2008 Ford Escape Hybrid

WAS DRIVING DOWN HIGHWAY 35 IN DOWNTOWN DALLAS WHEN COMING DOWN HILL WENT TO HIT BRAKES AND BRAKES WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR AN WE HAD NO BRAKES. INFORMATION CENTER WAS SHOWING THAT BRAKES HAD BEEN DISABLED AND I PUMPED THE BRAKES AND WAS ABLE TO SLOW CAR DOWN ENOUGH TO KEEP FROM COLLIDING WITH CAR IN FRONT OF US. LIMPED HOME IN CAR WITH NO BRAKES AT TIMES PULLED OVER IN PARKING LOT TURNED CAR OFF AN UPON TURNING IT BACK ON CAR RESET ITSELF AN WE HAD BRAKES FOR A SMALL AMOUNT OF TIME BECAUSE INCIDENT OCCURRED AGAIN. TOOK CAR TO DEALERSHIP AN WAS TOLD THE ABS HCU WAS BAD AN NEEDED TO BE REPLACED WHICH IS A 4500 PART AND WE HAD JUST BOUGHT THE CAR A WEEK BEFORE. FORD NEEDS TO BE FORCED TO RECALL THESE VEHICLES BECAUSE IN OTHER FORUMS OTHER DRIVERS ARE EXPERIENCING SAME ISSUES WITH BRAKE LINES AND MASTER CYLINDERS AND THIS PART THE ABS HCU

DRIVING HOME FROM WORK I WAS PULLING UP TO A STOP SIGN AND MY FOOT WENT TO THE FLOOR, AFTER DRIVING THRU THE INTERSECTION, LUCKILY NO CARS WERE COMING, I PULLED OVER AND THE ABS LIGHT AND PARKING BRAKE LIGHT WAS ON , I SHUT THE CAR OFF WAITED 10 MINUTES STARTED IT BACK UP AND THE BRAKES WORKED THIS HAS HAPPENED ON AND OFF A HALF OF DOZEN TIMES NOW. DEALER QUOTED ME $4659.00 TO FIX MASTER CYLINDER, THIS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM ID BE SURPRISED IF NO ONE HASN'T GOT HURT BECAUSE OF THIS. *TR

WENT SHOPPING ON A SATURDAY, 4/4/15. CAME OUT TO MY CAR AND STARTED IT. ABS LIGHT AND BRAKE LIGHT CAME ON, ALONG WITH MESSAGES STATING, "SERVICE BRAKES SOON" AND "REGEN BRAKES DISABLED". BRAKES WERE SENSITIVE AND UNPREDICTABLE, BUT CAR DIDN'T NEED ANY EXTRA EFFORT TO STOP. HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT MADE NOISE WHEN APPLYING BRAKES, LIKE A STRIPPED GEAR SOUND. TOOK CAR TO A REPUTABLE MECHANIC WITH AN UPDATED MODIS. CHECKED CODES AND CAME UP WITH A DOZEN CODES. ( P1A0D, P1A0E, P1A0F, P1A10, P1A14, U0418, C1321, U2023, C1475, B2172, P0A0A, P1A0A) ALSO, WHEN HE TRIED TO GET CERTAIN TESTS TO WORK, THESE ERRORS CAME UP: (AN ERROR OCCURRED 34 (0X22) [#155] (MANUAL MSG - FORD (CAN) HYBRID BRAKE SYSTEM AIR BLEED CHECK) (TEST HAS ABORTED ERROR 22 - CONDITIONS NOT CORRECT. CYCLE KEY AND RETRY.) AFTER DOING THESE TASKS AND NOT BEING ABLE TO COMPLETE THEM, ANY ASSISTANCE TOWARDS BRAKING WAS GONE. THE CAR REVERTED TO FAIL SAFE MODE AND REQUIRED MUCH MORE EFFORT TO STOP. IT TOOK THE MECHANIC MUCH MORE TIME AND PERSISTENCE, BUT HE WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GO THROUGH HIS TESTS AND CLEARED THE CODES AND RESET THE BRAKE SYSTEM. AS OF NOW, EVERYTHING WORKS AS IT SHOULD. THERE'S ONLY ONE PROBLEM. NOTHING WAS ACTUALLY A CONFIRMED FIX. THE IS NO GUARANTEE THE BRAKING SYSTEM WON'T GIVE OUT AGAIN. I'M MORE THAN CERTAIN IT WILL AND I DON'T LIKE TAKING CHANCES WITH MY VEHICLE. JUDGING HOW OTHER HYBRID ESCAPE OWNERS HAVE REPORTED ON THIS PROBLEM, I GUESS I FEEL A LITTLE LUCKY THE BRAKES DIDN'T GIVE OUT WHILE DRIVING. YET. WHO KNOWS WHEN THEY WILL AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN THEY DO. I CANNOT AFFORD TO FIX THIS PROBLEM, AS I'VE HEARD IT'S OVER $4000. I ALSO CANNOT SELL IT AS-IS IN GOOD CONSCIENCE. I AM AT A LOSS HERE AS I AGREE WITH OTHERS THAT THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN AND SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE WAY BEFORE SOMETHING TRAGIC HAPPENS. *TR

OFTEN WHEN STARTING MY CAR, THE ABS LIGHT AND BRAKE LIGHT COMES ON AND A MESSAGE SAYS REGEN BRAKES DISABLED. THE BRAKES ARE WEAK WHEN DRIVING IN THIS STATE. WHEN I TURN THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON, THE ERROR USUALLY GOES AWAY AND THE BRAKES WORK NORMALLY. OCCASIONALLY, THE ERROR OCCURS WHILE DRIVING AND THE BRAKES GET WEAK, AND I PULL OVER AND TURN CAR OFF AND ON TO CLEAR THE ERROR. IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING WITH INCREASING FREQUENCY. THE DEALER HAD NEVER HEARD OF THE PROBLEM AND SAID THE DIAGNOSTIC CODES DID NOT GIVE CLEAR ACTION FOR FIXING IT. THE DEALER REPLACED THE BRAKE PADS AND ROTORS FOR $850 BUT THE ERROR CONTINUED. NOW THEY RECOMMEND REPLACING THE ENTIRE ABS MODULE AND HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT FOR $5200. I HAVE SEEN MANY OTHER COMPLAINTS DESCRIBING THIS DANGEROUS DEFECT. I THINK FORD SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL OR OFFER SOME PAYMENT FOR THIS EXPENSIVE REPAIR. *TR

THE HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT FAILED ON MY VEHICLE. THIS SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE THAT HAS ARISEN WITH A GREAT DEAL OF OWNERS OF FORD ESCAPE HYBRIDS OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS. I HAD TO HAVE THE ENTIRE HCU SYSTEM REPLACED AT A FORD DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT. AS IT WAS NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY, NOR CONSIDERED BY THE COMPANY TO BE AN ISSUE DESERVING OF A RECALL, I HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR THE ENTIRE THING, WHICH TOTALED $4,863.00 (AND IT TOOK FIVE DAYS TO GET THE WORK COMPLETED). I ALSO HAD TO PAY TO RENT A CAR FOR THE SEVERAL DAYS IT TOOK TO GET THE PART AND PERFORM THE WORK, WHICH WAS ANOTHER $200.00. DUE TO THE HIGH COST OF THIS REPAIR AND THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH IT IS AFFECTING CONSUMERS, I BELIEVE THAT THIS ISSUE SHOULD BECOME A RECALL AND PEOPLE SHOULD BE REIMBURSED FOR THE REPAIRS THEY HAVE HAD TO MAKE. *TR

MY DASHBOARD DISPLAYED AN ABS SYMBOL IN MARCH 2014. THE BRAKES BECAME ERRATIC AND I HAD THE CAR DIAGNOSED FOR A PROBLEM. THE MECHANIC FOUND A BROKEN AND LOOSE ABS TONE RING ON THE DRIVER SIDE FRONT WHEEL AXLE. THE TONE RING AND WHEEL AXLE WERE REPLACED AT MY EXPENSE. THEN, IN FEBRUARY 2015, MY DASHBOARD DISPLAYED ANOTHER ABS SYMBOL. AGAIN, I HAD THE CAR DIAGNOSED AND THE MECHANIC FOUND ANOTHER BROKEN AND LOOSE TONE RING. THIS TIME IT WAS ON THE PASSENGER SIDE FRONT WHEEL AXLE. AGAIN, REPAIR WAS DONE AT MY EXPENSE. THESE PROBLEMS ARE A SAFETY ISSUE FOR THE BRAKING SYSTEM AND I CONTACTED FORD MOTOR COMPANY TO REQUEST ASSISTANCE AND COMPENSATION FROM THEM. THEY WOULD NOT PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE FOR THESE PROBLEMS SINCE THEY ARE NOT COVERED BY ANY RECALL OR WARRANTY PROGRAM. MY CAR PROBLEMS SHOULD BE COVERED BY A RECALL OR SAFETY PROGRAM FROM THE NHTSA. *TR

WHEN BRAKING THE VEHICLE LOSES REGENERATIVE BRAKING AND REVERTS TO FAIL SAFE MODE. MOST NOTABLY THIS OCCURS WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT A STOP SIGN/LIGHT. BRAKES APPEAR TO FUNCTION NORMALLY, HOWEVER AT THE END OF A BRAKING CYCLE THE VEHICLE LOSES POWER TO THE BRAKES AND THE VEHICLE SURGES FORWARD. WHEN THIS HAPPENS THE STABILITY CONTROL DASH LIGHT QUICKLY FLASHES ON AND THEN OFF. ALSO, THE GAUGE THAT SHOWS POWER BEING TRANSFERRED TO THE BATTERY STOPS CHARGING THE BATTERY AND RETURNS TO THE NORMAL POSITION POINTING STRAIGHT UP. THE VEHICLE IS DRIVABLE AFTER THIS OCCURRENCE AND NO WARNING LIGHTS OR AFTER EFFECTS ARE KNOWN. IT MAY HAPPEN AT ONE STOP LIGHT AND NOT THE NEXT. IT IS AN INTERMITTENT ISSUE. SOMETIMES IT MAY DO THIS 2 OR 3 TIMES WHEN DRIVING IN TRAFFIC FOR 30 MINUTES OR IT MAY NOT HAPPEN AT ALL. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THIS ISSUE IS DUE TO A FAULTY HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT. THIS IS A COMPONENT FAILURE DUE TO FAULTY DESIGN, NOT DUE TO DRIVER-INDUCED DAMAGE OR WEAR. *TR

AFTER BEING PARKED FOR SEVERAL HOURS AND UPON RETURNING TO AND STARTING THE VEHICLE, I FOUND SEVERAL LIGHTS ON THE DASH ILLUMINATED, INCLUDING THE ABS LIGHT, TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT, THE SERVICE WRENCH & CHECK BRAKES. I WAS ALSO RECEIVING A MESSAGE ADVISING THE REGEN BRAKES WERE INACTIVE & TO CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM. I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO OUR LOCAL MECHANIC AND FOLLOWING HIS CHECK HE ADVISED THE HE COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THEM & DUE TO THE HYBRID NATURE OF THE VEHICLE, HE WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM. I THEN CAREFULLY DROVE THE VEHICLE HOME AND TOOK IT TO A LOCAL FORD DEALERSHIP YESTERDAY. I WAS JUST INFORMED BY THE DEALER THAT THE HCU ON THE VEHICLE HAD GONE BAD AND REPAIRS WERE GOING TO BE $5,000. AS YOU MIGHT IMAGINE, THIS IS AN EXTRAVAGANT AMOUNT OF MONEY TO HAVE TO PUT INTO A SEVEN YEAR OLD VEHICLE THAT ONLY COST $34,000 BRAND NEW. THE PART ALONE IS $4,000 ACCORDING TO THE DEALER. I AM NOW FORCED TO EITHER HAVE THIS REPAIR DONE OR TRADE THE VEHICLE IN ON ANOTHER FORD. BASED ON MY EXPERIENCE WITH THIS CURRENT VEHICLE, I AM NOT OVERJOYED AT THE PROSPECT OF OWNING ANOTHER FORD PRODUCT. I RESEARCHED THE INTERNET AND FOUND HUNDREDS OF CASES WHERE THIS PART HAS GONE BAD AND I FEEL IT IS TIME THESE VEHICLES GET RECALLED BEFORE SOMEBODY GETS SEVERELY INJURED OR KILLED. THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A SAFETY ISSUE AND WHILE WE WERE LUCKY ENOUGH TO HAVE IT HAPPEN WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED, THIS DEFECTIVE PART HAS OR WILL LIKELY CAUSE SOMEONE SERIOUS INJURY OR LOSS OF LIFE. NHTSA NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS AND FORD NEEDS TO ADMIT THEIR ERROR AND DEFECT. *TR

WHILE DRIVING, BOTH THE "ABS" AND "PARKING BRAKE" LIGHTS CAME ON. AS I CAME TO A STOP, I NOTICED THE BRAKING BECAME MORE DIFFICULT AND I HAD TO PUSH HARDER TO STOP COMPLETELY. AT THE SAME TIME THESE LIGHTS CAME ON, A MESSAGE CAME ON SAYING "CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM", FOLLOWED BY "REGEN BRAKES DISABLED". I BOUGHT THE VEHICLE USED ON MAY 25, 2014. SINCE THEN THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES. ALSO, MY BRAKES, SEEM TO LOCK UP SOMETIMES WHILE DRIVING, MAKING IT MORE DIFFICULT TO DRIVE. THEY DON'T FULLY LOCK UP, BECAUSE I AM STILL ALLOWED TO SPEED UP. IT LAST FOR MAYBE 20 SECONDS OR SO AND THEN RELEASES. I AM SURE ALL OF THIS IS RELATED SOMEHOW. I HAVE LOOKED ONLINE AT MANY FORUMS AND IT SEEMS AS THOUGH THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM ON MANY OF THE SAME VEHICLES WITH THE REGEN BRAKING SYSTEM. I AM SURPRISED THERE HASN'T BEEN MORE COMPLAINTS OR ANY INVESTIGATIONS. SINCE I HAVE HAD THE VEHICLE FOR ONLY A FEW MONTHS NOW, I AM NOT SURE IF THIS PROBLEM OCCURRED WITH THE PREVIOUS OWNER OR NOT. SOME OF THE FORUMS I READ, PEOPLE WERE SAYING THAT TRAINED TECHNICIANS COULDN'T EVEN FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM IS. I LOVE MY HYBRID AND I CAN'T AFFORD TO GET RID OF IT ALREADY AND GET ANOTHER VEHICLE. I CAN'T EVEN REALLY AFFORD TO HAVE IT SENT IN TO A FORD DEALERSHIP TO HAVE IT LOOKED AT AND WORKED ON. WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS? CAN SOMEONE PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS? CAN FORD PAY FOR THIS? I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. I AM AFRAID THAT SOMEDAY THE BRAKES WILL FAIL AND I COULD BE INJURED, AS WELL AS MY FAMILY. PLEASE HELP!!!! *TR