IllustrationCONSUMER WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 25MPH ON A SIDE STREET MAKING A LEFT TURN AND VEHICLE JUST SHUT OFF WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. DEALERSHIP WASN'T AWARE OF PROBLEM. BUT CONSUMER WILL BE NOTIFIED. *AK
1999 Ford Escort
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Escort years
Owner complaints for the 1999 Ford Escort are substantially higher than the model-year median of 101.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Escort years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
110–25K
1625–50K
2650–75K
1875–100K
18100–150K
3150K+
92 reports with mileage · 233 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 66 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 62 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Suspension. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
79 crash reports11 fire reports42 injury reports
Electrical System complaints
39 reportsWITH WIRING I COULD SMELL BURNING AND DID NOT KNOW WHAT IT WAS. WITH TIRE IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY . HAD TIRE REPLACED, I HAVE RECEIPT. *AK (DOT NUMBER: 7JJK7U17P9 TIRESIZE: P185/65R14)
AIR CONDITIONER DOESN'T GET COLD--CAR ALSO IDLES VERY LOW TO THE POINT WHERE IT STALLS OUT. *AK
PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT; WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED AND WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING VEHICLE WILL CUT OFF. ALSO, NOTICED SHIMMYING COMING FROM FRONT END. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED DEALER, DEALER UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
WHILE TRAVELING AT 50 MPH ENGINE CHECK LIGHT CAME ON. ENGINE STALLED, AND STEERING LOCKED UP. CONSUMER FELT THAT THIS WAS VERY UNSAFE BECAUSE DRIVER WAS UNABLE TO STEER PROPERLY.*AK
WHILE DRIVING AND GETTING CLOSE TO A LIGHT VEHICLE WILL STALL, AND STEERING WHEEL WILL LOCK UP.. SAME PROBLEM HAD HAPPEN MORE THEN TEN TIMES.*AK
VEHICLE STALLS INTERMITTENTLY AND FAILS TO START INTERMITTENTLY. DEALERSHIP SAID THE FIRST TIME THAT IT WAS A FUEL PUMP FAILURE, SECOND TIME IT WAS A DEFECTIVE FUEL PUMP, THIRD TIME IT WAS THE FUEL SENSOR AND FUEL MODULE. NOW DOING IT AGAIN. REPORTED TO THE DEALERSHIP AWAITING REPORT ON THIS FOURTH INCIDENT.
VEHICLE HAS CONTINUOUSLY STALLED. DEALER WAS CONTACTED AND VEHICLE WAS BROUGHT IN DUE TO VEHICLE WOULD TURN OFF WHILE IDLE, VEHICLE WOULD NOT GO WHEN THE GAS PEDAL WAS PUSHED AND THEN FINALLY THE VEHICLE JUST WOULD NOT START. DEALER INFORMED THAT THE WIRING HARNEST AS WELL AS THE COMPUTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THIS WAS ABLE …
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VEHICLE HAS CONTINUOUSLY STALLED. DEALER WAS CONTACTED AND VEHICLE WAS BROUGHT IN DUE TO VEHICLE WOULD TURN OFF WHILE IDLE, VEHICLE WOULD NOT GO WHEN THE GAS PEDAL WAS PUSHED AND THEN FINALLY THE VEHICLE JUST WOULD NOT START. DEALER INFORMED THAT THE WIRING HARNEST AS WELL AS THE COMPUTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THIS WAS ABLE TO BE FIGURED OUT AFTER THE THIRD TIME DUE TO THE FACT THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT DID NOT COME ON UNTIL THE THIRD TIME, IN WHICH THE DEALER INFORMED THAT THEY COULD NOW FIND WHAT WAS WRONG, UNLIKE PREVIOUS TIMES WHEN THE CAR WOULD NOT STALL FOR THEM.
HORN WOULD BLOW BY ITSELF FOR TWENTY MINUTES. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER, AND DEALER SAID IT HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE AIRBAG. IN ORDER TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, THE AIR BAG MUST BE REPLACED AT OWNER'S COST. *AK *ML
IN THE PROCESS OF STARTING VEHICLE IGNITION SWITCH CAUGHT ON FIRE. AS A RESULT, BOTH AIRBAGS DEPLOYED, AND INTERRIOR OF DASHBOARD WAS RUINED.*AK
Official recalls
199V276000 · Power Train:manual Transmission:shift Pattern Indicator
Oct 12, 1999
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE S/R OPTION. THE S/R OPTION INCLUDES, AMONG OTHER FEATURES, A 5-SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSION. ON THESE VEHICLES, THE TRANSMISSION SHIFT PATTERN IS NOT DISPLAYED IN THE OCCUPANT COMPARTMENT IN VIEW OF THE DRIVER. THIS DOES NOT COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 102, "TRANSMISSION SHIFT LEVER SEQUENCE, STARTER INTERLOCK, AND TRANSMISSION BRAKING EFFECT."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE AWARE OF THE TRANSMISSION POSITION OF THE VEHICLE.
Remedy: OWNERS WILL BE PROVIDED WITH AN ADHESIVE BACKED PLAQUE CONTAINING THE SHIFT PATTERN, ALONG WITH MATERIALS AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR LOCATING AND AFFIXING THE PLAQUE TO THE VEHICLE CENTER CONSOLE, JUST FORWARD OF THE SHIFT LEVER. OWNERS WILL ALSO BE ADVISED THAT THEIR DEALER CAN AFFIX THE PLAQUE IF THEY PREFER.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1DP01001 · Air Bag NON-DEPLOYMENT
Opened Apr 19, 2001 · Closed Nov 1, 2001
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags
No summary supplied.