2018 Ford Escape

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine overheated. The contact drove the vehicle to the shoulder of the road. The contact opened the hood to perform an inspection and became aware that the coolant reservoir was empty. The contact stated that there were no indications of a coolant leak. The contact allowed the engine to cool off and added coolant to the reservoir. The vehicle was driven to the residence. The contact performed an inspection and discovered that coolant had leaked into the crankcase. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the crankcase. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.

The contact’s daughter owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced inconsistent acceleration and rough driving with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who discovered that there was no coolant in the coolant reservoir. The mechanic later discovered coolant inside the engine and informed the contact that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 144,483.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the engine overheated with coolant leaking from the engine. Additionally, the vehicle shut off while depressing the accelerator pedal. The check engine warning light was illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to Eddie Gilstrap Motors, Inc. (207 S Main St, Salem, IN 47167) where the contact was informed of an unknown recall; and the engine was replaced under the recall. Approximately two years after the engine replacement, the contact stated heavy, white smoke was coming from the exhaust pipe, without warning upon starting the vehicle. The contact stated that the coolant level remained low. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that coolant had leaked into an engine cylinder, resulting in engine failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was provided a case number. The contact was then referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 124,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, there was white smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe. Additionally, the contact noticed that the coolant level was significantly low. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was a coolant intrusion in the engine. The dealer determined that the short block needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered under Ford Campaign Number: 21N12. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was temporarily illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated while the vehicle was idling at a red traffic light, an unknown message, and the message "Emergency Stop" were displayed, an alarm sounded, and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle failed to restart and was pushed into a parking lot with assistance. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with cooling system failure and coolant intrusion into the engine. The mechanic determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The mechanic related the failure to an unknown TSB number. The vehicle was not repaired. The used car dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine started to misfire, with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted, and the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 136,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while parking the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a Toyota dealer where the vehicle was purchased. The dealer determined that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinders due to a cracked engine block. The dealer determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the repair could not be covered under an extended warranty because the vehicle had exceeded the mileage limitations. The vehicle was not repaired. The Ford dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while at the local dealer for routine maintenance, upon further inspection, the contact was informed that a tune-up could not be performed due to a spark plug not being able to be removed. In addition, the contact was advised that there was a coolant intrusion into the engine. 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 117,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was driven to an Auto Zone and the mechanic suggested there might be a spark plug failure, but the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact then drove to the dealer and the vehicle was diagnosed with coolant intrusion. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer also notified the contact of an undisclosed TSB associated to the engine coolant intrusion; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 102,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Escape. The contact stated the while driving at a moderate rate of speed, the temperature gauge indicated that the engine was hot(H). The "Engine Fault Service Now" message also appeared on the instrument panel. The contact pulled over and checked under the hood and became aware that the coolant reservoir was empty. The contact added coolant however, the failure returned the next day. The contact took the vehicle to three independent mechanics who could not determine the cause of the failure. One mechanic eventually placed a camera inside the engine which showed that the coolant was leaking into cylinder #3. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the contact was informed that there were no recalls on the VIN. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and provided the same information as the dealer. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.