Problems with 2002 Ford Escape STEERING

2002 ford escape. while making low speed turns, clicking nosie coming from front end wheel well area. clicking nosie sounds like rotatining parts are binding. frequency of the clicking sound is directly related to vehicle speed (the slower the speed, the longer the time between each sucessive click). the sound occurs with either right or left turns, but is much more noticable while turning left. this clicking is not a healthy sound and i am worried about a failure of the affected parts.*ak

I purchased a 2002 ford escape. it currently has 10k miles on it. while going down a hill, the engine stopped, power steering went out and the power brakes didn't work. luckly i managed to pull over, put the car in park and restart the engine. the same problem, same situation occur a couple of days later. both times occurred while i was going down a hill at about 30-35 mph. i noticed that the rpm reading when the accellerator isn't depressed is very low. it sometimes dips close to zero. normal rpm for sitting in idle is around 1. it's currently at the dealership.

The first incidence (may-2002), while driving approximately 40 mph the engine shut-off and the steering lock. luckily the vehicle came to a stop at the side of the road with no injuries. the vehicle eventually restarted and was returned to the dealership. they reprogrammed the pcm and said the problem was fixed. the same thing happened about 6-weeks later along the same stretch of road, and luckily again nobody was hurt. the vehicle was again returned to the dealer. this time they said that they can't find anything wrong and gave it back to us without a fix. i am afraid that next time it happens it will be in traffic and someone will be injured or killed. this vehicle should not be on the road.*ak

While my wife was driving our 2002 ford escape the engine stalls go down hill 30-40mph no power steering--engine light & oil light comes on. escape towed back to dealer . dealer unable to duplicate the problem, dealer did not know of any problems like this with the 2002 escapes, i told him to look it up on the nhtsa consumer complaints database.lots of them like this one . called ford motor on there 1-800 line to let them know about it.

Purchased 2002 ford escape from hinder ford of aberdeen, md in june 02 and from the start the left rear wheel was cracked and the vehicle pulls (not drifts) to the left so bad that the vehicle left front tire will cross the line in 5 seconds if steering wheel is released while in the right lane of a two lane and within 3 seconds if in the left lane. hinder ford gave me the ford 800 number to call because there was nothing they could do even after i provided them excerpts from maryland law that states a vehicle with a steering or braking problem that can not be fixed the first time is to be replaced. they have refused. i complained to the on-line customer service several times until they finally sent the area ford tech to investigate. he replied that there was definitely a problem (he stated he had seen this before), attempted to fix the problem. hinder returned the vehicle and again stated there was nothing they could do. i sent certified/return receipt letters twice to ford motor co. and latest result was a call last week from mr. duncan alberson who agreed that a cracked wheel and this vehicle leaving the road within three seconds was not safe, but that he was going with a report that he had from the area ford tech who stated that the vehicle was within specification and that i should drive with my hands on the steering wheel! i stated i release the wheel only to emphasize the drastic pull of this steering and of course i drive with my hand on the wheel at all times! i told mr. duncan to simply send another tech to test drive my vehicle any time and any place and his response ... he hung up! possibly because i also told him hinder ford has sold two other vehicle with the exact same problem. if you know of a good law firm in my area please give me their number. ts

As i was descending down a hill, traveling about 35 mph, and turning a bend, i noticed that my power steering was not working and then that my brakes were not working and that one of my indicator lights was lit on my dashboard. i put the car in neutral, and turned the key back on and it started. fortunately, no one was around because my brakes were not working. i have reported this to my dealer who did not even write my concern down. i have since sent them a formal letter. this has not happened since, but it could be dangerous while traveling on busy roads.*ak

Vehicle will shut off at any speed without any notice. everything will go out like power steering and brakes and accelerator, etc. contacted dealer, and the dealer was not willing to do anything.*ak

All functions suddenly locked up. i had no functionality in steering, brakes, and acceleration. i had no control of the car and car slowly died. after a few minutes i was able to restart car with no problems. but this could potentially have caused a fatal accident if environment, speed, etc., were just slightly different.

Had been having a problem with a loud squeaking noise coming from the steering column when turning; checked the nhtsa service bulletins and found a bulletin from june 1, 2003 noting this same problem; check engine light was also on again; i made an appt at dealer to check out these issues (4/7/04). took vehicle in on 4/9/04. dealer found the following problems: noise was coming from the upper steering column because the wiring for the horn was pulled out and rubbing on the contact plate; additional noise found at lower end of steering column dealer deactivated the airbag system to remove and replace the steering wheel and contact; also found that they had to replace the steering column boot, which had to be ordered at the same time, a recall was issued for this vehicle regarding the power train control module; dealer performed the recall vehicle was in the shop from 4/9 - 4/14 and dealer had to pay for a rental car steering column boot was ordered and i had to take the vehicle back into the dealer on 4/23/04 to have them install it. after leaving the dealer on the 23rd, i realized that my horn, cruise control and left brake light were all inoperable, so i took the vehicle back into the dealer on 4/26/04. dealer found that the clock spring was not making contact, so they had to deactivate the airbag again to remove the steering wheel and replace the clock spring; for the rear brake light, the dealer had to replace the bulb element vehicle was in the dealer for two days and they had to pay for a rental car for me again, *ak

I was driving at 55 mph when suddenly i lost all steering and brakes. no warning lights came on. i was able to get the vehicle slowed down by putting both feet on the brake. i had to steer with both hands. i was able to get the vehicle slowed down and off the road. i called ford roadside assistance and had the vehicle towed to lance cunningham ford. the dealership diagnosed the problem to be something wrong with a computer part. they reprogrammed the computer . they went to fords website to find out what the problem was. they told me if there was a certain number on the computer then it could be reprogrammed. if it had not been that number, they would have had to replace the computer. since having the vehicle repaired, i have noticed the steering is still not right. i'm driving down the road and it feels like on occasion the steering will steer off on its own. it drives like when your driving in high winds. i took the vehicle back to the dealership to be rechecked and they advised they could not find any problems with it. i have explained to the service director that i am not satisfied with the vehicle and i'm waiting on a resolution. i feel this vehicle is not safe to drive on the interstate because i cannot be guaranteed the engine will not stall again. i feel very unsafe and uncomfortable driving or having my family in this vehicle. ford motor company should recall this vehicle before fatalities occur. *ak

Brakes and steering failed once while driving down a curvy mountain road, speed approx. 25 mph, second failure at approx 45 mph on a straight and level city road. both times two feet had to be used on the brake pedal and with heavy steering and the vehicle was just stopped before crashing into obstacles. no warning preceeded the incidents. three dash warning lights came on after. the dealer took the vehicle back to the dealership both times and the first time said perhaps we had more than one key on the key ring in the ignition key hole. this was noted as a potential cause of turning off the engine. this was not the case in either incident, only the ignition key was on the ring. first incident they said ford noted the heavy key posibility and ford engineering also recommended reprogramming the computer and a new mass air flow sensor was installed. this did not help as a few days later the same failure occurred again, almost resulting in a crash. currently (feb. 23, 2002) the escape is at the dealer now after the second near crash incident as we will not drive it anymore. they say they are asking their engineering staff again what to do. this is the same source that originally said to tell us we probably had too many keys hanging from the ignition key. none has any firm answer and sources on the internet confirm this problem and ford has no solution at this time. we would like to terminate the purchase which was done about a month ago as the vehicle is not save to drive. both my wife, first incident, and daughter, second incident will not drive the vehicle they were so frightened and barely were able to avoid crashes. date feb. 23, 2002 signed eugene lally. *ak

On several occasions, while traveling on a steep curvy road at 25 mph, vehicle lost power brakes and power steering, consumer had to use both feet on brake pedal to control speed, oil and emission lights came on, consumer was able to turn off street onto parking lot and slow down enough to avoid crashing, engine was still on when vehicle came to a stop, dealer reflashed pcm and replaced mass airflow sensor, throttle body and iac solenoid. *ak *tt

On first occasion vehicle shut down, dash lights came on, power steering and brakes failed. needed to coast into a parking lot. vehicle restarted and was able to get home. only had vehicle 1 month. took vehicle to dealership, (not point of sale) and had vehicle inspected. was told that they were unable to duplicate the problem and that it was due to excessive amount of other keys on primary key ring, to remove the keys due to they were interfering with the path and shutting down vehicle. removed the keys and continued to drive. on 4/9/02 was driving in exact location as previous incident, going about 35-40 mph and same thing happened. had put a file cabinet key on key ring, thought was same issue, didnt' report again. on 4/11/02 while traveling on much busier and much more dangerous road, vehicle again stalled. no safe shoulder to pull off onto and unable to restart while in process. was luckily able to coast onto side street, breaks and steering were not functioning properly, had to roll to stop. able to restart and get to work. will notify dealership asap.*ak

The power steering fluid was leaking due to rack and pinion failure. the dealer replaced the rack and pinion. *yh