2020 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID Power Train Problems

The vehicle is just under 37K miles. I was operating the vehicle normally, and the wrench icon came on, indicating a powertrain issue. There are recalls for this for some vehicles but not all, and it seems to occur just after warranties expiring. I am concerned my vehicle falls under this service bulletin but has not been properly added: SSM 49157 - 2020 Escape - Illuminated MIL With DTCs U0100, U0401, P166B, P1753, P0929, And/Or P0919 Some 2020 Escape vehicles may exhibit an illuminated malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) and diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) U0100, U0401, P166B, P1753, P0929, and/or P0919. The vehicle may also exhibit an illuminated powertrain malfunction (wrench) indicator lamp. This may be due to the software in the gear shift module (GSM). To correct the condition, reprogram the GSM using the latest software level of the appropriate Ford diagnostic scan tool. For claiming, use causal part number 7P155 and applicable labor operations in Section 10 of the Service Labor Time Standards (SLTS) Manual. APPLICABLE VEHICLES 2020 CAR: TC CX482N ESCAPE 2020 CAR: TC CX482N ESCAPE 2020 CAR: TC CX482N ESCAPE

Upon purchasing and receiving the car from a dealership, I attempted to drive it around my neighborhood and after about 1 minute received a warning saying "safely stop now!" and the steering wheel locked and the power shut off in the middle of the street. The car would not turn back on and had to be towed to the dealership. The dealership (not Ford) already replaced the battery and that did not fix the issue. They are having to take it to Ford service to get it looked at. This poses a very significant safety risk because it could have happened on the highway, as some Ford Escape users have reported on forums. Before purchasing the car, all available recalls were addressed and "resolved", but clearly not all issues have been fixed.

We were traveling to Springfield MO and just before Strafford our 2020 Ford Escape Hybrid SE flashed a wrench warning on our screen and immediately went into limp mode in rush hour traffic on I-44. We were in the passing lane going up a hill at the time passing a commercial truck and our speed dropped significantly. Luckily the vehicles behind us to were able slow down in time.

When temperature is over 100F, (when it's parked for a while). 1. Foot on brake 2. Turn engine button on 3 Shift into Drive . The shifter button wheel will not turn into any gear. It's locked into Park . You have to open all the windows, and direct as much A/C air downward to the shifter wheel to get it to cool off (10 minutes usually). Then, it will shift into Drive and everyone is happy. However, if this was an emergency (like someone has heat stroke), depending on this Ford Escape would be a life threatening decision.

While driving, the wrench icon illuminated, and the vehicle began to decelerate, unable to exceed 35mph. The Ford Pass app relayed a message indicating a Powertrain Malfunction with reduced power. It also warned that, "the powertrain control module has detected the engine timing chains have exceeded 95% of their useful life and requires service now. The control system invokes a symptom of limited power." During service, the dealer reset the codes, and the vehicle functioned well for about two weeks before the same problem recurred, leading to its tow to another dealer. There, the codes were reset again, and the engine vibration sensor was replaced. However, merely two days post-repair and two weeks after the initial code reset, the issue resurfaced. The codes have been cleared once more, and the vehicle is scheduled for another dealer visit next week. Each incident occurred roughly five minutes into the drive, in speed zones of 45 and 55 mph. Between incidents, the vehicle operates normally without any noise, warnings, or symptoms. This poses a significant safety risk, as unexpected deceleration during heavy traffic could lead to dangerous situations.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the AWD system fault message was displayed. Additionally, the message was flashing. The local dealer was contacted, and informed the contact that a diagnostic test was needed to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

Mileage: 150,000

Gear shifter locked into park when there are excessive outdoor heat temperatures. (Over 95°) The car must run for 20-30 minutes to cool down before shifter will unlock into Drive. Took it to the dealership where they could not recreate the problem (in September when temperatures dropped) and were unable to fix it. I have reported once before and have seen multiple online forums of others having the same issue in the 2020 ford escape models. This should be an immediate safety recall. I would not be able to leave in a timely manner if there were an emergency with my husband or kids. I cannot perform my job of assessing patients homes if I cannot drive my vehicle when it is hot outside.

Was driving the car when it suddenly went dead with the following message on the screen: “Vehicle network communication error”. By chance I happened to be able to coast off the road otherwise i would have been stranded on a very busy road. The vehicle was towed to a Ford dealer where the problem was reproduced, the car has been at the dealer for 1 week now with no idea what the problem is. There was no warning prior to the error appearing and the vehicle completely stopping. Reviewing Ford forums there are at least two other instances of this happening. Do not have any repair information yet as it is not fixed and the solution is unknown at this time.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the shifter selector assembly had sharp edges. There were sharp edges on the side of the dial. The contact sustained injuries to her fingers, but medical attention was not provided. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the shifter selector assembly knob needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted.  The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.

Mileage: 36,000

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the shifter selector assembly had sharp edges. There were sharp edges on the side of the dial. The contact sustained injuries to her fingers, but medical attention was not provided. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the shifter selector assembly knob needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted.  The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.

Mileage: 36,000

Car was parked on sloped driveway by dealer's service department driver. Car was shut off and in park, but parking brake was not on. The driver was out of the car taking pictures when it started to roll backwards down the driveway. The driver saw it happen and set the parking brake, It rolled approximately 18 inches and then stopped. I had thought that this had happened previously, but it was much more noticeable watching from outside the car. I contacted the dealer immediately and was told it was normal and to just pay attention to it. He did not suggest bringing it in for inspection. No warning lights or messages.

The Recall (Under Hood engine fire) is causing crankshaft wear due to containments being present destroying the engine, my engine has been deemed unsafe and can currently no longer use my vehicle until ford fixes the problem

Recall came out in May. Still no remedy....

The dial shifter gets stuck/ locked in position (Park) when overly hot outside. Takes significant time to cool car and release.

Transmission becomes unresponsive and unreliable in high temps and locks into whatever gear it was in IE if left in the sun in park the shifter won’t budge until enough time for it to cool down has passed

Vehicle enters deep sleep mode within minutes of parking and won’t start again until it is jump started. This software problem has left me stranded three times.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated while having an annual inspection on the vehicle, the inspector informed her that the computer was not reading the vehicle and advised her to contact the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer stated that an unknown module needed to be updated. The contact was unsure of what module needed to be updated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and the manufacturer advised her to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was 140,800.

Mileage: 140,800

This has happened a few times sporadically since I have owned the vehicle in 2020. As I am driving it will alert me to stop safely now. The car will loose power and not allow me to go past 15 mph. The screen will go blank and the ac will not throw cool air. This is concerning because since the car looses power, it is dangerous if I am at a fast speed. Once I pull over, sometimes I cannot turn off the car. And if I do turn it off, I cannot turn it back on for a few minutes.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 76 MPH with the cruise control activated, the vehicle inadvertently decelerated without warning. The contact deactivated the cruise control feature and attempted to accelerate; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as needed. The contact pulled over safely, turned off, and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle operated as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired; however, the mechanic stated that the power module was possibly inoperable. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed, and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The failure mileage was 19,500.

Mileage: 19,500

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, the key fob would not unlock the door. The contact attempted to manually start the vehicle however, there was no electrical power and the engine was not cranking. The contact jump started the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The contact drove the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the connectors between the battery, the Power Train Control Module (PCM), and the battery needed to be replaced. The dealer stated that the battery connectors were wet due to severe weather in the area prior to the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 53,000.

Mileage: 53,000

In three occasions the automatic transmission has stopped working, operating under normal city driving conditions. Turning the car off and on again, it has worked properly. The car has less than 4000 miles. I took it to the Ford repair shop and there is a defect in the hybrid transmission, and it will take 4-6 weeks to be solved. Unbelievable such problems in a vehicle with such a few number of miles. Where is the quality control...

Car randomly stopped and the stop safely now message appeared. The car would not turn off. The dash was still illuminated. I held the car start button for several seconds and the car finally turned off and I was able to reset it. The transmission light and battery light came on. I have not had any issues sense.

MY CAR HAS SUFFERED A SUDDEN AND COMPLETE LOSS OF ENGINE POWER WHILE DRIVING AT FULL SPEED ON THE HIGHWAY. THIS HAS HAPPENED ON TWO OCCASIONS. THESE WERE VERY, VERY DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. EACH TIME IT WAS ONLY THROUGH GOOD LUCK THAT WE WERE ABLE TO MAKE IT ACROSS TWO LANES OF SPEEDING TRAFFIC IN A CAR WITH NO ENGINE POWER TO PULL OFF ON THE SHOULDER OF THE HIGHWAY. AFTER THE CAR WAS SHUT DOWN FOR A FEW MINUTES, IT RESTARTED EACH TIME. THE FIRST OCCURRENCE HAPPENED IN JUNE, 2020, WHILE DRIVING WITH MY CHILD. I NOTICED RIGHT AFTER THAT FORD HAD ISSUED A RECALL/UPDATE NOTICE FOR MY CAR THAT SEEMED TO BE ABOUT THE PROBLEM THAT CAUSED THE LOSS OF POWER. IT WAS DESCRIBED AS A "20B14 POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE UPDATE". I HAD THIS RECALL/UPDATE DONE BY A FORD DEALER ON JULY 24TH, 2020. I ASSUMED THAT THERE HAD BEEN A DEFECT IN THE CAR'S OPERATING SYSTEM, BUT THAT THE RECALL/UPDATE HAD FIXED THE PROBLEM. THEN, YESTERDAY, APRIL 9TH, 2020, THE SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN. MY WIFE AND CHILD WERE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND THE CAR HAD A SUDDEN AND TOTAL LOSS OF POWER, AND IT WAS ONLY THROUGH GOOD LUCK THAT THEY AVOIDED A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT AND GOT THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD. I NOTICED THAT NIGHT THAT FORD HAD SENT ME AN AUTOMATIC MESSAGE TO MY PHONE SAYING "THE HYBRID POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE HAS DISABLED THE GASOLINE ENGINE FUNCTION DUE TO AN ADDITIONAL CONCERN BEING DETECTED." I BROUGHT THE CAR INTO THE FORD DEALER TODAY AND THEY TELL ME THAT THEY UPDATED THE OPERATING CODE OF THE VEHICLE TO ADDRESS THIS KNOWN PROBLEM WITH "OPERATION NO. 212080A" TO SUM UP, MY CAR HAS NOW STOPPED DEAD ON THE HIGHWAY AT FULL SPEED ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS BECAUSE OF AN OPERATING SYSTEM ERROR. THERE MUST BE A DEFECT IN EITHER MY INDIVIDUAL CAR OR IN THIS MODEL OF CAR FOR A PROBLEM THIS SERIOUS TO HAPPEN TWICE.

Mileage: 28,799

AFTER PULLING OUT OF A PARKING LOT AND ONTO THE STREET, THE FORD ESCAPE LOST DRIVE POWER AND COULD NOT REACH LEGAL SPEED. STOPPED AND PUT ON FLASHERS. THE INSTRUMENT PANEL SHOWED A "STOP SLOWLY NOW" MESSAGE PLUS SEVERAL MALFUNCTION LIGHTS WERE ON. COULD NOT PUT THE CAR IN PARK OR NEUTRAL AND COULD NOT RESTART THE DRIVETRAIN. LATER EVEN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WENT BLANK. ABOUT 1 HR LATER, WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE CAR AND PULL OFF THE STREET AND WAITED FOR A TOW TRUCK TO TAKE THE CAR TO THE DEALER. DEALER HAS NOT LOOKED AT THE CAR YET, BUT THIS IS APPARENTLY RELATED TO FORD'S CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM 20B14.

Mileage: 3,700

CAR SHOWED ERROR OF 'STOP SAFELY NOW' AND THE GAS ENGINE TURNED OFF AND WOULD NOT TURN BACK ON. THIS IS A AWD HYBRID ESCAPE, WAS STRANDED ON SIDE OF ROAD FOR 15+ MINUTES. AFTER TURNING OFF AND ON MULTIPLE TIMES THE CAR FINALLY WAS ABLE TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE FROM PARK, GAS ENGINE DID THEN TURN ON. DEALER HAS NO CLUE WHAT HAPPEN, DID A 'MASTER RESET' AND SAID IT'S FIXED. THIS IS AN UNSAFE VEHICLE.

Mileage: 3,500

VEHICLE ROLLS BACKWARDS ON INCLINE WHILE IN DRIVE. AFTER COMING TO A COMPLETE STOP THEN REMOVING FOOT TO PUT ON GAS THE VEHICLE ROLLS BACK AS IF IT WERE IN NEUTRAL. WE ALMOST ROLLED BACK INTO A LADY THAT WAS PUSHING A STROLLER. FORD SAYS THEY HAVE NO REPAIR FOR THIS PROBLEM. I CAN PROVIDE VIDEO.

Mileage: 1,500

VEHICLE PURCHASED 5/12/20. ON 5/22/20, AT ODO 84 MILES, ON STARTUP, VEHICLE DISPLAYED POWERTRAIN FAULT - ILLUMINATES WHEN A POWERTRAIN OR AWD FAULT HAS BEEN DETECTED. CONTACT YOUR AUTHORIZED DEALER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. VEHICLE FLAT BED TOWED TO SUNSTATE FORD WEST COLONIAL DR ORLANDO FL (PURCHASE DEALERSHIP). SERVICE TEAM HAD VEHICLE 5 DAYS. CLEARED CODES U0131, U0100, U0140, U0155, U0198, U0253, U0257, P0919, U0212, U023A, U0103, U0111, U0121, U013F, U0159, U0232, U0233, U0293, U0401, U0415, U0420, U0424, U0531, U0101, U0418, U0429, U0146. 4 MILE TEST DRIVE. 20 MILE DRIVE RETURNED VEHICLE WITH NO CAUSE OR CORRECTION. ONLY EXPLAINED POWERTRAIN FAILURE COULD NOT BE REPLICATED. SINCE RETURN, REAR AUTOMATIC LIFTGATE INTERMITTENT FAILURE, BACK UP CAMERA FAILURE, HEADLINER DROP AT FRONT PASSENGER AND DRIVER DOOR SEAL. *TR

Mileage: 84

I RECEIVED A NOTOFICATION FOR A "FIELD SERVICE ACTION" 20B14 FOR A POWETRAIN CONTROL MODULE UPDATE ON MY 2020 FORD ESCAPE HYBRID DUE TO "STOP SAFELY NOW" AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND DTC'S P0340 AND P0340 I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALERSHIP ON 23 APRIL 2020 FOR THE UPDATE, I WAS THEN INFORMED MY MY SERVICE ADVISOR THAT THIS UPDATE IS NOW ON INDEFINITE HOLD DUE TO THE UPDAYE CAUSING ADDITIONAL FAULT CODES ON THE ELECTRONIC POWER STERRING AND OTHER SYSTEMS. HE ALSO PROVIDED ME WITH A LETTER FROM DAVID J. JOHNSON DIRECTOR SERVICE ENGINEERING OPERATIONS TAHT WAS SENT TO ALL FORD AND LINCOLN DEALERS PLACING "NEW VEHICLE DEMONSTRATION/DELVERY HOLD ON ALL IN STOCK VEHICLES UNTIL THE FIELD SERVICE ACTION CAN BE PERFORMED. I WILL ATTACH THIS LETTER TO MY COMPLAINT. MY QUESTION/CONCERN IS, THAT IF FORD DEEMS THESE VEHICLES UNSAFE TO DRIVE FOR DEMONSTRATIONS DRIVES AND DELIVERY, WHY DOES FORD CONSIDER THEM SAFE ENOUGH FOR MYSELF AND MY FAMILY TO DRIVE ON A DAILY BASIS?

Mileage: 1,500

MULTIPLE TIMES VEHICLE HAS SAID STOP SAFELY NOW WHILE DRIVING AND LIMITED ME TO ENOUGH POWER TO MAINTAIN 15MPH AT THE MOST. THIS HAS HAPPENED AT HIGHER SPEEDS AND HAS REQUIRED PULLING TO THE SHOULDER.

Mileage: 1,700