2008 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID Complaints

THE COMPUTER CHECKS THE BRAKES UPON START AND THE COMPUTER IS FALSELY DETECTING AN ERROR WITH THE HYDRAULIC BRAKE PUMP PERIODICALLY. IT CAN OCCUR 1 IN EVERY 50 STARTS TO SOMETIME 5 ATTEMPTS IN EVERY 1 GOOD START. THE COMPUTER IF IT SEES AN ERROR WILL DISABLE THE REGENERATIVE BRAKES AND THE VEHICLE WILL BRAKE SIGNIFICANTLY SLOWER AND LESS EFFICIENTLY WHEN IN ERROR MODE. THE COMPUTER GLITCH REQUIRES A TOTAL REPLACEMENT AND MUST BE REPROGRAMMED AT THE DEALER AT A COST OF $4 TO $5 THOUSAND. BASED ON THE THOUSANDS I SEE ONLINE WITH THE SAME ISSUE AND NATURE OF ISSUE (BRAKES AND SAFETY), I AM SURPRISED TO SEE A RECALL HAS NOT BEEN MANDATED. THE COST IS BEYOND REASONABLE AND I AM LEFT WITH DRIVING AN UNSAFE CAR.

TAKATA RECALL POWER STEERING STOPED WORKING VERY SUDDENLY. WHILE I WAS DOING DELIVERIES FOR MY WORK I PARKED THE CAR TURNED IT OFF AND WHEN I GOT BACK AFTER ABOUT 10 MIN. POWER STEERING DIDN'T WORK AND HASN'T WORKED EVER SINCE. THE ONLY THING THAT I NOTICED THAT DAY IS THAT EVERY TIME I TURNED THERE WAS A VERY SLIGHT SHAKE ON THE STEESRING WHEEL. I THOUGHT THAT WAS UNUSUAL BUT NEVER THOUGHT THAT 2 HOURS LATER THE POWER STEERING WOULD COMPLETELY FAIL. THANK GOD THIS HAPPENED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED. I CHECKED FOR RECALLS AND NOTICED THAT THE FORD ESCAPE 08 HAS A RECALL ON THE POWER STEERING, I IMAGINE THERE WAS ENOUGH COMPLAINTS TO MAKE THE RECALL HAPPEN. HOWEVER, THERE ARE NOT AS MANY HYBRID MODELS AND I'M SURE THAT'S THE ONLY REASON WHY THERE'S NO RECALL FOR THIS SPECIFIC MODEL YET. BUT AS FAR AS I KNOW BOTH MODELS THE ESCAPE AND THE ESCAPE HYBRID ARE IDENTICAL IN MANY WAYS INCLUDING SOME PARTS IF NOT ALL PARTS OF THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM.

VEHICLE ABS REG/BRAKE WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. VEHICLES BRAKES ARE WORKING ON A LIMITED BASIS, UNSAFE TO DRIVE. APPEARS FRONT BRAKES ARE NOT WORKING.THIS OCCURRED WHILE DRIVING A HIGHWAY SPEEDS. THE PART THAT HAS FAILED IS A HYDRAULIC BRAKE CONTROL THAT COST ABOUT $5000.00 (PER DEALER QUOTE). CAR CAN NOT BE DRIVEN AT THIS TIME.

MY PROBLEM WITH THIS VEHICLES BRAKES IS SIMILAR TO OTHER COMPLAINTS I HAVE SEEN ON THIS FORUM. SOMETIMES I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THE BRAKES, BUT ABOUT HALF THE TIME AFTER STARING THE CAR THE ABS LIGHT COMES ON ALLONG WITH REGEN BRAKES NOT WORKING AND TO GET THE VEHICLE TO STOP REQUIRES STOMPING BREAK PEDAL TO THE FLOOR. WHEN IT FIRST HAPPENED IT ALMOST CAUSED ME TO ROLL PAST A STOP SIGN AND INTO ON COMING TRAFFIC. IT IS OBVIOUSLY A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE IF THE BRAKES RANDOMLY STOP WORKING. THE REPAIR SHOP OF COURSE COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AS THE BRAKES WERE WORKING FINE THEN. MOST LIKELY THOUGH, THE CULPRIT IS IN THE HYDRAULIC BRAKING SYSTEM, HENCE THE 'REGEN BRAKING' NOTE THAT COMES ON.

BRAKE SYSTEM FAILURE. ABS AND RED BRAKE LIGHTS CAME ON WHILE DRIVING AND ALMOST CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. AN INEXPERIENCED DRIVER WOULD'VE CRASHED.

THE ELECTRIC POWER STEERING ASSIST HAS FAILED CREATING DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON THE INTERSTATE WHEN THIS OCCURRED. FORD HAS RECALLED A NUMBER OF FORD ESCAPES FOR THIS ISSUE, BUT NOT ALL MODELS THAT ARE AFFECTED, INCLUDING MY VEHICLE.

POWER STEERING WENT OUT IN MY 08 ESCAPE. TOOK TO FORD DEALERSHIP WHO TOLD ME THAT RECALL WAS NO LONGER ATTACHED TO THE VEHICLE SINCE ITS OVER THE 46,000 MILES LIMIT. I INFORMED THEM THAT THERE IS NO EXPIRATION OR MILEAGE ON RECALLS. THEY THEN SAID THAT IT NEEDS A SOFTWARE UPDATE AND THE COST WILL BE ABOUT $1000. MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING IT TO WORK AND NOTICED THE STEERING WHEEL STARTED TO SHAKE WHEN STOPPED. THEN DRIVING HOME THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT.

ABS LIGHT CAME ON AND DASH SAID REGEN BRAKES DISABLED. THERE WAS NO POWER BRAKES AND CAR HAD A VERY HARD TIME STOPPING AND NARROWLY MISSED HITTING THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. TOOK IT TO A SHOP AND IT NEEDS ABS PUMP WHICH COSTS OVER $7000 TO REPLACE.

HE HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT FAILED ON MY VEHICLE. THIS SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE THAT HAS ARISEN WITH A GREAT DEAL OF OWNERS OF FORD ESCAPE HYBRIDS OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS. I HAD TO HAVE THE ENTIRE HCU SYSTEM REPLACED AT A FORD DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT. AS IT WAS NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY, NOR CONSIDERED BY THE COMPANY TO BE AN ISSUE DESERVING OF A RECALL, I HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR THE ENTIRE THING, WHICH TOTALED $4,863.00 (AND IT TOOK FIVE DAYS TO GET THE WORK COMPLETED). I ALSO HAD TO PAY TO RENT A CAR FOR THE SEVERAL DAYS IT TOOK TO GET THE PART AND PERFORM THE WORK, WHICH WAS ANOTHER $200.00. DUE TO THE HIGH COST OF THIS REPAIR AND THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH IT IS AFFECTING CONSUMERS, I BELIEVE THAT THIS ISSUE SHOULD BECOME A RECALL AND PEOPLE SHOULD BE REIMBURSED FOR THE REPAIRS THEY HAVE HAD TO MAKE.

THE POWER STEERING ASSIST FAULT CAME UP WHILE I WAS DRIVING THROUGH A SHARP TURN AND ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. WENT AWAY ON ITS OWN AND NEXT DAY CAME IN AGAIN AND SINCE THEN MY CAR IS HARD TO STEER AND DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. THERE WAS A RECALL OF 14S05 BUT IT DOESNT SHOW FOR MY VEHICLE. MINE IS THE SAME YEAR AFFECTED BUT DOES NOT APPLY FOR SOME REASON AND DEALERSHIP IS REFUSING TO TAKE ANY ACTION TO REMEDIATE.