Problems with 2004 Ford Escape VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

On sunday, july 18th, 2010, while driving on 280 s. in the afternoon, i passed a vehicle that was traveling approximately 50 mph on the highway. as i pressed the accelerator, the vehicle continued to accelerate. as this was the 2nd occurrence, i did not panic but tried a couple of remedies. i ensured the cruise control was off, it was. i tried to "pop" the gas pedal off the floor but it was limp. i tapped the accelerator to no avail. i put the vehicle in neutral as the rpm's were hitting over 4500 rpm and the mph were hitting over 70+ and not slowing. i coasted to the side and waited for a tow truck. the car was taken to the dealer. they found the throttle cable was indeed slack and the throttle body was in the wide open position. they called the ford hotline who said they have never heard of the problem occurring or had a record of the occurrence. the dealer charged me for the inspection and suggested i replace the throttle body and pvc valve? they weren't sure if that was the cause of the problem but they suggested it. the throttle body, they said was on back order because of increased demand. the vehicle had 164,000 miles on it. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving at speeds of 35 mph, the vehicle abnormally accelerated without warrant. the contact was able to stop the vehicle, with the engine still revving, by placing the gear in neutral and applying the brakes. the dealer advised the contact that the vehicle was included in nhtsa recall campaign id number: 04v574000 (vehicle speed control: cables) and that repairs would be covered at the manufacturers expense. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileages were 90,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the contact stated that while driving at speeds of 35 mph with her foot steady on the accelerator pedal, the vehicle accelerated up to speeds of 70 mph without warning. she shifted into neutral gear and had to use both feet to apply extreme pressure to the brake pedal, in order to bring the vehicle to a stop. she stated that there was a burning odor throughout the failure. the dealer performed a diagnostic test which revealed that the vehicle cruise control cable had broken and caused a shard of metal to become lodged in the accelerator mechanism. the vehicle had not been repaired when the complaint was filed. the approximate failure and current mileages were 73,272.

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the contact stated that while driving at unknown speeds and removing his foot from the accelerator pedal, the vehicle suddenly accelerated. he was able to bring the vehicle to a stop without incident. in addition, the contact stated that the engine would exhibit unusual increases in rpms of up to 4500 while in any gear. the vehicle was previously repaired under nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000: vehicle speed control: cables, however the dealer stated that the failure was contributed to the idle air control valve malfunctioning. he proceeded to explain the idle air control valve was not closing correctly, therefore causing the vehicle to accelerate without depressing the accelerator pedal. the failure mileage was 77,000 and the current mileage was 72667. the idle air control valve failed which caused the vehicle to accelerate at an excessive speed. updated 05/03/10. *jb updated 06/03/10*bf updated 06/10/10.*jb

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving approximately 60 mph with the accelerator pedal depressed more than of the way, the contact noticed that the pedal would not release causing the vehicle to accelerate. he applied the brake pedal which slowed the vehicle down. the failure occurred on three occasions. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the contact had not spoken with the manufacturer when the complaint was filed. the current mileage was approximately 104,000. the failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the vehicle failed to accelerate and decelerate and he had to turn the vehicle off to avoid a collision. the manufacturer stated that the vehicle was repaired under recall 04v5740000 vehicle speed control, cables in 2005; therefore they will not offer any assistance. the vehicle will be repaired. the failure mileage was 62,000. the current mileage was 112,000.

While moving my 2004 ford escape in my driveway the vehicle suddenly accelerated without my foot on the pedal. i struck a bush in my yard and was able to stop. the bush was destroyed and there was approx. $500 damage to my vehicle. a recall repair on the accelerator cable was performed by ford in march of 2005. i brought the vehicle to a ford dealer who would not even look at the vehicle without charging me. i reported the incident to ford motor co. who stated that they repaired the accelerator cable when it was recalled and would not repair it again. i have since had the bumper damage repaired and will have the accelerator cable inspected by an independent garage. i am lucky that no one was hurt during this incident. i am hesitant to drive this car again and i am very careful when i have to. i am a retired police officer and have seen what m/v crashes can do. *tr

The engine revs in below zero weather ever since i bought the escape in 2003. i'll be driving on the freeway at 60 mph and the only way i can slow the speed of the car is by applying the brakes and the engine continues revving as if it were still going 60. then when i get off the freeway the car continues to rev like that and i stop at stop signs and it revs and only by pushing down hard on the brake can i control the car as it continues to rev as if going about 60mph. often when i start it in the morning it revs (when below zero) and continues to rev as i drive a mile or so to have coffee. this has been the case since i got the car. i initially took it in to tousley ford in white bear, minnesota. they said it was fixed and charged something like $186 and it did the same thing on driving it home (about 12 miles). i took it back then and there as it was dangerous and they tried to fix it again and it still revved. attempted fixes: feb 18, 08 replaced iac, replaced 1l8z*9f715*aa x-valve. then feb. 19, '08 replaced iac again per invoice. i just gave up and due to finances decided to take my chances driving it as is (still revs). what do i do now? the date of incident instead of jan. 8, 2010 should be stated as "every winter since 2003". never has been fixed.*cw

I was the owner of a 2004 ford escape that was recalled because the engine would suddenly accelerate uncontrollable. i had to call my insurance co. geico because of this they sent out a tow truck to check the situation. the tow operator got the engine to run normally. i put in a claim against ford and was told that they did not think they were liable. my escape accelerated again and was involved in a accident that totaled the vehicle. i need help to present my case to ford motor co. *tr

On 10/18/09 my son was in control of the vehicle when the accelerator stuck the vehicle would not respond to braking and eventually ran into a parked vehicle one person injured and the vehicle parked received damage my 2004ford escape total loss. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the contact stated that while driving approximately from 5 to 50 mph and then coming to stop, the vehicle would surge forward. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis. after diagnosis they advised her that the vehicle was covered under the nhtsa camapign id number 04v574000 (vehicle speed control:cables). the vehicle was repaired under the recall. approximately 2 weeks later the failure recurred. the vehicle was not taken back to the dealer. the manufacturer has not been contacted. the failure mileage was approximately 121,120. the current mileage was approximately 146,298.

Ford escapes were recalled for sticking accelerators while this vehicle was under warranty. at ~90k miles, accelerator began sticking (three separate occasions). fortunately all occurred on the highway where there was enough time to pull over and 'unstick' the accelerator. mats were not the issue since i removed the mats after the first incident. ford claimed there was nothing wrong yet replaced several components (at my expense). no incidents since then - about 20k miles later. obviously they still have a problem. *tr

Accelerating up hill to posted 50mph when accelerator pedal punched to the floor on it's own. vehicle reached 85mph and slowed to approx 55mph when downshifted to 1st while simultaneously pressing brake pedal and pulling up on emergency brake. accelerator pedal wouldn't come up despite attempts with foot. ultimately crashed, vehicle totaled, property damage to a house and neighbor's yard, personal injuries sustained by driver only; no passengers. *tr

Going up a hill on snow covered roads so was going slow when car started accelerating on its own. kept stepping on the brake, but continued to accelerate. got off the road and stopped the rpm was up to 7. the acceleration continued to happen a few times every winter for the next few years and i would take it to a ford dealership to have it checked each time it happened. they tried a few different repairs and nothing worked. jan. 21,2011 called ford and reported the problem and they said this is the first they heard of this problem. in sept. of 2011 the recall #12s37 came and i took it in to have the recall taken care of. since jan. of 2013 it has done it to me twice - this recall obviously did not fix the hazardous problem! i again called ford, got a case number, and [xxx] - the ford regional customer service manager called me and said he investigated my case and with the vehicle being out of warranty and there are no current recalls there is nothing ford can do. i told him that i felt this is a safety issue and the vehicle needs to be off the road and i can't ethically trade it because i don't want to put anybody else in harm's way and i hoped ford would make it right by me and he said there is no trade assistance available from ford. i asked him if ford would pay me what it was worth since the vehicle should be off the road and he repeated it is out of warranty and ford would not be able to pay me. obviously the spokesperson for ford doesn't have the same ethics i have.[xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving less than 40 mph, the contact placed the vehicle into drive and proceeded to depress the accelerator pedal. the pedal became stuck and the vehicle proceeded forward. she attempted to depress the brake pedal, but there was no response. the vehicle crashed into a plowed area of snow. there were no injuries. the roads were not icy at the time of the crash. the vin was not included in nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000 (vehicle speed control:cables), although the failures were identical. updated 02-23-09 *bf updated 02/24/09.*jb

Throttle cable would not return to idle position while at highway speed. have had numerous problems with throttle and related components recently vehicle has been towed 3 times in two weeks because throttle becomes stuck wide open and is hazardous to drive. recall on throttle cable was completed 3 years prior. bottom line is $1,000 plus dollars later on a four year old vehicle with 60,000 miles on it. *tr

While driving home last winter my accelerator pedal stuck open and would not release. i approached the exit at approximately 55 mph and had to push the brakes to the floor to stop the vehicle. after letting the car set for approximately 10 minutes everything worked fine again until the morning when i started the engine and it stayed at 3000 rpm until the car warmed completely up. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving 35 mph, the accelerator cable linkage snapped and the vehicle was left with the engine throttle wide open. the contact had to shift into neutral, shut off the engine, and coast to a stop. the vehicle was towed to a dealer and the accelerator cable, cruise control, throttle body, and roll cable were replaced at the cost of $430. nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000 (vehicle speed control: cables) was referenced. the current mileage was 43,900 and failure mileage was 43,800. updated 07/08/08. *bf the consumer stated the recall was not done correctly back in jan 2005, because of the failure he experienced in may 2008. the consumer was informed the recall was completed. updated.

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the contact stated that at engine start up,air bag warning light illuminated. on a seperate occassion, the accelerator pedal detached from the vehicle while attempting a turn. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and a private mechanic to diagnose both failures. the dealer confirmed that a computer chip failed and the private mechanic replaced the throttle cable for the detached accelerator pedal. the manufacturer was contacted. the failure mileage was 52,000 and the current mileage was 78,116.

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. when approaching a red light or stop sign at 15 mph, the vehicle accelerates. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000 (vehicle speed control:cables). after the repair, the failure recurred and the vehicle was taken back to the dealer. they test drove the vehicle, but were unable to duplicate the failure. the dealer informed the manufacturer that the failure could not be duplicated and the recall is only repaired once; therefore, the contact would need to pay for any additional repairs. the current mileage was 62,000 and failure mileage was 60,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving at an unknown speed, the vehicle accelerated unexpectedly. as a result, the stopping distance increased. the vin was excluded from nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000 (vehicle speed control:cables). the manufacturer would not assume responsibility for the repair. the vehicle has not been repaired. the failure mileage was 65,000 and current mileage was 82,000.

My cruise control stopped working after i had a 30,000 mile check up at the bob davidson ford dealership. i email ford and got a response to take the car to the dealership for a diagnosis test. i took the car to bob davidson and found it would cost me $123.00 for the diagnose and the cost would not be applied to any repairs. i do not have $123.00 for them to tell me i have a problem the problem is the engage light comes on, but the speed trotter does not engage to keep the set speed. *tr

Ford 2004 escape - slowly making ascent up a driveway - suddenly accelerator pedal sticks, engine racing, car begins rapid acceleration - driver able to slam on brakes with extreme pressure to stop car - engine continues to race - driver able to put car in park with engine still racing - turns off car. he then turns car back on, only to have engine still racing - immediately turns off again. dealership called to come pick up car. *tr

Leaving a traffic light the vehicle idle increased to over 4000 rpms after i took my foot off the accelerator pedal. i shut off the engine but the idle did not return to normal. i've been told that was an unusual case of the "idle speed control" failure. this "racing" had happened once before at 48,000 miles but after i restarted the vehicle idle speed returned to normal. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving 65 mph, the vehicle began to accelerate without warning. on august 8, 2007, the contact was involved in a crash that was related to a previous recall repair for the vehicle speed control (nhtsa campaign number 04v574000). a police report was filed. the contact was injured and the vehicle was destroyed. the recall was performed by ford and chevrolet. in may of 2007, the vehicle accelerated past 100 mph and began shaking as if it would flip over. the accelerator pedal became stuck to the floor and the vehicle continued to accelerate on its own. the contact was forced to stop the vehicle by placing it in park and removing the key from the ignition. when the failure occurred, no sound or warning lights were present. the contact has photos. the failure mileage was 60,000 and current mileage was 66,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while driving 10 mph, the vehicle surges forward unexpectedly. the contact stated that the cruise control is leaking fluid into the electrical system. the dealer stated that the vehicle is not under recall and informed the contact that he would have to pay for the repairs. the current and failure mileages were 39,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. while attempting to accelerate from a stop, the vehicle failed to accelerate for 30 seconds. the dealer stated that the butterfly caused the accelerator cable to stick. the vehicle was repaired in july of 2007 for nhtsa campaign id number 04v574000 (accelerator cable). the failure mileage was 95,000 and current mileage was 100,000. updated 01/09/08. *lj the consumer stated shortly after the recall was performed, the vehicle started to exhibited the same problems prior to the recall being performed. updated

I have a 2004 ford escape that the cruise control switch (deactivation switch) has gone bad on two (2) occasions since i have had the vehicle. the first time the dealer replaced it and i have not yet replaced it the second time. is this common and is their a problem with these switches? *jb

as i pulled off i88 into a gas station in chenango forks, ny, i attempted to brake. the car felt as if it did not want to brake and wanted to speed up. the car "pulled" me and would not stop. the engine started to "rev" as if someone had their foot down on the gas. the brake gave and i put the car in park. i checked to see if the gas pedal was "stuck", creating the "rev". it was not. i started it 3 more times and each time i did it would "rev" loud . i turned the car off. i was towed by aaa to coreys northgate ford/mazda in binghamton , ny. they checked it out, drove it, said it was fine. was there from 10:00 am-12:00 pm. left at 12:00 pm via i-88.10 minutes prior to exit 23 (the exit for route 30), i felt the car accelerating w/o my foot on the gas. the car felt like it was on cruise, and continuing to accelerate. i could take my foot off the gas and it would accelerate. i had to brake to keep the car from going over 80 down a hill. braking did not feel right. i felt very out of control. i reached exit (route 30), pulled off , tried to brake and pull over to the shoulder. the car did not want to brake and was accelerating. very scary. the brake "gave" ,the car slowed down. i put it into neutral, park, and turned it off. very scary. i called aaa (again) they towed me to aero-ford mercury - cobleskill, ny. got there at 2:30 pm. was told the throttle body was rusted, water was leaking in. this made the separator not "seal" well, which left it open. when it is open, the car accelerates out of control. they found a chunk of ice wedged into the separator keeping it open. they said this is unusual. on 3-18-05 i brought my car in due to the recall & was given a new accelerator cable. what happened today was what the recall described would happen with the old cable. scary. the 1st service team should not have let me go. this is a safety issue. after they fix it tomorrow i will still be nervous to drive. the first service team let me go and said the ...

Tl* - the contact was accelerating onto the interstate when the throttle became stuck. the vehicle was a 2004 ford escape with 47,000 miles. the contact had both feet on the brakes and the vehicle would not stop. the vehicle reached 100 mph. there were no warning signs or noises prior to the incident. the vehicle traveled at this speed for approximately 1 mile. the contact kept applying the brakes and was able to slow the vehicle to 45 mph. the contact pulled over to the shoulder and was able to stop the vehicle. the contact called the police , and the vehicle was towed to a ford dealer. the dealer replaced the throttle cable. the contact has the repair order. a police report was not filed. the weather conditions were dry. there were no injuries. ak updated 01/29/07. *jb

Dt*: the contact stated while driving on the interstate at 50 mph on smooth dry pavement, the vehicle had sudden acceleration. the contact pulled over and shut the vehicle off. the dealership determined the accelerator cable fractured and wrapped itself around the housing, which caused the sudden acceleration. there was an nhtsa recall, # 04v574000, regarding the vehicle speed control: cables. the vehicle was not included in the recall due to the vin. updated 9/15/2006 - the consumer has the old parts in his possession. *nm

Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle accelerator failed to deactivate when pressure was released from the pedal, while passing another vehicle at 40 mph. the contact shifted the vehicle into neutral, broke to a stop and turned the engine off. the vehicle was driven to a service dealer and inspected for the failure. the vehicle speed control, cable assembly was replaced. the manufacturer was not contacted. updated 08/25/06. 8jb

Dt*: the contact stated while driving on a highway at 70 mph the cruise control would not deactivate. depressing the brake pedal did not slow the vehicle or turning off the cruise control. to stop the vehicle, it was placed in neutral and pulled to the side of the road. the vehicle was driven to the service dealer where they determined the cables were defective. the cruise control cable was disconnected until the ordered parts are received by the dealer.

Dt*: the contact stated while entering the vehicle, it was noticed the throttle cable was in the floor board. the vehicle was taken to the dealership and the throttle cable was replaced. a nhtsa recall, #04v574000 was performed on the vehicle concerning, the cables however, the recall did not remedy the problem. the dealership would not offer a second repair without charge under the recall.

I was driving to work on the highway and all of the sudden my 2004 ford escape began to accelerate even with my foot off the gas pedal and the floor mat was not stuck against pedal. car continued to do so. brought to dealer, they said it was the accelerator cable bracket broke causing the throttle to stick open. *nm

dt: contact states while driving and passing another vehicle the accelerator pedal stuck. it was difficult to free the accelerator pedal, the plastic shield caused the pedal to stick. . the vehicle has not been to a service dealer as of yet.*ak

I was driving in my 2004 ford escape and changing lanes. as i had my foot on the accelerator, the pedal stuck. i tried to hit the brakes, but the vehicle would not stop i was on a crowded expressway and the vehicle was going at a speed that exceeded the flow of traffic. i frantically had to use the emergency brake. this incident occurred after the vehicle was recalled and i took the vehicle back, was serviced and still the vehicle failed!

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford escape. the contact stated that while entering a residential garage, the accelerator pedal became stuck. the contact mentioned that she engaged the brakes in order to stop the vehicle. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was unknown and the current mileage was 106,000. updated 11/15/13*cn

Went to pass another vehicle while cruise control was on our accelorator stuck and we continued to pick up speed. unable to stop car. brakes would not work. able to stop vehicle by eventually slowing enough to throw into park. it took approximately 1 mile to come to a complete stop. car was towed to dealer. dealer indicated cruise control cable needed to be replaced. could not provide reason for cable failure. vehicle has 33000 miles.*ak

I was in a grocery store parking lot, looking for a parking place,went down one aisle, turned left to and started up the next aisle. right after i made the turn i pulled into the aisles second parking spot on my left side. i never picked up speed after turning into the aisle. just after i started into the parking spot my car literally lunged forward and "took off" all on its own. (i did not have my foot on the gas pedal)....i rushed to push down on the brake but by that time my car had already run up on the hood of the car facing me from the other aisle. i had no control over the car. i was to stunned at the time to know now if my brake stopped the car or if the car's acceleration stopped on it's own once it was on the hood of the other car. i am so thankful no one was injured and how bad this could have been if i was stopping to let a pedestrian cross and this happened at that time. *jb

Within 2 hours of buying a new 2004 ford escape and at 180 miles the throttle stuck on the highway accelerating me to nearly 90 mph before i could shift it into neutral, get it off the side of the road, and turn off the engine. had there been any cars next to me on the highway i would have been involved in a horrible accident. the car is at the dealer to be fixed, but i read on the ford motor co. web page there is a recall for accelerator problems. how/why can a dealer sell a car with a known defect? i very easily could have been seriously injured or killed.

2004 ford escape developed a problem with the accelerator sticking.*mr prior to the recall notification, the consumer had already experienced the problem and it was determined to be a sticking gas linkage cable. recall#04v5774000 *jb

Nhtsa campaign 04v574000/accelerator cable. the owner received notification from the manufacturer on 13 jan 2005 regarding this recall. the owner immediately made an appointment. upon arrival and after waiting most of the day, the service manager informed the owner that parts needed for the repair were unavailable. provide further details. *jb

While driving down a hill with cruise control on, vehicle picked up speed. dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak the cruise control has failed everytime it' s been used. *nm

While driving on the interstate, i pressed the accelerator pedal to accelerate from 60 mph to 70 mph. when i pressed the accelerator pedal, it went to the floor and remained there until i reached a maximum speed of 110 mph. i attempted to pump the pedal to unstick it and depressed the brake. the only way i was able to stop was to shift into neutral and depress the brake strongly. even after removing the key from the ignition, the pedal remained depressed to the floor. this was a hertz rental car so i don't have information on it other than the registration. mo757kfr. *ak