2008 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE STOP SAFELY NOW WARNING MESSAGE ILLUMINATED ON THE DASHBOARD. THE VEHICLE THEN BEGAN TO DECELERATE INDEPENDENTLY AND STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THEY REPLACED THE THROTTLE BODY. THE CONTACT FAILURE RECURRED EIGHT MONTHS AFTER THE THROTTLE BODY REPLACEMENT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 96,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 107,800.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING 35 MPH AND ATTEMPTED TO BRAKE WHEN VEHICLE FAILED TO RESPOND. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO DEALER HOWEVER THE EXACT FAILURE WAS UNKNOWN. THERE WERE SEVERAL REPAIRS MADE TO VEHICLE BUT THE SPECIFIC DETAILS WERE UNAVAILABLE. THE REPAIRS DID NOT REMEDY THE FAILURE PERMANENTLY. THE DEALER ADVISED THE CONTACT TO DECLARE THE VEHICLE AS A LEMON THE FIFTH TIME THAT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE FAILURE CEASED FOR TWO YEARS BEFORE RECURRING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE RECURRING FAILURE HOWEVER NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE WAS PROVIDED. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 64,000. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY DURING A LONG TRIP (9 HOURS) A TRIANGULAR WARNING LIGHT FLASHED ON: STOP SAFELY NOW, AND THE CAR DECELERATED QUICKLY AS THOUGH THE ENGINE HAD ABRUPTLY STOPPED, BARELY ALLOWING TIME TO PULL OFF ROAD. FORTUNATELY, THERE WAS A SHOULDER AT THAT SPOT ON THE HIGHWAY. THERE IS NO WAY TO SAFELY STOP A CAR THIS SUDDENLY THAT IS TRAVELING ON A HIGHWAY! AFTER READING THE MANUAL WHICH DIRECTED DRIVER TO WAIT A BIT AND THEN RESTART CAR, THE DRIVER DID SO AND EVERYTHING SEEMED FINE UNTIL IT HAPPENED AGAIN, TWICE, ON THE HIGHWAY AGAIN AFTER DRIVING FOR ONLY 2 HOURS. PLEASE; JUST BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A CRASH, INJURY, FIRE, OR DEATH DOES NOT MEAN THIS IS "SAFE ENOUGH." *TR

I WAS ON A ROAD TRIP WITH A PASSENGER IN MY VEHICLE. WE STOPPED IN BARSTOW, CA FOR LUNCH. WHILE PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE, MY VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED JUMPING THE PARKING BLOCK AND THE CURB. I WAS ABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE FROM GOING INTO THE BUILDING BUT NOT BEFORE HITTING SOME NEWSPAPER VENDING MACHINES. THE FRONT BUMPER SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING FOR MANY YEARS AND HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED ANYTHING LIKE THIS. BOTH MY PASSENGER AND MYSELF WERE PRETTY SHOOK UP AFTERWARDS. THE PERSON SITTING IN THE CAR NEXT TO US WHO WITNESSED THIS EVENT SAID THAT THERE WAS AN OLDER MAN STANDING RIGHT WHERE WE JUMPED THE CURB A FEW MOMENTS EARLIER. FORTUNATELY, HE HAD LEFT OR THIS INCIDENT WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. *TR

THIS IS THE SECOND OF TWO INCIDENTS WHERE POWER WAS LOST AND THE CAR BECAME UNRESPONSIVE. FIRST, WAS ONE WEEK PRIOR DRIVING FROM LA TO SAN DIEGO AT 5PM. WE GOT A FLAT ON THE HIGHWAY IN IRVINE CA. WE PULLED OVER AND CHANGED THE TIRE BUT WHEN WE STARTED THE ENGINE IT WOULD NOT START. THE LIGHTS CAME ON BUT WITH A WARNING LIGHT TO "STOP SAFELY NOW". I THOUGHT THIS WAS FROM THE TIRE AND PRESSED THE RESET BUTTON BUT THE WARNING WOULD NOT CLEAR. WE JUMPED THE CAR ONCE AND WERE UNSUCCESSFUL, WE JUMPED IT AGAIN AND AGAIN NOTHING, WE TOWED THE VEHICLE TO A MECHANIC AND THE TOW TRUCK TRIED TO JUMP IT AGAIN AND THIS TIME THE LIGHTS WOULD NOT COME ON. WE JUMPED WHILE HOLDING THE BUTTON FOR THE HIGH VOLTAGE BATTERY WHICH WE FOUND OUT ABOUT IN THE MANUAL BUT THE CAR WOULD NOT START. WE PAID THE TOW AND CALLED FOR A RIDE HOME. I MISSED WORK AND MY MOTHER TOOK ME BACK TO LA TO WAIT FOR THE CAR. THE MECHANIC REPLACED THE BATTERY. I WAITED 8 HOURS FOR THE MECHANIC TO SAY THAT THE CAR NEEDED TO BE TAKEN OUT OF A SAFETY MODE AND THAT THIS CAN'T BE DONE MANUALLY IN THE EVENT IT HAPPENED AGAIN. THE NEXT WEEK, AFTER PULLING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY TO GO HOME SUNDAY NIGHT THE RED TRIANGLE LIGHT CAME ON AND WARNED ME TO "STOP SAFELY NOW" AND THEN I COULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 20MPH AND THEN 10MPH AS I SLOWED TO PULL OVER. I KILLED THE ENGINE, WAITED TEN MIN. AND RESTARTED BUT THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AND THE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN. I WAITED UNTIL MIDNIGHT TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALER, GOT A RIDE, AND I AM NOW ON THE BUS UNTIL SOMETHING CAN BE DONE. AFTER RESEARCHING OTHER COMPLAINTS I AM SAD TO FIND THAT THIS PROBLEM IS COMMON, IT IS UNRESOLVED, IT IS DANGEROUS FOR A SAFETY MECHANISM TO CAUSE THE DRIVER TO SUDDENLY LOSE POWER, AND IT IS INCONVENIENT TO BE STRANDED AND UNABLE TO TROUBLESHOOT THE CAR IF THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE ENGINE AND IT IS A COMPUTER MALFUNCTION. *TR

THIS IS MY SECOND SUBMISSION. THIS MORNING WHILE DRIVING TO WORK THE ABS LIGHT CAME ON ALONG WITH A "CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM" MESSAGE AND "REGEN BRAKES DISABLED". IN THE PAST WHEN THIS HAPPENED I STILL HAD BRAKES BUT HAD TO MASH THEM DOWN TO GET THE VEHICLE TO STOP. THIS MORNING I WAS UNABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE. MY VEHICLE THEN WENT OFF THE ROAD AND INTO A DRAINAGE DITCH. THE VEHICLE NEEDED TO BY LYNCHED OUT AND TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. I AM THANKFUL THAT I WAS ONLY GOING ABOUT 30MPH AND ENDED UP IN A DITCH RATHER THAN A BUSY INTERSECTION. THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE AND I DON'T EVER WANT TO DRIVE THAT VEHICLE AGAIN. I HAVE 2 SMALL CHILDREN WHO I AM THANKFUL WERE NOT WITH ME. *TR

THE ABS SYSTEM HAS BEEN GETTING DISABLED INTERMITTENTLY AND THE CHECK BREAK LIGHT HAS BEEN COMING ON. BREAKS HAVE NOT BEEN WORKING PROPERLY RESULTING IN MY VEHICLE GOING TO FAR INTO AN INTERSECTION WHEN TRYING TO STOP AT STOPLIGHTS. THANKFULLY NO ACCIDENTS HAVE OCCUR YET. TOOK IT TO A DEALERSHIP AND THEY TOLD ME I NEEDED A NEW MASTER CYLINDER. ANOTHER PLACE DID A DIAGNOSTIC ON IT AND TOLD ME THAT THE MASTER CYLINDER IS FINE AND THE ALARMS ARE BEING SET OFF BECAUSE THE BATTERY PORTS WERE CORRODED. THEY CLEANED THEM, CLEARED THE CODES. A FEW DAYS LATER THE ALARMS WERE COMING BACK ON AGAIN. *TR

DRIVER HEAT WAS SCORCHING HOT, PASSENGER HEAT WARM. 7/27/11. REPLACED BLEND DOOR ACTUATOR. SEEMED TO WORK FINE. 6/11/12 HEAT BLOWING SCORCHING HOT; AC NOT WORKING AT ALL. DEALER TESTED WITH DYE IN THE SYSTEM (NO LEAKS), TOPPED OFF FLUIDS. WORKED FOR A FEW DAYS. RETESTED & THEY "REMOVE REPLACE CONDENSOR RECHARGE" 7/2/12 AC BLOWING SCORCHING HOT HEAT. *JS

VEHICLE GAVE "STOP SAFELY NOW" READOUT ON DISPLAY AND RED TRIANGLE LIGHT ON DASH. POWER DROPPED OFF AND I HAD TO PULL OF THE ROAD. I WAS TRAVELING FROM LA TO SANTA CRUZ IN THE EVENING. HAPPENED FOUR MORE TIMES ON THE SAME DRIVE. JUST HAPPENED AGAIN COMING BACK FROM PALM SPRINGS ALSO IN THE EVENING. TOOK ME SEVEN HOURS TO DRIVE 140 MILES. CAR STOPPED OVER TWENTY TIMES. *TR

2008 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO TRANSMISSION AND ENGINE PROBLEMS *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED WHEN HE DECIDED TO SLOW DOWN BY APPLYING THE BRAKE AND SHIFTING THE CVT TRANSMISSION INTO LOW RANGE, TO HIS SURPRISE THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT SHIFT DOWN AND ALLOW THE ENGINE COMPRESSION TO SLOW THE VEHICLE DOWN. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER, BUT THEY WERE UNABLE TO FIND ANYTHING WRONG. THE CONSUMER WAS ADVISED BY FORD CUSTOMER SERVICE TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO ANOTHER DEALER. THE SERVICE MANAGER STATED THE VEHICLE COULD NOT BE SHIFTED INTO LOW AT 50-60 MPH AND EXPECT IT TO SLOW DOWN. HOWEVER, THE CONSUMERS MANUAL STATED THE TRANSMISSION MAY BE SHIFTED INTO LOW AT ANY SPEED. UPDATED 09/11/12