general problems of the 2012 Ford Escape - part 2

I pulled out of a post office parking lot onto a two lane road and began to accelerate. My vehicle started slowing on its own even though I was pushing the accelerator. It was creeping along, barely moving, and was unresponsive to me pushing the accelerator. The vehicle sputtered a lot but never completely stalled. Power steering, interior lighting, etc. , was all working fine. There was a warning light on shaped like a wrench. I put my hazard lights on and continued coasting in this manner to the next available spot I could pull over. After pulling over, I turned off the car. I turned the car back on, and then it seemed to be idling and running fine. The warning light shaped like a wrench is a "throttle/powertrain" issue indicator. After checking online, I found several articles indicating this is a common problem with Ford Escapes. The north caroline consumers council recommended owners who experience this issue file a complaint. I felt lucky that I did not pull out into a busy road and lose throttle power like that and be at risk of getting t-boned by another car. I agree that this problem is a serious safety issue.

As per my vehicle report from the dealership: concern c/s that battery light is on, please check and advise. Cause: verified concern. Found belt thrown. Also found and oil leak at the front cover via a dime sized hole in the cover. Correction: replaced front cover and vbelt. Also replaced motor mount that was stripped out. Verified repair. Battery light is off and no oil leaks at this time.

Vehicle in traffic on busy interstate (I-635e) dallas, TX on Sunday 11/18 at approx 11 am. Vehicle had already been driven 10-15 miles when the engine lost power. Tachometer showed 1000 rpm and engine was still running but no throttle response. Was able to coast to next off-ramp though interstate was under construction and concrete barriers denied access to shoulder. After coasting to off-ramp I was able to determine emissions indicator was lit and I turned off the engine, restarted and tried to proceed. The engine lurched and stalled and the maintenance indicator also illuminated. Forced to call for assistance. Had vehicle towed to Ford dealership. They replaced the throttle body (fomoco pn ds7z-9e926-a) and cleared the odbc codes. Vehicle has driven fine with no issues for next 100 miles. Personal note: fortunately the incident happened close enough to an of ramp I could exit the busy interstate. The construction had concrete barriers on both sides of the interstate preventing shoulder access. If I had not been able to make it to an off ramp the vehicle would have been stalled in a multi-lane interstate likely resulting in a traffic accident.

When driving at highway speeds 55-60 and then coasting coming to a stop, once engine/transmission hits around 35-40. . . Vehicle downshifts extremely hard. . . Called dealership and they said this was normal behavior. . . I've never had a vehicle behave like this and would not consider that normal. .

Purchased the vehicle in Feb 2012. . . Drive it an hr or so 1 way everyday to work. . . In July started to notice it would lag when shifting between gears. . . At start and in between gears. Took it in for service they had it for less then 3 hrs and said their was nothing wrong but reset the transmission computer problem should go away. It got worse took it back 2 wks later for same issue transmission tech drove it with me in the car, found no issue. . . Took it back 3 wks late same issue a different person told me that's not normal they drove it said they couldn't duplicate the issue but Ford says it's normal for a hard shift on a cold start. I will be taking it back now for a 4th time to have it looked at. . . . . . Car hard shifts not just on cold start and if this was the case I would have had this issue from day 1 not 5 months into driving. . . . . . . . This does not feel safe to drive but I am told I have to get used to it. . . . . .

Vehicle was being prepared to back out of level garage onto driveway with mild downhill slope. Vehicle was started, emergency brake released and automatic transmission placed in reverse, driver's foot engaged brake. Driver realized wallet with driver's license was left inside house. Transmission placed in park, driver removed foot from brake and exited vehicle. Vehicle not noted to be moving when driver exited. Driver entered house through garage entry, retrieved wallet. When garage was re-entered vehicle was backing out of garage onto driveway on its own. Driver attempted to catch up to vehicle on foot and attempt to regain control. Vehicle backed down full length of driveway (approx. 100 feet) and backed across road and down fairly steep embankment on other side of road. Vehicle then backed into a large tree about 10-15 feet from road and abruptly stopped, and an adjacent tree was side-swiped by the rear/left side of the vehicle. No property damage occurred, scant damage to 2 large trees. Driver assessed the damage, re-entered the vehicle. Driver cannot definitively recall what gear the transmission was in when vehicle was re-entered. Driver was able to re-start the vehicle and move it across the road and back onto driveway.

Vehicle stalls intermittently when driving at various freeway speeds. Pressing all the way down on the gas pedal the vehicle recovers acceleration. The vehicle was checked by an authorized dealer at 325 mi. On the odometer and "no vehicle problem found". Vehicle has experienced eight freeway incidents of stalls in 3908 mi. On the odometer, the stalls have occurred at different speeds or vehicle maneuvers.