Problems with 2001 Ford Escape FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

We were driving around a curve and onto a straight part of the road about 40-43 mph and the engine just cut off. we were able to coast over to the side of the road and stop. the steering and brakes had no power. we tried starting the engine and it cranked but acted like it was not getting any fuel (there was half a tank). we left to get a ride and when we returned to tow the car it started right up and has been driving fine since. we are afraid to drive it now because if we had been in traffic we would have been in an accident. *tr

Tl*- the contact stated that the 2001 ford escape xlt wires under the hood burned while sitting in the garage of her home. she drove the vehicle one hour prior to the fire. the alarms in her house warned her of the fire. she called the local fire department, and they found no fire in the house. they then checked the garage and they smelled something burning. the fireman opened and noticed the wires that were burning under the hood of the vehicle. the vehicle was towed to town and country, and they informed her that old brake fluid leaked on the abs, which was the cause of the wires burning. the vehicle was serviced for the abs light coming on, and off at the local firestone, they replaced the master cylinder . the wires burned within 24 hours of the repair. the town and country dealership gave the contact a loaner vehicle, and she felt this was odd. the contact stated that the dealership informed her that it would cost $2,416.12 to repair the wires and the abs. the current and failure mileage were both 67,508. *ak the consumer states that she wants to be reimbursed for all repairs done to her vehicle and has provided all invoices for repair and the report from the fire dept. update 4/25/07*tr

The first incident happened on 05/01/06 after driving at least 30 min to 45 min. at a speed of around 50 mph, the check engine light came on. i took it to the dealer where they diagnosed a loose gas cap. on 5/22/06 after driving again at least 30 min to 45 min. after returning home and backing out of the driveway my escape stalled and would not start, after about an hour it started again did not take it to the dealer. the third incident happened may 30 after driving 30 min to 45 min the check engine light came on again. i took it to the dealer where they replaced the vapor management valve which is still not correcting the problem, so they are talking about replacing the fuel tank. the dealer has been very helpful, but after five years i would think i would not have this problem. *jb

Ford escape 2001, windshield wipers haven't kept windows clear enough to see during rain or snow. *bf the consumer was only getting 10-12 miles per gallon on the highway. the vehicle was hard to drive when it was windy outside. when the consumer attempted to stop the vehicle, the brake went down to the floor and did not come back up for several seconds. the anti-lock brakes did not engage. the consumer spoke to the dealer and he said the brakes must have frozen up. the battery low light was on. *jb

One week prior to fire, there was a unusual smell that was almost like a "funny woodstove' smell. this smell was only present until the car heated up and the air freshener would cover the odor. it got very strong the afternoon before the fire happened. it was more of a stale tin can is the best way that i can describe it. i came home in the evening and at 5:30 am of the 30th my mother and i heard a loud explosion which we found out was later the rear tire on the driver side of my 2001 ford escape bursting due to the intensity of the fire and the origin, the rear left side of the vehicle. the ford escape is destroyed and burned at over 1400 degrees and spread so rapidly that by the time the fire department arrived there was nothing they could do but control the fore and put it out. my parents vehicle was in the driveway next to my escape and was also destroyed. since the incident i have contacted ford several times to report the incident and have an investigator come out to determine the cause of the fire as the origin is already determined due to the way the vehicle burned. i have been given the runaround several times, and it has been almost thirty days. there was something very wrong with my car and this fire happened only a couple of hours after the vehicle was parked in my driveway, luckily i was not killed and my family still has a home. the fire marshal has stated that the fire patterns on the outside of the car are consistent with a leaking o ring from the gasoline tank. this matter was going to further be investigated when middlesex mutual and ford were present to lift the vehicle up off the ground, however ford has been ignoring this serious issue at hand. *nm

I have a 2001 ford escape that the fuel niddle drops verry fast. they have done the repair on it and i still have the same problem but they refused to fix it again i have contacted an attorney for the matter. *ak

Smell of gaoline coming through heater vents. engine stalls or hesttates at around 35-40 mph. dealer has been unable to fix either problem.

Vehicle had small fire and was towed by ford road side assistance. the service tech at dobbs ford in memphis was told of the fire. he then tried to start the car and the car caught fire again and is now a total loss. the vehicle involved was a 2001 ford escape. *jb

There were problems with the vehicle shutting down while in traffic. the idle gauge kept dropping and going up until it eventually dropped below 1, then it cut out immediately . the consumer had taken the vehicle back to the dealer and attempted to fix the problem on numerous occasions but were unable to verify. the dealer said there was water contamination in the gas tank, and the consumer was told that a rat had bitten through the wires. the consumer had taken the vehicle back in for the stalling problems and gas fumes were coming through the a/c vents. later on that day the vehicle caught fire. the consumer requested a refund and or exchange for a new vehicle. *mr *ts *scc *jb

The vehicle was parked when it caught on fire. before the event occurred it was taken to the technician and suggested that the car may have been on recall for the fuel connecter. later the consumer was told the vehicle was fixed, however a few days later the car caught on fire because of the engine and fuel system overheating. *cb *jb

The vehicle experienced the same defect with the fuel system as stated in recall 00 v 277 001, however the vehicle identification number was not included in the recall. *jb

2001 ford escape has repeatedly stalled during normal driving. car currently has 33,000 miles; however, i began having problems early on. car has stranded me several times. car has been towed in several times and dealership can find nothing wrong it. dealership has replaced alternator, transmission, fuel hoses, sensor, computer, etc. and car still stalls. this week it had to be towed from my garage to the dealership because it would not start. dealership again could find nothing wrong with car. i love the car, but am terrified to drive it as when it stalls everything locks up and i have had a couple near miss accidents trying to get off the road. i have an infant and this is unacceptable. *nlm

Vehicle has on 2 occasions shut off while driving. without warning, the engine, battery, and oil lights come on at the same time and vehicle immediatelty shuts itself off. vehicle has been to the dealership after both occurrences. the iac, dpfe, and fuel pump relay were all replaced and my vehicle's pcm was reprogrammed. none of these "fixes" have solved the problem. although the technician working on the vehicle and the shop foreman have made every effort to assist me with the problem, the cause of the problem has yet to be determined. the manufacturer is aware of this problem with this particular vehicle, but cannot explain what is wrong or how to repair it. i do not feel safe driving my escape knowing that it could shut itself off at any time without warning in the middle of a busy road.*ak

Car continues to stall when going approximately 40 mph. all systems fail. car has been to dealership 3 times for same problem. air intake valve and relay have been replaced. dealership taking car again tomorrow for repair. *ak

When going down a hill vehicle will automatically shut off. contacted dealer, dealer noted that the reason was fuel pump being located in rear of vehicle. *ak

I was driving about 40mph, and the engine turned off, i had no steering, no brakes, almost wrecked my truck with my smallchild in the car, had to pull emergency brake to get truck stopped, i fear for my life now, dealership said it was a bad relay system

At highway speed vehicles suddenly died. driver lost brakes and steering control. driver coasted to side of road. took vehicle to dealer, and they replaced relay system. one month later, problem reoccurred. dealer stated it was the processer. please provide any further information.*ak

There were numerous problems. the egr sensor (dpfe) was replaced along with the sop driver side outer belt molding, fuel pump, sway bar links and iac. *bf there was a loud noise coming from the driver's side window, water leaked around the tailgate window, the vehicle was hard to start, the iac was sticking, the driver's side window squeaked and rattled, the vehicle hesitated upon starting, there was play in the front sway bar links, the coolant light stayed on, there was a crack around the oil pan and the oil drain plug was problematic, and the accelerator pedal was sticking. *sc *jb

Nar 02/13/2003. the automatic transmission would shift to drive from over drive, the vents automatically switched to frost. the vehicle completely stalled on a separate occasion, the relay assembly was replaced. the cruise control was inoperative from the time of purchase. the windshield wipers stopped working, the consumer continued to experience problems with the transmission and the gas mileage was poor. *jb

Vehicle stalled wihtout warning while driving @~30mph. this has happened several other times on the road. dealer has performed repairs 3 other times as follows: visit 1 - changed fuel pump relay, visit 2 - changed ecm module relay, visit 3 - replaced fuel pump and sender. dealer service has indicated that they were unable to find exact cause of stalling, so they are replacing components in hopes of catching the problem. after vehicle stalled, power steering and brakes were non-functional and i once again needed to pull off the road evasively to avoid rear-ending the cars in front of me. clarification: this most recent stalling incident occured today, even after the fuel pump was replaced.*ak

Consumer states that the vehicle stalls while driving, the most recent repairs made by the dealer was the replacement of the iac and air intake, consumer is concerned about the problem happening again. the indicator lights for engine coolant and battery illuminated, the dealer replaced a part on the coolant rec tank, however the coolant light illuminated again. *slc

Engine stalling, intermittent, unpredictable. during various times, days and circumstances. since 09/25/01 till last time was 12/01/03.*ak

Traveling at approximately 35mph -car did not shut off, but lost steering and brakes. from time to time time there is a gas odor coming from air vents. also, in the morning vehicle hesitates when pulling out from a stop sign. car was towed to local ford dealership and they were unable to determine problem. *ak

Fuel line had broke, causin motor to be spryed with fuel.*ak consumer states motor lost power, fuel was pumping over hot engine, engine did not stall, but kept pumping fuel. *jb

2 months after i bought my car brand new i went out to start it, it would not start and the emission light came on. the car sounds like it is trying to start, the only way i could get the car to start is hold the ignition. i smelled gas after the car started. i informed ford about the problem, they found nothing but replaced my starter even though it wasn't the problem. i have had this car almost 3yrs my warranty is ready to expire and ford still cannot fix/find the problem. this car has left me stranded more then once, i even had it towed to the dealership after working hrs. i was told by their service manager the car started, we found nothing wrong. i even told the dealership this car has been in the shop over 3x's it is a lemon and i want a new car or my money back. i was informed according to ford we cannot find a problem therefore, the lemon law does not exist and ford will not just take the car back. i have had this car to 2 ford dealerships, the sad part the orginal place i bought it from treated my very nasty since i would take my car for service at a closer one and have them look into the problem. ford is ford doesn't matter what dealer i use does it? i am very dissatisfied and will never ever buy another ford again!! someone please help me!!!

While traveling when and depressing brake pedal, pedal went to floorboard and vehicle lost brake power. *ak consumer also experiencing problems with passenger and driver window, and also a fuel line clip failed causing the motor to loose power and fuel was pumped over the hot engine. *jb

Fuel smell - car interior. *ak

Raw fuel smell in cabin with heater on and at stop light/ideling. intake gaskets, fuel rail and injectors repleaced. parts returned to factory. *ak

Fuel leakage around fuel injectors - strong gas fumes; dealer has tried to correct twice and cannot correct problem. they have ordered new o-rings for fuel injectors but the problem continues. *ak

Fuel smell after restarting vehicle when engine is warm. fuel odor very strong! this has been shown to be a problem on numerous escapes and tributes, as seen on the yahoo fordescapeclub and in the edmunds.com discussion thread for the ford escape. if i turn the vent off for a few minutes after starting the vehicle, the smell goes away. note that my dealership and several others have claimed not to be able to find the cause, but several people on the fordescapeclub site have been able to tighten the bolts on the left side of the intake manifold (as facing engine) to limit the smell. my dealer eventually reported that this was caused by a "weeping" intake manifold gasket. i am concerned that under certain conditions the fuel seeping from the gasket could ignite and cause an under-hood fire.*ak

The vehicle has a fuel smell in the engine compartment after running and also produces a warm start fuel smell in the cabin when the vents are turned on.

When vehicle has been parked consumer can smell gasoline . consumer can not find where leak is coming from. consumer is getting less gas mileage ever since this incident has happened. contacted dealer, and dealer said that there was no problem. *ak

Gas odor in interior compartment of vehcile after engine is shut down. gas smell is evident on passenger side of vehicle

Smell of gas enters cabin through vents on warm restarts and in idling for lengthy periods as well as stop and go traffic. *ak

Transmission failed. *slc

Cabin fills with smell of raw fuel when climate control system on ..also smell of raw fuel under hood . mfg inspected vehicle and does not know where problem originates.vehicle is now out of service 36 days while engineering looks for solution to problem .various parts have been changed with no resolution to date .

Fuel vapor entering passenger compartment. *ak