Problems with 2011 Ford Escape ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The abs braking system on the ford escape hybrid failed unexpectedly and without warning at only 60k miles. the vehicle was in motion, and all the lights came on at once and the system read "check brakes." the brakes felt loose, and i took it a mechanic the next day. they thought that pressure was getting sent unevenly to both sides of the vehicle, so they flushed the brakes. however, they discovered total abs failure, and a $3000 fix associated with it. this is a known issue all over the internet. there are facebook groups advocating for a recall of this vehicle. we were lucky that we didn't crash into someone. the brakes only work if you apply extreme force to them, and even then they get loose and the car starts to roll away. these issues are becoming extremely prevalent now in 2020 that the 2008-2011 era of this hybrid is getting a bit older. that being said, this model only has 60k miles on it and should not have had brake failure. http://www.carproblemzoo.com/ford/escapehybrid/brake-abs-warning-light-problems.php https://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/5850/ford/escape-hybrid/ford-escape-hybrid-brake-problems/p4

I have only owned my pre-owned vehicle for 3 years and have had to replace driver side front bearing 2x's, rear wiper motor twice and now vehicle will stall while in motion and at stops for traffic lights. i have always driven fords and feel that this is something with the assembly line because i learned of another from the same assembly line that had the same problems.

Escape would not start on 10/14/19. made clicking noise but would not turn over. checked battery which indicated low voltage. replaced battery on 10/15/19. on 10/17/19, attempted to start car. all lights came on but no sound was heard and engine would not turn over. checked new battery which was within limits. checked symptoms online and found issue to be faulty neutral safety switch. upon further search, found numerous owners of 2008-2012 ford escape and mercury mariners have the same issue. would like to know why this is not a factory recall if it is happening this often.

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. while the contact's wife was driving 5 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to turn, causing her to bump into a curb. there were no warning indicators illuminated. the driver was able to park the vehicle into a parking spot. once the vehicle was turned off and restarted, the steering wheel resumed normal operation. the contact's wife managed to drive the vehicle home. the contact associated the failure with nhtsa campaign number: 14v284000 (steering). the vehicle was taken to autonation ford bellevue (located at 411 116th ave ne, bellevue, wa 98004, (425) 243-5203) where it was diagnosed that the torque sensor needed to be replaced and the power steering control module needed to be reprogrammed. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the failure mileage was 107,000.

I was driving down the road and the car just died and did not start again and i cant figure out whats wrong with the car but even in the off engion switch still was trying to start its self so i had to remove the battery cables so it would stop trying to start and we cant figure out whats wrong with it still and we just spent 3500.00 to get the transmission replaced and at this time we have no clue how to fix it .

This will be the second time i am replacing wheel bearing in the front driver side wheel. this causes the wheel to shake. i cant afford to continue to put money into a vehicle with such low miles and every 6 months. also rear wiper motor burnt out due to a leaky seal or poor seal from ford.

There have been several incidents with this vehicle where the steering wheel will seize and lose of acceleration when making sharp turns . during these incidents we would restart the ignition and the steering wheel would start working again.

While on highway traveling to chicago, my vehicle power steering failed. i could not turn the wheel without great difficulty. the power steering is electrical so cannot drive without power steering. had to leave car stranded in springfield, illinois at landmark ford and pay $50 per day for rental. it is a safety recall 14s05 and has failed in hundreds of thousands of cars in the us and canada. according to the recall information online and my calls to dealerships; my car's recall updated the software to let me know the power steering would fail. they did not replace the torque sensor which is the item that failed on the highway and made my car not operational. if your torque sensor failed prior it was replaced by ford under the recall - if it hadn't failed by the time of the software update the recall was closed out. i have found all this out today before my car has been fixed. so ford will not fix my torque sensor and the cost is $617 plus the rental car at $50 per day. (my car failed 5 hours from home) - i have to go pick it up when it is fixed. since it was a safety recall and the torque sensor had not been previously replaced, and ford knew this was a problem with 1.1 million cars, why should i have to pay for a failed faulty part? my car only has 74,000 miles and is well maintained. the car was not involved in an accident but could have been very easily. however, the car was stranded 275 miles from home and ford will not fix the faulty part. it is a safety issue and i am very unhappy. the torque sensor, steering column or whatever parts make this car unsafe should have been taken care of under the recall. ford needs to do the right thing. there could have been an accident and loss of lives. this is unacceptable.

Beginning february 16, 2018 i began experiencing vibration and bouncing of steering wheel even when the vehicle was parked. i addition to steering concern - electrical system appears to be shorting out affecting the dash electronics such as indicator lights on dash, radio operation and door locks. the steering malfunction became steadily worse to the point that in early march 2018 i began inquiring on vehicle recalls. in speaking to ford was advised that a steering unit recall was issued but my vehicle was not listed. further communication with ford identified the possibility that a clerical error occurred which failed to include my vin to the recall as my vehicle sticker did not identify the date of manufacture only the month and year. more telephone calls with ford identified my 2011 ford escape as being manufactured on 09/09/2010 and was included in the recall. conversations since 2/16/18 yielded that mojave auto group performed a software reset in december 2014 rather than replacement of the steering unit. when i began speaking with ford and nhtsa the vehicle was still operational. on 3/6/18 mojave auto group has inspected my vehicle and written up the power assist failure and found the steering column bad and needing replacement. information on my vehicle has been documented within the mojave auto group system under so#605329

Back door wont open, rear wiper doesn't work, rain comes in through back door.

I have owned this vehicle since new. with now 62000 + miles i started having starting problems beginning earlier this year. the battery and starter have check out okay. the problem is with the ignition system. sometimes the vehicle will not start when the key is turned- no noise, no clicking just nothing. i have learned to push the key in hard while turning and then the vehicle starts normally. at times even this will not work and i am stuck where ever i am until it decides to start after repeated attempts. after researching this issue on the internet i have read dozens of complaints from other people with the same issue across a range of years for the ford escape. i could not find any recall notices for this problem but there should be as i am guessing the number of vehicles with this issue has to be enormous.

Car would sit in the driveway and lights and other accessories would come on. while driving the radio and other accessories would go off. trouble with lift gate not opening and not closing. car would not start sometimes. by wiggling various fuses and curcuit breakers the problem would subside for a while. i ended up spending over $1200.00 to replace the fuse block and wiring harness to fix the problem. i am living with my fingers crossed. i am a woman living on an extreamly limited income but i need my car. these problems were experienced while driving down the road, parked in my driveway, or any other time my car was in motion.

When driving my 2011 ford escape limited, the open door warning light, the tpms light, and the parking brake light will come on. in conjunction with this, the a/c will blow warm, the turn signal indicators won't work, and the lift gate will lock. if i hit the top of the dashboard, it all resets. i took it to the autonation ford on the gulf freeway in houston. they said to replace the instrument cluster at a cost of $1000. i have viewed multiple videos on youtube and read many posts on this very same issue. in every case, the vehicle owner said the instrument cluster replacement failed to correct the issue. what was found to be true in many of them was the discovery of cold solder joints on the instrument cluster circuit board. once this was corrected, the vehicle ran normally with a fully functional instrument cluster. the conclusion to be drawn here is that it is a manufacturing defect that needs to be corrected by ford. as to it being a safety issue, several of the posts stated that the entire cluster failed shutting the vehicle off. i have not experienced this yet but fear, if left uncorrected, that it could lead to that. the key point is that this is happening on hundreds, if not thousands, of ford vehicles including not only my escape, but explorers, expeditions, and f150s. ford should be held accountable for this glaring defect.

While driving the battery light came on, power steering went out, then all power to dash went out, pulled over and couldn't roll up the windows, no power at all, let it sit for a minute and was then able to roll up the windows.

Takata recall.... checked vin with nhtsa and saw recall information. today, i would feel safer if this issue was fixed.

Ignition and electrical system, fuses,etc failure resulted in two spontaneous fires while the car was parked, destroying the car's ability to function. leawood, ks. police department has photographed the engine compartment and filed a police report

All lights on instrument cluster come on randomly, gauges go to zero. will remain in this condition until car is shut off. at times car will not restart without banging on the dash. car does not have to be in motion for this to happen but most frequently it is. a new ignition switch did not solve problem. a check on the internet seems to indicate this is a common problem with this model car. this is an ongoing problem.

On 3 separate occasions, my vehicle shut off while i was driving. the lights flickered off, the brakes worked at approx. 30% after the car shut off and i had minimal steering capabilities and no acceleration capability. the car has also repeatedly been found with a dead battery (around 10 times now) when it has a brand new battery and alternator, and nothing within the vehicle has been left on to drain the power. *tr

Having mechanical issues with my doors not closing. this has happened several times and each time it takes a lot of playing around with locking and unlocking before i can get the door shut. *tr

Car would not start. once started, power steering completely out. had to drive home with no power steering.once power steering came on a day later, air is not working.

I was driving to my bank which is an hour away. as i drove up a steep mountain at the top the truck just shut off and i coasted to the side of hwy. after i stop tried starting 4 times and nothing happen. set for 10mins then tried again truck started i made it back home without stalling.i took my in truck to be looked at diagnostic fuel throttle. every day since im stalling 1or 2 a day trucks should be made to endure parts should be.more durable its always about cutting corners.making more money off of customer.can we just the land of the free and a home of honest amd integrity.i must work if dont have reliable trasnportation its difficult where i live. please do something about all these defected trucks we trust ford but i have lost trust in their ablity to make great lasting trucks.i will never buy another ford again this my last one from ford.thank you.

Re/ 2011 ford escape with 46246 miles vehicle did not start when the ignition key was turned on(engine did not turn over). the vehicle eventually started after multiple tries (key turned off then on again). the vehicle was taken into autonation ford in torrance, ca. where they replaced the "ignition lock housing" due to a broken ignition lock housing pin. cost $733.00. repairs completed 12/07/2016

Ford consumer satisfaction program 13n03. related to etb. car randomly would not accelerate - had to pull over three times while driving on the highway to turn car on and off. after turning car on, it was like nothing had happened.

Hello, a few months ago i purchased a used 2011 ford escape flex fuel from infinity/volkswagen of fairfield, ca 94533. during the time my wife and i have been driving it, i have experienced some major troubles with the vehicle. when driving in the city or on the highway at any speed, the vehicles gas pedal all of a sudden loses pressure and i have no more gas. promptly after that , the car begins to shake and eventually i have to pull over for safety reasons. this has happened more than 10 times now. i have been to the dealership 3 times already and explained to them what's going on. they just brushed it off and said " come back when the engine lights come on." i was very mad and frustrated but i let it be. over the fourth of july weekend i was driving the vehicle the problem happened again this time i was on the freeway and had to immediately pull over because i was in the fast lane. it was so fast that i collided with the side of the shoulder to right of the fast lane and hit a dirt patch. things could have been a lot worse. thank god nobody was hurt. im saying that my wife is the daily driver of the vehicle and to think that she is pregnant and has my 2 year old son if she was driving it things would be a lot worse for the dealership. i'm sick and tired of being treated like this. i'm a marine corps veteran and to be treated like [xxx] in the dealership tell me to "leave and have good day" is terrible. this is the third vehicle that i have purchased from them and by no means will there be any more business with them after this. not caring about the safety of customers is wrong. i do not want this vehicle anymore. i repeat i do not want this vehicle anymore. i need something done about this please. if not i have no choice but to write my congressman about this situation, the department of veterans affairs and a lawyer. i hope that we can handle this in a civil manner. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Vehicle engine suddenly and randomly cuts out in the middle of driving, in motion on the highway, or soon after starting to drive, in motion leaving a parking lot. the accelerator becomes unresponsive and the car sputters to a stop. when you try to restart the car it turns on as if nothing happened.

I continue to have issues with the electronic throttle body (etb), up to and including the complete shutdown of the system. i am the original owner of this vehicle and have abided by all service recommendations for this make/model. the extended warranty on the etb runs out at 100k (vehicle currently at 75k). there are times the vehicle shifts so violently that one would believe they've been rear-ended. when i take my vehicle in to the dealership (5 times, 2 different dealerships), i'm told they re-program the system and to give it another 500 to 1000 miles for the system to relearn my driving habits. the "reboot" lasts between 800 to 1500 miles on average. i don't understand why the etb can't be replaced in its entirety at this point.

Vehicle was parked for 4 days in driveway. vehicle engine compartment became engulfed in flames unexpectedly. cause unknown. a 2014 recall related to throttle body is suspicious. recall was addressed under customer satisfaction program 13n03.

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. the contact stated that when the fobik key was depressed to unlock the doors, the lift gate failed to unlock. the contact attempted to unlock the lift gate manually but the attempt failed. the failure recurred numerous times. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 29,000.

Going south on i81 to watertown, ny. vehicle quit and i coasted to the side of the highway. tractor-trailer behind me swerved to miss me. almost hit a car coming off the exit ramp, had no power to excelerate to get by him. could have been a wopper of an accident.

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. while driving 35 mph, the vehicle stalled and the entire instrumental panel failed. as a result, the contact crashed into the preceding vehicle. the air bags failed to deploy. the contact sustained a mild concussion and bruises to the body that did not require medical attention. a police report was not filed. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the failure mileage was 53,000. updated 7/1/15*cn the consumer stated while driving the lights flashed, ignition system stalled, brakes failed, and the steering locked up. updated 9/15/2015 *js

An o2/exhaust sensor & fuel induction kit had to be replaced. this suv has only 13700 miles on it. the dealer said that the parts were faulty. my bumper to bumper warranty went out last july 2014, so it wasn't covered. i feel that ford needs to investigate if other vehicles have this same problem. i should also be reimbursed for my cost. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start after the key was inserted into the ignition switch. in addition, the contact mentioned that the passenger side wiper became inoperable. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failures. the failure mileage was unknown.

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. the contact stated while driving over 35 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but was unable to determine the failure and an unknown error message appeared on the instrumental panel. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 53,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ford escape. the contact stated that while driving 10 mph, the vehicle stalled as the battery warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the failure was not diagnosed nor was the vehicle repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 40,500.

My car will be idling and suddenly power down. recently while i have been slowing down at a traffic light, stop light, or braking for traffic it will power down. after researching online i have found that hundreds of other ford escape owners have had the same issue, some have had it happen while driving at high rates of speed. i have taken it to 4 different mechanics, 2 of which are ford dealerships and they work on it charge me a lot of money and it continues to happen. almost a year now! i'm fed up.

While driving along my ford escape suddenly refused to accelerate, i was holding the gas to the floor and it wouldn't budge. it was idling strangely and surging. a wrench symbol appeared in the screen on the dash. i was on a hill and was unable to pull of the road. luckily, no one was behind me. i waited a few moments and restarted the escape, it went and then continued to decelerate once again. i will be taking this back to the dealership to be fixed. but i am very concerned, upon researching the issue i found many more complaints online. why hasn't this issue been recalled? it is highly dangerous and it is only a matter of time before the escape cuts off at the wrong time and gets someone killed. this needs to be addressed before it become an epidemic like the chevy cobalt. *tr

As i was driving my car lost it throttle. the engine continued to run but i had no ability to accelerate. i pulled the car over. turned it off, then back on and the car appeared to show no issues. about two weeks later the issue appeared again. same solution. from my research this appears to be a common issue and could very much endanger anyone in the vehicle. *tr

Entered left turn lane to approach off ramp, truck stalled. appx 40mph. turned off and restarted, drove home. had noticed jumping response from idle to reverse to drive, particularly upon first ignition of day, for about a week. have contacted dealership for repair of noted throttle body issue, which is scheduled for 1 week from today. *tr

Drivers side door latch switch says it is not latched, but it is. this causes the interior dome lights to remain on while driving. hard to drive at night with lights on. dangerous. doors do not lock properly because it thinks the door is ajar. i understand thousands of complaints on this exact issue.

Driving down freeway at 85 miles per hour. vehicle stalls and rpms or mph won't move. pull over put in park, vehicle shakes real bad and wrench comes on. turn off and restart, wrench drops off. 50 miles down the road same instance, except after restarting wrench drops and check engine light comes on. bring to dealership. throttle actuator control system stuck open and they say possible recall. week later going 65 down highway and same instance happens. take it to different dealership and they say we have throttle body recall, they recalibrate the recall. now vehicle doesn't always switch rpms when it's supposed to. it'll jerk before shifting and then wrench and check engine light comes back on. back to dealership and they say throttle actuator control and possible new throttle body down the road. spent almost 1000 dollars on recall in last couple months and now they telling us the recall was just a recalibration and but might need a new throttle body?? what was the recall for. frustrated with ford. *tr

The vehicle was taken into a ford dealership to be serviced and after that the control module for the airbags went out. the part had to be ordered and while we were on vacation the steering began locking up and the traction control lights began showing disabled. also, the car began saying to resync something because the tire pressure was low when it was just fine. after returning from vacation and the steering column totally locking up several times, the dealership now tells us that additional control modules are out. when the steering locks it requires stopping no matter where you are at and turning off the vehicle to reset and then starting it again. this probably happened a dozen or more times on busy highways. this vehicle is roughly three years old and they can't even say why the modules are continuing to go out and if fixing them will even solve the problem. the dealership also indicated that the traction control issue could cause the vehicle to roll on curvy roads. i spoke with customer service and they said to bad, this is not on their list of items that they have to fix. they will let engineering know but no guarantee that they will even respond to this issue. will never buy a ford again in this case as this is going to cost roughly $2500 - $3500 to fix and nothing to say it won't go out again. i have never had an electronic control module go out on any other vehicle let alone after 3 years and ford is not helpful. *tr

The engine has stalled on multiple occasions. several of the incidents have occurred when making a turn, either right or left, at a low speed with no pressure being applied to either the gas or brake pedal. the most recent events have been when turning onto a street with oncoming traffic. i make the turn and press on the gas only to find that the engine has stalled. i have to stop and restart the vehicle. this makes for a dangerous situation as you end up with little control of the vehicle. it has also stalled in parking lots when coasting at a low speed waiting on another car. i purchased this vehicle used in may of 2014 and had to take it to a local ford dealership the very next month (june 2014). the dealership replaced the throttle body and motor assembly and also reprogrammed the pcm per the 13n01 recall. within two months, the issue was back, this is january of 2015, and the issue has gotten much worse. i have read that it could be a type of relay switch located in the under-the-hood fuse box. if ford doesn't fix this issue, there will eventually be wrecks and possible fatalities. *tr

I was making a left turn when i lost power steering, making it very difficult to make the turn, the abs light, advancetrac light and the advancetrac off light all started flashing. i arrived at my destination the car was parked for 1 1/2 hours, when i tried to leave the car would not start. *tr

A/c pump cycles on and off but no a/c in summer. in winter -the defroster cuts out which i believe is a overheating resister thus not cycling the a/c. also switch is inop for fan on positions 1 and 2. i believe the system " malfunction" is a fire/ safety issue and needs a safety campaign because of all weather hazards such as fog, excessive summer temps, and freezing temps with condensation. thanks

Loss of power at highway speed, 70 miles per hour, during rush hour traffic. my wife had to pull over to breakdown lane and turn off engine, on i-95 in west palm beach fl area. wrench light illuminated. vehicle restarted, after a few minutes waiting at side of very busy highway. second time this happened within two weeks. very dangerous situation!!!!!! 2011 ford escape ltd 3 l v6. *tr

After intermittent 3 times in 2 weeks, had throttle body cleaned 12/14/2013 per ford tsb. on this date, 12/16/13 it failed again and had the throttle body replaced at my expense. ford would not cover it after 36,000 or 3 years as out of warranty. it was an extremely hazardous condition not to replace. this part should be recalled immediately for replacement. *tr

Nhtsa action number - dp12006 vehicle stalls going 65 mph. issue is not covered under the 100,000 mile warranty why???? why has there not been a recall on this issue?????? *tr

While driving along highway, my gas pedal suddenly became completely unresponsive. was luckily able to coast off to shoulder of the highway and suv began to idle extremely roughly. restarted vehicle and was able to drive home without additional problems. researched issue today and found numerous examples of this problem. issue should be recalled!! *tr

Driving normal speed, without warning, "wrench icon" appears and gas pedal fails to respond. coast to stop in a parking lot. shut off engine, restart vehicle and it drives normal for remainder of 2 mile trip. start next errand and same thing happens. sounds like the throttle body failure and limp mode that i have been researching online. *tr

On 10/16/13, while driving on the freeway at 60mph and attempting to accelerate vehicle lost power in the center lane forcing me to have to make a dangerous move without power to try and bring the vehicle to rest in the emergency breakdown lane on the right. the vehicle "check engine light" came on along with some other type of wrench light. was able to start the vehicle up right away but this time the check engine light stayed on. code p2112 - electronic throttle body was replaced by ford on 10/17/13 for $320.76 vehicle also lost power on 10/10/13 while at a low speed and trying to accelerate to enter the freeway. the wrench light came on but not the check engine light. was able to restart the vehicle and the wrench light went away. *tr