1999 FORD ESCORT — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 316 complaints · 2 recalls
Most-reported system: AIR BAGS (62 complaints · 19.6%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 78
  • Fires 11
  • Injuries 54
  • Deaths 3
Compare with 1998 →
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 AIR BAGS appears in 62 of 316 owner complaints (19.6%) in this vehicle snapshot. AIR BAGS: 62 complaints, 19.6% of reports AIR BAGS 62 · 19.6% · 54 crash reports 3 fire reports ENGINE: 49 complaints, 15.5% of reports ENGINE 49 · 15.5% SUSPENSION: 36 complaints, 11.4% of reports SUSPENSION 36 · 11.4% · 1 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 29 complaints, 9.2% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 29 · 9.2% · 2 crash reports 5 fire reports POWER TRAIN: 28 complaints, 8.9% of reports POWER TRAIN 28 · 8.9% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 19 complaints, 6.0% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 19 · 6.0% · 4 crash reports SEAT BELTS: 13 complaints, 4.1% of reports SEAT BELTS 13 · 4.1% · 7 crash reports STEERING: 13 complaints, 4.1% of reports STEERING 13 · 4.1% · 3 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 10 complaints, 3.2% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 10 · 3.2% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 247 complaints, 78.2% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 247 · 78.2% · 61 crash reports 9 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)
AIR BAGS 62 19.6% 54 crashes · 3 fires
ENGINE 49 15.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 36 11.4% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 29 9.2% 2 crashes · 5 fires
POWER TRAIN 28 8.9% 2 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 19 6.0% 4 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 13 4.1% 7 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 13 4.1% 3 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 10 3.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 247 78.2% 61 crashes · 9 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 1998; the first recall shown was reported in Oct 1999. 1998-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 1999-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 1999-Q3: 25 owner reports 25 1999-Q4: 20 owner reports 20 2000-Q1: 16 owner reports 16 2000-Q2: 14 owner reports 14 2000-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2000-Q4: 15 owner reports 15 2001-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2001-Q2: 10 owner reports 10 2001-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2001-Q4: 11 owner reports 11 2002-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2002-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2002-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2002-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2003-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2003-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2004-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2004-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2004-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2004-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q1: 11 owner reports 11 2005-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2005-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2006-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2006-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2007-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2008-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2008-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2008-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Oct 1998 Apr 2019 Recall campaign 99V276000 ◆ Recall campaign 99V276000 Recall campaign 04E048000 ◆ Recall campaign 04E048000 Investigation DP01001 ● Investigation DP01001
  • Campaign 99V276000 was reported 52 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 04E048000 was reported 1,732 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1998-Q4 Owner reports 2
1999-Q1 Owner reports 10
1999-Q2 Owner reports 7
1999-Q3 Owner reports 25
1999-Q4 Owner reports 20
2000-Q1 Owner reports 16
2000-Q2 Owner reports 14
2000-Q3 Owner reports 10
2000-Q4 Owner reports 15
2001-Q1 Owner reports 13
2001-Q2 Owner reports 10
2001-Q3 Owner reports 10
2001-Q4 Owner reports 11
2002-Q1 Owner reports 7
2002-Q2 Owner reports 7
2002-Q3 Owner reports 10
2002-Q4 Owner reports 5
2003-Q1 Owner reports 10
2003-Q2 Owner reports 2
2003-Q3 Owner reports 6
2003-Q4 Owner reports 10
2004-Q1 Owner reports 8
2004-Q2 Owner reports 7
2004-Q3 Owner reports 6
2004-Q4 Owner reports 4
2005-Q1 Owner reports 11
2005-Q2 Owner reports 2
2005-Q3 Owner reports 7
2005-Q4 Owner reports 2
2006-Q1 Owner reports 3
2006-Q2 Owner reports 6
2006-Q3 Owner reports 4
2006-Q4 Owner reports 2
2007-Q2 Owner reports 2
2007-Q3 Owner reports 3
2007-Q4 Owner reports 3
2008-Q1 Owner reports 2
2008-Q2 Owner reports 5
2008-Q3 Owner reports 1
2009-Q1 Owner reports 1
2009-Q3 Owner reports 2
2009-Q4 Owner reports 2
2010-Q2 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 1
2010-Q4 Owner reports 1
2012-Q1 Owner reports 1
2012-Q2 Owner reports 1
2012-Q3 Owner reports 1
2014-Q2 Owner reports 2
2014-Q3 Owner reports 1
2017-Q1 Owner reports 1
2017-Q2 Owner reports 1
2017-Q4 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 99V276000
Recall campaign 1 04E048000
Defect investigation 1 DP01001
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (2)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 04E048000

    Report date
    Component:
    SEAT BELTS
    Consequence:
    IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, THE RESTRAINT SYSTEM MAY NOT PROVIDE ADEQUATE PROTECTION TO THE SEAT OCCUPANT, WHICH MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF PERSONAL INJURY.
    Remedy:
    TRW WILL NOTIFY THE CUSTOMERS WHO PURCHASED THE REPLACEMENT SEAT BELT ASSEMBLIES FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 27, 2004.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 99V276000

    Report date
    Component:
    POWER TRAIN
    Consequence:
    THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE AWARE OF THE TRANSMISSION POSITION OF THE VEHICLE.
    Remedy:
    OWNERS WILL BE PROVIDED WITH AN ADHESIVE BACKED PLAQUE CONTAINING THE SHIFT PATTERN, ALONG WITH MATERIALS AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR LOCATING AND AFFIXING THE PLAQUE TO THE VEHICLE CENTER CONSOLE, JUST FORWARD OF THE SHIFT LEVER. OWNERS WILL ALSO BE ADVISED THAT THEIR DEALER CAN AFFIX THE PLAQUE IF THEY PREFER.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
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 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 316 complaints · page 1 of 13

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 2026-08-21
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