The ABS braking light came on and the brakes locked. We were able to get the vehicle home, however, after inspection by the garage we found the hcu was defective as well as the master cylinder. Total expense to replace was $7,000, the car is only worth 6,000
2008 Ford Escape brakes complaints
Page 5 of 6: complaints 101 to 130 of 140, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The ABS light and tracking light comes on dashboard indicating a problem. When I go to stop there is this tracking resistance when apply brakes. Fords dealership tells me the right ABS ring is cracked on the brakes. Got fixed, now this has happened 2 more times, once on left side and twice on right side. When I had to stop suddenly the brakes feel like they don't work and make this tracking noise as like when you are on ice. Very scary, my car now has 145,000 miles this last time. How long does it take fords to make a recall on this part, my son says that the water gets up in it and causes it to rust and crack. I'm sure I am not the only ford escape 2008 with this problem.
The check brake system light is on and ABS light on also. I drove it around the corner and brakes are very spongy and not fully responsive. I do not trust driving with this situation.
Approximately in march of 2014, we had an issue with the ABS light coming on and traction control coming on for no reason at all. This made driving/steering extremely difficult. We took it to the shop where the tone ring and speed sensor were replaced. In december 2014, we had similar issues and we took it to the ford dealership. We were told it was a speed sensor issue again. The work was done at the independent shop though since they did the original work. Yet again, in january 2015 we were experiencing the same issues again and had the car towed to the shop. The left front speed sensor was diagnosed as the problem. There is obviously some sort of failure that is occurring to trigger this issue. If you do a google search, there are several complaints similar to mine. I believe this should be investigated for a possible recall. This is crating a safety issue that can lead to accidents.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. While driving at an unknown speed, the brakes failed without warning. The contact stated that the failure recurred frequently. The dealer stated that the esb system and the master cylinder needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 79,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. When the contact started the vehicle, the ABS, traction control, brake, and service engine warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was serviced under the federal safety agency campaign number: 14v284000 (steering) and felt that the recall remedy was the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 22,000. Mailed out 01/13/15
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. The contact stated that the ABS and the traction control warning lights illuminated intermittently. In addition, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact also stated that the brake pedal was depressed and failed to respond intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the driver and passenger side axle and axle assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The approximate failure mileage was 91,259.
Approaching a stop sign on a hill, I hit a rough patch in the street and my brakes failed to the point I had to frantically pump them to not roll straight into the intersection. For the next three or four days, any time I braked, the pedal would depress almost to the floor while very slowly decelerating the car, I often had to pump the brakes to build some pressure in order to stop. Clearly an ABS failure, it seemed to "fix itself" after those few days. Now again, 10/23/2014, hit a pothole pulling into a driveway and the brakes are doing the same thing. Googled the problem and read about broken tone rings (similar complaints about loss of ABS), but no lights illuminate when it happens. I need to take it in, but I know the dealership will give me the run-around and try to charge me an arm and a leg for something that's clearly a manufacturing defect.
I was turning right on a stop light and front left ABS tone ring broke. Car slipped gears and would not accelerate for 5-10 seconds. Rsc light and ABS light came on briefly. Car continued to do this randomly and ABS brakes were activated when braking at low speeds. Issue is with tone ring on many ford escapes from 2000-2008. Rings often break because of excessive rust build up on ford components causing expansion. Part is constructed very poorly and as a result safety is compromised and service repairs profit goes up!
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. The contact stated that the ABS tone ring became fractured. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and repaired however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 90,000.
While driving my front wheel drive ford escape on a trip the ABS and stability control lights both came on. This did not initially cause any problems with normal braking while driving in dry conditions. At the end of the trip the ABS system activated on every stop, significantly reducing stopping distance on dry ground. My investigation found the following: rusting of the driveshaft surface apparently caused outward pressure on the inside of the front right ABS tone ring resulting in it separating in one spot. This probably created a error in the monitoring by that ABS sensor resulting in the lights coming on. The ring may have held fast to the rust under the remainder of the ring during most of my trip causing no other problems. Near the end of my trip the cracked ring appears to have shaken free, slipping on the rotating driveshaft surface. This may have made the sensor think the wheel was not turning and applied the ABS to that wheel each time the brakes were applied. The danger then became increased stopping distance on dry ground and unknown performance on slippery surfaces. In checking around, this appears to be a common problem and the other ring will crack eventually due to similar rusting. Repairing this requires the ring to be replaced and possibly the driveshaft section it is mounted on.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the ABS light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 133,000. The VIN was not available.
For the last couple of days, whenever I put my car in reverse and begin to back up, I lose my steering ability. The only way I can get my steering wheel to work again is if I turn my car off and then turn it back on again. Well, today, it happened again, but this time I tried multiple times to turn my car off and turn it back on and my power steering would not kick back in. I have read through many complaints on here as well as other sites and see that a lot of people are having the same issue with their 2008 escape. I have seen that it can cost over $1400 to get it fixed!! I do not have that kind of money right now!! The fact that there was no warning light to tell me that something in the power steering was going is ridiculous!! In the past 2 years I have had to replace the transmission, get a new battery, get brakes, tires,new gas tank, new sensor for the heating control, and the list continues. This car is only 6 years old and just past 100,000 miles!!! I should not have had to replace all these things already!! I am not about to put another $1400+ in this vehicle especially since it seems to be an ongoing problem with many other escapes. Time to do a recall people or you can gladly take this car back!!
I put my car in reverse to back out of my sloping driveway onto a very narrow and busy hillside residential street. With cars coming down the hill past our driveway it is especially critical that I have an operational braking system. When I pressed on the brake pedal there was no response and I went shooting out into the street. I had the car towed to a nearby repair shop that I frequent for most service appointments. They got in the car to test drive it and had no problem whatever with the brakes. They put an electronic scanner on the engine and it reported that there was one or more problems in the braking system although the test drive went fine. They said that with the scanner message that was reported, I would have to take it to a ford dealer. I have made an appointment with same and will have the outcome in a couple of days. None of that really matters at this point because I now have a car that is not safe to drive, let alone have someone else drive it. From all of the similar, if not exact, incidents I have been reading about on the web it does not sound likely that the dealer is going to find a definitive answer as to what is causing this problem. Furthermore, that car is useless to anyone else so what do I do with it.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. The contact stated that while coming to a stop, the ABS and the brake lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection and they stated that the master cylinder had to be replaced in the hydraulic system. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 139,000.
While driving at about 40 MPH, my car unexpectedly applied the brakes itself, without me touching the brakes at all, rapidly bringing the car from 40 MPH to about 5 MPH. Luckily, I was driving on a back road with no one behind me, so there was no accident. In order to move the car out of the way to somewhere safe along the side of the road, I had to shift down into first gear and almost floor the gas in order to fight against the heavily applied brake system. Once out of the way, I called a tow truck and had the car repaired at a local garage. The garage fixed the problem by replacing a broken "tone ring" on the car - a toothed ring around the axle that the ABS system uses to measure whether the wheels are slipping. A crack in the ring had widened the gap between two of the teeth, making the ABS computer go haywire thinking that the wheels were slipping. Since then in 15000 additional miles, I've had all three other tone rings brake, causing similar situations to different degrees. I've been told by multiple mechanics that this problem is common on the ford escape, and that the tone ring - despite being highly exposed to the elements on the undercarriage of the car - is made out of very corrodible material and they see them break all the time. My experience affirms this observation, and highlights a very dangerous situation that could easily be fixed by ford using more robust quality materials to make the tone ring.
I was pulling into a parking space at a speed of < than 5mph and suddenly the vehicle sped up out of control to a speed of 40-50mph tried to mash brakes to the floor, but vehicle continued jumped a fence and hit a huge tree off in a ravine. Two men were watching as the car sped up and ran to pull me from the wreckage after the crash, I was pinned in on the driver side, I suffered multiple injuries.
I pulled into a parking space at around 5-10 MPH, hit the brakes and the accelerator pedal stuck. The car took of at around 40-50mph jumped a fence and crashed into a ravine, hitting a big tree. I was pinned in the automobile hit my head and injured my leg. I was taken to the emergency room where I suffered a spinal cord injury and a huge hematoma on my left leg.
During lunch hour slowed to make a right hand turn and brakes seemed to lock and grind. Steering wheel vibrated and the ABS and traction control light came on. Attempted to accelerate and the car seemed to be locked up for a few seconds. Vehicle behind me almost hit me due to vehicle failure. Lights would not go off for about 1 minute after accelerating to about 25 MPH. While driving about 10 more minutes they illuminated several more times. During drive home the same thing happened 3 more times and always when slowing to make a turn and then attempting to accelerate again. Now ABS light won't go off at all.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving 20 MPH and decelerating, the engine suddenly seized then stalled. The ABS band and skid control warning lights illuminated. The engine was turned off for fifteen minutes and then restarted but the computer reset itself and showed no failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated the ABS band needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified who stated to contact the federal safety agency and file a complaint. The failure mileage was 58,000.
Tl-the contact owns a 2008 ford escape. While driving approximately 10 MPH, the contact approached a stop sign and when the brake pedal was depressed there was a delayed response with the traction control and ABS warning indicators illumination. In addition, there was a loud grinding noise and after repeated attempts the vehicle came to a stop. The engine was turned off and upon restarting the vehicle resumes normally. The failure occurred five different times. The vehicle was taken to a authorized dealer who were unable to perform a diagnosis unless the malfunction was actually occurring. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 35,000. Js
My third ford and again right front ABS ring cracked and had to be replaced.
I was driving my 2008 ford escape in a mall parking lot, and when I approach a stop sign the vehicle was extremely hard to stop. I had to use the full force of the brake all the way down to maintain the vehicle from surging/ crashing into cars in front of me. The engine was staying accelerated and would continue to climb in rpms even thou the gas pedal was not being pressed. I pulled off to the side away from other cars and put the car into parked. At this time the vehicle accelerated on its own to about 8000 rpms. The only way to stop the engine was to completely turn the car off with the key. Upon turning on the vehicle again the problem did not continue.
Right front ABS tone wheel is cracked found during oil change. My understanding this is a very common problem...
I was coasting down a hill with a slight downhill slope without my foot on accelerator and was approaching a stop sign. In preparation for stopping, I started applying the brake. When I pressed the brake pedal, it went to the floor and made a clicking sound- almost as if the antilock brakes were activated. The vehicle did not stop immediately but slowed until I got to the stop sign.
After making a slight left turn, I was coasting down a hill with a slight downhill slope without my foot on accelerator and was approaching a stop sign. In preparation for stopping, I started applying the brake. When I pressed the brake pedal, it went to the floor and made a clicking sound- almost as if the antilock brakes were activated. The vehicle did not stop. I turned into a parking lot immediately and the brakes began working appropriately again.
The steering wheel pops when turning. When the weather is cold the brakes won't push down. Battery goes dead if not driven daily. Radio wont play after replace battery that was dead.
Tires problem.... 04/09/2011-purchased (used) ford escape 2008-xlt 4 wheel- mileage 37583. 07/08/2011-mileage- 40668- driven 3085 miles* the dealer replaced rotors, brakes in - (no cost to me), due to rusting & corrosion, dealer claimed probably sat on lot too long without being moved. Tires at this time were reported in "green" code- 08/11/2011-mileage- 41229- driven 561 miles* oil change, tires at this time were reported in "green" code. 02/23/2012- mileage- 44144- driven 2915 miles* inspection failed- due to tires dry rot! Total miles driven in 10 months* 6561. Tires are goodyear/michelin x cross terrain 225/65r17 dotb93t.
Abs tone ring cracks because of rust on the axle and then it spins on the axle and causes the ABS to activate and the traction control to activate because it believes you are skidding. Then the ABS and traction control warning light activate to say there is something wrong with the system. After much research, this is a very common problem, is a design flaw, and is a safety feature for the vehicle.
At about 50,000 miles my 2008 ford escape developed the following symptoms: both the ABS and traction control lights in the dash instrument display come on a few minutes after starting out on a journey and stay on until the engine is turned off. From a few instances of quick stops, it is apparent that the ABS system is not operative. This is a potential accident waiting to happen. I did not notice any effect on driveability as a result of the traction light being illuminated. Upon investigation on the internet, I found that the most likely cause of these lights being lit was a failure of a "ABS tone ring"; sure enough when I jacked up the car and looked carefully at these toothed rings just inside the wheel bearing/steering knuckle housing, I found that the front driver side ring was broken with about a 1/16 to 3/32" gap. The most likely cause of this failure is reported to be corrosion of the steel hub that the ring is pressed onto. The corrosion causes the ring to be stressed by the expansion of the area under the ring as the iron turns to rust, probably enhanced by the copious amount of road salt used in pa in the winter for ice and snow melting. Reported costs to repair this poorly designed engineering fiasco are in the $500-700 range at a dealers shop and ironically the ring itself is available for about $7-15.
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