2008 Ford Escape Hybrid problems
Owners have filed 584 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid. Brakes is the most reported problem area, at 27% of complaints. Next are steering (19%) and engine (19%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 584 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 27% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 18 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 1 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 90,000 miles 546 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 9 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 48 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 62 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 99 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 81 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 78 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 59 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 51 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 23 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 15 |
| 200k+ miles | 21 |
What the data shows
Of the 546 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 90,000 miles. For brakes specifically, the median reported mileage is about 110,000 miles (147 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 18 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 1 injury reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 92% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2008 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 11 model years of the Ford Escape Hybrid with enough data (252 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl* the contact owned a 2008 ford escape hybrid. While driving approximately 50 MPH, an oncoming vehicle crashed head on into the contact's vehicle. The side air bags in the contact's vehicle deployed, but the frontal air bags, including the driver's side air bags, did not deploy. There was no warning indicator illuminated. A police report was filed. The contact sustained injuries that later required medical attention. The contact's vehicle was totaled and towed to a tow yard.
This is my second submission. This morning while driving to work the ABS light came on along with a "check brake system" message and "regen brakes disabled". In the past when this happened I still had brakes but had to mash them down to get the vehicle to stop. This morning I was unable to stop the vehicle. My vehicle then went off the road and into a drainage ditch. The vehicle needed to by lynched out and towed to the dealership.
I was on a road trip with a passenger in my vehicle. We stopped in barstow, ca for lunch. While pulling into a parking space, my vehicle suddenly accelerated jumping the parking block and the curb. I was able to stop the vehicle from going into the building but not before hitting some newspaper vending machines. The front bumper sustained minor damage. I have been driving for many years and have never experienced anything like this. Both my passenger and myself were pretty shook up afterwards.
After being parked for several hours and upon returning to and starting the vehicle, I found several lights on the dash illuminated, including the ABS light, traction control light, the service wrench & check brakes. I was also receiving a message advising the regen brakes were inactive & to check brake system. I had the vehicle towed to our local mechanic and following his check he advised the he could not find anything wrong with them & due to the hybrid nature of the vehicle, he was unable to diagnose the…
Vehicle brakes fail for no apparent reason, then eventually begin working for no apparent reason. No warning is given that anything is wrong with the brakes (I.e. No brake light, and no "check engine" light). In addition, the "all ok" light remains green, indicating that nothing is wrong. This occurs when the vehicle is moving at any speed (I.e above 35 MPH or below 5 MPH).