug nuts. In order for other routine maintenance to be performed to ensure the vehicle is in safe operating condition, I had to purchase new lug nuts so the mechanic could complete the maintenance. The mechanic did not have the lug nuts available and I had to pay for labor. The reason the mechanic gave for not removing the swollen lug nuts was the lug nuts are likely to break during removal. In the event I have a flat tire, I would either be unable to remove the nuts myself or would drive with possibly damaged lug nuts. Damaged lug nuts could cause undue stress on other lug nuts, leading to breaks. Broken lug nuts mean tires can fly off cars. This seems like a major safety issue that Ford needs to address.

Vehicle caught fire while sitting in my driveway after being driven 30-45 minutes prior. No prior issues with the vehicle. No warning lights or messages while driving vehicle home. Drive home from work was approximately 1 hour drive time. I heard car horn blowing and looked outside to find car engulfed in flames. Local fire dept and police responded. Claim filed with insurance company who towed vehicle to salvage lot the next day. Car deemed a total loss.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the transmission would not operate in the reverse position. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the shaft lock cable assembly was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The contact indicated that the vehicle was previously repaired for the same failure in 2018. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000

Rear view camera doesn't always work when putting the car in reverse. It doesn't go blank, the monitor just remains as if it was going forward. Sometimes when it does work, it remains on while moving forward momentarily.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that after refueling the vehicle, the vehicle was difficult to start up. The vehicle was eventually restarted but after stopping at a traffic light the vehicle was there was an abnormal vibration coming from the engine compartment. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the canister purge valve was stuck in the open position. The contact was informed that the valve lining needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.

My vehicle stopped shifting as I was on the highway. I had to pull over to the side. The vehicle had to be towed to the dealership where I bought it and I've been told the transmission needs a total rebuild. The is a 2016 Ford Escape with under 100,000 miles. There was no warning prior to this happening. Once the transmission stopped working I finally received a warning to have the vehicle checked.

Yesterday we experienced a complete engine fail in our 2016 Ford Escape because coolant leakage caused a hole in engine block. We have about 80000 miles in our vehicle and regularly maintain it. Going to cost about 6,000 to replace entire engine.

THE LUG NUTS ON MY FORD ESCAPE ARE DEFECTIVE. I DISCOVERED THIS AFTER A FLAT TIRE. THE "OVERCAP" ON THE LUG NUTS WIGGLED. THEY WERE ALSO ENLARGED AND WOULD NOT FIT ANY STANDARD LUG NUT WRENCH. THEY COULD NOT BE SAFELY REMOVED AND REPLACED ON MY VEHICLE. I HAVE SINCE HAD THEM PROFESSIONALLY REPLACED. THIS APPEARS TO BE ALL OVER THE INTERNET.

While driving the vehicle suddenly deccelerated. Pressing the gas peddle did nothing. It acted as if it was in neutral. Transmission fault light illuminated. This blocked all traffic as there was no shoulder and no time or place to get off the road. It was an extremely dangerous situation on the curve of a road. Vehicle was towed to dealer. Dealer verified abundant metal particles in transmission and recommended replacement ($6,247.69). Regular maintenance was done and mileage is only 61,537 so only recently out of the 60,000 mile warranty. There was never a warning or symptoms. Light came on later during the incident.

Rear door on drivers side will not open from the inside after it has been locked and unlocked unless it has been opened already. It something is wrong with the child lock. This is a major safety issue. Someone on the outside has to open the door to let the person out. If there was an accident or some type of incident and the person needed to get out quickly they would not be able to.

According to the dealership the throttle body is putting the vehicle in Limp mode and the car dies out because of it. Ford has had a recall on vehicles with the same issue. However, the dealership wants yo charge 469.04 for the repair.

Car suddenly would not shift and engine revved without moving in the middle of driving. This is an extreme hazard as my 2 year old son and I were pulling out into traffic. Had to turn the car off and back on and was able to get off the road. The transmission died without warning and the car is only at 55k miles.

I had driven my vehicle normally until one day I put the car into Park and it continued to roll forward. The shifter was stuck in park and would not move, but my dash indicated the vehicle was in Nuetral. The cable between the shifter and the transmission was damaged. Prior to this the sun roof has stopped working and my backup camera started malfunctioning as well. This is after I had to get the fuel injector replaced and the turbo replaced before that.

"transmission fault - repair now" light came on. Engine went to high RPM but very little forward movement. Was able to limp short distance back to home. Transmission then would not shift into reverse. Had car towed to dealer on 8/24/2021 for repair. Dealer indicated total transmission failure had occurred and would need to be completely replaced. Cost quoted at $5500.00. Transmission is a sealed unit with no way to check fluids and is recommended for service at 150000 miles. This car is at 90000 miles, way before the 150000 service call. There was no forewarning or symptoms of complete failure prior to incident.

Back up camera don’t work when backing up.

A few months ago, out of nowhere and with no warning my 2016 Ford Escape flashed a transmission failure and car immediately started having acceleration issues. I was on a 8 lane highway (4 lanes each direction), in the far left lane as I was approaching my left hand turn lane. I had to pull over on this 8 lane highway on the far left lane causing a major safety hazard, not only for myself, but for all the cars in the south bound direction. Once traffic had a break, I started my car back up and was able to make the next left hand turn (which was actually the turn lane I needed to take) to get off an extremely 8 lane highway. This left hand turn also could have caused a safety issue as I wasn't able to accelerate at a normal rate and had to coast across this highway going around 5mph. I immediately pulled over after that turn and got the car towed to the nearest Ford dealership. The tow truck driver wished I had pulled over a little further up since he would have to stop traffic to get the car on the tow bed, obviously something I couldn't do since I was unable to accelerate. When the car was turned back on no transmission warning was on. Ford did replace the battery and confirmed multiple internal transmission component failures with the diagnosis and the transmission would have to be replaced. I did get a second opinion and they also confirmed the failures that the Ford dealership told me. The car is only 5 years old, gave me no indication that there was anything wrong until

My airbag light kept coming on and off over the past month. Within the last week and half or so it has stayed on steadily. I seen a recall for other escapes with airbag defects but not mine and so I am not sure if there is about to be a recall on my vehicle.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle abruptly came to a sudden stop. The contact indicated that the incident occurred without warning and nearly caused a collision while driving on a busy freeway. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

Experienced a vibration upon engine startup in April 2021 at about 60,000 miles, diagnostic from check engine light suggests that it was a cylinder misfire. I had it in to 4 different appointments before it was found that I have a bad head gasket, causing coolant to leak into the engine, damaging the engine and risking a catastrophe. Ford will not cover 100% of costs due to it being 4k out of warranty, so this is an out of pocket expense.