Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford escape xlt. The contact stated that as the accelerator was released, the vehicle maintained speed and did not slow down and the rpms maintained an abnormally high reading. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer, but the manufacturer was contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 79,000 and the current mileage was 80,000. Updated 11/23/11
2002 Ford Escape acceleration complaints
Page 3 of 4: complaints 41 to 70 of 100, newest first, as owners wrote them.
On rt. 59, just south of northwest hwy (rt. 14) in barrington, my 2002 ford escape xlt was involved in a bizarre incident or accident. While sitting static on level road in a line of traffic with a train-crossing barrier arm keeping traffic safely waiting for the train to pass, my vehicle lurched forward in an unintended acceleration while my foot was firmly pressing on the brake pedal. The engine raced at >= 4000 RPM. With continued braking action on my part with no vehicle response, the passenger-side front end of my vehicle hit the 1988 ford f150 truck immediately in front of me. As a side note, I had the 2005 ford recall work performed on the defective accelerator cable, with the cable replacement at packey webb ford dealership service center in wheaton, illinois. There is a safety-hazard risk associated with the vehicle, and I refuse to drive this vehicle even if the approximately $4000.00 damages are repaired, which I have not authorized. I am an experience computer it software/hardware professional, as well as an engineering design controls expert in the health care industry, working for a major product manufacturer (software and hardware). There is a definite safety risk associated with this vehicle make/model, and I want to report this incident to the proper agency. The insurance company, ford dealership, and the authorized service center have done nothing to identify the root cause for the vehicle malfunction on design defect; they only treat this as a loss and did not perform initial computer diagnostics prior to compromising the vehicle in their actions to appraise damages to the vehicle. I need this incident properly investigated and reported to the public if a safety risk is confirmed.
My 2002 ford escape was bought new in march of 2002. The problem with it accelerating at low speeds started about 6-7 months later. Returned to the dealership many times to have it checked but was told every time there was nothing wrong. I've had one accident as a result of this problem. I still own the same escape and still have the problem with it . I was told that there were no complaints of this nature with these models but have since learned that there have been many. I also as have many people had the problem with the air-bag light on .again many trips to the dealer and was told nothing was wrong about $300 later for labor costs. Finally on one more attempt to find out what was wrong I returned to the dealer again and was told that a sensor in the seat-belt was the problem and it would cost approximately $300-$400 to repair it and that the air bags may or may not be working because of this sensor. I have personally lost all faith in ford canada and their products and some of the employees at the dealerships I've dealt with. I am in the process I buying a new car but it's not a ford. Never again will I buy a ford
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 ford escape. The contact stated that when starting the vehicle, it would stall without warning. He was able to restart the vehicle and drive in reverse at speeds as low as 5 MPH; yet, the vehicle would accelerate while driving in reverse. When the contact previously experienced the failure he was able to stop the vehicle by depressing the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to a local repair facility where it was diagnosed with defective idle control valves. The mechanic replaced the idle control valves and jumper harness and reprogrammed the central computer. The failure did not persist after the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was unknown and the current mileage was 104,946.
The accelerator on my 2002 ford escape v6 stuck and would not release. Upon trying to manually "pull" the accelerator free, the vehicle continued to accelerate faster. Speeds reached 70 MPH and the brakes would not slow the vehicle. I shifted the vehicle into neutral, and slowly applied the parking brake to slow the vehicle. The engine kept racing at 6000 RPM's. Upon finding a safe place to pull off the side of the road, I turned off the ignition and drifted to the side road. I had the vehicle towed to the local ford dealership. They are not admitting to any problems/issues. I called ford motor co. As well to no avail, even though there are numerous reports of this occurring on the internet. I am convinced that if my wife was driving with the children, she would have crashed the vehicle.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford escape. While driving at 55 MPH, the vehicle independently accelerated. The contact moved switched to neutral gear and moved the vehicle off the roadway. He was able to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where the contact was awaiting a diagnosis of the failure. The failure and current mileages were 64,111. Updated 07/29/10 *bf the consumer stated the cruise control cable became stuck. The consumer has since traded the vehicle. Updated 09/07/10
2002 ford escape was recalled for several reasons. Something with the power train, the cruise control, the ABS system..... Finally it caught on fire. The engine was melted. Fire and police department got there. Contacted ford and they just said we will record your call on your profile. Don't understand how lives and property have been lost and ford doesn't do anything about it.
While driving on a highway at normal speed with small kids in their carseats the accelerator pedal went limp and the engine revved up to full acceleration. After moments of terror and temporary loss of control, the car was brought to the side of the road and shut down by fighting the engine power with the foot brakes and hand emergency brake. It's a miracle there was no crash. At my expense the ford dealership replaced the cruise control cable and/or cruise control cable housing. The service manager said, "looking at the part, I can see why it goes to full acceleration when that part fails" to me, that is a major safety concern and design failure. I noticed other similar incidents (oid id # 10199728 and 10128545). I lodged a complaint with the ford motor company and, not surprisingly, was told there's nothing they can or will do to compensate me. Now I'm trapped owning an unsafe car. Please investigate and remedy this problem before someone gets hurt.
Tl*the contact owned a 2002 ford escape which was purchased in october 2001. The vehicle was parked in the driveway and he smelled something burning from inside the house. He later heard a loud explosion from outside and upon further investigation he saw flames coming from under the hood on the driver's side of the vehicle. He was successful and extinguishing some of the fire. The police and fire department were called and had to use excessive force to open the hood and extinguished the remainder of the fire. The sheriff stated the fire originated from the master cylinder. The failure and current mileages were less than 100,000. Updated 1/5/09 *cn the consumer stated the vehicle was a total loss. Updated 01/09/09.
I was driving home from work when I noticed the gas pedal remained stuck to the floor. When I had the dealer check it, they noticed that the accelerator cable was severely frayed and that if I kept driving in that condition, it would be very dangerous.
The vehicle in question a 2002 ford escape xl, threw a rod at about 47,000 miles due to a problem that became a recall concern ( ford recall id# 42319 december 7, 2004), I was sent a recall notice 2 months after the replacement by a used ( 43,000 miles), engine which my extended warranty company chose over a remanufactured engine that I wanted. It also threw a rod after the accelerator stuck, ( the recall item) 40,000 miles later. Because the warranty had expired, no repairs were covered and I ended up paying repairs, rental cost and losing wages because I couldn't get to my next assignment.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 ford escape. The contact's vehicle caught fire while parked in mexico. The contact was in the united states at the time of the fire and he received a recall notice regarding the cruise control. When he returned to mexico, he notified a ford dealer and they were unaware of the failure. The contact was about to pay to have the vehicle repaired, but the vehicle caught fire before any repairs could be made. The recall number was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 72,300. Updated 05/19/08 *bf the recall was regarding the ABS module. Before the consumer could get the vehicle fixed, it caught ton fire. The consumer stated the ABS light was on before he purchased the vehicle. Updated 05/19/08
I went out to crank my vehicle and it ran wide open. I turned it off and tried it twice more with the same results. The security officer at my workplace came over and raised the hood to see what was going on. Twice more I cranked it with the same results. Then he found the problem my speed control cable was no longer connected. He got it back on and advised me to go to my dealer. The following day they had me bring it in, they informed me that my particular vehicle was not on the recall list. They were going to order the part, and when I asked the chances of it happening again, they replaced the regular speed cable and disconnected the cruise control one until they could get one in, just in case. I didn't get to see any list, I just know there was a recall on my type of vehicle for this. Am I to just take their word for it? I thank the lord that I was sitting in a parking lot when it happened and not out on the road where it could have been a very bad situation. Also when they said I was ready they asked how long my ABS light had been blinking--I told them it was blinking the day I test drove and the salesman was going to ask about it when we got back to the dealer. I never got an answer. If either of these are faulty and were never reported I'd like to know. Other people may experiencing the same thing. And if these cables have been replaced before and it's happened again, people need to know. I thank you for your help.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 ford escape. While driving 60 MPH, the accelerator pedal went down to the floor and would not release. The contact was able to place the vehicle into second gear. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and they stated that the cruise control cable failed and jammed the throttle cover. The transmission became damaged when the contact shifted into reverse gear. The manufacturer may not be able to assist. On november 25, 2007, the vehicle was taken to the dealer due to reverse. The dealer cleaned the throttle body, flushed the injectors, and cleaned the upper intake gasket and spark plugs. The fuel filters, coil boots, and ignitions wires were replaced. The current and failure mileages were 62,000. The consumer stated the battery light comes on while driving, replace fuel filter, and A/C is not blowing cold. Updated 03/31/08
Accelerator stuck on 2002 ford escape. At 80mph I finally turned off ignition to stop. Throttle cable broke. There was a recall for this in 2002 but not for my particular car. Ford customer service and ford recall center refused to pay for repairs at dealer. I was lucky to survive this incident. Who knows how many other 2002 ford escapes also have this problem??
(1) driving to work on route 18 south (2) lost use of accelerator pedal (3) cable broken to pedal that was replaced at ford dealer in shrewsbury/red bank nj.
Unintended acceleration - 2002 ford escape xlt: driving on interstate accelerated for a hill and car continued to accelerate after foot removed from pedal. Car continued to accelerate and gain speed up hill, hill peaked and speed exceeded 80 miles per hour. Further acceleration down hill - transmission placed in neutral, and able to be stopped on side of freeway. Engine continued to rev; turned off, and then revved when turned back on. Cruise control was not being used at any time. Dealer inspected and found and replaced defective cruise control cable.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 ford escape. While driving 80 MPH, the contact applied the brakes, but the vehicle failed to decelerate or stop. The contact drove into a ditch, which stopped the vehicle. The contact turned off the vehicle. Once it was restarted, the RPM's raced to 5 and the tires began smoking. The failure occurred three additional times. The manufacturer stated that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency recall # 04v574000 (vehicle speed control:cables). The current and failure mileages were 112,000. The consumer provided the repair invoice. Updated 09/05/07
Our 2002 ford escape caught on fire while parked in the garage. It appears that the fire originated in or around the ABS module. Thankfully there were no initial serious injuries, though we incurred smoke damage and the inconvenience of a non functioning vehicle.
On march 13th 2007 my car was parked in the driveway and smoke was coming out of the bottom of the escape and the hood. It smelled like an electrical fire- I investigated where the smell was and it all looked fine- I turned on the escape and then the brake lights and ABS light came on along with the engine check light. I looked up on the internet and saw that several complaints on the brake system catching on fire.
Tl*- the contact stated that the 2002 ford escape xlt had acceleration problems when trying to come to a complete stop. The throttle kicked off and the rpms went up to 4 she then would have to wait until the rpms went back to normal. When this happened it was very difficult to get the vehicle to stop completely. The contact has had 2 failures with the vehicle. When she put the vehicle in neutral the engine sounded like it was revving at a much higher rate. The contact stated that this was a leased vehicle that she will be returning in 2 months. The vehicle was at a dealership now for a diagnostic testing on what could be causing this problem. She contacted the manufacturer and was given a case # 1331070467. The current mileage was 64000.*ak updated 03/07/07.
This is to report another suspected 2002 ford escape ABS control module fire. The vehicle fire occurred jan. 9, 2007 at client's home. The vehicle is a 2002 ford escape xlt, and is currently stored at insurance auto auctions (iaa), 1710 starita road, charlotte, nc 28206-1286, phone: 704‑596‑5854, fax: 704‑596‑7492, stock number: 2799576. The house and car are insured by state farm, which has retained me as its subrogation counsel. The fire occurred while the car was parked in the garage in the "key off" position. Larry helton for ford has already examined the vehicle and the scene on january 17, 2007. No one was injured, but the property damages could exceed $50,000.00.
2002 escape engine accelerates while driving. *ts consumer was informed of a recall notice (04v574000) and repairs were made. The problem resurfaced again in march 2006. The accelerator cable which was replaced in feb 2005 was only under warranty for 1 year/12000 miles. The customer service rep advised the consumer that she would be responsible for the cost of repair. The seat belts locked up when in use.
At first start up of morning, while driving the idle kicks up to 2000 RPM's. When I stop the car and put it in neutral, that's where I notice the tach revving to 2000. After driving for 3 to 5 miles, it finally goes to normal. If I shut off car, and restart it, its fine. I had the car to the dealer several times to no avail, the put a recorder device in the car and when I noticed the problem, I was to push the button. They sent the box to ford, who in turn said it was supposed to do that. I am at a standstill right now, with no fix in site. The vehicle is harder to stop in the mornings due to the increased idle. This started right before the 3 year bumper to bumper warranty expired. It is continuing to happen to date. Thank you.
2002 ford escape accelerates while driving. Consumer was informed of a recall notice (04v574000) and repairs were made. Problem resurfaced again in march 2006.*kb the accelerator cable which was replaced feb 2005 was only under warranty for 1 year/12000 miles. The customer service rep advised the consumer that she would be responsible for the cost of repair. The seat belts locked up when in use. *nm updated 09/11/06.
1) on saturday 18 at approximately 2:00 pm, my wife, linda, was driving approximately 50 miles west of broadus, mt when she passed another vehicle. 2) after passing the vehicle, her vehicle speed would not return to normal driving speed. Instead, it stuck at nearly 80 MPH. Numerous attempts to release the speed, even applying maximum braking pressure, had no effect. Linda turned off the ignition and coasted to a stop at the side of the road after negotiating a curve that could easily have caused a roll-over. Linda tried restarting the motor, but it was still racing, and the tachometer reached 5000 rpms. 3) fortunately, another motorist who was familiar with automobiles, stopped to give assistance. He disconnected the cruise control. This allowed the motor to return to normal speed, and linda was able to continue and complete her trip home. The assisting motorist did indicate that the cable to the cruise control seemed to be loose. Upon checking various web-sites,including the federal safety agency site, I found that a recall had been issued in 2004 for this very problem (the federal safety agency campaign id number : 04v574000). I called the ford motor company recall information site (1‑866‑436‑7332) but was told that because of where my escape was manufactured, it did not qualify for free repair. As of now my vehicles cruise remains disabled. I think this is a design flaw not a manufacturing problem based on place of manufacture. Therefore, I believe ford should cover the cost of repair.
When starting off, or accelerating the gas pedal has a hesitant/sticking sensation. It requires more than normal pressure to depress it, and causes an unexpected increase in the engine speed. There is a current recall from the v-6 3.0 engines, but not for my 4-cyl.
If you could please forward me any other resources where I can seek a resolution I would greatly appreciate it. On 7-14-05 our ford escape v6 xlt (VIN: [xxx]) was taken to galpin ford (van nuys, ca) for repairs. The problem was that while stopped the vehicle suddenly accelerated, resulting in the accelerator being stuck and the vehicle moving forward. The vehicle had to be put in park in order to avoid a collision. The vehicle was then taken in on 7-14-05 where tech's diagnosed the problem w/ an "stp sensor malfunction", resulting in the sensor being replaced. According to [xxx] (svc. Advisor) he related that this may be a problem on newer ford escapes, but not on our specific vehicle. He said to contact ford corporate to seek reimbursement. On 7-17-05 I contacted corporate explaining them of the problem. Although, they admitted it was a safety issue, they stated there was no recall for our specific model and year. They said at this time they could not assist with the matter. As stated before I am seeking assistance in this matter due to ford's poor history for automotive safety. *jb information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Defective cruise control cable will lock throttle in full open position when the gas pedal is fully depressed. Polymer sleeve on cruise actuator cable has broken at the throttle connector. This allows the connector to rotate to a vertical position and catch on the engine cover when the foot pedal is pressed to the floor.
7/5/2005. I was in baltimore, md in my 2002 ford escape. Trafic was moderately heavy. I started to change lanes and noticed a car in the lane so I pulled back into my lane at which point, the throttle on my vehicle stuck open. The engine was racing and attempts to brake were useless. I threw the moving vehicle into park where it continued to move. I then tried to shift to neutral in hoipes of regaining braking, but I hit reverse first, at which point my car rapidly reversed into another vehicle. Damage to the vehicles was limited as I hit a 3500 chevy silverado truck, however, it was one of the most unnerving experiences I have ever had. The police were called as the other vehicle belongs to the city of baltimore department of public works. No traffic report was written by the police officer, however, the baltimore city employee (darell powers) did fill out an accident report for the city. My vehicle was towed to carmax in white marsh md, where they told me the cause was the cruise control cable had frayed, causing it to butterfly and hold open the throttle. The escape has 53,002 miles on it, and cruise control is rarely used. I do have the replaced part and the bill I paid for $291. One other note, ihad to have the engine replaced on this same car 45 days after I purchased it last july. Carmax paid for the replacement cost, close to $4,000 and the mechanic who serviced it this time insists this is not related.
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