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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2021 Ford Escape — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 349 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

349
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
9
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
9
Involved Fire
owner-reported
5
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.

2,089 complaints

1,115 complaints

1,152 complaints

2,693 complaints

1,812 complaints

595 complaints

1,539 complaints

349 complaints

235 complaints

100 complaints

76 complaints

0 complaints

0 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Structure 92 reports
Unknown Or Other 59 reports
Service Brakes 49 reports
Power Train 44 reports
Engine 44 reports
Fuel System 44 reports
Gasoline 44 reports
Electrical System 34 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Service Brakes ODI 11633170 12/30/2024

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated while reversing, there was a loud screeching sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who performed an unstated service on the vehicle, but the failure persisted. No further information was available. The manufacturer was contacted but no assistance was provided. The contact was…

Service Brakes ODI 11499495 12/30/2022

The contact leased a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated while reversing and depressing the brake pedal, the brakes emitted an abnormal squealing sound. The contact stated that the failure mainly occurred while reversing. Additionally, a message indicating that the Forward Collision Avoidance camera had failed and needed to be repaired was displayed. The dealer and the manufa…

Fuel System ODI 11707609 12/29/2025

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to respond while in reverse(R). In addition, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then ta…

Structure ODI 11562555 12/29/2023

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the front driver's and passenger's side doors failed to close properly. The contact had to forcefully close the doors. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the front driver's and passenger's door welds had fractured. The independent mechanic replaced the front driver's and passenger's …

Structure ODI 11632914 12/28/2024

The check arm on my ford escape broke off at the welding attachment point which lead to me having to drive down the road for 10 miles with my door ajar in order to get home It started making a popping noise a few days ago then I opened my door tonight and it completely broke off

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2021 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 2021 Ford Escape reliable?
Owners have filed 349 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2021 Ford Escape, most often about structure. 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.