What 1,479 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Ford Escape Gas

The vehicle has two indicator lamp warnings. One warning for a rear seatbelt monitor fault and one warning for the driver's seatbelt monitor fault. When these seatbelt monitor faults occur the airbags throughout the vehicle are no longer operational. The safety risk of not having operational airbags is extremely high and puts all passengers at risk of serious harm or death. The vehicle is currently at a local Ford dealership undergoing diagnostic testing.

NHTSA ODI 11653436

When I go to start up my vehicle it stalls before it turns on. And everytime I put gas in my car it shakes as if it wants to cut off.

NHTSA ODI 11649868

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the engine continued running after turning off the vehicle. The contact stated that upon opening the hood, the engine turned off as needed. The contact stated that the message "Hood ajar - Stop Safely, Close Hood" while the hood was securely closed, and the message “Charging System - Service Now" was displayed. The contact related to the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V954000 (Electrical System). The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the recall. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the failure was related to wires underneath the bumpers. The dealer was in the process of taking the bumpers apart for further diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included under recall because of the manufacturing plant the vehicle was built. The failure mileage was 74,880.

NHTSA ODI 11649766

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated the vehicle failed to start as intended. The contact waited for a while to restart the vehicle. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was driven to O'Reilly's to be diagnosed. The vehicle was diagnosed with an undisclosed emission code. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.

NHTSA ODI 11646376

When riding down the road once the car heats up it jerks like it's going to cut off going down the road and you can smell has it has just recently started doing this.

NHTSA ODI 11645541

First Ford had issues a Customer Satisfaction Program 21B19 was issued to all Ford dealers on April 9, 2021. Then they put out a TSB 23-2061 which my vehicle is part of but says it is not covered under warranty. There are MANY 2020 FORD ESCAPES with this issue. Seems to be just gas vehicles 1.5 and 2.0l engines. My vehicle was not covered along with many other vehicles. Then they even put out a The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the messages "Hill Start Assist Not Available", "Pre-Collision Assist Not Available", "Service Advance-trac" and "Service All Wheel Drive" remained displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the All-Wheel Drive module was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired.

NHTSA ODI 11645649

Awd fault. Module needed replaced

NHTSA ODI 11640989

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact was locked outside of the vehicle; however, the key fob was within range. On another occasion, the contact attempted to start the vehicle using the key fob and the manufacturer app however, the vehicle stalled. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the battery was dead and needed to be replaced. The VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V954000 (Electrical System). The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,470.

NHTSA ODI 11640892

Driving down road and came to stop sign and vehicle engine turned off due to start/stop feature and would not turn back on. Received alert battery was going into deep sleep mode. While stuck at stop sign. Had to put in park, turn vehicle off and back on to proceed to move. This is 3rd time see pic of happened Also separate issue the computers sync 3 software will not take and now the screen doesn't work, remote start won't work, gps doesn't work had you drive around in circles.

NHTSA ODI 11635494

Went to open the drivers side left front door and heard a loud clunk, now door isn't opening or shutting properly and we can't use the drivers window either. I've heard of peoples doors falling off while driving because of this and we just bought the car at the end of October. We have yet to get it looked at, but it's not a cheap fix. There were no warnings or signs. I opened it normal like every other time.

NHTSA ODI 11634361

Car will stop locking it won’t lock from the door, or automatically, or with the remote.

NHTSA ODI 11634493

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle the ABS and Traction Control warning messages had been displayed and the power steering had failed causing the steering wheel to become difficult to turn in each direction. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the steering column was faulty. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failures but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 16,900.

NHTSA ODI 11633209

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Edge. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a loud clanking noise coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the exhaust cap and catalytic converter had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed a gasoline odor coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the purge valve had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the gasoline odor was still present. Additionally, the contact stated that the AWD warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the AWD system failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 95,000.

NHTSA ODI 11629209

The awd module is faulty. It's causing thr collision assistance, the lane assistance, the awd and a few other things to not work or throw a faulty warning. I've been doing some digging and it seems to be a very common thing. The ford escape titanium is already in recall I believed

NHTSA ODI 11626425

AWD fault service required see manual Pre-collision assist not available Service advance trac Hill start assist not available. These are the codes that popped up when I started my car this morning. Escape has 74,000 miles on it. I got this warning one other time about 20,000 or 25,000 miles ago and it went away. This Time every time I start the car I get this warning. After a Google search I found many other drivers reporting this issue with the 1.5 and the 2.0 model engine. The AWD drive control model ground is the issue. This forum here found the issue and found a work around to fix it: [XXX] . Would be nice if Ford would fix the problem. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11626237

Wrench light came on car lost power running high RPMs and hard shifting

NHTSA ODI 11624548

Dashboard light with wrench icon and message AWD Fault Service Required appeared, along with multiple other alerts including Service AdvanceTrac, Pre-Collision Assist Disabled, Hill Start Assist Not Available. Could feel handling of vehicle had changed, no other indications of issue. Upon inspection at dealership, it was determined AWD Control Module needed to be replaced. Dealership noted this had been an issue with multiple other 2020 Ford Escapes. Repair not covered under Powertrain Warranty, despite the fact that malfunction of this module can cause loss of power distribution to the wheels. While there had been a Customer Satisfaction Program notice issued for select 2020 Ford Escapes (21B19, issued April 9, 2021 and expiring April 2022), my VIN was not included.

NHTSA ODI 11623698

AWD Module failure

NHTSA ODI 11623127

Dashboard message indicates the left front door is open although the door is properly closed and locked. I'm still able to lock and unlock the door using the lock switch on the inside door panel while sitting in the driver's seat. I can also lock and unlock the door using my key fob.

NHTSA ODI 11620580

I brought my vehicle into its manufacturer service center after noticing several issues. The vehicle was not maneuvering as smoothly as it used to and when it hit bumps I would feel a slight loss of control. This is extremely dangerous, especially in the coming winter months where it snows heavily where I live in the midwest. I also hear like a cracking sound underneath the vehicle. I saw several service light illuminate to include: AWD Fault Service Required, Hill Start Not Available, and Pre Collision Assist Not Available. I brought in my vehicle into the Ford Service Center and they advised me that I needed to replace the AWD module and that this has been a common trend among the Ford Escape vehicles. I conducted research online and observed that several people have also had complaints about the same if not similar issues with the same year, make, and model of my vehicle. I strongly believe that this issue should be addressed in recall, especially given the numerous amounts of complaints and known issues.

NHTSA ODI 11619304

My AWD module stopped working for no reason WHILE DRIVING! My car’s dashboard lit up like a Christmas tree stating for me to pull over safely, AWD fault service required, Hill start failure, pre-collision failure, and the stability and traction control failure light was on as well. My car was towed to my local Ford dealership. I researched what in the world could be going on with my car. I typed in the exact warnings displayed by my car and MULTIPLE articles about the AWD module failing for countless other 2020 Ford Escape cars! I also saw there was a RECALL on this module back in 12/2021-04/2022. They are saying my car is not apart of that recall though??? How when my car’s AWD module FAILED JUST LIKE THE RECALL STATED! This is happening/happened to hundreds of other 2020 Escape owners! This recall should be EXTENDED to every owner of the 2020 Escape experiencing AWD failure! This is a HUGE SAFETY RISK! Your car literally just stops working while driving. I got extremely lucky that I was already pulling into a gas station when this happened to me. I can’t imagine what could’ve happened if I were driving on the interstate when this occurred, which is EXACTLY what I was going to be doing after fueling up!

NHTSA ODI 11616643

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the front driver’s side window failed to roll down while depressing the window switch. The contact stated that the failure was a recurring failure and was previously repaired at the dealer. The contact stated that a while afterward, the rear passenger’s side window failed to roll down while depressing the window switch. The vehicle was taken back to the local dealer and remained for the repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18,600.

NHTSA ODI 11616385

The vehicle is a 2020 Ford Escape SE with 53,000 miles. Recently, The message screen began flashing messages AMD OFF, Hill Start OFF, Collision Warning OFF. Based on social media, this appears to be a common problem with the 2020 Escapes. According the Escape owners, dealers first check software and if not the issue a electronic module is replaced at a cost of up to $1100. Some of the failures reported were on vehicles with 20,000 miles or less. Aside from cost , there is a safety concern that module overheating may cause engine fires. The vehicles should be recalled for this concern.

NHTSA ODI 11614509

The car has AWD FAULT along with multiple safety fault pre collision assist ,power steering stops working. Going down the road. Ford has been zero help taken car in multiple times charged 100’s off dollars only for issues to return

NHTSA ODI 11610760

I have a 2020 Ford Escape that was not included in the recall 20C19/20V575, however my vehicle has been having the issue. Ford dealerships and the Ford customer support were not helpful and said they couldn't fix the issue since my specific vehicle was not included in the recall, even though my vehicle is having the same issue. They directed me to file a complaint here in order to be added to the recall.

NHTSA ODI 11606608