The Used Car Index

2026 Ford Escape problems

NHTSA lists 4 complaints for the 2026 Ford Escape, 0 of them mention a crash and 0 mention a fire. 0 complaints mention an injury, with 0 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-08.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as FORD ESCAPE.

At a glance

Complaints
4
With crash
0
With fire
0
With injury (complaints)
0
Injuries
0
Deaths
0
Recalls
3
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
25,237
Investigations
0
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
33

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. This model year is too recent for a sales denominator.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM250.0%
ENGINE250.0%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM125.0%
SERVICE BRAKES125.0%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER125.0%
VISIBILITY/WIPER125.0%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
electrical electronic250.0%0.96
mechanical failure125.0%0.93
visibility or lighting125.0%0.97
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate4100.0%0.60

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 4 tagged complaints of 4 complaints (100.0%).

Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.

Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

3 recalls.

26V301000

Date: 2026-05-12. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2026 Escape and Lincoln Corsair vehicles. The integrated park module may fail to lock into the park position when the driver shifts into park. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention." (excerpt)

Consequence: A loss of park function can allow the vehicle to rollaway, increasing the risk of a crash. (excerpt)

Remedy: The Secondary On Board Diagnostic Module C (SOBDMC) software will be updated over-the-air (OTA) or by a dealer, free of charge. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed June 5, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available, anticipated in August 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25C69. V (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

26V091000

Date: 2026-02-17. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2022-2026 Ford Escape and 2023-2026 Lincoln Corsair plug-in hybrid vehicles. A manufacturing defect in one or more of the high voltage battery cells may result in an internal short circuit and battery failure. (excerpt)

Consequence: Battery failure can cause a loss of drive power, increasing the risk of a crash. Battery failure can also increase the risk of a fire. (excerpt)

Remedy: Dealers will update the battery energy control module (BECM) and hybrid powertrain control module (HPCM) software, free of charge. Owners are advised to only use "Auto EV" mode and will be instructed by mail to limit the maximum charge of the battery until the remedy has been completed. Owner notification letters were mailed September 4, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436- (excerpt)

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

25V862000

Date: 2025-12-12. Systems: SEAT BELTS.

Defect: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Corsair and Escape vehicles. The seat belt retractors for the left and right rear passenger seats may not be securely fastened.

Consequence: An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not restrain an occupant as intended, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will inspect and secure, or replace the seat belt retractor bolts, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 26, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25C68. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on December 15, 2025.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

0 investigations; 0 open.

Manufacturer communications

33 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM16
UNKNOWN OR OTHER13
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM8
POWER TRAIN5
ENGINE3
BACK OVER PREVENTION1
Center Display1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING1

11038163

Date: 2026-10-02. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

2023-2026 Escape and 2025-2026 Bronco Sport vehicles equipped with a 1.5L EcoBoost engine may require removal of the turbocharger wastegate control actuator linkage for various reasons. The Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 303-04 Fuel Charging and Controls - Turbocharger - 1.5L EcoBoost > Removal and

11037678

Date: 2026-09-22. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

This article supersedes TSB 25-2466 to add Bronco Sport, Escape, Maverick and Corsair, as well as removing Expedition and Navigator. One time use parts for Corsair and Bronco Sport were also added to the parts list. Some of the vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit a headliner rat

11037419

Date: 2026-09-16. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Quality improvements include: -Addresses a bug that may cause updates to fail

11037290

Date: 2026-09-09. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Quality improvements include: -ePrivacy enhancements

11036550

Date: 2026-08-28. Type: Other. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Customer Satisfaction Program 26N15 Certain 2020-2026 Model Year Escape and 2021-2026 Model Year Corsair Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) a High Voltage Battery Replacement

11036530

Date: 2026-08-22. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: SEATS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

For Various Ford and Lincoln vehicles, if diagnostics lead to the replacement of the front seat cushion cover J-clips, lower-level service parts are now available. Use service part W709919-S901 if the J-clip is completely detached from the seat cover and W715386-S424 if the clip is still partially a

11035269

Date: 2026-07-23. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Some 2021-2026 Ford/Lincoln vehicles may exhibit various symptoms including but not limited to the auto start/stop system not operating as intended with a "Check Charging System" message in the instrument panel cluster (IPC) while the charging system is operating properly with no charging related di

11034134

Date: 2026-06-24. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Some of the vehicles listed in the model statement above equipped with SYNC4 may experience a blank center display screen or black center display after welcome animation. The rear-view camera will still function when shifting the vehicle to reverse under these conditions.

11034233

Date: 2026-06-23. Type: Over The Air. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Quality improvements include: -Resolves SiriusXM disk memory usage

11034034

Date: 2026-06-16. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER.

Some 2025-2026 Escape vehicles equipped with an 8-inch IPC display (minor feature code HCAAN), may exhibit a fuel gauge showing the tank is filled to the 8th mark below full when the fuel tank is full. To confirm a vehicle is built with a certain minor feature code, review the build information by c

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

ESCAPE HYBRID

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
ESCAPE3
ESCAPE PHEV1

Same model, other years

All model years | All Ford models

Other Ford models, 2026

Sources

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