What 2,743 owners told NHTSA about the 2013 Ford Escape Gas

My wife and I own a 2013 Ford Escape SE that developed a "Steering Assist Failure" error message on the dashboard. This failure causes the power steering to drop and the steering wheel has to be manually turned. When she drove it, she didn''t know what to do, so she drove it a few blocks to our house and told me about what happened. When I drove it and that happened to me, I put the vehicle back in park and shut the engine off for about 10 seconds. When I turned it back on, the error message went away and I was able to use the power steering without any problems.

NHTSA ODI 11517318

The contact's daughter owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who informed the contact that the steering gear box needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 97,000.

NHTSA ODI 11516299

Steering Assist Fault sensor comes on which creates total loss of control of the wheel when driving placing anyone utilizing the road in danger as steering is not possible. Has occurred over 25 times. This was part of a recall and has been removed from being a recall now. Warning sensors go off randomly in the car all of the time and are inaccurate creating distractive driving for youth and has created dangerous situations. DMV citation during driving test regarding the sensor malfunctions. Back-Up Camara Broken, and Trunk will not open or close in weather below 40 preventing use in late fall winter early spring.

NHTSA ODI 11514684

Steering Assist fault warning has been coming on intermittently for the past 6 years. This car is being driven by my daughter while attending college in Virginia. In the past I have taken it to my mechanic in New Jersey but by the time I get it there the warning is off and nothing is detected. It is coming on more frequently. Why is there no recall for this. I will advise her to take it to a Ford dealership in Virginia this week.

NHTSA ODI 11512962

Vehicle steering assist went out and I couldn't navigate the steering wheel.

NHTSA ODI 11511124

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the power steering failed to operate as needed. The contact stated that an unknown warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle back to the residence. Upon restarting the vehicle, the power steering returned to normal functionality. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.

NHTSA ODI 11510616

While driving the following message appeared in my hub "The steering assist fault service required". Immediately I lost steering power and the steering wheel got really heavy. I stopped the vehicle, turned it off, and restarted it, but the problem persist.

NHTSA ODI 11510120

Was driving along and my steering wheel got stiff, couldn’t turn it either direction. Almost resulting in a crash into the guard rails. When I pulled harder to avoid going into said rails it literally pulled a 45degree turn into oncoming traffic!!!! I was able to brake in time before fully sending into the ditch narrowly missing traffic! The fact that there isn’t a recall on the electric power steering with all of the complaints is atrocious at best!!!!!!!!

NHTSA ODI 11509973

While in motion the steering assists suddenly stopped working, A warning also show on dash "Auto steering assist failure" -(or something to that effect. Steering is then very very stiff. Only a very strong person is able to turn the wheel. Restart motor and it works again. Problem is intermittent.

NHTSA ODI 11509994

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the EPS warning light illuminated, and the steering wheel seized. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed as a steering rack failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 107,000.

NHTSA ODI 11509533

Steering assist fault

NHTSA ODI 11508233

The car automatically quits steering, Found out that it has electric steering. already replaced it once and now it needs it again, good thing I wasn't heading toward a person or another car. How can you put a steering system in a vehicle that probably runs off a fuse.

NHTSA ODI 11508092

On a few separate occasions beginning in the summer of 2022, my steering wheel has locked up after turning the ignition on. Each time this happened, I had to wait for it to "unlock", which is usually just seconds. However, on January 22, 2023 WHILE DRIVING I received a message on the dashboard that said "steering assist fault" and I had to pull over because the steering wheel was too hard to maneuver, whether it be turning left or right. I felt like it was going to break I had to turn it so hard, and with my entire body. Once I pulled over I turned the car off and let it sit for a couple of minutes and then re-started it. The message went away but the steering was really sloppy, to the point where it felt like I could turn the wheel 180 degrees with the tires barely turning themselves. Once I got home and parked it for the night, I took it to a local mechanic and they were unable to get any messages from it but did discover I'm not the only Ford who has had issues with this message and/or steering. I talked to my Ford dealer and they have heard about the problem with other Fords. I would like someone to check into it because it could become a real liability for Ford if this problem is not resolved. By googling the search terms "ford steering assist failure" I was able to bring up a big forum wherein other Ford owners were complaining of this issue .

NHTSA ODI 11504699

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the steering wheel became stiff and lost power steering functionality. The power steering assist warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to drive to the residence. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the power steering system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the VIN was not under recall for the failure. There was no further assistance provided. The failure mileage was 147,000.

NHTSA ODI 11502497

Turned vehicle on and steering wheel would turn with clicking but front tires would not move. Problem was fixed by turning vehicle on and off. No warnings from display. If problem occurs while driving I would have no steering which is clearly unsafe.

NHTSA ODI 11498550

Power steering loss on start up. When starting the power steering is absent for the first 2 min. then it operates fine with one instance of brief stiffness. taking to independent mechanic and will consult with loacl dealer.

NHTSA ODI 11498568

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while reversing the vehicle, the “Steering Assist Fault - Service Required” warning light illuminated, and the steering wheel became very firm. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and stated that the power steering control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but offered no assistance. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 105,000.

NHTSA ODI 11492902

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the power steering failed to operate as needed. The vehicle was driven to an independent mechanic and remained with the independent mechanic. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed her that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 139,500.

NHTSA ODI 11492545

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH and making a right turn, the vehicle lost power steering functionality and the steering wheel became difficult to turn in either direction, almost causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle and drive into a ditch. During the failure, the message "Power Steering Fault" was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the rack and pinion system was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 93,000.

NHTSA ODI 11489916

Loss of power steering. Happened while returning from a short (3 block) trip to store. Was able to return to home by driving slowly and wrestling the steering carefully. Waiting to hear back from dealership. Did not observe warning lamps or messages.

NHTSA ODI 11489281

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The power steering assist fault warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was placed on a diagnostic machine and produced an unknown code indicating that the power assist was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

NHTSA ODI 11488748

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the steering wheel was locked without warning. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle several times and the vehicle started operating normally. On another occasion, the contact started the vehicle and the steering wheel locked with the steering assist fault and service now message displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the VIN was not under recall. The failure mileage was 112,287.

NHTSA ODI 11486388

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist with the steering fault message displayed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 157,000.

NHTSA ODI 11483453

The electric power assist stopped working and almost caused my wife to hit another car. You cannot steer this car if the power assist isn't working, lots of complaints about this issue but nobody is checking into it, if this isn't a safety problem than there isn't any reason for you to be in business for you are not recognizing a serious problem, I know a little door latch is important but no where close to this problem. can you imagine going down the road at 60 miles per hour and your steering goes out. also the cross over on the rear suspension must be made of low grade tin for it has completely rotted away, this crossover holds the rear suspension. I know nothing will happen with this but at least I got to vent, Thanks

NHTSA ODI 11483565

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while in the parking lot, the power steering became inoperable. The steering wheel was difficult to turn. The steering fault must be serviced message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed them the module needed to be programmed and replaced and referred the contact to the dealer. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the rack and pinon and module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 68,020. The consumer stated the steering fault was repaired on August 2022.

NHTSA ODI 11479587