Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||||
| 0693 | 01/01/2006 | 10020067 | Pcm failure - electrical accessories intermittent - inoperative. *tt | 07/18/2006 | |
| 04244 | 10/07/2005 | 051711 | 10018063 | Restraint system - safety belt buckle and pretensioner diagnostic trouble code (dtc) b1877 and/or b1881. *tt | 12/14/2005 |
| 04174 | 09/06/2004 | 10013116 | Malfunction indicator lamp (mil) illuminated - system lean diagnostic trouble codes (dtc's) - service tips. various models including 2004 f-series. *tt | 04/08/2005 | |
| 0471 | 12/31/2004 | 04262 | 10008201 | Warning indicators-parking aid-reverse sensing system (rss) and forward sensing system (fss)-false activation of warning tone-service tips. *mj update. *tt | 07/23/2004 |
| 03203 | 10/13/2003 | 0398 | 10004886 | Malfunction indicator lamp illuminated with diagnostic trouble codes (dtcs) p0442, p0455, p0456, p0457 or p1442 or a check fuel cap lamp illuminated with dtc p0457 for the evaporative emission system. *tt | 01/14/2004 |
| 032011 | 10/04/2004 | 04191 | 10004894 | Airbag lamp illuminated and diagnostic trouble codes (dtcs) b1877 (driver pretensioner circuit open) or b1881 (passenger pretensioner circuit open). *tt this bulletin supersedes tsb 03-20-11 dated 2003. *tt | 01/14/2004 |
| 03181 | 09/15/2003 | 10004027 | Remote keyless entry (rke) - service tips. *tt | 11/14/2003 | |
| 16779 | 04/01/2003 | 10002663 | Perceived condition of no entry or unable to manually unlock the door. this may occur when the battery is allowed to become discharged or completely dead and the remote keyless entry (keyfob) is used while the battery is in this state. | 09/10/2003 | |
| 16811 | 04/01/2003 | 10002676 | Intermittent electrical conditions with power windows, locks, fobs, radio, lighting, cruise control or other electrical accessories. *tt | 09/10/2003 | |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||||
| 16410 | 11/01/2002 | 10008340 | Trailer tow harness installation / service tip. *mj | 07/28/2004 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 10/08/2011 | 86000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford escape. the contact stated the air bags light illuminates and there was a constant beeping sound in the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who ran a diagnostic test and there was a code#b1869 stating the wiring harness for the driver and passenger seats and body harnesses needed to be replaced. this would be an expense of $686 to the contact. the manufacturer was notified who offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 86,000. | |||
| 10/08/2011 | 86000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2003 ford escape. the contact stated the air bags light illuminates and there was a constant beeping sound in the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who ran a diagnostic test and there was a code#b1869 stating the wiring harness for the driver and passenger seats and body harnesses needed to be replaced. this would be an expense of $686 to the contact. the manufacturer was notified who offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 86,000. kmj | |||
| 11/16/2011 | 101000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2003 ford windstar. the contact stated the electricity want out on the doors. the check engine and the tire presser light illuminated on the instrument panel. as soon that she replace the batterie and the tires on the vehicle all the illuminated light on the instrument panel went out. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnose. the dealer advised her to replaced oxygen sensor. the fauilre continue , the vehicle was not repaired.the manufacture was contacted and stated nothing was wrong with her vehicle. failure mileage 101,000 current mileage 102,000.jp | |||
| 03/12/2012 | 110056 | ||
| When i am driving my car will try to die and all gages will go to the highest rpm, speed, and full gas, then it will go back to zero and then proceed to the speed i was going, the battery light will kep flashing but no check engine light comes on. when i researched it, it seems that on more than ten occassions if not more are having the same elecrical problem and no garage can figure out, they try replacing alternators, batteries, and wires and grounds and nothing is working, it can't be read on codes because nothing is showing up. if you ask me this should be a recall because if you search it in bing over two hundred matches comes up with the same complaint!!! | |||
| 02/01/2012 | |||
| This vehicle has a bad misfire problem,rough idle as well as bad hitching on highway.looked it up on yahoo answers and a lot of people are having the same problem.is there going to be a recall on these vehicles.im hearing faulty computers. | |||
| 01/16/2011 | 43625 | ||
| I have a ford 2003 escape 6 cyl. bought in may of 2004 new - 76 miles on it test driven from a dealer in schulenburg, tx - the check engine light came on - the pcm computer went out and blew a spark plug on 1/16/2011 - i had to replace the pcm (which i was told should have been a recall on the 2003 ford escape) since this should never go out on the car. the milage was only 43,625 on 1/16/2011 when this happened. i have the car for 7-8 yrs. now. i had to replace the pcm with a remanufactured (since it would cost way more for a new one) pcm - electronic ignition costing me just over $2,100. again, this part was intended to never go out for the life of the car, period. this should have been a recall on ford motor companies part - and i was told to complain and record this to nhtsa as others have, and if enough do, they would have to recall. i am not sure if i am in the right place to place this complaint. | |||
| 02/25/2009 | 100321 | 1 | |
| I have a 03 ford escape, and the trouble is endless. the car will not start at times and it is a strong smell of gas when this happens. i have had it in and out of the shop about 6 times and has had the car for only 2 years. the failure to start is scary because you don't know if the car is going to explode or what. the dealership tells me that it is a sensor that goes out and tells the car it doesn't have to start. been replaced 6 times and the other day it did it again. i hate to go out of town because of the fear of getting stranded on the highway. and another thing the smell of the engine is crazy my daughter has asthma and talking about a problem for her it is. i can go to work and go back 30 minutes later to my car and you can tell that it is still smelling of course where i got it from they told me that it was no concern it was due to the fact of them dropping oil when they did a change, come on people 2 months later. i fear that one day it will explode i just pray to god that my family is not in there. the airbag light will not go off and from reading in here i am scared to death. something really needs to be done about this problem before some family loses a member. *tr | |||
| 03/11/2007 | 40000 | 10 | 02/01/2004 |
| Vehicle stalls suddenly without notice and the steering and brakes will not function. very dangerous situation that has occurred several times. dealership says they have never heard of this issue. 2003 ford escape. vehicle is the year included in the recall and came from the same kansas plant but it shows no recall. contacted ford directly and was told they have also not heard of this issue. *jb | |||
| 06/13/2004 | 15000 | 5 | 11/23/2002 |
| The engine of my 2003 ford escape (v6, automatic) dies when going into reverse occasionally. since mid of june, 2004, it has happened 5 times (today is july 25, 2004). we have sent the car to ford dealer three times already. they could not duplicate the problem and hence could not fix it. *ak | |||
| 11/03/2003 | 11000 | 6 | 06/21/2003 |
| Upon turning the ignition to the on position in my 2003 ford escape, the sunroof will automatically open. this occurs when the vehicle has been turned off between 10-15 minutes, and then restarted. this has occurred 6 times within a 4 week period. *nlm | |||
| 09/02/2003 | 7000 | 1 | 12/27/2002 |
| My 2003 ford escape intermittently stalls when going into reverse. after the 2nd trip to the dealership they replaced the computer, it is still happening. now it is happening in drive as well. i've had the car since december 2002 and it has stalled out a total of 11 times. the vehicle has 8000 miles on it.*ak | |||
| 07/23/2003 | 6500 | 1 | 02/15/2003 |
| 2003 ford escape v-6 automatic vehicle stalled on freeway for no reason. *ak | |||
| 07/18/2003 | 12725 | 5 | 12/28/2002 |
| Previous complaint: stalling of 2003 escape. i returned vehicle back to the dealer and they installed a new eec and trouble shot the system. the work performed did not fix the problem and now it is seven days later and the stalling has returned. the onboard computer does not revel any problems so this more than likely will be an ongoing issue. *jb | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION | |||
| 12/14/2006 | 30422 | 6 | 07/18/2003 |
| My 2003 ford escape stalls when placed in to gear and sometimes when stopping. *nm | |||
| 05/26/2006 | 54000 | 1 | 09/14/2004 |
| I had a 2003 ford escape that started having problems starting. it was usually when i had left the vehicle for 8 or more hours. i would try to start it and it would hesitate and take a while to start it. after a few tries it would jerk back at me and start. this was a problem for about 2-months. on may 26, 2006 i left my vehicle in the parking lot at work. it was the first really hot day (90+ degrees) of the year. when i got back to my car it hesitated when i cranked it. i cranked it again and it popped back and me and then there was an explosion. there was smoke coming out of the hood. i opened the hood (burning my finger in the process) and found parts and pieces everywhere. i took it to the ford dealership and the upper intake manifold blew apart. the dealer never gave us a reason why (we pushed but we were told that it shouldn't have happened and that the engineer was on vacation). we had the upper intake manifold fixed and it cost us a lot of money out-of-pocket. i asked them for the old upper intake manifold back, but they wouldn't give it back. i was always intending to file a complaint. the ford was 3-years old with 54,000 miles on it, so it was out of warranty, although the dealer stated that it was a faulty part that caused the problem? it is possible that it was n a horrible misfire, but we aren't sure. i do know that it scared me and could have hurt someone. luckily the vehicle did not catch on fire. the problem was fixed for 2-months when the vehicle started hesitating again when i started it. i was terrified to drive it and the dealer told me it was unrelated but i could pay (again) to have it looked at. i started having panic attacks when driving the vehicle, so we traded it in. i would like a refund and to stop this from happening to other people. *nm | |||
| 12/14/2004 | 7 | ||
| Since the beginning of 2003 consumer complained about starting problems. there had been incidents where the vehicle stalled at intersections, and could not be restarted. consumer took vehicle to dealer for inspection seven times. could not figure out the cause of the problem. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - SWITCH | |||
| 01/18/2007 | 59000 | 20 | 05/28/2006 |
| The 2003 ford escape died when going to a stop or prior to acceleration. no apparent reason. this has continued to happen. i contacted ford ,and they told me it was probably bad gas. this has been going on for months. also, i had to pull to the side of the road and check for fire inside of the vehicle. as there was a very strong smell of burning rubber or wire. no fire found yet. engine will race for no apparent reason. vehicle attempted to roll forward after it has been put in park and even after it has been turned off. today one more nightmare has began. i drove the escape approximately 4 minutes, returned home, and killed the vehicle. it will not start. if i turned the key to the 3rd position all lights went out. it will not move out of park. this has been a complete nightmare trying to keep this vehicle going. i have tried on numerous occasions to get the vehicle into ford for recall on abs. they can give approximate date, but nothing definite. *ak | |||
| 04/30/2007 | 10 | ||
| The key cannot be inserted into the ignition switch easily. on several occasions had to move the steering wheel back and forth to get it to engage. it was getting worse, and i would expect this to fail soon. it even happened at the dealer, and they had trouble getting it to engage.*ak | |||
| 07/11/2003 | 11800 | 12 | 12/28/2002 |
| My 2003 ford escape has a stalling problem. it has stalled at least ten to twelve times in the last 14 days. the conditions during the stalling vary: on an incline, coming to stop and on straight away level terrain. it has also stalled and restarted much like a hesitation. *ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING - FRONT UNDERHOOD | |||
| 05/07/2006 | 30000 | 1 | 05/10/2003 |
| 2003 ford escape parked in garage located at 7755 sunset drive, elmwood park illinois. vehicle spontaneously burned. the garage was a lofted structure with storage containing 30 years of possessions. the car, garage and personal items were destroyed by the fire. this occurred at 5:00am on a sunday morning after the car had been parked in the garage from the saturday afternoon before. *jb | |||