What 2,613 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Ford Escape

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while the daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed and turning away from the curb, there was a snap, and the steering wheel became horizontal regardless of the efforts to manually center it in its normal position. The vehicle continued veering to the right. The vehicle crashed into the rear of another parked unoccupied vehicle, where it came to a stop. No warning lights illuminated prior or after the crash. The air bags did not deploy. No injuries or medical attention were sought. A police report was not filed. An appointment with the dealer was scheduled to inspect the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic for a front passenger side tie rod failure and was towed back to the contact's residence. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000. 

NHTSA ODI 11663097

1. HANDS FREE TAILGATE/TRUNK WILL AUTOMATICALLY SHUT WHEN OBJECTS OR A PERSONS BODY IS PRESENT. FAUB/ KEYS ARE NOT BEING PUSHED BY ACCIDENT, NOR IS THERE ANY MOVEMENT UNDER NUMBER THAT WOULD SENSOR DOOR TO CLOSE. WHEN IT DOES DO THIS, IT TAKES QUITE A WHILE FOR THE SENSOR TO REALIZE THERE IS AN OBJECT THERE AND TAKES SOME TIME TO OPEN AGAIN. 2. WHEN VEHICLE SLIPS ON ICE PATCES OR LARGE PUDDLES OF WATER--- WHEN THE TRACTION LIGHT COMES ON MY DASH BOARD, IT SEEMS TO TRIGGER MY ENTIRE VEHICLE TO SHUT COMPLETELY DOWN. VEHICLE ENGINE SHUTS OFF, STEERING WHEEL LOCKS UP, BRAKES STOP WORKING AND NO ELECTRICAL FROM THAT POINT ON. I HAVE HAD THIS HAPPEN 3 TIMES NOW, WITH THE NEED TO HAVE TO CALL A TOW. FOR BOTH COMPLAINTS, FORD SERVICE SAYS THEY CANNOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG AND CANNOT GET EITHER COMPLAINT TO DUPLICATE. NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE AT THIS POINT BY FORD TO FIX OR COMPENSATE FOR ANY OF THIS.

NHTSA ODI 11366350

WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT 75 MPH ( THE SPEED LIMIT IS 75) I WANTED TO PASS A TRUCK WHEN THE STEERING GOT REALLY TIGHT, AT THAT SPEED THEIR IS NO TIME FOR PLAN B. I CLIPPED THE BACK LEFT OF THE TRUCK WITH MY RIGHT FRONT, WHICH PUT ME IN A SPIN AND THE CAR ROLLED A COUPLE TIMES. WHICH RESULTED IN A TOTAL LOSS. I WAS RUSHED TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM AND HAD ALL KINDS OF TESTS AND RELEASED THE NEXT DAY. MY INSURANCE CO DOES NOT BELIEVE ME BUT THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED. I READ MANY ARTICLES ABOUT FORD HAVING PROBLEMS WITH PRIOR YEARS OF THERE ELECTRONIC STEERING. BUT ON THE OTHER HAND IF IT WAS NOT FOR FORD SEATBELT AND AIRBAG SYSTEM I WOULD NOT BE HERE TO WRITE THIS ARTICLE.

NHTSA ODI 11062469

MY CAR WAS RUNNING, BUT PLACED IN PARK, AND I WAS RUNNING TO GRAB SOMETHING FROM MY HOME. AFTER I EXITED THE CAR, I NOTICED MY CAR WAS ROLLING DOWN MY SLANTED DRIVEWAY, AND I RAN TO STOP IT. UNFORTUNATELY, THE CAR HIT ME AND RAN ME OVER RESULTING IN A BROKEN ANKLE. I BELIEVE THE CAR SLIPPED OUT OF GEAR WHILE IT WAS RUNNING, AND REVERSED DOWN THE DRIVEWAY.

NHTSA ODI 11000741