2017 Ford Escape

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The driver was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to restart, but the failure persisted. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who determined that there was coolant intrusion into several cylinders, resulting in the engine being damaged. The contact was advised to discontinue driving the vehicle until the vehicle was repaired. The vehicle was not yet repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N12. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 96,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the transmission was slipping. There was no warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 28,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the service warning light illuminated. Additionally, the heating system stopped blowing hot air. The contact stated that upon checking the coolant level, the contact noticed that there was no coolant in the reservoir. The contact added coolant to the coolant reservoir. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive coolant consumption. Additionally, the contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the vehicle hesitated while responding. The contact stated that there was white smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe while idling and while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion in the spark plugs and cylinders. The contact related the failure to Ford TSB Number: 19-2375. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle might not be covered. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

Recently I was driving my car and it gave me an overheating warning I got out of the car to check and I noticed coolant disappearing and when I checked the oil it was a milky substance which indicates a blown head gasket due to the way they designed the short engine block. There have been many issues related to this and honestly it's poor design and it cost a lot of money to replace let alone the safety issues. This happened while I was driving with my kids.

I’m reporting a safety concern related to engine failure in my 2017 Ford Escape SE. My vehicle is showing signs of coolant intrusion, including white smoke from the exhaust, a sweet chemical smell, and rapid coolant loss with no external leaks. A diagnostic tool confirmed a possible blown head gasket. This exact model is already known for engine issues, and I confirmed that Customer Satisfaction Program 19B37 was completed in 2020 to prevent this—but the issue has returned. I drive this vehicle daily with my two young children, including a baby. If the engine were to overheat or fail suddenly while driving, it could put us in serious danger. There are also known risks of engine fires from this defect, which is terrifying for a parent. The dealership says they can’t help, and Ford cannot offer assistance. I am asking NHTSA to investigate this further, as it is clearly a recurring and unsafe condition affecting many 2017 Ford Escape owners.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the heater became inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who determined that coolant needed to be added to the coolant reservoir. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The contact stated that the heater then became inoperable. The vehicle was taken back to the same local dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant inside the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who replaced the engine. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 64,000.