Bulletins

BulletinBulletin dateReplacement BulletinItem no.SummaryAdded
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM - FAN
TSB-09-15-312/01/200910033035Ford/mercury: some vehicles may set diagnostic trouble codes (dtcs) p0a81 (battery pack cooling fan 1 control circuit) and/or p0a96 (battery pack cooling fan 2 control circuit) in the traction battery control module (tbcm). these codes by06/25/2010
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE
AS-2176903/01/201110039053Ready07/06/2011
AS-2176903/01/201110039053Ford: if there is an intermittent lack of power, surge, or hesitation while driving the brakes will override acceleration. *rm07/06/2011

Investigations

NHTSA IDManufacturerDate openDate closeSubjectRecall campaign
ENGINE
DP12006Ford Motor Company10/02/2012Electronic Throttle Body Malfunction
 In a letter dated august 30, 2012, the north carolina consumers council (nccc) petitioned the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) to initiate a defect investigation of alleged electronic throttle body failures resulting in engine stall or surge while driving in model year (my) 2005 through 2012 ford escape vehicles. as supporting evidence, the petitioner cites two recent complaints of stall while driving in my 2009 ford escape vehicles that were diagnosed as failed throttle bodies with diagnostic trouble codes p2111, throttle body stuck open, and p2222, throttle body stuck closed.the petitioner indicates that the owners of both vehicles reported experiencing repeated incidents of stalling and engine surging. in addition, the petitioner states that ford has released a number of technical service bulletins that cover a wide range of vehicles and throttle body issues related to hesitation and stalling, including 08-18-2 and 09-23-5.a copy of the petition will be placed in the public file.the petition will be evaluated for a grant or deny decision.

Consumer Complaints

Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
ENGINE
02/26/2013125578
 While commuting to work traveling at interstate speeds, the vehicle indicated a red triangle with exclamation mark enclosed, a message in the driver message center reading 'stop vehicle safely', and an immediate loss of power on both fossil fuel engine and electrical motor drive components. coasting to the side of the interstate was stressful and exceedingly dangerous during rush hour traffic at speeds in excess of 70 mph. without extensive driver experience, this incident could have become a fatality. this powerless action should be investigated due to its very potential of fatality.
11/16/201136050
 Driving vehicle on interstate highway @ highway speeds. while merging into traffic, experienced abrupt loss of power. amber wrench warning light came on. moved to shoulder of road in heavy traffic, stopped vehicle, turned off ignition & after about 30 - 40 seconds restarted vehicle, power restored & vehicle continued to drive normally (wrench light off). took vehicle to dealer, where throttle body was replaced, not under warranty (despite tsb 09-19-12). on feb. 3, 2012, experienced similar loss of power problem, and the amber wrench light and master vehicle electrical hazard warning light came on, and vehicle completely shut down (mileage at this point: 45,500 miles). after shutting off the ignition & restarting, the vehicle would run normally for 45-60 seconds, then would fault & shut down. i was close to my workplace, so i limped it back to work. called dealer, who recommended calling ford's roadside assistance. vehicle was transported to hybrid certified dealer, where the throttle body was replaced (under warranty this time) and the pcm was reprogrammed. when i came to pick the vehicle up, i experienced the same loss of power & warning lights (open wrench light). dealer now claims a sensor in the shift assembly is bad & is causing the problem (claiming this is not covered by warranty). vehicle is still at dealer at the time of this post.
12/28/2012792701
 Car started and after backing out and moving forward, stop engine now message came on with a red triangle on dash. slowly moved to a parking space. turned engine off and waited for one minute and restarted. message was gone and car driven home. brought to dealer following week with description of problem. they diagnosed as a failure of the throttle body and replaced the throttle body and assembly at cost of $629. read in other complaints that problem resurfaces later. happy that i was not traveling on freeway when the problem occurred. considering frequency of this and other problems related to shutdown and hybrid, should a recall be issued? *tr
12/28/201279270
 Car started and after backing out and moving forward, stop engine now message came on with a red triangle on dash. slowly moved to a parking space. turned engine off and waited for one minute and restarted. message was gone and car driven home. brought to dealer following week with description of problem. they diagnosed as a failure of the throttle body and replaced the throttle body and assembly at cost of $629. read in other complaints that problem resurfaces later. happy that i was not travelling on freeway when the problem occurred. considering frequency of this and other problems related to shutdown and hybrid, should a recall be issued?
12/26/2012687351
 Stop safely now-lights up and engine kills/quits. will restart after stopping and restarting vehicle engine kills creating a dangerous situation. *tr
12/26/201268735
 Stop safely now-lights up and engine kills/quits. will restart after stopping and restarting vehicle engine kills creating a dangerous situation
06/30/201146000
 I was driving with my family to see mt. rushmore at night when my 2008 ford escape hybrid suddenly shut down. i was on the freeway going about 70 mph when without warning a red triangular warning light came on and the engine stopped running. i pulled over, shut the engine off, and was able to complete my trip after this. however, when vacationing a year later in michigan, this exact same thing happened 3 times when making an 8-hour trip. each time i've been going close to 70 mph and i've had to carefully navigate my way to the side of the freeway... very dangerous! it would seem that a recall would be in order for such a serious saftety issu.
09/18/20121020001
 Does someone have to die before ford recalls these cars to fix the hybrid cooling system in these vehicles. i have fixed the problem once myself (two years ago) and now it is happening again. these cars shut down on the highway with out warning because of something going on with the hybrid system. this time my wife was in the passing lane when it happened. one day someone is going to die from this problem because it only happens when you are traveling at higher speeds (on a highway) the red triangle light comes on and automatically shuts down the car. some family will be killed because of this and ford will be caught knowing about the problem and doing nothing to fix it. *tr
09/18/2012102000
 Does someone have to die before ford recalls these cars to fix the hybrid cooling system in these vehicles. i have fixed the problem once myself (two years ago) and now it is happening again. these cars shut down on the highway with out warning because of something going on with the hybrid system. this time my wife was in the passing lane when it happened. one day someone is going to die from this problem because it only happens when you are traveling at higher speeds (on a highway) the red triangle light comes on and automatically shuts down the car. some family will be killed because of this and ford will be caught knowing about the problem and doing nothing to fix it.
09/15/2012504001
 I am the owner of a 2008 ford escape hybrid with approx. 50k miles. as with many complaints related to escape hybrid, i was driving on the interstate in perfect weather conditions at approx. 70mph when without any warning, the engine shut down and the master vehicle electrical hazard warning lamp lit up. steering and braking were normal but i had to coast to the shoulder across several lanes of busy highway traffic to stop. it was terrifying. i gathered myself and my three terrified children and started the car again with no problem. the same incident occurred three more times before i was able to make it to my destination, but i was anticipating the issue and stayed in the right hand lane. this issue is being reported time and again yet no action is being taken to address this obvious defect. what is ford and nhtsa waiting for? this is an extremely dangerous issue! please, before someone is injured or dies. *tr
09/15/201250400
 I am the owner of a 2008 ford escape hybrid with approx. 50k miles. as with many complaints related to escape hybrid, i was driving on the interstate in perfect weather conditions at approx. 70mph when without any warning, the engine shut down and the master vehicle electrical hazard warning lamp lit up. steering and braking were normal but i had to coast to the shoulder across several lanes of busy highway traffic to stop. it was terrifying. i gathered myself and my three terrified children and started the car again with no problem. the same incident occurred three more times before i was able to make it to my destination, but i was anticipating the issue and stayed in the right hand lane. this issue is being reported time and again yet no action is being taken to address this obvious defect. what is ford and nhtsa waiting for? this is an extremely dangerous issue! please, before someone is injured or dies.
12/12/201196000
 Tl- the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that the stop safely now warning message illuminated on the dashboard. the vehicle then began to decelerate independently and stalled. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where they replaced the throttle body. the contact failure recurred eight months after the throttle body replacement. the failure mileage was 96,000 and the current mileage was 107,800. kmj
12/12/201196600
 Tl- the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that the hazard light illuminated on the dashboard and states to stop safely now. when this happened the vehicle started to slow down and stalled. the contact stated that after the third time the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and they replaced the throttle body. the contact stated that eight months later the failure happened again. the failure mileage was 96,000 and the current mileage was 107,800.rl
07/22/2012938292
 This is the second of two incidents where power was lost and the car became unresponsive. first, was one week prior driving from la to san diego at 5pm. we got a flat on the highway in irvine ca. we pulled over and changed the tire but when we started the engine it would not start. the lights came on but with a warning light to stop safely now. i thought this was from the tire and pressed the reset button but the warning would not clear. we jumped the car once and were unsuccessful, we jumped it again and again nothing, we towed the vehicle to a mechanic and the tow truck tried to jump it again and this time the lights would not come on. we jumped while holding the button for the high voltage battery which we found out about in the manual but the car would not start. we paid the tow and called for a ride home. i missed work and my mother took me back to la to wait for the car. the mechanic replaced the battery. i waited 8 hours for the mechanic to say that the car needed to be taken out of a safety mode and that this can't be done manually in the event it happened again. the next week, after pulling out of the driveway to go home sunday night the red triangle light came on and warned me to stop safely now and then i could not accelerate past 20mph and then 10mph as i slowed to pull over. i killed the engine, waited ten min. and restarted but the car would not accelerate and the light came on again. i waited until midnight to be towed to the dealer, got a ride, and i am now on the bus until something can be done. after researching other complaints i am sad to find that this problem is common, it is unresolved, it is dangerous for a safety mechanism to cause the driver to suddenly lose power, and it is inconvenient to be stranded and unable to troubleshoot the car if there is nothing wrong with the engine and it is a computer malfunction. *tr
07/22/201293829
 This is the second of two incidents where power was lost and the car became unresponsive. first, was one week prior driving from la to san diego at 5pm. we got a flat on the highway in irvine ca. we pulled over and changed the tire but when we started the engine it would not start. the lights came on but with a warning light to stop safely now. i thought this was from the tire and pressed the reset button but the warning would not clear. we jumped the car once and were unsuccessful, we jumped it again and again nothing, we towed the vehicle to a mechanic and the tow truck tried to jump it again and this time the lights would not come on. we jumped while holding the button for the high voltage battery which we found out about in the manual but the car would not start. we paid the tow and called for a ride home. i missed work and my mother took me back to la to wait for the car. the mechanic replaced the battery. i waited 8 hours for the mechanic to say that the car needed to be taken out of a safety mode and that this can't be done manually in the event it happened again. the next week, after pulling out of the driveway to go home sunday night the red triangle light came on and warned me to stop safely now and then i could not accelerate past 20mph and then 10mph as i slowed to pull over. i killed the engine, waited ten min. and restarted but the car would not accelerate and the light came on again. i waited until midnight to be towed to the dealer, got a ride, and i am now on the bus until something can be done. after researching other complaints i am sad to find that this problem is common, it is unresolved, it is dangerous for a safety mechanism to cause the driver to suddenly lose power, and it is inconvenient to be stranded and unable to troubleshoot the car if there is nothing wrong with the engine and it is a computer malfunction.
06/17/201280100
 We were driving up i-95 from fl to va when the car suddenly gave a loud warning tone and displayed the message stop safely now. the car lost all power as we quickly tried to cross several lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. upon examination of the car we started it up again with no consequence and continued on our trip. about 30 minutes later it happened again. after reading the owner's manual i discovered the warning message involved a component of the hybrid system. i decided to try shutting off the econ switch (which activates battery) and all ac/ electrical components. this worked beautifully for 100+ miles until at nightfall the headlights kicked on and our troubles returned. since it was sunday night we decided to stay overnight where we were and get it checked by the nearest ford in the morning. the diagnostics ($95) revealed it was the motor electronic cooling pump at fault which this dealer did not carry. we cautiously continued using the no elecrical method and were able to successfully reach our destination 400miles away with no more incidents, where we then took it to our home dealer for repair. a very dangerous condition which upon research i'm learning is happening to many other escape hybrid owners.
05/28/201272258
 The first time it occurred i was driving on the highway and the info screen told me to stop safely as the engine shut down. it happened several times that day, and then didn't happen until today, june 17, 2012. this recent time a high engine temperature warning came up on the info screen. i checked all of the fluids and they are full and all have been changed in the last year or so.
06/17/201280100
 We were driving up i-95 from fl to va when the car suddenly gave a loud warning tone and displayed the message stop safely now. the car lost all power as we quickly tried to cross several lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. upon examination of the car we started it up again with no consequence and continued on our trip. about 30 minutes later it happened again. after reading the owner's manual i discovered the warning message involved a component of the hybrid system. i decided to try shutting off the econ switch (which activates battery) and all ac/ electrical components. this worked beautifully for 100+ miles until at nightfall the headlights kicked on and our troubles returned. since it was sunday night we decided to stay overnight where we were and get it checked by the nearest ford in the morning. the diagnostics ($95) revealed it was the motor electronic cooling pump at fault which this dealer did not carry. we cautiously continued using the no elecrical method and were able to successfully reach our destination 400miles away with no more incidents, where we then took it to our home dealer for repair. a very dangerous condition which upon research i'm learning is happening to many other escape hybrid owners.
05/28/201272258
 The first time it occurred i was driving on the highway and the info screen told me to stop safely as the engine shut down. it happened several times that day, and then didn't happen until today, june 17, 2012. this recent time a high engine temperature warning came up on the info screen. i checked all of the fluids and they are full and all have been changed in the last year or so.
06/17/201280100
 We were driving up i-95 from fl to va when the car suddenly gave a loud warning tone and displayed the message stop safely now. the car lost all power as we quickly tried to cross several lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. upon examination of the car we started it up again with no consequence and continued on our trip. about 30 minutes later it happened again. after reading the owner's manual i discovered the warning message involved a component of the hybrid system. i decided to try shutting off the econ switch (which activates battery) and all ac/ electrical components. this worked beautifully for 100+ miles until at nightfall the headlights kicked on and our troubles returned. since it was sunday night we decided to stay overnight where we were and get it checked by the nearest ford in the morning. the diagnostics ($95) revealed it was the motor electronic cooling pump at fault which this dealer did not carry. we cautiously continued using the no elecrical method and were able to successfully reach our destination 400miles away with no more incidents, where we then took it to our home dealer for repair. a very dangerous condition which upon research i'm learning is happening to many other escape hybrid owners.
05/28/201272258
 The first time it occurred i was driving on the highway and the info screen told me to stop safely as the engine shut down. it happened several times that day, and then didn't happen until today, june 17, 2012. this recent time a high engine temperature warning came up on the info screen. i checked all of the fluids and they are full and all have been changed in the last year or so.
06/17/201280100
 We were driving up i-95 from fl to va when the car suddenly gave a loud warning tone and displayed the message stop safely now. the car lost all power as we quickly tried to cross several lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. upon examination of the car we started it up again with no consequence and continued on our trip. about 30 minutes later it happened again. after reading the owner's manual i discovered the warning message involved a component of the hybrid system. i decided to try shutting off the econ switch (which activates battery) and all ac/ electrical components. this worked beautifully for 100+ miles until at nightfall the headlights kicked on and our troubles returned. since it was sunday night we decided to stay overnight where we were and get it checked by the nearest ford in the morning. the diagnostics ($95) revealed it was the motor electronic cooling pump at fault which this dealer did not carry. we cautiously continued using the no elecrical method and were able to successfully reach our destination 400miles away with no more incidents, where we then took it to our home dealer for repair. a very dangerous condition which upon research i'm learning is happening to many other escape hybrid owners.
05/28/201272258
 The first time it occurred i was driving on the highway and the info screen told me to stop safely as the engine shut down. it happened several times that day, and then didn't happen until today, june 17, 2012. this recent time a high engine temperature warning came up on the info screen. i checked all of the fluids and they are full and all have been changed in the last year or so.
06/06/201238200
 Traveling on freeway at approximately 70 mph. without warning, engine completely shut down. chime sounded and warning message appeared on dashboard saying stop safely now. red triangle with exclamation point in center appeared on dash.i was informed by ford service department during repairs that this is a known failure problem as related in ford tsb 09-18-6, affecting similar vehicles up to 2007.
05/29/201270000
 While driving on the interstate at around 55-65mph the vehicle lost engine power, a warning light came on and a stop safely now message. the vehicle lost the ability to accelerate but we were able to coast to a stop at an exit that happened to be nearby. due to construction and the removal of the shoulder lane, had this happened merely a mile earlier in the route there would have been no place to stop safely. the same warning light and engine power loss occurred about 10 months prior while driving on a two- lane highway. we were able to coast to a stop safely then as well, but we're again lucky to be in little traffic and in an area with sufficient shoulder space. after taking the vehicle to our dealership for service we were told no problem could be identified. each time this occurs we have been able to restart the car and complete our trip. the inability for the vehicle to accelerate and the instant power loss with this warning is a serious safety concern that should be addressed in a recall particularly if this is the result of a faulty part.
05/26/201286200
 While driving in the left lane of the highway at about 60-65 mph in moderate/heavy traffic, the gasoline engine shut down and gave me a stop safely now message on the instrument cluster. i was able to get the car off of the road, but it was a rather frightening and dangerous ordeal to cross two lanes of moderate/heavy traffic after the engine shut down. after having the car towed to the dealer, they informed me that it was a pretty common problem amongst escapes (transaxle cooling pump / water pump). researching this further, it appears that there are a number of others on message boards and the like that have this same problem.
05/21/201275000
 While driving down the interstate at 70 miles per hour, the engine suddenly shut off and i received a warning light, and the message stop safely now. this particular instance occurred on 1-95 south just south of washington on a portion under construction with no shoulder, it is extremely lucky that no major accident occurred. however, knowing that this issue is frequent as can be seen by fellow complaints, and from that fact that this has happened before, this vehicle should receive an immediate recall, as did the identically modeled toyota hybrid versions. the first time it happened the car was less than 2 years old. this is not acceptable, and it will eventually kill someone.
05/17/201280000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that while driving 70 mph, the vehicle stalled and a warning light advising her to pull over illuminated on the instrument panel. the contact restarted the vehicle and the failure recurred. the vehicle was in the process of being taken to an authorized dealer for inspection. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 80,000. the vin was unavailable. kmj
05/21/201275000
 While driving down the interstate at 70 miles per hour, the engine suddenly shut off and i received a warning light, and the message stop safely now. this particular instance occurred on 1-95 south just south of washington on a portion under construction with no shoulder, it is extremely lucky that no major accident occurred. however, knowing that this issue is frequent as can be seen by fellow complaints, and from that fact that this has happened before, this vehicle should receive an immediate recall, as did the identically modeled toyota hybrid versions. the first time it happened the car was less than 2 years old. this is not acceptable, and it will eventually kill someone.
05/17/201280000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that while driving 70 mph, the vehicle stalled and a warning light advising her to pull over illuminated on the instrument panel. the contact restarted the vehicle and the failure recurred. the vehicle was in the process of being taken to an authorized dealer for inspection. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 80,000. the vin was unavailable. kmj
05/21/201275000
 While driving down the interstate at 70 miles per hour, the engine suddenly shut off and i received a warning light, and the message stop safely now. this particular instance occurred on 1-95 south just south of washington on a portion under construction with no shoulder, it is extremely lucky that no major accident occurred. however, knowing that this issue is frequent as can be seen by fellow complaints, and from that fact that this has happened before, this vehicle should receive an immediate recall, as did the identically modeled toyota hybrid versions. the first time it happened the car was less than 2 years old. this is not acceptable, and it will eventually kill someone.
05/17/201280000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that while driving 70 mph, the vehicle stalled and a warning light advising her to pull over illuminated on the instrument panel. the contact restarted the vehicle and the failure recurred a few more occasions. the vehicle was in the process of being taken to an authorized dealer. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 80,000. the vin was unavailable. sm.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
09/07/2012560003
 Driving at 55 mph, engine stopped, kicked out of gear, loud beep sounded, and dashboard warning light came on. triangle with bolt inside. message said slow down and pull over. this had happened 3 times before while in cruise control, but i was not in cruise control this time. first time it happened, i consulted the manual. it said to turn off the engine and restart. i did, and warning light went off. same next 2 instances. i attempted this fix four times on this last occasion. car would restart, then engine would shut down in a few hundred feet. finally called tow truck. ford dealer found bad auxiliary water pump connected to hybrid system. in researching this, i found this is a common problem with ford escape hybrids. called ford customer service, but they refused to do anything about the repair, which cost $700. felt very unsafe with the way the engine just shut down. luckily, i was on a road with a shoulder. if i had been on a bridge, tunnel, or in traffic, i could have been killed, the engine shut down so quickly. ford needs to issue a recall on these water pumps, as their failure causes a dangerous engine failure. *tr
06/16/2012790002
 While driving on the highway during a long trip (9 hours) a triangular warning light flashed on: stop safely now, and the car decelerated quickly as though the engine had abruptly stopped, barely allowing time to pull off road. fortunately, there was a shoulder at that spot on the highway. there is no way to safely stop a car this suddenly that is traveling on a highway! after reading the manual which directed driver to wait a bit and then restart car, the driver did so and everything seemed fine until it happened again, twice, on the highway again after driving for only 2 hours. please; just because there wasn't a crash, injury, fire, or death does not mean this is safe enough. *tr
04/06/201257000
 While driving on interstate 75 in florida, the gas engine shutdown and a warning light/message appeared stop safely now. our vehicle immediately began to decelerate, running only on the electric motor, as we tried to cross two lanes of traffic safely. we pulled onto the shoulder, and turned the car off. we were able to restart the vehicle without getting the error message. we experienced this same sudden engine shutdown and feh warning 5-6 times over the course of our road trip from wisconsin to florida and back. upon return to wisconsin, we had the car checked out by our ford dealer, and they informed us it was a faulty motor electronics coolant pump (part #5m6z-8c419-a). ford has issued a technical service bulletin about this problem (tsb 08-24-5), but has not yet issued a recall. since the unexpected deceleration of a vehicle traveling at high speeds constitutes a serious safety issue (as many ford escape hybrid owners on edmunds.com can attest, http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f0ff5b5), i am strongly urging you to compel ford to issue a recall on this part.
03/18/201267000
 I have a 2008 ford escape hybrid (purchased in april 2007), with 67,000 miles on it. i was traveling at 65mph, starting to head into the sierras outside of sacramento, california. i had been driving for 2 hours, and had traveled 120 miles that morning when the car engine suddenly cut out, and the warning light stop safely now appeared on the dash. luckily, it was only 6am and there was only one other car near me on the road. i pulled over 3 lanes, breaks and steering working, but with no gas. i turned the car off for a minute, started it up without any problems or warning lights. i waited another minute or two, and headed out on the road. when i got back up to 65mph the engine cut out and the warning showed up again. this time i was already near the shoulder so i stopped again. i was about to get into a snowy uphill climb and decided that, not knowing what this car would do, that it was unsafe to continue. i drove slowly to the next exit, and got myself turned around. for the first hour i drove at under 60mph without any problems. i was able to achieve 65mph in the second hour without problem. i had the error codes assessed by a ford dealer and they said it was an mec pump failure (the pump that cools the electric battery). i was very lucky that this happened with so little traffic volume. there was no warning, and the sudden cut out of the engine was startling and unsafe. i feared for my life while heading home as the volume of cars picked up around me.
03/13/201230
 While driving i noticed a lack of power and got the message stop safely now. as the manual stated i pulled over, waited a few minutes. the car started up again but the event kept happening all the way home. i brought the car to a dealer who made a repair costing 642 dollars. the car ran fine for a month but when on a major highway i had the same experience except it was more difficult to deal with the loss of power in busy traffic. i was in the passing lane to allow another car enter the highway from an on ramp when it happened and i was lucky to be able to cross three lanes of traffic to bring the car to rest. again, it happened all the way home causing me to finally drive in the breakdown lane with flashers on. i went online and learned that this is an ongoing problem with ford hybrids. my question is why no recall on such an expensive and dangerous problem?
06/10/201168000
 Veh shows a caution sign (exclamation in triangle) with a warning (pull vehicle over safely and turn off engine). veh loses all acceleration and i must pull over immediately to avoid an accident. happens every time we drive on the freeway only, never on a side street or in stop and go. i pull vehicle over and turn off engine for approx 2 or 3 minutes, and it starts right up. some times it will happen multiple times within a 20 to 30 minute time period, sometimes only once in several hours of driving. dealer has no idea why and requires a tow immediately when it happens to determine cause. cannot tow when on the way to dr, out of town, or other.
03/13/201230
 While driving i noticed a lack of power and got the message stop safely now. as the manual stated i pulled over, waited a few minutes. the car started up again but the event kept happening all the way home. i brought the car to a dealer who made a repair costing 642 dollars. the car ran fine for a month but when on a major highway i had the same experience except it was more difficult to deal with the loss of power in busy traffic. i was in the passing lane to allow another car enter the highway from an on ramp when it happened and i was lucky to be able to cross three lanes of traffic to bring the car to rest. again, it happened all the way home causing me to finally drive in the breakdown lane with flashers on. i went online and learned that this is an ongoing problem with ford hybrids. my question is why no recall on such an expensive and dangerous problem?
06/10/201168000
 Veh shows a caution sign (exclamation in triangle) with a warning (pull vehicle over safely and turn off engine). veh loses all acceleration and i must pull over immediately to avoid an accident. happens every time we drive on the freeway only, never on a side street or in stop and go. i pull vehicle over and turn off engine for approx 2 or 3 minutes, and it starts right up. some times it will happen multiple times within a 20 to 30 minute time period, sometimes only once in several hours of driving. dealer has no idea why and requires a tow immediately when it happens to determine cause. cannot tow when on the way to dr, out of town, or other.
03/17/201267000
 Stop safely now appears in dashboard while going 70 mph and you lose the accelerator - you cannot maintain / increase speed. the car basically dies and shuts off. this is incredibly dangerous, especially while driving on a highway or in traffic of any kind. this happened numerous times as we were driving to florida for spring break. once we stopped, we were able to restart the car and continue on until the next stop safely now appeared, sometimes in less than 3 minutes, sometimes after 3 hours. given that it was a sunday, we were unable to find a ford dealer with a hybrid technician on staff. the first ford dealer we took it to had it for 3 days and could find nothing wrong. the second dealer we went to replaced the throttle body and water pump. this breakdown is unacceptable and dangerous. no car should simply stop like that. this design / flaw should be recalled and fixed before someone is killed on the expressway.
12/29/201139453
 I was traveling on the expressway in the left hand lane doing about 70 mph when the engine shutdown and a stop now safely message appeared on dashboard. i was able to pull over turned off the vehicle was able to restart and continue to my destination. this again happened on the way home the same day there was no problem found at the times i pulled over and both times was able to continue. i had no ability to accelerate and fortunetly was able to pull over, this was a scary.
10/12/201185000
 Going from missouri to arkansas my car simply stopped running no indicator lighs were on at the time and a triangle came on stating i could pull over safely now and stop. i turned off the engine after trying to make the electric battery engine work. nothing happened. people helped me push my car off the road and then a man suggested i try to start it again. it started right up and ran for another 20-30 miles and then proceeded to do this about every 5-10 miles for hours. the temp was raining and about 60 degrees. again on the way home in dry weather and at night it did the same thing for 136 miles. this was at night and i tried to keep it at 60 mph. finaly dropping it to 50 and finally made it home. i'm taking it to my mechanic but when i called ford where i bought the car they said they never heard of this problem. i find this to be an untruth and ford ( which my family has sworn by for many years) refuses to acknowledge this problem.
10/13/201186250
 Driving down a congested interstate the vehicle stopped working at the same time stop immediately was scrolling across the instrument cluster. there is not sufficent time to make adjustments in traffic. it is a very dangerous with liitle room for error in city traffic as i feel lucky to be alive after the vehicle stopped working a total of six times before making it home.
10/12/201185000
 Going from missouri to arkansas my car simply stopped running no indicator lighs were on at the time and a triangle came on stating i could pull over safely now and stop. i turned off the engine after trying to make the electric battery engine work. nothing happened. people helped me push my car off the road and then a man suggested i try to start it again. it started right up and ran for another 20-30 miles and then proceeded to do this about every 5-10 miles for hours. the temp was raining and about 60 degrees. again on the way home in dry weather and at night it did the same thing for 136 miles. this was at night and i tried to keep it at 60 mph. finaly dropping it to 50 and finally made it home. i'm taking it to my mechanic but when i called ford where i bought the car they said they never heard of this problem. i find this to be an untruth and ford ( which my family has sworn by for many years) refuses to acknowledge this problem.
10/13/201186250
 Driving down a congested interstate the vehicle stopped working at the same time stop immediately was scrolling across the instrument cluster. there is not sufficent time to make adjustments in traffic. it is a very dangerous with liitle room for error in city traffic as i feel lucky to be alive after the vehicle stopped working a total of six times before making it home.
07/30/201153100
 While driving at highway speeds for about 20 minutes, the gasoline engine died and a warning light came on saying to pull off the road safely. there was no other warning light (no high temperature warning). i drove slowly on electrical engine power until there was a safe place to pull off the road. after a few minutes parked there with the car turned off, i tried to start the car again. it started and i was able to drive home. i took the car to a dealer and he could see no reports in the computer and no evident cause for the engine to fail. he said to watch the temperature gauge. however, there is not a constant temperature gauge - it only comes up on the screen when there is a problem (and it did not come up when the engine failed). a week later, again on a longer drive (more than 20 minutes) at highway speeds, the car stalled and i was forced to pull over. the danger of pulling over on a multilane freeway is very scary. over the next 30 minutes, i re-started the car and pulled back into traffic, only to have the gas engine die 5 more times. eventually i was able to get home and take the escape in to a ford dealership. the dealership immediately diagnosed it as a failure of the coolant pump and replaced it for $500. the mileage of my car was about 53,000 miles.
08/13/201153000
 My 2008 ford escape hybrid (53,000 miles) is dangerous to drive. while driving 70 mph on i-5 i hear a popping sound and suddenly all ability to accelerate is lost. a red exclamation point within a triangle appears on the control panel and a sincerely bizarre message displays itself: please pull over safely. this is quite the challenge with 18 wheelers behind me, to the side of me, and other cars all around. with quick reflexes, i am able to get over two lanes and slowly (i think only the electric engine is working, no gas) drive off the next exit. sitting in the car, i am in shock. what just happened? will it happen again? because we are on our way home from oregon to the east bay area in ca, we attempt to get back on the freeway and make our way south. within 40 minutes the same failure happens again, only this time there isn't an exit ramp. we are on the side of an busy two-lane southern traveling freeway. once safely to the side, the car restarts and appears to be functioning properly. now i am afraid to drive it, but want to get home. i decide to go a little under the speed limit (a hazard) and stay in the left lane. after the car fails and tells me to pull over safely now for the 5th time, i decide i can't take it anymore. we call ford's roadside assistance number and wait two hours (yes! two hours!) for a tow truck, only to be called back by an automated dispatch that gives us the name of a different towing service that estimates its arrival time in 2 hours (the first company apparently had to go to a police emergency tow, but i believe they didn't agree on a decent wage for the service). not wanting to wait 2 more hours, i attempt to drive again. within 10 minutes, the car fails and we are lucky enough to glide to an off ramp and into a gas station parking lot. thank goodness we didn't get any further; the next stretch of freeway had no shoulder at all and the next part was a long bridge. car is now at dealer waiting for mon appt.
07/03/201180000
 I was driving my 2008 ford escape hybrid on the high way and it stalled 3 times at high speeds. stop safely now came on dash. i did tons of research and this is a huge problem with the motor over heating. ford had backorders up to nearly 900 coolant pumps last year. this is very scary because you just lose power in the middle of he highway. toyota just recalled theirs, why has ford not been on this. it is all over the internet. i am bringing my car in to the dealership with printed research and a letter of concern. i am blown away that so many people have had this issue with the stalling at high speeds and ford has done nothing. this is very concerning.
03/31/201163000
 Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. while driving approximately 55-70 mph, the engine stalled and there was a beeping chime heard in the vehicle followed by a message displayed on the instrument panel instructing the contact to stop and pull over safely. the vehicle was coasted to the side of the road and the engine was restarted. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the electronic cooling pump was being replaced. the failure mileage was 63,000. the vin was unavailable.
03/22/200852961
 Tl- the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated the auxiliary cooling pump failed. the cooling pump is electric and when it failed it caused the gasoline engine to shut down. the electric motor still runs when this happens, but the gasoline engine stalled. when the failure occurred, there was a message on the dashboard that stated pull over safely. the contact was able to get the vehicle home, but they could only drive 7-8 miles before they would have to pull over again and let it sit. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and had a diagnostic test done and was told that the cooling pump had failed. the contact had the vehicle repaired, but it was not under warranty. the failure mileage 52,961 and current mileage was 53,045. rl
03/31/201163000
 Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. while driving approximately 55-70 mph, the engine stalled and there was a beeping chime heard in the vehicle followed by a message displayed on the instrument panel instructing the contact to stop and pull over safely. the vehicle was coasted to the side of the road and the engine was restarted. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the electronic cooling pump was being replaced. the failure mileage was 63,000. the vin was unavailable.
03/22/200852961
 Tl- the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated the auxiliary cooling pump failed. the cooling pump is electric and when it failed it caused the gasoline engine to shut down. the electric motor still runs when this happens, but the gasoline engine stalled. when the failure occurred, there was a message on the dashboard that stated pull over safely. the contact was able to get the vehicle home, but they could only drive 7-8 miles before they would have to pull over again and let it sit. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and had a diagnostic test done and was told that the cooling pump had failed. the contact had the vehicle repaired, but it was not under warranty. the failure mileage 52,961 and current mileage was 53,045. rl
03/31/201163000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. while driving approximately between 55-70 mph, the engine stalled; the contact heard a beeping noise inside of the vehicle; followed by a message displayed on the instrument panel indicating to stop pull over safely now. the vehicle was coasted to the side of the road. the engine restarted, and the contact was able to resume driving. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and the electronic cooling pump was being replaced. the failure mileage was 63,000. the vin was unavailable. there was a complaint filed on the same model year vehicle with a different vin under odi number 10393922. js
03/22/200852961
 Tl- the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated the auxiliary cooling pump failed. the cooling pump is electric and when it failed it caused the gasoline engine to shut down. the electric motor still runs when this happens, but the gasoline engine stalled. when the failure occurred, there was a message on the dashboard that stated pull over safely. the contact was able to get the vehicle home, but they could only drive 7-8 miles before they would have to pull over again and let it sit. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and had a diagnostic test done and was told that the cooling pump had failed. the contact had the vehicle repaired, but it was not under warranty. the failure mileage 52,961 and current mileage was 53,045. rl
01/31/201128700
 Driving off road up a steep incline (40-45 degrees), the vehicle came to a halt. there wasn't any power going to the tires even though i had the accelerator pedal to the floor. the engine rpm would only rev up to about 1200 rpm. it felt as if there was a disconnect between the transmission and the engine as there was no power being delivered to the tires. the tires did not loose traction or spin either. what was especially unsafe about this is that it was extremely hazardous backing down the steep hill i had tried to ascend. i was trying to back down slowly by using the brake, but many times the brakes would lock up causing the vehicle to shift and slide sometimes sideways which could have caused the vehicle to roll. i tried to again to no avail. this vehicle is used by the us forest service in which many times the vehicle is required to go of road on forest service roads. there is a section in the owner's manual about off road driving, but it makes no mention that the vehicle should not be driven up steep inclines.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM
07/03/201180000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated that while driving at highway speeds the vehicle would suddenly stall. he would notice that the a message would appear that reads, stop safely now. the vehicle was able to be restarted without any porblem. the vehicle was inspected by a dealer and they advised him that the water pump had failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired for the water pump. the failure mileage was approximately 80,000. tb
07/03/201180000
 I was driving my 2008 ford escape hybrid on the high way and it stalled 3 times at high speeds. stop safely now came on dash. i did tons of research and this is a huge problem with the motor over heating. ford had backorders up to nearly 900 coolant pumps last year. this is very scary because you just lose power in the middle of he highway. toyota just recalled theirs, why has ford not been on this. it is all over the internet. i am bringing my car in to the dealership with printed research and a letter of concern. i am blown away that so many people have had this issue with the stalling at high speeds and ford has done nothing. this is very concerning.
07/17/201073000
 Our 2008 ford escape (hybrid) shuts down without warning. the problem has been diagnosed as a failed coolant pump for the electrical system. when we tried to have it repaired, we learned that there were 891 repalcment pumps on back order - these are not orders for new manufacturing, but for replacing failed pumps. these are just the ones on back order and do not include ons already replaced, or those owners that have not taken their escape for diagnostics. our escape has shut down several dozen times and it has almost always been at highway speeds on an interstate. there is no warning, the vehicle shuts down and gives us a message to plese stop safely. the vehicle will re-start once it has been shut off, but that means we have to coast to the shoulder while avoiding other vehicles. we then have to merge back into interstate traffic. ford is aware of the issue, but have told us they have nothing to do with recalling the part as that is up to the federal government!
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE
07/25/201155415
 I was driving my 2008 ford escape hybrid around 70 mph on a toll road when there was a sudden beep and a stop safely now message came up on the screen. the power to the engine cut out and i had to coast to a shoulder several hundred yards ahead of me. the car reduce it's speed; i was able to break but i was unable to accelerate. it sounded like the engine had completely shut off. i was able to re-start the car after being towed off the freeway and was able to keep driving the car as long as i kept me speed under ~60mph. this was a horrible experience and after seeing how well documented the problem is i can't wait to trade in for a different brand. this will be my last ford.
07/03/201180000
 I was driving my 2008 ford escape hybrid on the high way and it stalled 3 times at high speeds. stop safely now came on dash. i did tons of research and this is a huge problem with the motor over heating. ford had backorders up to nearly 900 coolant pumps last year. this is very scary because you just lose power in the middle of he highway. toyota just recalled theirs, why has ford not been on this. it is all over the internet. i am bringing my car in to the dealership with printed research and a letter of concern. i am blown away that so many people have had this issue with the stalling at high speeds and ford has done nothing. this is very concerning.
06/28/201123000
 I own a 2008 escape hybrid. on numerous occasions my escape
03/05/201160000
 Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated the electric water pump was not functioning and causing the vehicle to stall when driving at high speeds above 70 mph. the contact was able to restart the vehicle after several moments and the vehicle was taken to the dealer who will replaced the electric water pump. there were no recalls for the failure. the manufacturer was contacted who took a report but provided no further assistance. the failure mileage was 60,000.
03/05/201160000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape hybrid. the contact stated the electric water pump was not functioning and this causes the vehicle to stall. this happens when you are driving high speed such as 70 mph. the vehicle had to pull to the side of the road wait a few minutes until it cools down before it can be restarted. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who will replace the electric water pump at a cost to her. there are no recalls or warranty for this failure. the manufacturer was contacted who took a claim report and informed her to contact nhtsa to file a report. the failure mileage was 60,000...mw
10/10/201053200
 While driving at highway speeds (~75 mph) my combustion engine shut off and a red warning light was displayed on the dash with a message of please pull over safely. my vehicle has approx 53000 miles on it and is 3.5 years old. luckily i was in the right lane and not in any danger of causing an accident. this is truly a major safety issue. had i been passing another vehicle or had someone tailgating me, it could easily have been a major or even fatal accident. i called ford and they say they have no record of this even though i've seen another oid on this issue that stated they were # 891 in line for a replacement part. please make ford recall any vehicle that have this part installed and replace it with a more reliable part.
08/13/201070000
 I have a 2008 ford escape hybrid. on 3 serperate occasions, my combustable engine has shut off. the display on my dash then tells me to pull over safely. i still do have a small amount of power from the electric engine. after pulling over, i can turn off the car, wait a couple of minutes and restart the engine. it will not last. after milking the gas, trying not to exceed 2,500 rpms, my car might last 1/2 to 4 miles before it does it again. luckily, during the times that this has happened to me, i have been on an interstate that had 3 or less lanes. however, i might not have been as lucky if i was on the 8 lane connector of i 75/85 in atlanta. i called the dealership about my problem and spoke to the assistant service manager at gene evans ford in union city. after describing my problem, he quickly knew what the problem was and mentioned that he has had quiet a few people with this problem. he said that it is a problem with the vehicle's coolant pump. i did some research saw several postings of people that have had the same problem. it really concerns me that there have been multiple cases of this occuring and i have not heard anything from my dealer or ford that this is going on, especially after the toyota scandal.
04/19/201045900
 Stop safely now warning went off and the engine lost power. my wife was forced to pull over to the side of the freeway. after turning the engine off, the car did restart and she was able to drive home safely. took it to the dealer for trouble shooting, but so far it has been almost 6 hours and they still haven't figured out what is wrong. the owners manual claims this is a warning prior to failure of the hybrid system in her ford escape hybrid.

Some parts © 2026 Advameg, Inc.
Based on public records. Inadvertent errors are possible.
This web site is not associated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by and has no official or unofficial affiliation with the vehicle's manufacturer.