What ownership is like, what breaks at what mileage, what the repairs cost, and what to check before you buy one.
NHTSA complaints per catalog listing run from 6.86 for 2013 (2,757 complaints across 402 listings) to 2.29 for 2019 (599 across 262), against a generation median of 3.95. 2013 is 1.7 times the median, short of the 2.0x our rule needs; 2017 has the most enriched-ad mentions, 50 of 414 (12.1%) against a 9.2% median, but its complaint rate is 1.2 times the median. No year is flagged, with or without the rust flaw counted. NHTSA owners name the engine and power train most often. Third-party lists often name 2013 and 2014 as years to avoid (CoPilot, CarBuzz); our rule does not flag them.
| Miles | Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| about 78K-120K (CarComplaints averages, forum reports) | 6F35 automatic transmission failure | $4,200-$5,400 (CarComplaints: 2013, 28 complaints, $4,460 at 77,850 mi; 2014, 64 complaints, $4,210 at 84,900 mi; forum: remanufactured unit with labor and warranty $4,200 on a 2014 SE at 120K mi) | The averages are complaining owners' costs, not shop quotes. NHTSA recall 22V413000 covers a shifter cable bushing that may degrade or detach on 2013-2019 Escapes; it is free and worth checking by VIN. |
| about 75K-97K (CarComplaints averages) | Coolant leaking into a cylinder on EcoBoost engines | $5,250-$6,620 average repair (CarComplaints: 2017, 22 complaints, $6,620 at 74,850 mi; 2018, 5 complaints, $5,250 at 97,100 mi); Avturo puts an independent-shop repair at $4,000-$7,000 | Avturo says there was no safety recall for coolant intrusion on 2018 cars and advises a VIN check at a Ford dealer. Ask whether the cooling system has been serviced and check for coolant loss. The 1.6L has separate cylinder head recalls (12V431000, 13V583000, 17V209000) for coolant loss and overheating. |
No year in this generation was flagged. A year is flagged by our rule only when all three hold: (1) its NHTSA complaints per catalog listing is at least 2.0x the median for its generation, (2) the share of ads that mention a problem is above the generation median, and (3) we track at least 30 listings for that year. The cutoff was fixed before we looked. Ad mentions are not failures, and a flag is a reason to inspect harder, not a verdict on any one car.
| Year | Complaints | Top components | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2,757 | Engine, Steering, Power Train | |
| 2014 | 2,089 | Engine, Power Train, Engine And Engine Cooling | |
| 2015 | 1,134 | Power Train, Back Over Prevention, Engine | |
| 2016 | 1,175 | Power Train, Back Over Prevention, Engine | |
| 2017 | 2,701 | Engine, Engine And Engine Cooling, Power Train | |
| 2018 | 1,822 | Engine, Engine And Engine Cooling, Power Train | |
| 2019 | 599 | Engine, Power Train, Engine And Engine Cooling |
source: NHTSA complaints database (api.nhtsa.gov). Complaints are owner reports, not confirmed failures.
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We don't tell you to skip a year; we flag by a fixed rule, and no Escape year trips it. Third-party lists often name 2013, 2014 and 2008. 2013 has 6.86 NHTSA complaints per catalog listing (2,757 across 402 listings) against a 2013-2019 median of 3.95, which is 1.7 times and short of our 2.0x cutoff. 2008 has 15.90 (2,417 across 152) against a 2008-2012 median of 11.70, 1.4 times. 2020 has 6.89 (1,839 across 267) against a 2020-present median of 2.17, but only 3 of 192 ads (1.6%) mention a problem against a 1.6% median, so it is not flagged.
For the 6F35 automatic in 2013-2019 cars, CarComplaints averages are $4,460 at 77,850 miles (2013, 28 complaints) and $4,210 at 84,900 miles (2014, 64 complaints). One forum owner paid $4,200 for a remanufactured unit with labor and warranty on a 2014 SE at about 120,000 miles. Those are complaining owners' costs, not shop quotes.
Turbo 2013-2019 Escapes have drawn such complaints. CarComplaints lists 22 for the 2017 with an average repair of $6,620 at 74,850 miles, and 5 for the 2018 at $5,250 and 97,100 miles. Avturo puts an independent-shop repair at $4,000-$7,000 and says no safety recall covered it on 2018 cars. The 1.6L has separate cylinder head recalls (12V431000, 13V583000, 17V209000).
On 2008-2011 Escapes, NHTSA recall 14V284000 covers a steering torque sensor that may fail to detect driver input, which could remove electric power assist. CarComplaints counts 105 complaints for the 2008 with an average repair of $1,260 at 108,100 miles. The recall repair is free at a Ford dealer when open.
Ford recalled 2020-2022 Escapes with the 1.5L for cracked fuel injectors that may leak fuel inside the engine compartment (Consumer Reports). The repair is free, and Ford extended the warranty on cracked injectors to 15 years (Ford). Cars repaired under the first campaign were recalled again, so check the VIN for the latest status.
Yes, NHTSA files them under names like ESCAPE HYBRID, ESCAPE HEV and ESCAPE PHEV, and many complaints are listed under more than one. For 2008, ESCAPE and ESCAPE HYBRID each show 2,417 records because they overlap, so the union is 2,417. We count each complaint once.