2009 FORD ESCAPE — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 1,841 complaints · 0 recalls
Most-reported system: STEERING (853 complaints · 46.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 39
  • Fires 5
  • Injuries 18
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2008 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution STEERING appears in 853 of 1,841 owner complaints (46.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. STEERING: 853 complaints, 46.3% of reports STEERING 853 · 46.3% · 14 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 204 complaints, 11.1% of reports POWER TRAIN 204 · 11.1% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 181 complaints, 9.8% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 181 · 9.8% · 6 crash reports ENGINE: 152 complaints, 8.3% of reports ENGINE 152 · 8.3% · 1 crash reports 1 fire reports FUEL SYSTEM: 129 complaints, 7.0% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 129 · 7.0% · 2 crash reports SERVICE BRAKES: 112 complaints, 6.1% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 112 · 6.1% · 7 crash reports 1 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 56 complaints, 3.0% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 56 · 3.0% · 2 fire reports STRUCTURE: 23 complaints, 1.3% of reports STRUCTURE 23 · 1.3% SUSPENSION: 14 complaints, 0.8% of reports SUSPENSION 14 · 0.8% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 236 complaints, 12.8% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 236 · 12.8% · 6 crash reports 1 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
STEERING 853 46.3% 14 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 204 11.1% 2 crashes · 1 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 181 9.8% 6 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 152 8.3% 1 crashes · 1 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 129 7.0% 2 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 112 6.1% 7 crashes · 1 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 56 3.0% 0 crashes · 2 fires
STRUCTURE 23 1.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 14 0.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 236 12.8% 6 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2008. 2008-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2009-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2010-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2010-Q2: 9 owner reports 9 2010-Q3: 17 owner reports 17 2010-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2011-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2011-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q4: 13 owner reports 13 2012-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2012-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2012-Q3: 18 owner reports 18 2012-Q4: 19 owner reports 19 2013-Q1: 53 owner reports 53 2013-Q2: 117 owner reports 117 2013-Q3: 190 owner reports 190 2013-Q4: 95 owner reports 95 2014-Q1: 52 owner reports 52 2014-Q2: 32 owner reports 32 2014-Q3: 38 owner reports 38 2014-Q4: 27 owner reports 27 2015-Q1: 36 owner reports 36 2015-Q2: 23 owner reports 23 2015-Q3: 17 owner reports 17 2015-Q4: 31 owner reports 31 2016-Q1: 32 owner reports 32 2016-Q2: 26 owner reports 26 2016-Q3: 38 owner reports 38 2016-Q4: 38 owner reports 38 2017-Q1: 29 owner reports 29 2017-Q2: 14 owner reports 14 2017-Q3: 27 owner reports 27 2017-Q4: 34 owner reports 34 2018-Q1: 59 owner reports 59 2018-Q2: 37 owner reports 37 2018-Q3: 31 owner reports 31 2018-Q4: 49 owner reports 49 2019-Q1: 60 owner reports 60 2019-Q2: 29 owner reports 29 2019-Q3: 24 owner reports 24 2019-Q4: 41 owner reports 41 2020-Q1: 39 owner reports 39 2020-Q2: 17 owner reports 17 2020-Q3: 20 owner reports 20 2020-Q4: 40 owner reports 40 2021-Q1: 41 owner reports 41 2021-Q2: 17 owner reports 17 2021-Q3: 22 owner reports 22 2021-Q4: 21 owner reports 21 2022-Q1: 25 owner reports 25 2022-Q2: 14 owner reports 14 2022-Q3: 16 owner reports 16 2022-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2023-Q1: 24 owner reports 24 2023-Q2: 15 owner reports 15 2023-Q3: 11 owner reports 11 2023-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2024-Q1: 17 owner reports 17 2024-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2024-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2024-Q4: 13 owner reports 13 2025-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2025-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2025-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2025-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2026-Q1: 12 owner reports 12 2026-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2026-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 Owner reports Oct 2008 Jul 2026 Investigation DP12006 ● Investigation DP12006 Investigation DP12006 ● Investigation DP12006 Investigation PE13003 ● Investigation PE13003 Investigation DP15001 ● Investigation DP15001 Investigation DP15001 ● Investigation DP15001 Investigation DP22005 ● Investigation DP22005
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2008-Q4 Owner reports 1
2009-Q1 Owner reports 1
2009-Q2 Owner reports 1
2009-Q3 Owner reports 5
2009-Q4 Owner reports 7
2010-Q1 Owner reports 7
2010-Q2 Owner reports 9
2010-Q3 Owner reports 17
2010-Q4 Owner reports 14
2011-Q1 Owner reports 4
2011-Q2 Owner reports 5
2011-Q3 Owner reports 5
2011-Q4 Owner reports 13
2012-Q1 Owner reports 8
2012-Q2 Owner reports 8
2012-Q3 Owner reports 18
2012-Q4 Owner reports 19
2013-Q1 Owner reports 53
2013-Q2 Owner reports 117
2013-Q3 Owner reports 190
2013-Q4 Owner reports 95
2014-Q1 Owner reports 52
2014-Q2 Owner reports 32
2014-Q3 Owner reports 38
2014-Q4 Owner reports 27
2015-Q1 Owner reports 36
2015-Q2 Owner reports 23
2015-Q3 Owner reports 17
2015-Q4 Owner reports 31
2016-Q1 Owner reports 32
2016-Q2 Owner reports 26
2016-Q3 Owner reports 38
2016-Q4 Owner reports 38
2017-Q1 Owner reports 29
2017-Q2 Owner reports 14
2017-Q3 Owner reports 27
2017-Q4 Owner reports 34
2018-Q1 Owner reports 59
2018-Q2 Owner reports 37
2018-Q3 Owner reports 31
2018-Q4 Owner reports 49
2019-Q1 Owner reports 60
2019-Q2 Owner reports 29
2019-Q3 Owner reports 24
2019-Q4 Owner reports 41
2020-Q1 Owner reports 39
2020-Q2 Owner reports 17
2020-Q3 Owner reports 20
2020-Q4 Owner reports 40
2021-Q1 Owner reports 41
2021-Q2 Owner reports 17
2021-Q3 Owner reports 22
2021-Q4 Owner reports 21
2022-Q1 Owner reports 25
2022-Q2 Owner reports 14
2022-Q3 Owner reports 16
2022-Q4 Owner reports 12
2023-Q1 Owner reports 24
2023-Q2 Owner reports 15
2023-Q3 Owner reports 11
2023-Q4 Owner reports 7
2024-Q1 Owner reports 17
2024-Q2 Owner reports 7
2024-Q3 Owner reports 6
2024-Q4 Owner reports 13
2025-Q1 Owner reports 6
2025-Q2 Owner reports 5
2025-Q3 Owner reports 2
2025-Q4 Owner reports 4
2026-Q1 Owner reports 12
2026-Q2 Owner reports 5
2026-Q3 Owner reports 2
Defect investigation 1 DP12006
Defect investigation 1 DP12006
Defect investigation 1 PE13003
Defect investigation 1 DP15001
Defect investigation 1 DP15001
Defect investigation 1 DP22005
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (0)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

Zero safety recalls recorded for this model year in official NHTSA records.

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 1,841 complaints · page 1 of 74

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources