2019 Ford Escape
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 588 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 18th highest complaint count among 26 Escape model years with reports.
Of the 2019 reports, 24 involved a crash and 3 involved a fire. 28 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Equipment, electrical, engine block heaterJan 15, 2026
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Focus, 2013-2019 Escape, and 2015-2016 MKC vehicles equipped with a 2.0L engine. The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.
An electrical short circuit can increase the risk of a fire.
Owners are advised not to plug in their block heater until the vehicle is remedied. Dealers will replace the block heater, free of charge. Owners will also have a alternative option to replace engine block heater element with a threaded plug, and remove the block heater electrical cord. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed March 6, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S01. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on January 16, 2026.
Campaign 26V011000 on NHTSA.gov
Power train, automatic transmission, gear position indication (prndl)Jun 10, 2022
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2019 Escape, 2013-2018 C-Max, 2013-2016 Fusion, 2013-2021 Transit Connect, and 2015-2018 Edge vehicles. The bushing that attaches the shifter cable to the transmission may degrade or detach.
A damaged or missing bushing may prevent the vehicle from shifting into the intended gear, and cause the vehicle to move in an unexpected direction. Additionally, the vehicle may roll after the driver selects the 'Park' position. Either scenario increases the risk of a crash or injury.
Dealers will replace the under hood shift bushing and add a protective cap over the shift cable bushing, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters, informing owners of the safety risk, were mailed July 1, 2022. Remedy parts are expected to be available in 4th Quarter 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed October 27, 2022. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 22S43.
Campaign 22V413000 on NHTSA.gov
TiresMar 10, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2018 F-150, 2018-2020 F-250, F-350, and 2019 Escape vehicles equipped with Continental tires. On the affected vehicles, it is possible that one or more tires were cured for too long during tire production.
Over cured tires may develop a break in the sidewall, resulting in sudden air loss or belt edge separation which could lead to tread/belt loss. Either condition can cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tires, and replace them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on March 27, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S10.
Campaign 21V155000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
588 reports, newest first.
Engine, Apr 27, 2025
It was diagnosed by a ford dealer that it has a coolant intrusion. It’s available for an inspection as well! Car has been well taken care of with regular oil changes and regular maintenance. I had a coworker in my car as the car overheated 2 times 2 hours away from home on a work day. In rush hour traffic on a 4 lane interstate. And I had to get off on an exit ramp. Almost caused an accident. Took it to a dealer the next day and they confirmed that the car needs a new engine as the engine is faulty. The car only has 79k miles. We’ve put 24k miles on it in 3 years. As it’s a daily driver and been a great car for us… up until now. The car now misfires idling. And it doesn’t run well. And an inconvenience as I have to fill it with coolant everyday to make it 5 miles to work. Ford was contacted by the service department and I, while I was at the ford certified dealership. They said that because the car is out of factory warranty. Mind you under 80k miles. Was nothing they would help with. Even though, they recognize that they made faulty engines for this car between the beginning of 2019 to mid June of 2019. But never wanted to do a recall. As there was 241,388 ford escapes made that year. They accounted for about half of those being faulty. There was no warnings for this problem. One day I took off to meet clients of mine in a town almost 2 hours away. It overheated 2 times on the way home. Took it into the ford certified dealership the next day to find out it needs an engine. I wasn’t not a happy camper as I never experienced any prior problems or warnings. Never an engine light. No spikes in engine temperatures. Just one day it overheated 2 times on the way home. Because the engine started to eat away coolant and never a warning.
Engine, Apr 26, 2025
2019 Ford Escape suddenly overheating with warning lights and alarms; messages to stop immediately. Took vehicle to Pollard Ford dealership and paid for diagnostics. They confirmed that coolant is leaking into the #2 cylinder causing the engine to burn coolant and also overheat. I was informed that a new engine is needed and it would cost over $6,500.
Power train, Apr 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, there was a rattling sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission flex plate was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the Extended Warranty coverage for the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Apr 23, 2025
Can inside motor caused damage to high pressure fuel pump on top of the motor. This caused metal to get into my motor and now requires a motor replacment
Engine and engine cooling, Engine, Apr 23, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact contacted the dealer and scheduled an appointment. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 97,000.
Engine, Apr 23, 2025
Coolant intrusion into cylinder bores, Cause engine failure
Steering, Electrical system, Lane departure, Apr 22, 2025
Electric power steering failing at 35000 miles
Other or unspecified, Engine, Apr 22, 2025
Coolant leaked into motor and my car overheated and my motor cracked. Looks like this is an ongoing issue with EcoBoost engines and Ford has yet to do anything about it.
Power train, Apr 19, 2025
I purchased my 2019 escape October 2019 brand new from the dealership we paid for the extended warranty of 100,000 miles I’m at 103,541 and now have transmission issues. I called ford and they said the can’t do anything. It cases me to not be able to accelerate, and then the transmission figure light came on luckily I was in town and not on the interstate when this problem happens. Doing some research this is a common problem with the 2019 ford escape transmission’s this could be a major safety problem if it was to happen on a interstate or major highway
Power train, Apr 17, 2025
The transmission has a rattle and the dealer states that the transmission likely has a damaged flex plate. but the car is not covered as there is no recall or customer campaign. The car barely has over 22,000 miles on it. Ford should be responsible instead of telling me it's a $4-6000 repair. Tranny problems at 22,000 miles is a design issue.
Engine and engine cooling, Engine, Apr 15, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that there was coolant intrusion into the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 66,301.
Engine and engine cooling, Apr 14, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, there was a misfire coming from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that there was coolant intrusion into the cylinders. The dealer determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,588.
Engine and engine cooling, Apr 4, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the engine had failed due to coolant intrusion. The engine was replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 27,000.
Engine and engine cooling, Apr 1, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the vehicle hesitated to accelerate, and the vehicle was running rough. On one occasion during the failure, the check engine warning light illuminated and remained illuminated. Additionally, on another occasion the engine overheated. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and turned off. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into cylinder #3, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into cylinder #3, and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 111,000.
Exterior lighting, Mar 30, 2025
Simply put, the headlights repeatedly blow out with no apparent reason found. Bulbs have been changed multiple times personally and by professionals -- both headlights went out nearly simultaneously in September of 2024 and I replaced the bulbs myself, assuming it was a fluke or the bulbs had simply aged out. At the beginning of March, 2025, the passenger-side bulb went out again and I brought it to my dealership to get checked out. They couldn't find anything wrong, and I had them replace the bulb again. Now, for the third time since I bought the vehicle in April or May of 2024, I have to replace the passenger-side bulb again. I'm returning to the dealership to see if there's anything else to look for, but a quick internet search shows that there are lots of others experiencing this same problem without any kind of solution in sight. This is obviously not normal.
Engine, Mar 27, 2025
On April 30th had an oil change performed on my vehicle at the Ford service center on Tuesday. Shortly after, I began experiencing issues with the car struggling to start. By Thursday, my check engine light came on, I took it back in, left it at Ford, they were going to look at it on May 6th did not hear back until May 7th, revealed coolant mixing with the engine oil, indicating an internal engine issue. I had my car towed to Expert Transmission, and they revealed. Upon further inspection, the following diagnostic trouble codes were stored in the ECM: P0217 – Engine Overheating P0302 – Cylinder 2 Misfire P0316 – Misfire Detected at Startup P06E9 – Fuel Injector Control Performance P1026 – Fuel Injection System Malfunction Additionally, during repairs, my fuel injectors were found to be clogged with debris, requiring replacement along with the engine. Given that these issues arose immediately after the oil change.
Engine and engine cooling, Mar 25, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle made an abnormal sound. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion into the engine. The mechanic related the failure to an unknown recall and referred the contact to the dealer for the recall repair. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the related recall. The dealer informed the contact that upon test-driving the vehicle, there was smoke coming out from an undisclosed location. The dealer determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was being repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 82,000.
Engine, Mar 25, 2025
I finally was able to get my Ford Escape into a Ford dealership to be inspected and they confirmed that I will need an entire engine replacement because coolant is leaking into cylinder 3. This is exactly the same engine Ford recalled on the 1.5 but not on the 2.0 yet and my Escape is a 2.0. When I spoke to the Ford Company I was given a case number and told it would take several weeks for Ford to send me a letter to see if they will assist in the repair or not. As a [XXX] this is our only vehicle and I'm honestly at a loss as to what I will do without a car for several weeks. My safety and the safety of my children are at risk because if I do try to drive the car until I hear from Ford it stalls in the lower gears leaving us at risk of being hit if I pull out and the Escape doesn't engage fast enough. We are also in danger because if I am not daily putting anti-freeze into the car Ford states that the engine might catch fire. Yes, the vehicle was inspected by Pierre Ford yesterday, Monday, March 24, 2025. I have had an engine light on for a few months and have had to start adding anti-freeze on a regular basis but it was about 2 weeks ago when I had a warning pop up on the digital dash stating, "Engine Fault Service Now". INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Engine and engine cooling, Mar 20, 2025
The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while parked and attempting to start the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the contact became aware of white smoke coming from the exhaust. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with coolant intrusion inside cylinder #4. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact to call the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The contact related the failure to Technical Service Bulletin: 19-2172 (Coolant In Cylinders, White Exhaust Smoke); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 49,547.
Engine, Mar 20, 2025
I purchased this car used at a local non-Ford dealership. The car had 50,000 miles on it when purchased. At 51,400 miles, a loud clicking sound could be heard coming from the engine. I took the car to the Ford dealership and they told me the engine needed to be replaced due to a finding lots of small pieces of metal in the oil filter and in other areas after removing the timing chain cover and doing an inspection. They determined I was 1 month out of warranty and stated the new engine would cost $14,000. "Big" Ford, after several months of back and forth, agreed to pay for 50% of the cost. Ford told me that if the engine were to completely "seize" it could have resulted in a major accident on the road. AFTER having the new engine installed, at 54,000 miles there was a burning smell entering the cabin through the vents. I took the vehicle back to the Ford dealership and they told me the valve cover gasket was leaking and needed to be replaced. They said it would not be part of the original warranty of the new engine and I needed to pay $1000 for the repair. After strongly pushing back and calling several other dealerships, the local dealer agreed to do the repair under warranty. I have zero faith in Ford due to this experience.
Power train, Mar 20, 2025
Powertrain failure for 2019 Ford Escape. Car was not accelerating correctly in main highway traffic. The car was diagnosed by Holman Ford in Sicklerville, NJ. Torque converter clutch broke down and transferred the metallic material into the transmission causing damage leading to failure. No warning signs/messages/ or symptoms. This has been confirmed to be a re-occurring issue for Ford Escape owners.
Engine, Mar 18, 2025
Engine light came on but did not stay on. Vehicle ran rough on and off. Took to dealer and am told coolant is leaking into the cylinders and a new engine is needed. Opened a case with Ford and they won't cover it in full. Car has 54,000 miles on it and we have had it 6 years and 3 months (purchased new).
Engine, Mar 18, 2025
The car has a non-repairable engine failure of the 2nd cylinder of the 4 cylinder engine as diagnosed by the ford dealer. The car has low miles, 49,047 and is 4 months out of its 5 year power train warranty. Contacted Ford customer care, they recommended I file a complaint with the NHTSA and offered no assistance.
Power train, Vehicle speed control, Engine, Mar 16, 2025
My 2019 Ford Escape Eco Boost Titanium vehicle is currently loosing antifreeze at an alarming rate. I had the error codes read and I have four. The first, P0303, states cylinder #3 is misfiring. The second, P0141, says the heater in 02 sensor is taking too long to warm up. The third, P0016, states the camshaft position A correlates to bank 1 and finally, P04DB, says the crankcase ventilation system in the vehicle is disconnected. From what I have read online the system that is failing is that there is an engine coolant leak. I am fine providing the car for inspection upon request. The safety of myself and my family is at risk because should I not keep the coolant filled and full Ford states that the vehicle engine may overheat, catch fire, damage the pistons, and possible misfires while driving. I reported the issue to Ford via their social media link X (twitter) on March 16, 2025 but I will also be calling the Ford contact phone number tomorrow, March 17. I hope to have the vehicle or component inspected by the manufacturer soon but based on the complaints online I am one of many having this failure on my vehicle. My engine warning light came on about 2 months ago but when I had it read for error codes at that time it only stated the code, P0141, the heater in 02 sensor is taking too long to warm up. At that time I called Ford service to see how I could get it repaired and was told that even though I had previously had the error codes read they would start by charging me $250 to read the error codes.
Engine, Mar 13, 2025
We were told that there was a recall on the coolant system and contacted the Ford Dealership and was told that the recall had expired back in 2022. I purchased the vehicle in 2023. A week ago the engine light came on and we took the vehicle to Auto Zone for a code check and was told that the coolant system was faulty. We had the vehicle towed to the Ford Dealership in Crestview Fl and they have told us that the motor is blown due to a issue with the coolant system.