Right rear inner fender well rusted completely though allowing the shock mount to tear away from the vehicle.
2005 Ford Escape body complaints
Page 12 of 16: complaints 311 to 340 of 434, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Rear wheel house/ strut mount totally rusted off. I work at a dealership and I have noticed a lot of escapes with the same issue. We see approx 5 of these a year over the past 3 years. That isn't counting the ones we can't visually inspect die to the thick tar ford sprayed on the wheel well to deaden sound and prevent corrosion.
Front end k sub-frame rusted through. This vehicle is too new and is not included in the current recall, but already has a hole rusted through the sub-frame. This is a structural issue and could cause the lower control arms to separate leading to loss of control. The vehicle will not pass state inspection...updated 06/25/14 *bf updated 07/1/2014
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated the passenger rear wheel well was completely corroded. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for a diagnostic. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was unknown.
Noise coming from right rear, repair shop looks behind tire and finds rear panel where shock is attached almost completely rusted out. Cost to repair is 2500 - 3500 dollars. Ford won't cover any of cost. Car is not even 9 years old,unbelievable! This is a danger, waiting to kill someone when the whole thing falls off. Cars should not rust this bad, especially in only one specific area. Now deciding to get rid of my 2012 escape before I have issues with it.
The right rear wheel well is severely rusted and shock is no longer attached. You can see the interior of vehicle from rear fender well. Frame is also beginning to crack in this area too. At this point the vehicle is not safe to drive. This seems to be a problem for many others with this same make and year. What does it take for ford to realize this is a defect. Someone is going to get hurt or even a loss of life if nothing is done. Now I have a vehicle that was driven daily sitting in my driveway because it is unsafe to drive.
We were driving the car and noticed a banging noise in the right rear wheel. We took it to an auto body shop and they discovered that the metal in the wheel well is rotting away. The shock mount came loose and upon further review the entire wheel well is bad. The shop tells me they've seen many similar issues in the 04-06 escapes. Ours is in bad shape and not worth the $5000 it would take to repair. There is very little surface rust anywhere else on the vehicle and the other wheel wells are in good shape. In looking around I've seen many similar complaints regarding the same issue with the right rear wheel well. Why hasn't there been a recall. It's criminal that these vehicles all have the same issue and instead of stepping up and doing the right thing, ford ignores it and all of us owner's are out a lot of money through no fault of our own.
I have a 2005 ford escape with about 100,000 miles. I started hearing a loud "clunking" noise in the rear passenger side. I found out that the entire rear wheel well is rotted completely out and I think the shocks are exposed. I don't know a lot about cars but I know this isn't right. I looked on the internet and found numerous complaints about the exact same thing. I see that ford had a recall for the same thing for vehicles from 2001-2004. 2005 should have been included with that recall. Please note the number of complaints and please request a recall.
My 2005 escape is now junk, according to 2 different mechanics and one body shop. When I hit a bump there would be a loud noise from the right rear of the vehicle.the right rear inner fender has rusted through beyond repair. The shock tower is adjacent to this. I was told not to drive it because it is unsafe. The left rear is showing signs of the same problem. I believe this is made from inferior metal and/or a serious design flaw. I have complained to ford. I have heard that this is a widespread problem. I heard that mazda made the escape for ford. The mazda tribute has the same problem.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the sub frame was rusted and detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a new sub frame was needed to repair the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000.
My right rear fender has rotted out and my vehicle is undriveable. I contacted a dealer and he informed me the right inner fender is not available and on back order by ford with no eta. I have been waiting now 7 weeks and have to get rides to work. In this state my vehicle will not pass inspection and I have no transportation. I can't even sell it with the issue it has. It is parked in my garage. Please assist me in contacting ford to resolve the problem. I have read several online complaints about ford escape drivers having this issue. There should be a recall!!!!
The vehicle is a 2005 ford escape. While driving the vehicle a loud clunking sound was heard coming from the rear passenger side. A rattling noise could then be heard with every slight bump in the road. Vehicle was taken to a garage where they found that the whole right rear passenger side wheel well was completely rusted through exposing the shocks and struts, the carpeting can also be seen through the hole, and water in the taillight compartment because of a hole there also - thus leaving the vehicle unsafe and undrivable. Took vehicle to an auto body shop and the estimate to fix the car was $3200.00. Called ford motors who informed me that there is a recall for this exact same problem, but only for 2001-2004 models. Apparently from all of the complaints that can be found on the internet in regards to the 2005 models with the exact same problem, the 2005 models should be included in the recall. I will definitely not be buying another ford motors vehicle anytime soon!
My 2005 escape passenger side rear wheel well is rusted to the point of disintegration and the shock is close to collapsing which will allow the wheel to collapse into the rear wheel well. If that happens on the interstate I feel sure it will cause a terrible accident. I am the only owner of this vehicle, it has never been in an accident, it has less than 90,000 miles and is garage kept.I looked on the internet and saw hundreds if not thousands of 05 escapes with the same problem. My local dealer has seen multiple instances of this exact same problem. Both the local ford body shop and independent body shops agree that this a manufacturing defect. The local dealership says they cannot address this problem as ford refuses to address the issue. I guess it will take someone getting killed before ford motor company admits the defect.
My wife had been complaining about a loud slapping coming from the right rear of the vehicle. I took it for a drive. I discovered that the passenger side rear wheel well is completely rusted out and the shock absorber was just bouncing loose creating a horrible noise and also noticed shock breaking thru the interior of the vehicle. Noticed on line that others have similar or exact problem. Years 2001 thru 2004 just recalled. What about 2005's. There's nothing else wrong with the vehicle and only 82,000 miles. Very disappointed and puts my family at risk and in a bind for a safe vehicle to drive.
Driving along over minor bump in road when loud bang occurred on right rear side of vehicle. Looked and found right rear wheel well rusted out completely near shock tower. Noise is so loud sounds like it is coming into the interior of vehicle. Took to collision shop and they told me to fix it will be approximately $1000 to start but may be higher when actually investigated. Parts at ford are on back order so collision shop can't do work until available which they say requires welding. Not sure when or if parts are coming in to fix. There seems to be excessive rusting on the vehicle which should not have occurred. This vehicle was purchased new and taken care of. It was undercoated as well. Had another make/model that a friend has and it is 19 years old with better rust protection that this car. Not sure how much longer it will take for this to occur on left rear as it is showing rust signs too but not as extensive as the right. I use this vehicle to tow a camper in summer and not so sure this will be safe to do so even if fixed. I did not take car in to ford's service department and would be waiting for parts there too! I don't feel safe driving this vehicle and wonder if fixed if it will be safe to drive. I had planned on driving this car till the motor stopped...looks like the frame is going to rust out before that.
Right rear shock mount came apart and damaged wheel well. Upon further inspection dealer said entire assembly had rusted apart from the inside out with no visible corrosion from the outside of vehicle. Ford motor company was contacted and offered no recourse or repair.
Severe rust...had to have the undercarriage completely modified. Shortly after that the brake lines rusted out and had to have them replaced. Now I have an issue with brakes again (2 months later). I saw the recall up to 2004 for rust issues but my car is severely rusted and a 2005.
The right rear shock tower rusted through the wheel well into the rear compartment breaking a hole through the interior compartment. There is currently no parts in stock to repair this as we are told they are on nationwide backorder and this is a huge safety issue. The other rear shock area has a significant amount of rust also. Approximately 1 week later both break lines broke from severe corrosion while moving at approximately 10 MPH (pulling in my driveway). I was fortunate this happened there and not on the highway as I could have been in a very serious accident along with my 3 year old son. These two things should not be happening with the age of this vehicle. The body should be holding up better than this. I just saw there was a recall for model years 2001-2004 for severe rust issues one resulting in a crash. The manufacturing date of my vehicle is 09/2004.
While performing brake and wheel inspection for noise we see severe sub-frame rust issue on our 2005 ford escape xlt. Please advise.
While driving at 35 MPH on uneven pavement, I noticed banging in the right rear area of the vehicle. All doors and hatch were secure and the jack wasnt loose. After a day or two of searching I took the escape to a local auto repair shop I trust. They found the whole inner quarter wheel house snapped off the rail. The banging was the shock hitting inside the passenger cabin. He immediately took my keys and said the car is undrivable. Online if you google this same issue it is a common problem with the 2005 escape model rusting please ford do the right thing and recall and repair my 2005 ford escape.
I noticed the smell of exhaust fumes in the vehicle and a few weeks later heard load banging noise coming from rear cargo area. I look and saw the rear wheel well was rusted threw into the cargo area and the rear shock mounts were rusted off.
2005 ford escape. Consumer writes in regards to severe rust on passenger side wheel well. *smd the consumer also stated the top of the shock absorber mount was also rusted.
Right rear wheel house is rusted so bad the shock is about to come loose and cause loss of control or could rub the tire and cause it to rupture. I have been advised by a mechanic that it is unsafe to drive.
The right rear body panel in the wheel well completely rusted through causing the top of the shock to detach from the body and almost penetrate into the inside of the passenger cabin.
Original owner of a garage kept, 2005 ford escape with 105k miles. I noticed a loud banging sound coming from the right rear wheel well which was very loud inside the car. I had the service tech replacing the tires on my other ford vehicle take a look and he said the wheel well was rusting away and the shock mount was falling away from the frame of the car. This is a serious and dangerous hazard which needs to be fixed asap. Every service tech I show says they've never seen anything like it. The undercoating was sprayed directly on to the vehicle and no other method of protection in the wheel well was used by ford on this make/model. My vehicle was top of the line, loaded, when purchased. I'm concerned for the safety of my family and myself. Ford needs to address this problem asap and take responsibility for the poor design.
Took my 2005 ford escape to multiple body shops to acquire quotes due to body rusting at both the right and left rear wheel wells. All body shops stated this is a common problem on ford escapes, and that it wasn't worth fixing due to cost. They stated it was a safety issue/concern, and I should rid myself of the vehicle as soon as financially possible. I searched this and found 100s of vehicles with the same problem and concern. I have two vehicles much older than this, and have no rust issues.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, a sudden bang was heard from the rear end of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the rear wheel housing panel was perforated due to rust and needed to be replaced. The manufacture was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 86,000.
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 failure recurred intermittently and became worse. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who noticed that the passenger's side rear fender well rusted. The vehicle was not repaired. The mechanic recommended that the vehicle not be driven due to a potential safety hazard. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 122,000. Updated 05/28/14*lj updated 06/02/2014
While driving begin to experience a loud rattling sound, from the rear passenger side. Became very loud with the movement of the vehicle. Sounded as if small pieces had fallen off the back tire. As soon as I got home I looked and there was a large rusted out tear in the wheel well, located right above the mount for the shock absorber. I did contact my service advisor at village ford in dearborn michigan. I took the vehicle up to be checked, he sent me over to their body shop.. I was told this was definitely a "safety issue" and he had seen this before on other ford escapes. This is a flaw in the body.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear passenger's side of the frame was completely rusted. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, who advised the contact that the frame would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,124. Uupdated 05/06/14 ma updated 05/09/2014
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