What 2,628 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Ford Escape Gas

Water leaking into cylinder White smoke when start engine Uses coolant quickly Engine light on

NHTSA ODI 11745388

I own a 2017 Ford Escape with the 2.0L EcoBoost engine. Beginning around December 2025 through January 2026, the vehicle began exhibiting symptoms consistent with coolant intrusion into the engine. Engine coolant continually disappears from the reservoir despite no visible external leak. However, at the time I did not know think it was a coolant intrusion. It wasn't until I took my car to the Ford dealer in June that I started researching things online. Prior to the June diagnosis, I also took the vehicle to Denny Menholt in January and February 2026 for inspection due to the same concerns. At that time, they were unable to determine the cause of the issue. As the condition has worsened, the engine runs rough and frequently vibrates, rumbles, and shakes while driving. The vehicle occasionally misfires and loses power. There have also been instances where the vehicle accelerates more aggressively than expected when pressing the gas pedal and instances of unexpected downshifting while driving. These issues make the vehicle difficult to operate predictably and create a significant safety concern. The Check Engine Light (CEL) illuminated during this time. No other warning lights were displayed before the vehicle's condition worsened. I took the vehicle to a Ford dealership for diagnosis in June 2026. The dealership identified cylinder 1 and cylinder 4 misfire codes and performed a pressure test on the cooling system. The dealership determined that coolant is leaking into the cylinders and advised that Ford Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) 22-2229 applies to this condition. The dealership informed me that the engine requires complete replacement due to the coolant intrusion issue. The estimated repair cost is approximately $11,000. Although the vehicle is outside the warranty time period, I purchased it new in December 2017 and it currently has fewer than 35,000 miles. I do not believe a vehicle with such low mileage should experience catastrophic engine failure re

NHTSA ODI 11745304

Complete engine failure Was driving when car suddenly it started to shake; gages displayed warning signs; parked vehicle at home; next day car started and drove to corner mechanic Had vehicle towed to two different mechanics; both showed engine failure & stated a problem with Ford Escape Ecoboost having sudden engine failures within my car's year (2017) There were no warnings of an issue until the day the car started to shake. Issues appeared one day, the next day the vehicle showed signs on the dash of an issue- immediately taken to a mechanic. A second mechanic observed the issue and a third mechanics made same claim of total engine failure

NHTSA ODI 11744801

I am reporting a confirmed safety defect in my 2017 Ford Escape involving engine coolant intrusion into the cylinder bores. This is a sudden, random manufacturing defect that occurs without warning. I have exercised full due diligence as an owner regarding upkeep and maintenance on my vehicle. I now have a formal, written diagnosis from a Ford Service Center confirming this internal failure (consistent with TSB 22-2229). This defect creates an extreme safety hazard because it leads to unpredictable engine stalling and sudden engine failure at any time. The verified diagnosis proves my vehicle is currently a high-risk hazard that could lose power without warning on high-speed roadways. Ford’s Customer Satisfaction Program 21N12 is an insufficient response to a defect that causes vehicles to become disabled and vulnerable in traffic. I am requesting that NHTSA escalate this to a mandatory safety recall based on the documented, spontaneous nature of this failure despite my proven maintenance history. I purchased the recommended extended warranty and lifetime powertrain warranty recommended by Tri-County Ford where I purchased the vehicle. They are also refusing to fix the issue because it was not caused by an internal part failure. Now I am being forced to either pay $12,000 for a replacement engine or purchase a new vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11744807

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that after refueling, the vehicle failed to immediately restart on several occasions. Additionally, the vehicle stalled on several occasions with the Check Engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the evaporator canister and purge valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The contact was informed about NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V515000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE); however, the VIN was not included. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 104,600.

NHTSA ODI 11744553

Total Engine failure due to coolant leaking into the engine. Car would sometimes not start requiring it to be jump started but I thought it was due to an old battery but after the car couldnt be started.agter replacement it was brought to the dealership who said it was the engine. We did have to keep adding coolent regularly which we thought was strange at the time but were unaware that this was an issue with some Ford leaking coolant. I worry that the car would have just stopped running while i was driving. Luckily it didnt but i still believe that this should be looked at

NHTSA ODI 11744246

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle started shaking and lost motive power. The vehicle was coasted to the next town, approximately a mile and a half away. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who attempted to change the spark plugs and fuel injectors. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure persisted. The vehicle was then diagnosed using a code reader, and a code for a cracked engine block was retrieved and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 78,000.

NHTSA ODI 11744209

Engine replacement due to defective engine at a cost of $10784.68 plus Washington tax of $949.05 for a total of $11,733.73. I file a complaint with both Ford and NHTSA. This engine replacement was done on XXX. I have yet to get a refund for the defective engine from Ford. I need your help as this is very unfair to me as the defective engine was an Ford error. Here is my contact information: [XXX] [XXX] [XXX]/cell INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11743990

Engine failed at 71,700 miles due to cracked block causing coolant intrusion into cylinders. Motor would quit while driving. Ford dealer tested and confirmed known problem. Motor would misfire then stall.

NHTSA ODI 11743855

My Turbo/EcoBoost Escape’s check engine light kept coming on and off between October and December 2025. I took it to a Ford repair shop in December to diagnose (P0301 and P0306 engine codes), and they said coolant was leaking into an engine cylinder. They said maybe I hadn’t done a coolant flush years back, but they weren’t sure why it developed. Regardless they said I needed to replace the entire engine— $10,000+ on an 8 year old car. I went to an independent repair shop for a second opinion. They confirmed the problem but told me more that Ford didn’t: it was a known design flaw (a Technical Service Bulletin notice was written) in the engine that Ford didn’t do a recall for, and yes I still needed to spend $10k to replace the engine, or else the car could risk becoming abruptly undrivable within months or as soon as weeks. I was very upset and disappointed a Ford dealer/repair shop wasn’t honest about what was going on, and Ford hadn’t stepped up to address the known flaw in their engines. I was put into a spot of spending $10k on an 8 year old car that was in great shape otherwise and paid off, but could become a piece of junk at any moment. I felt forced into having to get a new car, all because of a design flaw that Ford didn’t admit or correct. But they were happy to start trying to get me to buy a new Ford. As if.

NHTSA ODI 11743746

Check engine light came on. had it checked at the dealer and they confirmed coolant intrusion on the engine and that it needs an engine replacement. there was a technical service bulletin issue on this exact issue but Ford is refusing to help with any assistance. They estimated $12,000 to fix it.

NHTSA ODI 11743756

Coolant for car engine was discovered by ford service technician in cylinder causing the spark plug to misfire and break. the engine miss fires and idles very rough. The check engine light keeps coming on flashing, which is another tell tale sigh, according to service advisor, that there is a problem. The car is available for inspection at any time. Driving becomes dangerous if the engine quits or causing the rough engine to not continue to run. Olathe Ford wants $10,000.00 for a new engine.

NHTSA ODI 11743791

Engine light came on started blinking Vehicle had oil and coolant intrusion into coils and engine and engine is requiring of replacement. No issues prior. Maintenance regularly done.

NHTSA ODI 11743794

Due to a known defect for which there is already a class action lawsuit against Ford, the head gasket seal failed allowing coolant to seep into cylinders 2 and 3. In turn, this caused a crack in the engine wall requiring over $10,000 in repairs.

NHTSA ODI 11743412

The Ford 2.0L EcoBoost engine has known issue of coolant in cylinders which causes misfires. Ford has yet to issue a recall on this engine. They have redesigned the engine to solve the known problem. Why have they not issued a recall and why our customers being stuck with the repair costs. The vehicle will suddenly start loosing power which could cause a rear end accident. The Ford service center has confirmed this is the issue. The code that was displayed on OBDII was #07E8- cylinder 2 misfire.

NHTSA ODI 11743148

Coolant reservoir keeps losing coolant. Took it to a mechanic who said it has a blown head gasket. Ford knows about this issue for this exact vehicle and has known since at least 2020, but hasn't issued any recalls. There are at least two service bulletins about this car.

NHTSA ODI 11743226

In mid-XXX the engine light came on my 2017 Ford Escape Titanium EcoBoost 2.0 vehicle. I took the vehicle to an auto parts store & was told the problem code was P0303. OnXXX called Earnhardt Ford dealership in [XXX]. Spoke to a service tech that advised based on the code the problem is the coolant leaking into the engine cylinder and the fix is a long block replacement. The cost could be $10,000 maybe more & there were no recalls for this problem on my vehicle & I no longer had a warranty because even though I purchased the extended warranty it expired in 2023. There is currently only 60,800 miles on my vehicle. XXX I called Ford Customer Service & filed a claim & was given case number & was told by the customer service rep the same decision. No recall, No warranty, claim denied. XXX Supervisor from Ford called & also denied the claim. Doing some research revealed this is a KNOWN Design defect that Ford is aware of on 2017-2019 Escapes as well other vehicles. Research also discovered there are multiple class action lawsuits against Ford such as Miller-V-Ford-Motor-Co-28, [XXX]; [XXX] Ford has put myself, any passengers in my vehicle including my grandbabies at risk for engine failure while driving. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11743337

My problem was with the cooling system. My car has run great. Absolutely love my car on the way home 2 weeks ago. The coolant hose busted. I towed it to the mechanic shop and he informed me that it wasn't just a busted hose that somehow my coolant is leaking into my motor somewhere. It has not been fixed yet but as doing research is where I seen that most Ford escapes apparently has a coolant problem and I'm very disappointed that this was not handled and now I'm out of vehicle. If I cannot figure out a way to afford to get it fixed there was no warning signs. I've never missed a oil change. I had the spark plugs change and now I'm just out of vehicle. If I cannot get this fixed and to read that y'all knew about this problem is very disheartening

NHTSA ODI 11743019

On Saturday May 30th my vehicle did a safety shut down and told me to pull over, it appeared to be overheating. Checked my coolant and my reserve tank was empty. I took it to my Ford dealer, their diagnosis was that my engine block was defective/porice and leaking coolant. They stated this is a known issue with Ford. There is a Ford recall 26S01 dated 1/15/26 for this exact issue that my vehicle has not been included in. I strongly feel I need to be compensated for this as it is the exact issue I am experiencing.

NHTSA ODI 11742678

I have the 2.0 L eco-boost engine that has the coolant leak. It’s ford service bulletin TSB 19-2346

NHTSA ODI 11742494

Coolant intrusion into the engine, coolant flowing into the cylinders. Resulting in major dangerous stuttering, jerking, and dangerous loss of power in middle of freeway with fast moving traffic around vehicle. Ford KNOWN ISSUE!

NHTSA ODI 11742177

Coolant was found to be leaking in cylinder number 4. The Ford dealer told us the vehicle needed a new engine with a repair cost of $8,000.00. It is not available for inspection, since it was auctioned off by the Ford dealer. My wife and children were stopped at a stop sign and the engine started to misfire. She was trying to turn onto a busy highway and it lacked power with no acceleration initially. Once on the highway. the engine continued to run rough. On the dash, the "engine fault, service now" light appeared. A diagnostic test was performed at a Ford dealer and was confirmed to be coolant leaking into a cylinder. It was not inspected by anyone else. The engine was making a wierd noise after it was turned off a couple of days before and the coolant in the overflow tank was significantly elevated. After it stalled on my wife, the overflow coolant tank was constantly low and needed to be filled back up after each use. After driving and for 4-5 minutes after the engine was turned off, it sounded like water slooshing around in the engine. When it was taken in for diagnostic testing the "engine" light was flashing and then turned solid and then turned off.

NHTSA ODI 11742200

2017 Ford Escape with 2.0 liter turbocharged engine. At 66,000 miles, car hesitated when moving from stop position. Dealer stated it needed a turbocharger replacement. $3,000 to replace with car just 6,000 miles over warranty. Notified Ford about this problem, not a word back. At 91,000 miles, check engine light came on. Ford dealer diagnosed and stated coolant entering into cylinder #2. Dealer stated the engine needed to be replaced. $7966 to replace! From research on the internet, this model year and other years have problems with coolant leaks that require engine replacement. At this time, I have spent over $11,000 to keep this vehicle road worthy!

NHTSA ODI 11741775

In November 2019 I bought a used 2017 Ford Escape Titanium 1.5L Eco boost with 11k miles. On May 1,2026 my check engine light came on and the car started missing. Took it to my mechanic and he said I needed a coil pack. Put that on and no change. Tried to put new spark plugs in and 1 plug will not come out. I was told my car has a coolant intrusion. Ford has a recall for this motor but coincidentally my motor isn’t part of the recall. My motor is ruined and cannot be driven. It has only 129k miles. My motor should be covered like ALL Ford Escape 1.5L eco boost motors.

NHTSA ODI 11741619

Coolant leaked into the engine block. I know this is part of a recall but my car is not listed on the recall for the exact same engine and year. And I know there are several class actions for this.

NHTSA ODI 11741385