2008 FORD ESCAPE Complaints

WE LOST POWER STEERING UPON RESTARTING THE VEHICLE. HAD THIS HAPPENED AT ROAD SPEED WE MOST CERTAINLY WOULD HAVE HAD A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN. *TR

THIS IS MY SECOND COMPLAINT, SAME ISSUE. AGAIN, YESTERDAY DRIVING AT ABOUT 30 MPH THE CAR JUST SHUT OFF. NO PROBLEMS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE, NO SOUNDS, NOTHING. IT JUST STALLED. STARTED UP RIGHT AWAY. NO PROBLEMS DRIVING AFTER EXCEPT IT DID FEEL LIKE IT JERKED A BIT (ALMOST UNNOTICEABLE EXCEPT NOW I AM VERY AWARE OF THIS) ON TWO OCCASIONS WITHIN 5 MINUTES AFTER THE STALL. THIS CAR WAS PURCHASES AS A USED VEHICLE BACK IN JAN. IT IS A 2008. I ALSO FILED A COMPLAINT YESTERDAY ON THIS SAME ISSUE WHICH OCCURRED JUST IN THE LAST FEW DAYS AND AGAIN A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO. SO THIS IS THE 4TH "STALL" SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE 7 WEEKS AGO. *TR

I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD APPROXIMATELY 40MPH GOING AROUND A TURN. THE VEHICLE WAS DIFFICULT TO STEER IT WAS LIKE HAVING NO POWER STEERING THIS HAPPENED VERY SUDDENLY WITH NO WARNING. I WAS BARELY ABLE TO MANEUVER THE VEHICLE OFF THE ROAD. ONCE I FINALLY GOT IT TO A PULL OFF AREA, I GOT OUT AND LOOKED AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE VEHICLE TO SEE IF THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG FROM THE OUTSIDE NOTHING TO BEEN SEEN. I THEN GOT BACK IN THE VEHICLE AND RESTARTED IT, THEN THE STEERING WAS NORMAL. THIS WAS A VERY SCARY MOMENT, AS I HAD THREE CHILDREN WITH ME. I HAVE DONE RESEARCH ONLINE TONIGHT I HAVE FOUND ALOT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS SAME SITUATION FROM MANY OTHER 2008 ESCAPE OWNERS. REALLY SCARY PART IS: THIS COMPLAINING PEOPLE ALSO STATING RECURRING INCIDENTS. SURE WISH FORD WOULD RECALL THIS DANGEROUS HAZARD. *TR

WHILE DRIVING, POWER STEERING WENT OUT. VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH NO POWER STEERING PUMP, IT HAS ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING ASSIST. FOR ABOUT THE PAST MONTH, THE POWER STEERING WOULD NOT ACTIVATE AND I HAD TO TURN OFF MY CAR AND IT CAME BACK ON. THE STEERING WHILE HAS BEEN SHAKING WHILE DRIVING. TODAY THOUGH, WAS THE FIRST TIME IT WENT OUT WHILE DRIVING. I CALLED FORD CONSUMER LINE AND THEY SEEMED UNCONCERNED ABOUT THIS ISSUE. LUCKILY, WE LIVE IN THE COUNTRY AND DO NOT HAVE MUCH TRAFFIC, SO I WAS ABLE TO PULL THE CAR OVER BEFORE IT CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. LOOKING ONLINE, THERE HAS BEEN A NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS CONCERNING THIS SAME ISSUE. THE LINK BELOW, CURRENTLY HAS 113 COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS SAME TYPE OF ISSUE. I AM SUBMITTING THIS COMPLAINT BEFORE SOMEBODY DOES GET INJURED OR KILLED BECAUSE SOMEBODY'S STEERING GOES OUT ON THE FREEWAY AT A HIGH SPEED. I AM ASKING THE TRANSPORTATION SAFETY ADMINISTRATION TO INVESTIGATE THIS MATTER BEFORE SOMETHING DOES HAPPEN. HTTP://WWW.ABOUTAUTOMOBILE.COM/COMPLAINT/2008/FORD/ESCAPE/STEERING. *TR

AS I WAS COMING TO A STOP TO TURN RIGHT AT A CORNER, I HEARD A CLICK AND FELT A VIBRATION IN THE STEERING WHEEL. WHEN I THEN TRIED TO COMPLETE MY TURN, IT WAS OBVIOUS THAT THERE WAS NO POWER STEERING. I COMPLETED MY TURN, DROVE ABOUT A QUARTER OF A MILE AND THEN PULLED OVER. I WAS ABLE TO REACTIVATE THE STEERING BY TURNING OFF THE IGNITION AND TURNING IT BACK ON. THE PROBLEM REPEATED ITSELF LATER IN THE DAY AS I WAS PULLING OUT OF A PARKING SPACE. *TR

BEGINNING IN THE MONTH OF OCTOBER 2012 MY STEERING WHEEL BEGAN SHAKING. THE POWER STEERING WENT COMPLETELY OUT JUST AS I WAS TAKING A TURN ON THE FREEWAY. I JUST BARELY MANAGED AVOID HITTING SOMEONE HEAD ON. *TR

GOT OFF WORK DROVE ACROSS STREET, PARKED FOR AN HOUR, GOT BACK IN STARTED TO BACK UP AND IT WAS LIKE I DIDN'T HAVE POWER STEERING. LET OTHER CAR GO, CONTINUED ACROSS STREET TO GAS STATION TO CHECK UNDER THE HOOD. NOTHING LOOKED WRONG. STARTED CAR BACK UP AND WE HAD POWER VERY CONFUSED. I GUESS IT'S POSSESSED. LIKE WHEN THE HORN WOULD MAKE NOISE ON ITS ONE COUPLE YRS BACK. DIDN'T GET TOO FAR AND ALL OF A SUDDEN THE STEERING WHEEL MADE SHAKIN NOISE LIKE IT WAS GRINDING AND WE LOST POWER AGAIN. TURNED AROUND AND HEADED TO DEALERSHIP. THEY SAID IT WAS STEERING COLUMN CONTROL BOARD. 1400.00 TO FIX. DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. NEED TO SEE IF WE CAN INSTALL IT OURSELVES. FROM THE SOUNDS OF IT LOOKS AS IF THEY SHOULD HAVE THIS RECALLED, FOR WE WILL BE ON THE HUNT FOR A NEW CAR AND WE THOUGHT ABOUT A 3RD ESCAPE BUT NOT NOW. *TR

THREE TIMES IN LAST 4 WEEKS VEHICLE HAS STALLED WHILE DRIVING. IT WILL THEN RESTART IMMEDIATELY WITH NO EFFORT. IT WILL THEN WILL SURGE, JERK VERY SLIGHTLY UPON DRIVING IT AGAIN. ON ONE OCCASION THERE WAS NO SURGING OR JERKING. CAR WAS JUST PURCHASED IN LATE JAN. 2008 AS A USED VEHICLE. NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. NO WARNING LIGHTS WHATSOEVER. NO INDICATORS WHEN HOOKED UP TO A ENGINE CODE READOUTS. JUST STALLS. HAVE HAD ONE VERY CLOSE NEAR ACCIDENT WHEN SOMEONE WAS BEHIND ME AND ALMOST SLAMMED INTO THE BACK OF MY CAR AS IT DIED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AT 40MPH. WHEN IDLING AT STOP LIGHT OR JUST IN PARK THERE IS NO INDICATION OF STALLING, JERKING, OR ROUGH IDLING. NO INDICATION OF BAD TIMING. JUST WHILE DRIVING - NO WARNING WHATSOEVER, JUST STALLS...NOT WHILE ACCELERATING, NOT WHILE DECELERATION, JUST WHILE DRIVING. HAS NOT HAPPENED ON HIGHWAY AT HIGH SPEED HOWEVER THIS CAR IS MOSTLY DRIVEN IN TOWN, 90% OF THE TIME. *TR

POWER STEERING KEEPS GOING IN AND OUT. USUALLY IT WILL NOT WORK WHEN I START THE CAR BUT IF I TURN IT BACK OFF AND ON A FEW TIMES IT STARTS WORKING AGAIN. THE STEERING WHEEL ALSO VIBRATES OR PULSATES WHEN I AM DRIVING. HASN'T HAPPENED WHILE DRIVING YET BUT I AM SCARED THAT IT IS JUST A MATTER OF TIME. SEEN A LOT OF FORD ESCAPES HAVING THIS PROBLEM. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 FORD ESCAPE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH AND DECELERATING, THE ENGINE SUDDENLY SEIZED THEN STALLED. THE ABS BAND AND SKID CONTROL WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF FOR FIFTEEN MINUTES AND THEN RESTARTED BUT THE COMPUTER RESET ITSELF AND SHOWED NO FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHO STATED THE ABS BAND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED WHO STATED TO CONTACT NHTSA AND FILE A COMPLAINT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 58,000.