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Ford Escape Hybrid Interior & Passenger Comfort Questions

27 messages,  Last post on Mar 26, 2010 at 3:11 PM

You are in the Ford Escape Hybrid Maintenance & Repair Forum.

What is this discussion about? Ford Escape Hybrid, Heating / Cooling, Interior, SUV

Messages Page 3 of 3

#18 of 27 Re: X#!@%$!!?$## Door Locks [smitty150] by funky_b

Sep 02, 2007 (12:36 pm)

Replying to: smitty150 (Feb 04, 2007 8:59 pm)
My 2008 HEH door locks are possessed. Period. With about 8,000 miles on the odometer of my fully loaded 2x4, and no interaction with the key fob, the doors (all) lock when you open the door when you’re getting out of the vehicle (!). This all started at about 5800 miles. They sometimes lock or unlock when I’m driving down the freeway (!). The dealer has looked at it and they have determined it’s NOT the key fob transmitters as these can be across their dealership and the doors will still lock by themselves when you just open the driver’s door. They can’t believe it, even though they’re standing right there. It happens about 85% of the time. Sometimes, you park the car, take the key out, open the door, and the alarm goes off. Nice.
 
I asked them to completely disable the security system because I feel it’s just a matter of time before I can’t get into the car or are stranded in some desolate desert environ. They say they can’t because when they talked with the Ford engineers in Detroit about this (August 24, 2007), no one can come up with an answer as to why this is happening or what to do about it. They can’t even isolate this problem to the security system, which is why they won’t disable it. (Not even sure they can…) At least for the time being, the key fob still gets me into the car.
 
Oh, and the alarms goes off at the slightest movement when the car is parked. So you constantly have to reset the little red light/button under the steering column. Annoying.
 
Before I sold my 2005 diesel Super Duty and bought this money-saver, I noticed that the Ford website, on the “build your vehicle” site, did not offer a security system. The printed brochure that the dealer gave me when I purchased my FEH showed that no security system available. Gas motor versions showed “available” in both places. Then they hand me the 2008 FEH $100 key fob with the buttons on it, and the window sticker shows a security system installed. This is just truly curious to me.
 
We’ve owned some 18 Fords is a row now and have purchased my last 10 Fords in the last 10 years from the same dealer, same salesman (yeah, he loves me). Is there a diesel VW Passat Wagon in my future? Ford, you tell me.
 
(FYI – here in the Phoenix area, on my 28-mile commute which is 2/3 freeway, I can get about 32 mpg when temperatures are 100 degrees or below, but you really have to pay attention to your driving technique. Above that, I use the gas motor at stoplights a lot and get 28-29. If global warming continues, I’m expecting 26-28 mpg in the hot part of the summer time.)
 
Any ideas? I may just wait to get my $3,000 federal tax rebate and then sell it if it cannot be fixed. You just cannot be stranded in Arizona when your dash temperature gauge reads 117 degrees. I’d bet that this is going to happen eventually. And that 117 temperature has been displayed a lot lately, regardless of what the “official” temperature is on the radio. I won’t let my wife drive the FEH because of this problem.
 
(She’s still driving her 500, which Ford never supported with advertising. We're losing our buns on the value of that Limited 500. Thanks Ford. And do not tell me that the Taurus is “all new”. Please … a grill and some new badges and a motor that really doesn't feel any different and probably gets worse mileage. This is “all new”? ... But this is a different rant altogether.)

#19 of 27 Re: X#!@%$!!?$## Door Locks [funky_b] by mschmal

Sep 04, 2007 (3:54 am)

Replying to: funky_b (Sep 02, 2007 12:36 pm)
You have an after market security system?
 
What redlight/button are you resetting? No Factory alarm system has a reset button. Also the Factory system on the Escape DOES NOT have a shock sensor. The only time it should go off is if someone tries to hotwire the car...and then it shouldn't beep the horn, it should just disable the engine
 
IF you have an aftermarket system then it was probably installed wrong.
 
Mark

#20 of 27 Smitty by smitty150

Sep 04, 2007 (7:47 am)

My only security problem continues to be the d**n door
locks. They lock up as soon as I close the doors.
 
The Owner's Manual has an elaborate routine one can go through to do something to the door locks that may resolve the problem. However, it not only involves hitting several very complicated combinations in a set time, it doesn't do the job.
 
Either I need Van Cliburn to try it or I am doomed to a life of yanking at doors in parking lots and yelling (and I do), "I HATE this car!"
 
Actually, I love the car but this door thing iks a real drag.
 
BTW, has everyone gotten their recall notice on the spontaneous shutdown problem? My dealership knew zip about it.

#21 of 27 FSA for 2005 to 2007 Hybrids by mschmal

Sep 05, 2007 (5:30 am)

Letter hit on August 22.
 
It concerns a possible false diagnostic trouble code. Please call your dealer with your VIN handy and request a service date for Customer Satisfaction Program 07B48.
 
If the service advisor claims ignorance, ask for the service manager.
 
Not sure if this applies to all hybrids or just certin specific VINs.
 
MARK

#22 of 27 Re: X#!@%$!!?$## Door Locks [funky_b] by funky_b

Dec 20, 2007 (5:20 am)

Replying to: funky_b (Sep 02, 2007 12:36 pm)
Wow. 13,000 miles on my FEH with the possessed door locks, in for my 4th dealer visit and would have triggered the AZ Lemon Law the very next morning and the dealer's technician finally thought to inspect inside the driver's door. Broken wire. With my report to them the very first time that I took the vehicle into the dealer that the door lock toggle switch on the driver's sometimes would not operate anything, you'd think they'd have looked there first!
 
So my FEH now has all new computer modules, new key fobs, and countless removals of the dashboard and center console, not including that they ripped the security system out of the car (FORD says that NO FEH should have any security system installed. Thanks Mr. Selling Dealer for installing that without asking and making me pay for it!). I have a car that runs great (34-35 mpg in the desert winter here) and has had way too many hands on it for my taste. And a tan leather interior with grease prints all over it that they can't seem to get out.
 
At this point, I'll just drive the wheels off this thing and see what that new diesel Jetta looks like when it arrives in a few months. This was exasperating, took tons of my time, and left me with a vehicle that I have to learn to trust again. This is all way too bad for Ford. They really needed to get better product information in the dealers hands earlier and check on the unscrupulous dealings of some of their sales staff. I will have a hard time keeping my wife in a Ford in the near future when she rolls out of her 500. All she talks about is getting back into Toyotas due to her past experience with them.
 
P.S. Everyone was correct. The security system was an after-market NON-Ford product that the selling dealer swears was a Ford system that was meant for the car. There is officially NO security system on the FEH and none is allowed to be installed. Ford should have no trouble determining which dealer sold me my FEH and which will NEVER see my face again. And I've told all of my friends about their shady dealings (had to have my purchase contract changed after they added a few thousand dollars to the deal without my knowledge!). I had my old (different) dealer perform all of the maintenance and finally find my problem broken wire.

#23 of 27 Ford dealers. by mschmal

Dec 23, 2007 (9:14 pm)

I use to work at a dealer who did the kind of things to people that you mentioned. With a place that treats their customers bad, you can imagine what they treat their employees like.
 
I now work at a dealer that continues to astonish me with the lengths they go to keep people happy.
 
IMHO, where you buy a car is as important if not more important than what you buy. Over all, Ford dealers do better in customer satisfaction than Toyota dealers who have some of the worse reputations in the industry.
 
Ask around, find a good dealer, and stick with them.
 
Mark.

#25 of 27 Fire / safety issue with a/c line leak for rear battery? by didmi

Mar 25, 2010 (4:51 pm)

On our 2006 Escape Hybrid, we noted a leak near the left, rear wheel from what appeared to be a coolant line. After 2 visits to a dealership, they said it was the auxillary a/c lines leaking for the battery cooling. The lines were corroded through and the vehicle has 36k miles! The service manager said this could be an overheating problem and could cause a fire! But this is not covered by warranty and the cost would be $1000 to $1500! What is Ford's backup to the a/c lines if they leak and don't cool the battery? Why wouldn't Ford cover this item and protect the consumers from the potential safety issue?

#26 of 27 Re: Fire / safety issue with a/c line leak for rear battery? [didmi] by stevedebi

Mar 25, 2010 (5:47 pm)

Replying to: didmi (Mar 25, 2010 4:51 pm)
"On our 2006 Escape Hybrid, we noted a leak near the left, rear wheel from what appeared to be a coolant line. After 2 visits to a dealership, they said it was the auxiliary a/c lines leaking for the battery cooling. The lines were corroded through and the vehicle has 36k miles! The service manager said this could be an overheating problem and could cause a fire! But this is not covered by warranty and the cost would be $1000 to $1500! What is Ford's backup to the a/c lines if they leak and don't cool the battery? Why wouldn't Ford cover this item and protect the consumers from the potential safety issue? "
 
I think that if the battery overheats the vehicle will simply stop - before it catches fire or something like that.
 
I've often wondered how Ford and other hybrid makers could get by with saying that the Aux A/C was not required for the hybrid system to work. Hybrid components are covered for either 8 yrs / 100K or 10 yrs / 150K, depending on the state. It seems to me that if the hybrid components won't work without the aux A/C, Ford should be fixing this stuff under warranty.
 
I've also wondered about the wisdom of Ford routing those aux A/C pipes outside the vehicle chassis. I had assumed they were aluminum and would not corrode. Did they corrode outside the vehicle?

#27 of 27 Re: Fire / safety issue with a/c line leak for rear battery? [stevedebi] by didmi

Mar 26, 2010 (3:11 pm)

Replying to: stevedebi (Mar 25, 2010 5:47 pm)
I didn't see the corrosion myself, but I saw the leak area and it was outside the vehicle.
 
I've sent an email to Ford asking about this situation, but don't have feedback yet.
I'm also going to contact another Ford dealership in the area that will probably be more helpful than the dealerships in Dearborn (Ford's hometown).

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