2005 ford escape. Consumer writes in regards to vehicle wheel well and shock housing deteriorated. *smd the consumer stated over the past few years, he had to replace many parts associated with the undercarriage. On april 19, 2014, while exiting the highway, a loud bang was heard from the rear of the vehicle and the vehicle shifted to the right. Upon inspection of the vehicle, he noticed the right-rear passenger wheel well and shock housing had deteriorated. The consumer dropped the vehicle off at the local ford dealer. The next day, the dealer informed the consumer, the vehicle should be scrapped. After doing some online research, the consumer discovered it was a common problem with his model.
2005 Ford Escape body complaints
Page 11 of 16: complaints 281 to 310 of 434, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Excessive rust/corrosion in right rear wheel well. Shock absorber affected and pushing through wheel well into interior of car.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. While servicing the vehicle, the dealer noticed that the subframe was corroded. The contact was informed of a recall for his year and model vehicle. The contact's vehicle was manufactured in 2004. The manufacturer was notified. The federal safety agency campaign id number was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 49,478. Updated 08/14/14
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. While driving approximately 55 MPH, the contact heard a loud constant banging sound near the rear of the vehicle. The contact pulled to the side of the road and noticed that the rear frame was completely rusted, which caused the passenger side strut to become detached. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000. Updated 12/01/14
Rear passenger side wheel well rusted out completely. Shock went thru the body into the trunk of my car. Been told by multiple shops they wouldn't do anything because of liability reasons. Ford acts like they've never heard of this problem but if you google the issue 1000's of the same issue will show.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear passenger side wheel well was extremely rusted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000 and the current mileage was 100,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear passenger side wheel well and the quarter panel was completely corroded. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that the wheel well and the quarter panel needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure and current mileage was 48,850.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated the entire front sub frame was severely corroded. The contact was driving 40 MPH, when she suddenly lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a repair facility. The mechanic stated the entire sub frame needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 108,000. Updated 8/11/14
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear passenger shock mount was entirely rusted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 117,564.
The first notice was that the whole base cover was rotting then once that was worn through you were able to see that the frame that connects the shock, tire and wheel well was so corroded its breaking by pieces. To date 5/29/2014 the shock with pipe attached had to be taken off. No answers to recall or being fixed by ford this prices to fix or locate parts are expensive and most of the repair shops say it is going to happen again. I financed this vehicle and was not told of the defect and by reporting a complaint regarding the car dealership I was advised to let the finance company know of the incident because the dealership didn't want to do anything to take the car back now I'm stuck owning for something that is a road hazard that I have to drive because I can not get another vehicle. Ford has always been my car of chose but this is crazy and how come they are not made to take these vehicles and do something about these life of death problems. I sent pictures to ford's website and fb page and still no response as I see their are several others that have the same issues what are we the consumer suppose to do you all say take a mechanic they would not have seen these problems because of the masking. For those that cant afford to keep purchasing waiting or driving these vehicles waiting on the time when its an accident death or crash we have to put in these complaints.
The right rear passenger wheel well is totally defective and unseen corrosion can weaken or destroy the shock absorber tower. Drivers are not aware of any issues until the shock breaks free of the wheel well and jams into the body. This issue occurs because awd suvs have the right rear wheel that always spins in snow and ice, which in turn over sprays the right rear well with corrosive material.
While driving down to the bay on a fishing trip I kept hearing something banging in the back of my 2005 escape. I stopped and found that the right rear fenderwell had rusted an nd the shock mount was loose from the rest of the body which caused it to hit against the inside plastic . This should be repaired by ford as the rest of the vehicle is in excellent condition . I will never buy another ford if they can't recall this major safety hazard.
I recently noticed a thumping noise coming from the rear when traveling down the road, I had my mechanic look into it and they noticed extreme corrosion on the rear passenger side wheel well. My mechanic indicated that he had never seen extreme corrosion of this magnitude on a vehicle of this age. The other 3 wheel wells are in good shape, but the rear passenger side one is rusted out. The shock mount is corroded and is unable to adequately support my shock. They advised that I take it into a collision shop which I did. The collision shop took pictures and quoted me a price on the repairs, I was told that they have recently seen this same issue with the ford escape from there customer base. I also researched and found that ford has issued recalls on the 2001-2004 ford escapes for a rust issue stemming from the front of the vehicle. There is a recent trend of consumer complaints that have spiked over the past year in regards to the same issue in the same spot for 2005 ford escapes.
While driving over rail road tracks a loud thud was heard in the right rear wheel well. The first assumption was the tire blew, but upon inspection the tire was fine. The vehicle was driven for a few more days and the thud would continue to be heard getting worse and worse, especially when hitting bumps. The vehicle was taken to a goodyear auto service center where I was informed that the right rear wheel well was severely rusted and the upper shock mount had separated from the body. The thumping we heard was the chunk of metal and shock mount that was separated from the body but still attached to the top of the shock hitting the rest of the wheel well that was still there. The service tech told me that he was very surprised that this area of the car was rusted so badly and it appeared that it wasn't undercoated properly to prevent the rust. The service tech informed me he couldn't fix it and recommended a welding shop (friess welding). The welding shop was able to cut out the rusted wheel well (they referred to it as a fender well, I don't know if there is a difference in the name), repair the upper shock mount, put on a new shock (the old shock was bent to badly from when it separated from the car), and properly undercoat it. They informed me that this was common on 05 and 06 ford escapes and they had repaired quite a few for the same thing. They also informed me that ford recently had a recall for 01-04 ford escapes for a similar issue only on the front of the car. They thought that ford should do a recall on 05-06 for the back. I don't know if this will help to have a recall done but what the welding shop was telling me seems to be true after doing some research on the internet. I will keep all of my receipts and the pictures that I took and hope a recall is eventually done. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the liftgate opened while the contact reversed from the driveway. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number 04v602000 (latches/locks/linkages). The failure and current mileage was 132,000.
The right rear passenger wheelhouse panel is totally corroded. The 'panel' holding the rear right suspension cracked, nothing holding the suspension. I have seen numerous complaints in the website. This should be treated as a manufacturer's defect as it is the same problem in which the ford windstar was recalled for.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, a loud noise emitted from the rear end of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that the rear passenger's side wheel outer liner well was completely corroded and caused the strut to protrude. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 110,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 MPH, a loud banging noise was heard from the rear passenger side of the vehicle. The contact discovered that the panel that attached the rear passenger side shock absorber was rusted and became separated from the frame of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed the defect as a rusted frame but no repairs were performed. The manufacturer was notified but no solution was offered. The failure mileage was 129,000.
The rear passenger side wheel well on my 2005 ford escape has completely rusted through, freeing the shock mount. Vehicle has just over 100000 miles and is not able to be driven in its current condition.
Rear passenger side wheelhouse rusted out breaking the rear shock mount causing steering issues . This is a known problem with ford for this model year. The wheelhouse is simple sheet metal that rusted out, the shock mount has no reinforcement and is simply attached to a cup in the wheel well. When it gave free the vehicle swerved to the right.
While driving on main road hit some uneven road repairs and started to hear a metal on metal sound. I thought it was the rear passenger door so stopped to check but it was locked. Drove home and noise seemed to get progressively worse. I started to check shocks and tires and saw a crack in the right rear wheel well through the rust proofing.I moved it away from the fender and saw a hole into the side of my car by the top of the shock. I took it to a body shop and was told this is an issue with ford escape and the repair is expensive. I will be contacting a dealer for help and parts if they are available.
I was driving my vehicle down a rural road at about 35 MPH and hit a pot hole in the road. Upon inspection after the incident, my husband noticed the rear strut mount for the shock on the passenger side had become detached. There was some rust present in that wheel well around the strut housing. The supporting metal cracked the entire way around the strut housing, detaching it from the rest of the vehicle. The opposite wheel well and strut mount are in perfect condition with the factory undercoating still in tact. There is no undercoating present on the passenger side in the same area. We were told by a mechanic and auto body specialist that the car is unsafe to drive and is only cosmetically repairable, not structurally repairable.
My car went to shop for exhaust repair when the front y pipe was removed my mechanic saw a large hole rusted through the frame(front engine cradle).frame was repaired by welding it. The rest of car frame appeared ok. Car only has 80k miles and is well maintained. This shouldn't have happened. Not there has been a recall on 2004 and earlier ford escapes for the same problem I feel the 2005 should be included in this recall as its obvious to me they have the same problems.
I happened to notice rust through while checking my tires. It is located at the right (passenger side) rear wheelhouse panel where the strut assembly attaches to the body of the vehicle. The rust has disintegrated in the area leaving a barely attached wheel assembly with massive cracking and holes in the metal. It is the only area on the vehicle with rust. I was told it cannot be repaired and that I have less than 6 months of driving before it will break completely, thus disabling my vehicle or causing it to crash while being driven. I am afraid to drive it further, especially with my 3 year old son in the vehicle. I am disturbed with the amount of people who own this wonderful SUV from a fine company like ford and the only thing stopping them from driving it is a single panel with such a severe defect. I am fully prepared to join or lead a class action lawsuit against ford for this problem.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear passenger side shock absorber became detached. Upon inspection, it was found that the frame was perforated due to rust. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was not available.
Rear passenger side inner wheel liner completely rusted out. Upper end of shock no longer attached to body of vehicle.
Cpsc: i1440372a. 2005 ford escape. Consumer stated the passenger rear wheel well rotting out caused the shock mounts to disintegrate. *ln the consumer stated the price estimates to correct the defect ranged from $2000-7000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that she entered the vehicle and noticed a puddle of water on the floorboard. The contact examined the vehicle and noticed that the rear passenger side wheel well was corroded. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for inspection. The manufacturer was contacted regarding the failure. The approximate failure millage was 84,000.
The rear wheelhouse side panel and the strut assembly at the passenger side rusted totally and broke. It needs to be replaced and it seems that the wheelhouse was on back order until recently it became available again. The vehicle has mostly been used in the great lakes area where snow is heavy and salt could have worsened the problem, but so many cases of rusted wheelhouse at the same place indicate that this could be a design flaw.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that upon inspection, it was found that the passenger's side rear shock mount became detached from the vehicle due to rust. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure was confirmed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage and VIN was not available.
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