2011 FORD ESCAPE Complaints

When I start My 2011 Ford Escape it randomly looses all power steering. I have to put car in park & turn it off, then back on & the power steering returns. This is very dangerous because what happens if I loose all steering while on the highway. Upon researching the problem I have found that a whole bunch of other 2011 Ford escapes have a recall for the exact same problem. I took my car to be inspected and diagnosed by the dealership I bought it from( it's the torque sensor) , they said however that my car isn't under the recall. It should be. This is a serious safety hazard. My dealership is willing to fix it but It will be a complete out of pocket expense that I can't afford right now. All of us other folks are having the exact same issues for the exact same car and we are not under recall.

Ultimately, what happened was a loss of steering control. I did not completely lose steering, but suddenly with no warning, my vehicle became very difficult to steer (required a lot of "muscle power" to turn the wheel. The vehicle is available for inspection if necessary.) Sudden loss of steering control is a pretty obvious safety risk! The problem has not yet been reproduced/confirmed by anyone as it just happened yesterday (3/21/2022.) I am doing research into whether there was a recall on my vehicle for this issue before we take it in for repairs. No inspections have been done by anyone yet. This happened at a lower speed (while turning into a parking lot, mid turn, at the point where you are letting your steering wheel recover and starting to pick up speed again, so I was probably going 10 - 15 MPH.) There were no warning lamps or messages prior.

When driving under 15mph the steering is hard to turn as if the power steering has gone out completely. When you turn the engine off then car is able to turn until it happens again.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of electric power steering assist. The dealer was made aware of the failure and scheduled an upcoming appointment for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to file a complaint with NHTSA. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V284000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 91,910.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Escape Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle experienced a loss of electric power steering assist. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to file a complaint with NHTSA. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V284000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 220,000.

I TRIED TO GET FUEL LATE AT NIGHT IN WINTER WARNING AFTER WORK AND UPON DOING SO, THE NOZZLE AT THE GAS STATION WOULD NOT FIT PROPERLY TO FUEL THE TANK. GAS BEGAN TO LEAK OUT AS I WAS FUELING THE VEHICLE, SQUIRTING UP ONTO MY BODY AND CLOTHING. I DID NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE NOZZLE DID NOT FIT, HOWEVER I NEEDED DESPERATELY TO GET GAS SO THAT I COULD RETURN HOME IN A MOUNTAINOUS AREA WHERE I LIVE. I TRIED FILLING THE GAS TANK SLOWLY TO NO AVAIL. THEN I PROCEEDED TO ANOTHER GAS STATION AS THERE ARE NOT MANY AROUND, AND AGAIN NOZZLE WOULD NOT ENTER THE TANK. THIS TIME I COULDN'T EVEN TURN ON THE PUMP. AFTER INSPECTING THE SITUATION, I COULD SEE THAT THE FUEL TANK AREA LOOKED AS THOUGH THE HOLE FOR THE TANK NO LONGER ACCEPTED NOZZLES, THE FUEL FILLER AREA SEEMED TO HAVE SLIPPED AND I NOW I AM UNABLE TO GET GAS AT ALL. THERE WAS NO WARNING- THIS JUST HAPPENED SUDDENLY, PUTTING ME IN A DANGEROUS SITUATION, WITH GASOLINE ON MY CLOTHING, FREEZING TEMPERATURES AND NEARLY STRANDED. LUCKILY I HAD ENOUGH GAS TO GET HOME, HOWEVER I CAN NOT FUEL MY TANK AND THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A DIRE STRAIGHTS EMERGENCY.

When driving, the power steering goes out and you are not able to steer the car. It is very noticeable when I am making a right or left hand turn. You have to turn the steer wheel manually (a lot different from manual steering in older cars). When this happens, I put the car in neutral, turn the car off, restart the car, and put it back in drive. This temporarily fixes the problem. Very difficult to turn the wheel. It is extremely stressful and difficult to control the car at that point. I have not been in an accident yet and no bodily harm has been caused; however, I am hoping it doesn't ever happen. I was told by Ford that this is the Electric Power Steering Gear. There was a recall for Ford Escape 2011 and my VIN is not included. It should be as I am experiencing the same problems. There is no warning before this happens. It just happens and you cannot prepare for it. I would truly appreciate to be included in the recall as I do have a 2011 Ford Escape and I am experiencing the same problems/issues the other cars did that were included in the recall. As this was purchased as a used car, I was not aware of the possible recall and this problem. The date below only indicates the most current incident.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The contact was awaiting a response. The failure mileage was approximately 112,000. THE CONSUMER STATED THE TORQUE SENSOR FAILED AND WAS NOT COVERED BY THE RECALL 14S05, WHICH WAS EXPIRED.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Escape Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost power steering assist functionality. The contact stated that he was able to safely pull to the side of the road and restart the vehicle. Once the vehicle was restarted the vehicle drove normally for approximately 30 minutes before the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was notified of NHTSA campaign 14V284000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included. The local dealer was contacted and the contact was informed that the repair would be an out-of-pocket expense. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was referred to the NHTSA for assistance. The failure mileage was 120,000.

Hello I am contacting you about my 2011 Ford Escape. Approximately January 14, 2022 I was driving on the freeway when my steering started to feel slightly rigid. I got off the freeway and pulled into a parking lot Where I attempted to maneuver into a space when my power steering went completely out .It appeared to be manual steering only. I had to slam on my brakes to keep from hitting the vehicle next to the space I was trying to park in. There was no warning prior to this event. I contacted Ford who opened a case. I explained I had found on the Internet this had been recalled however my VIN number was not in the recalled numbers. The dealer told me they charged $140 an hour to diagnose plus if it was not covered that is additional .The Ford representative advised me to take it to the dealer to be inspected. The dealer confirmed there is a power steering failure and it DID need to be replaced however it was going to be at my cost as it was not covered under the recall. This amount is close to 800.00 The dealer has had my vehicle since January 21st almost 3 weeks now. They have not provided or offered a vehicle while I wait. They advise me they are waiting on parts and they would call me when they have completed the repairs after my second call for an update. I also have a recall I was contacted about which they are going to take care of at the same time. The case number Ford assigned me is as follows CAS34964338 I am very fortunate I was able to get off of the freeway before losing complete steering ability. My vehicle is at Germain Ford in Beavercreek Ohio. Safety Recall 14S05 for my exact circumstances doesn't include my VIN # but includes exact problem in the recall. My vehicle was made at the Kansas plant. Mr Michael Berardi from Ford wrote an article which I found on internet which instructs dealers to fix the defect free of charge even if they didn't receive a recall letter 800-325-5621. They refused to speak with me and said they only talk with dealers.