My car has about 140 000 miles on it. I put a lot of money into it to keep it running smoothly. I just found out that rear right shock completely rusted away from vehicles body and it will cost thousands of dollars to fix. I would never expect ford vehicle to fall apart like this. Now my car is junk worth 200 dollars to tow away. I am very dissapointed.I will never buy ford and I am telling everybody what hapenned. Car started making loud banging noise in rear right wheel well upon which I took it to my mechanic right away.he tells me car is not worth fixing.
2005 Ford Escape suspension complaints
Page 2 of 16: complaints 11 to 40 of 459, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Rust and corrosion on the wheel well caused the shock mount to come apart. Now it is loose and very dangerous. Ford must be held responsible for terrible design.
Was driving less than 15mph when suddenly I lost all control of steering on the front passenger side. When I was able to get help after sitting on the side of the road for 16 hours, I was informed that one of the three wheel bearings had snapped. I did a little research and found the recall for the passenger side wheel assembly and bearings. I entered my VIN number and it didn't say whether or not it would be fixed. I take pride in my vehicles and keep the maintenance up to date, therefore I can say they this happened due to faulty parts and feel like I should be able to have it fixed.
Passenger side frame fender well gas tank strap shock mount have all rusted out . The shock mount has almost come inside the car insulation is hanging out and the wire harness is starting to hang out not normal for a car with only 114023 miles
The passenger side subframe rusted out and corroded causing the subframe to break, resulting in a very unsafe and hazardous vehicle.
I purchased a 2005 ford escape and after purchasing it and having it registered on my way home I got to some roadway with a lot of pot holes and when I hit one I heard this god awful noise coming from the right rear only to discover that the rear shock tower was completely rusted out and the shock just swaying around unattached at the top. After getting home and researching it I find out that this is a common issue with the escape.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the brake pedal traveled to the floorboard when attempting to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the rear passenger side shock tower housing was fractured and punctured through the subframe. During the failure, the brake line and rear brake light wire were severed, which caused brake fluid to leak and the rear brake light to malfunction. The cause of the failure was not determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The local dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 140,000.
As I was driving there was a really loud clunking on the rear. I figured it was potentially a broken shock. In the passenger rear wheel well where the shock bolts to the frame was copletely rusted out. When I was hitting bumps it wasnt even attached to the frame. There was no way of repair. I am so greatful I was safe. And didnt get into an accident. One wrong bump. And the whole shock wouldve went through the trunk and could have caused a very serious accident.
The back passenger side wheel well has completely rotted away, so the body of the car is slammed against the suspension bars, obviously causing damage as well as an unbearable crashing bang any and every time you hit a bump. I am unsure if my wheel is going to come off or how long before my frame will be bent. I have seen similar complaint about the same make model and year and it is always the back wheel well.
While driving her 2005 ford ecape after coming to an abrupt stop at a traffic light. My daughter found steering extremely difficult, with vehicle pulling extremely to the right then swerving into the other lane to the left upon trying to correct for the pull. She pulled the car over and found that with the steering wheel straight ahead the right front wheel was pointing outward toward the curb with the top of the wheel tilted inward towards the engine. The vehicle was undrivable and was towed home. Visual inspection by an experienced mechanic found that extreme corrosion of the subframe at the lower control arm front mounting point had caused the subframe to seperate and allow the lower control arm to bend outwards and cause extreme misalignment.
Crack sub frame on right front! Extreme deterioration almost causing accident and became unsafe to drive! Recalls on 2001-2004 for same problem why not 2005? Extremely dangerous malfunction! Definitely go import if this is what fords quality and support has become!
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the rear wheel well was completely rusted and the shock mount had separated from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the shock mount failure. The mechanic stated that the vehicle was unsafe to drive and could not be repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 115,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. While the contact's daughter was driving at an unknown speed, she heard a strange sound and the vehicle began to swerve. The driver pulled the vehicle over to check for a flat tire, but the tires were fine. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home and then to an independent mechanic. It was diagnosed that the shock absorber mounts on the rear passenger side of the vehicle were damaged. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 189,319.
07/13/2019. I own a 2005 ford escape , manufacturing date 04/04 . Today I was driving home I noticed a very loud whistling noise , difficulty steering and especially when attempting to turn. Luckily made it to my driveway and my husband looked at the vehicle and said both front tires were leaning inward so he looked underneath to find my subframe is all but rusted into on the passenger side. I know this was a problem for escapes 2001-2004 obviously ford did not get this situation fixed for their 2005 models. Ford I want my SUV fixed!!. You knew there was a problem with previous years now do the responsible thing and fix it.
Driving to a stop light, I applied the brake and my front k-frame failed on the passenger side, at the lower a-frame.
Rusted rear shock mount, bad suspension causing unsafe driving.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that the subframe fractured while turning the vehicle into a parking lot. The vehicle immediately stopped and one of the tires became detached. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home. Mike castrucci ford lincoln of alexandria (7400 alexandria pike, alexandria, ky 41001, (859) 448-9400) and the manufacturer were contacted and stated that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 163,000.
Takata recall the 01 thru 04 were recalled for same problem the front subframe rusted in to causing the right front wheel to wonder all over if drove any more would have cause a serious wreck I was driving vehicle when I noticed that it felt like the front wheel was coming off luckily I was only a couple miles from home the day before I took my grandson to charleston wv to meet his mom if it would have broken on I 77 at 70 plus miles an hr could have been tragic it being the same issue with early models and ford sent a bar to try n fix it a joke just learn this on internet
Began hearing terrible noise from rear passenger wheel well. Investigation revealed the entire wheel well and frame were rusted out. After replacing the wheel well and shock mount tower, still experiencing problems due to frame being rusted out. No longer able to drive the vehicle for safety reasons and it is headed to the scrap yard.
I was checking to see if my ford possibly had a recall with the issue I am having and it appears that there are many complaints of the same issue I am having. My rear passenger wheel well also has rusted out causing the shock to come loose and it is no longer attached and while driving is moving around in what sounds like my trunk. I honestly cannot believe that with all these same issues I am reading this is not a recall this is a safety issue.
The escape started making a squeaking noise for about 3 days while driving it on city streets and on the highway and then it started making a loud clunking noise and was banging like something broke loose. We thought the shocks broke. Upon closer inspection we noticed that the frame at the right rear wheel well had completely rusted out and the shock had came off because there was nothing for it to attach to. We have the car parked because it is too dangerous to drive. It only has approximately 80,000 miles. Our daughter had just purchased it in may 2017 from a local car dealer. I have researched but there was no recall on this and there very many complaints about the same issues with different year escapes.
The right rear "wheelhouse panel" rusted out around the shock absorber upper mounting bracket causing the shock absorber to become detached and non-functional while the vehicle was in motion, making a turn. This caused ride and handling concerns which affected vehicle safety. I have discovered that this is a very common problem with this vehicle and expensive to repair, ~ $1,500.00.
Right rear strut mount severely rusted and unsafe to drive. Shock absorber could come thru rusted mount on rear passenger side. Making all kinds of noice when driving. I talked to body shop said ford escapes are renown for walker sitting and rusting out these rear right mounts. The body shop said tfstvford has known about this serious unsafe defect.
The area around the shock support has slmost completely rusted out. This is super unsafe.
The drivers side wheel well completely rusted out, large hole in body, shock went right threw the body of the car. This happened extremely fast, I just put new tires and brakes on the car. This defect is extremely unsafe and poised a safety concern for me and my children. The car can't be sold or traded in and now headed to the junkyard
Rear frame rusted through as well as passenger side shock tower,rusted so bad can see through to outside in 2 spots which allows exhaust fumes into interior of vehicle ,could cause exphixiation to occupants as well as loss of control due to rear of vehicle giving way and breaking in two on a roadway,damage wasn't visible until it totally busted through while driving! Ford should recall due to safety as the 2004 was.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. The contact stated that there was an abnormal noise heard near the area of the rear passenger side wheel well. The contact stated that there was rust in that area, which was affecting the shocks. The dealer was not contacted. An independent mechanic inspected the vehicle, but could not determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was not available.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford escape. While driving 35 MPH, the lower ball joint fractured due to excessive corrosion. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The manufacturer and dealer were not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 109,000.
Hit a pothole and my shock/strut punched thru the rusted wheel well and detached otaelf...it is np longer safe to drive and ive only had the car for 2 months. And here the 2001-2004 escapes have been recalled for just this reason? Why not the 2005 when the whole body design is the same... I had a 2001 escape before this that was rusting on the outside wheel wells and beginning to rust inside as well... Due to this I dont believe I will be buying fords anymore... I was in the car with my kids when this happened! And now im stuck with a giant piece of metal sitting in my parking spot as no one will take on the job and if they do it would be a min of $2000 or more!
Of course I have the exact same problem as most ford escape owners have with the passenger rear wheel well rusting completely out. This is a known manufacturing defect that only effects the right rear wheel well of these vehicles and there are thousands of unaddressed owner complaints. Ford still will not do a recall nor will they do anything for their thousands of affected customers. I do hope there is a class action suit I can join because ford just will not do the right thing for their customers. I just had my car in for regular maintenance and I was supposed to be going out-of-state to visit my dying father with my kids but now I can't even go due to this unexpected defect which ford will not take responsibility for which has left me with a vehicle I cant drive that I'm still paying for. I can't even trade it in because of this issue! Thanks ford! I will make sure to tell everyone I can about ford's indifference towards its customers and I will never buy ford anything ever again!
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