The transmission shift cable fell off the transmission shift lever in the engine compartment. The plastic bushing that holds the shift cable in place is worn out or defective. Ford has a replacement part (#DG9Z-7K340-A) and a new cover cap to protect the bushing now. Wondering why this is not a safety recall. The linkage fell off while my wife was parking the vehicle in sub-zero weather. She had the shifter in park, but the vehicle was actually in neutral or reverse. The vehicles engine could be started or stopped, would not drive, but could roll. Luckily it was on level ground when it happened. Ford has the same problem on earlier year models but not on our model year. The Ford dealer told me that there were no recalls or TSBs for my VIN model.
2015 Ford Escape transmission complaints
Page 8 of 11: complaints 191 to 220 of 287, newest first, as owners wrote them.
- When pushing start, the car cranks but no start. Failed to start with new battery. - I took the car to Ford dealer maintenance shop and couldn't identify the problem and contacting Ford Engineering for further investigation. - There is no any message or warning on the dashboard and also what the maintenance shop informed me. All the lighting system is Ok, even the radio is working. - According to the mechanic, the issue is new one and not has been seen before.
On 11-8-2021, my transmission failed out of nowhere, there were no warning lights or noises or check engine codes or anything. When I backed out at work the vehicle shook a little and when I pulled out on to the road it hit second gear kind of hard. When I got close to the stop sign it just shut off. I started it back up and when I put it in drive it shut off again. It did this 3 times before I could get it off the road. I had it towed home and started it up and attempted to put it in gear again it shook hard and shut off again. The last drivability/performance check was 6/18/2020 at 112,560 miles done by Summerville Ford. My vehicle is available upon request for inspection. Mine and others safety was put at risk by the vehicle not working properly, on a very busy highway. Although there was not a crash, there very well could have been. The problem has not been confirmed by a dealer or independent service center nor has it been inspected by anyone other then my husband and myself. The problem first appeared that afternoon, I have only owned the vehicle since May 2021, I haven't even gotten to my first oil change. I bought it from Berkeley Ford in Moncks Corner SC.
Was driving down the road and the car started to sputter and shake. Was able to pull into a gas station parking lot and when I stepped on the gas nothing happened and the transmission fault light kicked on. Got parked and called a tow company to tow it to the nearest transmission shop to which they told me the transmission is shot and needs replaced.
There was a recall for 203-2014 Ford Escapes (18S20) for the bushing on the shifter cable breaking and requiring repair. However our vehicle is a 2015 Escape and we were told it was not covered by the recall although we experienced a similar issue. Upon putting the vehicle in reverse the gearbox stuck in reverse and was not able to shift to neutral, drive, or any other gear. Since the vehicle was stuck in gear and not able to move until the tow truck arrived it put others at risk. We had the car towed to Merrill Ford in Okemos Michigan where they confirmed the bushing failed however due to Ford's protocol they had to replace the entire shifter cable at an estimated price of $950. I did some investigation and found another cable and requested the dealer remove the bushing from the new cable and install it on the vehicle. I could have purchased just the bushing however the dealership advised against it. In addition, the shifter cable was not available for approximately another week since 1,400 were on backorder which makes me believe this is a bigger problem than just our vehicle. There were no prior warnings to the bushing failure. Although the dealership knew there was an alternative solution of only replacing the bushing they originally refused to do it. I find this practice of not replacing the failed part (bushing) negligent and trying to create more revenue for Ford and the dealership.
In April 2021 I was stranded due to the degradation of the bushings on a cable connected to the transmission. The car was repaired. However, now in September 2021, a “transmission fault service now” error popped up while I was on the way to work. The diagnostics have come in and Ford is telling me I need an entirely new transmission. The car has less than 93K miles and should not be having a transmission issue, especially when a majority of the miles driven were freeway miles. Ford has quoted a repair cost of $6600, but I find it hard to believe that the incident in April is unrelated to the transmission failure today.
At approximately 100,000 miles, the transmission blew out while my son was driving the vehicle on a bridge of a freeway. The engine, sputtered, locked up, would not stay in drive and died. He had to maneuver to safety in the middle of the road on a dangerous bridge. We had the transmission supposedly replaced at Future Ford of Concord. This repair took close to three weeks. Upon return of the car, the same thing happened again. We returned the car to the dealer. It stayed for another four weeks while they ran diagnostics, and supposedly fixed the car. Not more than 100 miles later the car experienced the same thing as the original incident. My son was once again on the freeway, the car lost all power, the transmission light went on and the car is again currently at Future Ford of Concord. Cars should not have transmission problems such as this with only 100,000 miles. And, if the problem was fixed, then we should not have had to take the car back two additional times for the same thing. I believe there exists a significant problem with the transmission of this 2015 Ford EXCAPE.
The bushing in the shifter cable fell out or somehow was no longer attached and could not be located. This prevented the vehicle from going into any gear and stranded me until the repairs could be made.
Earlier this year my car began shaking while I was driving it and when it was time for me to park, I couldn't move my shifter. I had to use the emergency break to keep my car in place. I noticed that my shift linkage had eroded and I had to place a temporary one from Auto Zone on there so I could continue driving. Ever since then, my new shift linkage continues to pop off and I am constantly having to use the emergency break to keep my car from going anywhere and placing the temporary shift link back on. I looked up recalls for my vehicle and noticed that other Fords had the same problem and were issued a recall, however, my particular vehicle did not fall under the recall list. There has been no warning signs that come on my dash which is very alarming. The only reason I ever know that the link is about to pop off is because my shifter becomes very loose and wiggles. This incident has happened several times dating back to around April 2021, and the most current time this has happened is today, September 7, 2021.
Yesterday while driving across a 5 mile long expressway bridge, my car started jerking and the RPMs reved up but I was unable to accelerate. It kept shaking and jerking and barely getting above 30 mph. When I was able to get over to the side, it would no longer move forward. I shut the car off, turned it back on, and it moved forward but I could not re-enter the highway speed traffic. My car was flatbed towed to the closest Ford dealer, who today said the transmission has failed. They quoted me $7000 for a new transmission. My car is a 2015 with 85,000 miles on it. The transmission is no longer under warranty and it gave no indications of beginning to fail before this happened. Having the transmission fail at highway speeds on a 4 lane bridge put my life and the lives of those around me in danger.
January of last year I was driving on the highway and the car started shaking and jerking, slipping in and out of gear. It eventually reved to 5000 rpm and wouldn't move. Once at the transmission shop they said it would be over 5,000 dollars to get another transmission from the ford dealer. Now about a week ago I was driving on the highway again and the same thing happened this time with my 7 month old in the car leaving us stranded 20mi from home. Both times the transmission light came on after the car became disabled.
Flywheel cracked/broken on 1.6 liter engine. University Ford North confirmed failure and replaced. They have/had part. Ford Motor Company was contacted on 8-19-2021 regarding this and refused to open a case to investigate. No warning lamps or indications were displayed for this failure. Issue was noticed on approximately August 3rd.
Transmission disengaged in the middle of a busy intersection without any warning. Car coasted to a complete stop in the intersection. Placed car in park and back in drive. Was able to get car to move out of the intersection with transmission slipping in and out of gear. Car was purchased new and was never in an accident nor had any damages. Only have 58,229 miles. Called Ford costumer service and they replied it was out of warranty. I asked to speak with a supervisor and they said I would receive a call back within 24 to 48 hours. That time has passed and I didn't receive a call back.
On 5/22/2021 when I was pulling into the parking space in front of my house my 2015 Ford Escape accelerated on its own, jumping the railroad tie at the edge of the parking lot and on to the front yard – fortunately the car stopped when I applied the break only less than five feet from the front of my house. I put the car in reverse and removed my front from the break and the car accelerated on its own again. I applied the break again and it stopped, thankfully there were no other cars in the parking lot at that time. On 5/24/2021 I called the Ford dealership where I purchased the vehicle, the service advisor said they were not aware of this issue. I had the vehicle towed to the dealership that day as I was concerned that the issue would reoccur ($80.00). The service advisor called on Wednesday and stated there were no codes on the computer related to acceleration but there were codes for the transmission. They were able to overhaul the transmission, $3999.41; there was only 38,384 miles on the vehicle, I have always been a responsible owner and maintained all of my vehicles - I have no doubt this was a defect. I had no other issues with this vehicle prior to that day.
Transmission repair $6875.00 by Covert Ford Hutto. Purchased 08/27/2018 mileage 110047 Transmission repair of $6875.00 reporting hopefully I will be the one who achieve the threshold to get a recall for transmission. Ford is telling me I will get a 3 year warranty and free replacement if it happens again but I am spending $6875.00 hopefully this helps.
As I was driving my car about 45-50mph , it started to sputter, then the rpms shot up and I could't accelerate, lost speed. My transmission failure light came on. I pulled over and put it in park. I was very close to home so I tried to drive to make it home and not be stranded a mile from home. It did it again, then my transmission failure light came on again. It also wouldn't go into reverse, it would just rev up. It would only go into reverese after I put it in park a couple times. If I turned the car off, then on, I could go a few feet before it would just rev up and couldn't accelerate. Its making a loud wining noise. I had it towed to leonardtown ford.
Tl* the contact owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated while driving the vehicle started whining, then lost most of power and shifted by self into neutral gear on transmission and came to complete stop (not the inside of vehicle shifter) and would’t drive. The contact stated no warning lights were illuminated at this time. Contact then put vehicle into neutral via shifter and gave vehicle some gas and then put vehicle in drive position and shifted hard with a big thump but then drove for few moments while turning at a light but wouldn’t engage past 1st gear. At that time the warning light finally appeared and began flashing faulty transmission and automatically shifted back into neautral gear and stopped. Again contact placed vehicle into neutral gear, gave some gas and put back into drive position and again transmission shifted with another thump into gear but still not past 1st gear. Contact was within couple blocks from home so safely repeating prior steps got vehicle home safely. Vehicle had been maintain and all fluid levels and indicators were up to date. Contact had her husband check vehicle and drained and changed the transmission fluid. Fluid was clean and no foreign particles or metal in fluid. Test drove vehicle around block and whining was still there and then would only drive forward and not reverse. Contact then had vehicle towed to tuttle-click ford lincoln (43 auto center dr, irvine, ca 92618) for a diagnostic check. Even the tow driver stated he had just recently towed several others due to the same issue. Contact was told by ford dealership that transmission check and maintanence is 120k miles on these vehicles. It was diagnosed with the halfshaft center bearing completely worn, retainer tight but since bearing is worn, halfshaft slides out of trans. That could explain no engagement if halfshaft slid out. Torque could not be transferred to other axle due to traction control not allowing one to spin more than the other. Dealership recommended first replace halfshaft, then maybe address trans
Tl* the contact's daughter owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle began to roll. The contact became aware that the shifter cable and bushings had fractured and detached from the vehicle. The contact contacted anderson ford lincoln of st. Joseph (2207 n belt hwy, st joseph, mo 64506, (866)922-2141) who confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The contact was informed that the cable bushing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 122,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated that while the vehicle was placed in park however, the transmission failed to register that the vehicle was in park. The contact stated that the vehicle started rolling backwards. The contact was able to stop the vehicle from rolling. The vehicle was taken to bellingham ford lincoln (1820 james st, bellingham, wa 98225; (360) 392-7000) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the battery and the shifter cable needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. The VIN was not available.
While driving down hill the vehicle was revving up to almost 5rpms while breaking... Was not shifting into lower gear.. Pulled in to get gas.. Went to back up with reverse.. Then shifted gear into drive .. And the vehicle was still in reverse... Pushed the shifter to park and then back into driver and car was still driving in reserve...pushed back into park ... Switched seats with my husband ... He got into driver seat and the shifter was stuck in park.. But was not registering on dash board.. According to the dashboard it was in reverse ... Husband reversed the car into a parking spot .. He kept trying to pull the shifter to go into drive... But it was locked on park... So he manually went in to shift the gears and was able to move the shifter manually ... But it still was not recognizing it on the dashboard... There was no warning sign ... No alerts on the dash.... While husband was trying to get the shifter to register on dash... All lights on dash started flickering... So then we thought it was referring to the battery... Because soon after there was no powered at all to the vehicle... But the vehicle was still moving in reverse.. We put e brake on called a friend and had him jump us .. Did absolutely nothing ... So now car is stranded in a parking lot until tomorrow... All this going on with an infant and 5 year old .. In freezing cold weather... Something needs to be done with these ford escapes before someone gets killed! For the amount of complaints I am seeing on this feature with the 2015.. You would think something would be done... This is dangerous and. Absolutely uncalled for... Get these [xxx] cars off the market! Parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
It first started while sitting at a light and the gears shifted on their own kind of felt like it just clicked into place. I continued to drive as no check engine light came on and it was feeling fine. I was driving down a hill at 45 MPH and then all of a sudden my rpms shot from a 2.5/3 to a 7rpm right back down to a 1rpm and this took me immediately down to 26mph this totally freaked me out as I have never had this issue and was on a busy road. I immediately pulled over and put my hazards on.... I was not in a safe spot so I decided to try to drive the car to a road off the main road when I did this the car was not even allowing me to accelerate. I sat there hoping no one hit me turned the car off and then it was drivable again. I had it towed to my house as covid mechanics were closed for the weekend. I then had it towed to a mechanic who was trusted who mentioned it was the transmission, which my car doesnt even have 100,000. I did not have it fixed there as I took it to frod now to have a look they wanted me to pay 1400$ to just open the transmission when they already knew it was the transmission. I immediately called ford customer service and explained that they stand buy there reliability as they mention that all there cars are and explained that was one of the reasons I purchased my car however, their reliability has failed!!! I then said they also mention that they have great customer satisfaction and aim to please their customers. So I asked for a goodwill since the relaibilty failed. I have been pushed around and gone in circles with the person whom has opened my claim# and have been on the phone for multiple days on multiple accounts and have gotten no feedback. I work across the street and can access them why cant they? I am still waiting to hear what goodwill they can give!!!transmiions should last at least 100,000 miles why hasnt this one?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Purchased a new 2015 escape have had it in the dealer multi times for turbo replacement and the heads replaced. Was smelling coolant in the car took it to the same dealer for repair. That was over 7 weeks ago. Fords will not approve the repair that was caused by the coolant leaking into the engine. I have a active powertrain and ford esp warranty.
Transmission is not shifting correctly from reverse into drive. Also does not shift through the speeds and the RPM reaches 5000. Shifting is unpredictable and very glitchy. Dangerous in certain conditions because car does not accelerate properly. Reverse to forward direction is unpredictable. Worse in cold conditions. Car is dangerous to drive. Condition has worsened and now need a new transmission at 64,000 km.
Tl* the contact owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle and shifting the gear shifter into park, the contact exited the vehicle and the vehicle started to roll away. The driver engaged the parking brake. The vehicle was towed to serramonte ford (999 serramonte boulevard, colma, ca, 94014, (690)-763-2400) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission shifter cable bushing had detached from the transmission. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 65,000.
Tl* the contact's daughter owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated that after his daughter parked the vehicle, the shifter detached and failed to move without warning. The vehicle was towed to serramonte ford (999 serramonte blvd, colma, ca 94014, (650) 763-2400) where it was diagnosed that the transmission cable bushing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted however, no further assistance was provided. The contact stated the failure was like the federal safety agency campaign number: 18v471000 (power train). The failure mileage was 60,000.
Transmission failure causes frequent hard shifting. This issue started at about 50,000 miles. When driving at low speeds, the transmission would hesitate, the engine revs spike, and then the car jumps into gear with a very hard thud. By 61,000 miles, this problem went from a once-daily occurrence to a frequent occurrence. It's typically at lower speeds (20~40mph) and driving at constant speed - not accelerating. Update from nov 9, 2020: at 65,000 miles, I took this into my ford dealer for investigation. They reported the transmission fluid level was good (remove the overflow plug and oil slowly drips out) and that the fluid was dirty. They reported that the transmission had failed and needed replaced.
Tl* the contact owns a 2015 ford escape. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to shift out of first gear. The contact shifted to manual mode and shifted into first gear however, the vehicle shifted hard. The transmission warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to genesee valley ford, llc (1675 interstate dr, avon, ny 14414; (585) 226-2600) and the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was informed that the vehicle was no longer under warranty. The approximate failure mileage was 68,000.
Hard shift from first to second. Ford tsb claims this happens when cold. But for me it happens all the time.
I would like to see a recall on ford escape transmissions. My 15 ford escape has only 77,000 and with no worrying the transmission went out. The repair for a transmission replacement isn't cheap. After asking around I found out that multiple people with ford escapes have had their transmission go out normally with low mileage. I was planning on keeping my escape for years to come but instead due to the high repair cost I'm having to trade. I will not be buying another ford! I just hope for future or current ford escape owners that something can be done. When it's just one vehicle you think misfortune but multiple vehicles makes it a problem! Thankfully I was able to safely make it to my destination before it went out, but someone else may not be that lucky.
Shift selector cable bushing is broken. This allows the transmission to be in neutral while the shifter is in park. The car will roll away if emergency brake is not set. The opposite is possible as well. The transmission could be in drive but looks like it is in park. Car could drive off.
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