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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2016 Ford Escape — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 1,159 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

1,159
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
38
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
10
Involved Fire
owner-reported
21
Injuries
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Ford Escape — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

2,129 complaints

1,317 complaints

603 complaints

2,754 complaints

2,089 complaints

1,115 complaints

1,159 complaints

2,693 complaints

1,812 complaints

595 complaints

1,539 complaints

349 complaints

235 complaints

100 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Power Train 321 reports
Back Over Prevention 242 reports
Engine 200 reports
Unknown Or Other 156 reports
Electrical System 95 reports
Steering 71 reports
Fuel/propulsion System 62 reports
Engine And Engine Cooling 57 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Engine ODI 11708106 12/31/2025

My car set a code , and the engine misfired. I took all the necessary steps, but the code reappeared. I have Car Shield, and they are saying its cracked block but refuse to replace the head gasket. My mechanic believes it's the head gasket, so a cracked block seems common in these cars, as does a bad head gasket. What should I do, and whom should I contact to fight Car Shield …

Engine And Engine Cooling ODI 11633442 12/31/2024

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the heater failed to operate with the check engine warning light was intermittently flashing on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was discovered that coolant was leaking into cylinder #3. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to file …

Vehicle Speed Control ODI 11707943 12/30/2025

My 2016 Ford escape cannot accelerate even I pressed the pedal. It just has 74000 miles but showing transmission issues. It's so dangerous and threaten my life and others.

Steering ODI 11057687 12/30/2017

3 TIMES THIS LAST THREE DAYS I'VE GOTTEN A STEERING ASSIST FAULT AFTER STARTING VECHILE.FIRST TIME STEERING WAS DIFFICULT FOR ONLY A VERY SHORT PERIOD.2ND AND 3RD TIMES I HAD TO STOP AND RESTART VECHILE THEN IT WAS OK.ALL THREE TIMES WHERE FROM STARTUP.

Back Over Prevention ODI 11707471 12/29/2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while in reverse(R), the rearview camera image was blank. Additionally, the rearview camera failed to alert the driver when an object or vehicle was nearby. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. Th…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2016 Ford Escape, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2016 Ford Escape reliable?
Owners have filed 1,159 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2016 Ford Escape, most often about power train. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Ford Escape years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.