Problems with 1999 Ford Escort ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 ford escort. the contact stated that the rear heater blower failed and sparks were shooting from the wiring harness. the contact was able to disconnect the harness before a fire ignited. the contact located a manufacturers recall for defective wiring of the defroster system, in which he believed to be the cause of the failure, but did not confirm if there were any recalls on his particular vehicle. the vehicle was neither inspected nor repaired. the vin was not available. the failure and current mileage was 105,000.

Tl*the contact owns a 1999 ford escort. the contact stated that her horn does not work. she was unable to place her vehicle in drive because of blown out fuses, including the horn fuse. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who stated that the wires to the cruise control were blown. a few weeks later, the horn failed to work again. the local ford dealer stated that there were no recalls for the vehicle and nothing could be done. the dealer advised her to purchase a ford fusion and to contact the federal trade commission. the current and failure mileages were 70,000.

I purchased my se in november of 2006 with less than 83k miles on it. three months after purchasing it, one of the head gaskets cracked. i had the head repaired, and less than two months after that the head cracked again. i had the engine replaced. i have now had new heads, new engine, new fuel pump and a new alternator installed and now am having a new problem. when i pulled out from a stop, the brake light would come on until the brakes were applied. the engine is now emitting a grinding noise when stopped, and i feel it is unsafe to drive. this is all in addition to the violent shaking, faulty front headlight, transmission that needs flushed and loud engine noise. i have spent more on repairs than i paid for the vehicle, and now have to put more money in to it, and it still has less than 94k miles on it. this is my first ford, and will be my last. *tr

Right front headlight was going on and off for a couple days. got a replacement bulb to change light. found the harness that connects into the back of the light to be melted and partially burnt. had to replace harness. *tr

I was out of town, drove for 2 1/2 hrs then parked for shopping. was on way back home..10 min into drive, when my ford escort zx2 just lost all power while driving on the highway. i had little warning..a minute before it was running rough then nothing..no gauges or steering etc. i had the alternator replaced (did not think to keep the old part) and have replaced several fuses "just because" since it keeps doing this and the scary part is i bought it for my son who is a new driver and he had it happen to him twice in one day and twice to myself the next day. we were able to get it back home after jumping it twice in 8 miles the last two times it quit. it is now parked fearing we will be stranded or worse lose control and end up in an accident due to loss of headlights, steering etc. *nm

Consumer was driving when suddenly smoke came from the steering wheel. he pulled to the side of the road and saw flames. the fire department responded to put the fire out.*ak

I purchased a 1999 ford escort from carmax in may of 2001. about 2-3 wks later i constantly had problems with the headlight going out. i got ticketed by the police several times because i was unaware of the problems. then one day driving from work my engine died. without any warning at all. i took it to carmax and they then took it to another repair shop. whenever i put the ac on there is a rumbling coming from the front end of the vehicle. frankly the car is a lemon and i had no idea because there was no reports on the car and i remembered asking the sales rep. if there was anything about the car that i needed to know and i was told no. please let me know if there is anything that i can do because i am spending money on this car for manufacturer problems. thank you. *nm

My car has 55000 miles and its a 1999 escort.y transmission needs to be replaced. i have replaced the timing belt, this at less than 55000 miles? i was driving on a very busy street and the car died and would not restart. the shop replaced the timing belt and the pully's. now i have gone to work monday morning and came out to go home, the car would not start again, just tried to turn over. i had it towed to the shop again, now its the fuel pump. there is no way that any of these problems should have started to happen yet on this car. there are major problems with it, i need some resolution on the problems that are happening.*ak

I had to put an engine and transmission in my car last year. now my ac doesn't work and i recently had to replace the battery and put a new alternator in it too. i have had issue after issue with my zx2. *jb

The vehicle caught on fire, possible electrical problems. *jb

The vehicles horn stopped blowing. the consumer feels that the horn is a safety issue, and other drivers need to be made aware. ts the repair f the horn would require the replacement of the air bag. scc

Membrane switch for horn stuck in closed position causing horn to blow constantly. wire to horn had to be pulled to remedy problem. membrane switch not available from dealer. dealer states entire air bag assembly must be replaced at a cost of over $500. not having an operational horn or logical and economical way to repair is a safety hazard. i have read several of the same complaints which seems to indicate some sort of defect in safety equipment. dealer benefiting by huge replacement cost. part should be made available or mandatory recall is necessary. *jb

Consumer got a recall to upgrade computer on vehicle, but ford refused to do recall because vehicle's title was branded. *jg *ak

Consumer states that prior to the incident fuses will just blow out. under the dash the wire harness from the back of the turning switch, it melted and caught on fire.replace the harness. problem reaccured. ts

Consumer was traveling about 25mph on a side street making a left turn and vehicle just shut off without prior warning. dealership wasn't aware of problem. but consumer will be notified. *ak

With wiring i could smell burning and did not know what it was. with tire it was under warranty . had tire replaced, i have receipt. *ak (dot number: 7jjk7u17p9 tiresize: p185/65r14)

While driving and getting close to a light vehicle will stall, and steering wheel will lock up.. same problem had happen more then ten times.*ak

Vehicle has continuously stalled. dealer was contacted and vehicle was brought in due to vehicle would turn off while idle, vehicle would not go when the gas pedal was pushed and then finally the vehicle just would not start. dealer informed that the wiring harnest as well as the computer needed to be replaced. this was able to be figured out after the third time due to the fact that the check engine light did not come on until the third time, in which the dealer informed that they could now find what was wrong, unlike previous times when the car would not stall for them.

Motor died at a traffic light. consumer had car towed to dealer. dealer stated that it was alternator. consumer indicated that dealer has replaced 4 alternators/ one starter, and a battery. consumer is afraid to drive vehcle in fear that it may stall again. *ak

Vehicle has stalled 5 times, at any speed. dealer has replaced alternator 4 times/ starter, and battery once. cannot remedy. consumer is afraid to drive vehicle.*ak

While traveling at 50 mph engine check light came on. engine stalled, and steering locked up. consumer felt that this was very unsafe because driver was unable to steer properly.*ak

Vehicle stalls intermittently and fails to start intermittently. dealership said the first time that it was a fuel pump failure, second time it was a defective fuel pump, third time it was the fuel sensor and fuel module. now doing it again. reported to the dealership awaiting report on this fourth incident.

In the process of starting vehicle ignition switch caught on fire. as a result, both airbags deployed, and interrior of dashboard was ruined.*ak

Horn would blow by itself for twenty minutes. took vehicle to dealer, and dealer said it had something to do with the airbag. in order to correct the problem, the air bag must be replaced at owner's cost. *ak *ml

Ignition will only work intermittently. been to dealer who cannot remedy problem. *ak

When vehicle was involved in a minor front end crash, a fire started behind the left headlamp, and engulfed the engine compartment. vehicle was totalled from the fire. please give any further information. report given by julie good, insurance claim representative. *ak

While making a left turn, consumer honked the horn and it would not stop blowing, consumer was forced to pull the fuse in order to stop the horn.*jb

Vehicle experienced complete shut down due to a defective starter, repairs were done, however vehicle still experience failure causing difficulty in shifting and electrical component failure which resulted in smoke. *yc

On 06/30/99 at 02:10 hours the crystal fire department responded to a vehicle fire in the back lot of elk county ford. the department found a new, 1999 ford escort se (vin #[xxx]) burning in the area of the left front tire and wheel well area. the cause of the fire was determined to be a short in the wiring in the vicinity of a "block" of relays and fuses in the left side of the engine compartment. this caused the wiring to burn and ignited nearby plastic items and the left front tire. the vehicle was just manufactured (june 1999) and had only been sitting on the lot for about 5 days. the vehicle had not been operated recently (2:00 am in a small community car dealership). although the vehicle did not belong to any consumer, this report is being filed in order to document a potential problem. [xxx] , fire chief, crystal fire department. *ak information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Leased. vehicle stalls when braking and starting again, it stalls and dies out. the problem occurred two times. dealer contacted contacted and stated computer chip defective. problem still exists. *ak

While the vehicle was parked for a while it caught on fire. fire department claimed it was the fuse box that caused the fire. please provide further information. *ak

Consumer has been experiencing problems with horn. when consumer they applies horn, it's hard to make it make a sound. because of this, the consumer was almost involved in an accident. could not let other drivers be aware of vehicle's presence. the manufacturer has yet to be contacted. *ak

Whenever the horn has to be used it fails to operate properly after being hit. there is no noise. just silence. will be taken vehicle to dealer to have it checked out, design of the horn is hampered by the installation of the air bag. *ak