Three problems related to engine belts and pulleys have been reported for the 1999 Ford Escort. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
The contact owns a 1999 Ford Escort. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning. A local mechanic diagnosed that the timing belt was defective. In addition, the motor failed. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were notified of the failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 93,083.
Driving in the rain, running through puddles causes my serpentine belt to come off. Had a mechanic put the belt back on. No problems with the belt or the tension. Apparently just getting the belt wet is enough to have it walk off the bottom pulley. When this happens I of course lose my power steering and it runs my battery down.
On 12-11-04 while returning home from work, I heard a loud noise coming from the engine and the car stalled. At first I though it was the timing belt. I took the car to a local shop who said that the timing belt had been stretched and had actually skipped gears. They replaced the timing belt and upon starting the vehicle, they heard a loud noise from the engine. They removed the spark plugs to find that the #4 plug had been broken due to an impact from the engine. After contacting the spark plug manufactuer, they said that this was a known problem with Ford 2. 0 engines manufacturered between 1991 and 2000. Ford used a powdered metal valve seal instead of a stainless steel one which over time breaks apart and falls into the engine damaging the engine. As a result, the engine must be replaced.