Recall Reveals Another Glitch for Ford Escape

USA Today

July 20, 2012

Adding to a week of bad news for a critical new model, Ford took the unusual step Thursday of not only recalling its 2013 Ford Escapes with 1.6-liter engines for a fire risk, but also telling owners to park them until they are fixed.

Ford will have dealers pick up the customers’ Escapes and give them loaner vehicles until they are returned. In addition, the automaker told dealers to withhold test drives and not to deliver new Escapes to customers until the vehicles have the recall repair.

The redesigned 2013 model of the high-selling crossover, a key vehicle for Ford, has been on sale only since late May. The recall involves 11,500 Escapes made so far, of which about 4,800 had been sold, Ford spokeswoman Marcey Zwiebel says.

The problem involves a fuel line that may have been scratched or scored during manufacture and could leak, resulting in a fire. Zwiebel says of the three fires reported, two occurred at the factory, and none involved injuries.

She says Ford has plenty of replacement parts and that dealers can replace the lines in as little as 30 minutes. Ford hopes to wrap up recall repairs within a couple of weeks. The model continues to be built at the factory in Louisville.

The 1.6-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder comes on the SE and SEL trim levels of the Escape. Buyers can opt for one of two other engines—a 2.5-liter on the base model or the deluxe 2-liter EcoBoost with a turbocharger. Neither is affected by the recall.

Pete Greiner, a Ford dealer in Casper, WY, says most Escape buyers have expressed interest in more-upscale models and doesn’t think the recall will have any real impact.

Recalls of new models aren’t unusual, but Ford’s comes just after 8,266 new Escapes were recalled Monday for a carpet glitch that could cause drivers to miss the brake pedal.

And Tuesday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it was investigating unintended-acceleration issues in 730,000 2001 to 2004 Ford Escapes and Mazda Tributes. The current Escape bears few ties to earlier models except the name, but the bad press doesn’t help.

“You’ve got to get the bugs out,” said Clarence Ditlow of the Center for Automotive Safety, a safety advocacy group in Washington, D.C. “Ford did absolutely the right thing on the new Escape.”