Problems · by component
2019 Ford Escape engine problems
319 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2019 Ford Escape cite engine, 53% of all 599 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
319
53% of all complaints
Crashes
3
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
2
Reported by owners
What owners say about the engine
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“I have a 2019 Ford Escape. With the EcoBoost 1.5-liter engine. The engine has a well-documented engineering defect that causes coolant intrusion into the cylinders. And ultimately engine failure. Ford created a customer assistance program to deal with this. Its limits are seven years and 84,000 miles. My vehicle is 7 1/2 years old and 96,000 miles so I'm outside their numbers. The problem first presented itself in my vehicle nearly two years ago, but none of the mechanics I work with had any idea about this defect, And I only became aware of it about two months ago. 1. The entire engine is in the process of failing 2. When it does fin ally fail I may well be driving it (it's my only transportation), which could jeopardize the safety of myself and others on the road. 3. The issue was confirmed by Ford service technicians 4. It has been inspected by the Ford Service Department 5. I started getting random engine warning messages intermittently 2 years ago, but they all pointerd to other issues, even though they were porbably caused by this design flaw. 4.”
“We received an "engine failure- service now" error message on our vehicle and our mechanic told us it is a known issue with this year, make,model, engine and to take it to the dealership for repair. The dealer, and Ford Motor Company said though the recall is for 2017-2019 Ford Escape EcoBoost engines and for the EXACT same issue, our VIN is not on the current VIN list so it's not covered. Even though this issue is due to a faulty design, thus the recall, they will not cover it. They want $10,000 to fix an issue caused by their design which they have a recall out for. Ford needs to step up and cover this issue under the recall that does apply. Help please.”
“The coolant system leaked into engine cylinder two. This caused engine block destruction and I was quoted $13,000 to repair the engine. I called Ford and they stated that because the vehicle was at 120,000 miles there was nothing they could do.”
“At only 43,379 miles — well within the useful life expected of this vehicle — my 2019 Ford Escape developed two significant mechanical failures. (1) Fuel injector: the vehicle emits visible black smoke from the exhaust when accelerating at highway speeds; the dealership diagnosed this as a failed fuel injector requiring replacement (est. $1,200). Visible exhaust smoke during highway acceleration is a visibility hazard to following traffic. (2) Coolant intrusion into the engine: the dealership's service department diagnosed coolant intrusion requiring replacement of major short block components (est. $8,300), and told me this failure is in its early stages and the engine is likely to fail completely within 6 to 12 months if not repaired. The lead service technician stated this is a common, known issue with this engine, which is being discontinued. Complete engine failure could occur without warning, including while driving on a highway, creating a risk of a stalling-related crash. Rather than repairing the vehicle, the dealership's own service advisor recommended I sell or trade the vehicle to a third party such as CarMax while it still retains value and…”
“My vehicle has to have a new motor. It only has 127,154 miles on it. I have sent Ford a letter to respond with in 30 days and they have not done that. Please advise the next steps.”
“The contact owns a 2019 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, the message “Stop Vehicle” was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.”
Showing 6 of 319 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.