2002 Ford Escape XLT V6 from North America

Summary:

It is an all around good car and would buy it again!

Faults:

My rotors needed replacing at 100,000km.

A U-joint on the 4x4 shaft went bad. (I just took the shaft off and left it off 2x4 now).

The parking brake light and ABS light now stay on constantly.

General Comments:

This has been a great car for my family. We go through all 4 seasons and have had great luck with it. I figure myself to be very lucky after reading of every ones comments and am going for 300,000km!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 15th January, 2009

2002 Ford Escape XLT from North America

Summary:

High cost to repair at only 5 years old, will never buy another Ford

Faults:

I bought the car used in 2004. The transmission blew at 100,000 miles in July '07. The cost to repair was $3200.

The catalytic converter blew in July '08. The cost to repair this problem will cost me $2200.

General Comments:

The reviews on this vehicle were great so I thought it would be a great SUV for my needs.

I love the truck, however I have had nothing but serious problems with the transmission and now the catalytic converter.

The cost to fix the transmission was over $3000.

The cost to fix the catalytic converters (yes, there are THREE) is $2200.

A vehicle should not require $5000+ maintenance work to be done on it after such a short period of time.

I will never buy another Ford.

Ford doesn't stand behind their product and with all the problems people have had with the transmission and catalytic converters, they should recall them.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 5th August, 2008

6th Aug 2008, 07:08

Ford transmissions fitted to small/medium sized cars will usually never last much longer than 100K miles, maybe 150K if you are lucky. Ford made crappy transmissions 20 years ago. They made crappy transmissions 10 years ago, and they still make crappy transmissions. Remember the Taurus or the Probe auto transmissions in the nineties? I'd say 80-85% failed before 150K. Some as low as 60K. And a used Ford with a failed transmission usually meant that it was a write off. And people shopped elsewhere after that.

2002 Ford Escape XLT 3.0 V6 Gas from North America

Summary:

Best small 4X4 SUV on the road

Faults:

Overall, this car has had no major problems. The only relevant problem was a circuit that shorted out and our speedometer didn't start working until around 30 mph. Also, the tip on the gear shift came loose, but that's just a cosmetic item, nothing important.

The brake line has a leak in it somewhere and we can't find it. Not a problem though, it's very small and break fluid is cheap.

General Comments:

The vehicle has very good get-up-and-go. The gas took a little while to get used to, it's very touchy. The seats are very durable (could be more comfortable) and the interior is well designed.

It's been on at least five 1,000+ mile trips and hasn't failed us yet. The fuel mileage around town iso only 11-13, a little disappointing. On the highway at 60-65 we average about 23 mpg.

Great winter vehicle also. Never has a problem with traction or braking.

One thing: I recommend sedan tires for this vehicle. Our escape has truck tires and they are very loud on the highway.

Overall, it's an excellent vehicle.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 1st July, 2008

2002 Ford Escape XLT V6 from North America

Summary:

Worst car I've had

Faults:

Transmission had to be replaced when it was three years old.

Will not start half of the time. Have had it to the dealership several times for the same problem.

Airbag sensor had to be replaced.

Paint started peeling on the back hatch a couple of years ago and now is peeling on the hood.

General Comments:

This is the worst car that I have ever bought brand new. I have a couple of different Ford vehicles that haven't given me any problem, but unfortunately, this one has been one problem after another.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 8th January, 2008

2002 Ford Escape XLT 3.0 6 cylinder from North America

Summary:

This car is not worth it. Buy something else

Faults:

When I first bought this Escape, I had it one day and the steering wheel actually broke off. I should have had them replace the car!

At 5000kms only, I had them replace the CD Player.

At 20,000kms they did several recalls and replaced the brake rotors.

It took them 3 times to get the steering wheel back on properly all the while arguing that there was nothing wrong with it, like I didn't know what I was talking about. I just wanted it back the way it was!

Right after the warranty expired, the ABS computer just quit and had to be replaced. Cost $1200.00!

Tie rods had to be replaced twice. Brake rotors warping three times needed to be replaced.

It was about this time the rear windshield wiper motor quit working as well as the drivers side control module for the windows.

Then the heat control knob just broke when I was turning the heat on one day and get this... it broke inside the dash. To fix it, it needs a whole new unit!

Now at 250,000kms my transmission is gone! Looking at over $3000.00 to fix it.

I spoke to Ford about these problems and quality issues and they said they would do nothing to help. I asked if they stood behind their product and they said yes. I said if you stood behind your product you would fix these issues. No help at all.

General Comments:

Quality is terrible for the price. They use cheap parts in the interior and charge big to fix them.

This is a poor car in my opinion and it will be the last time I ever buy a Ford. I never had these issues with my Japanese cars.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 8th January, 2008

11th Jan 2008, 22:19

Something fishy about this review... Broken knobs, warped rotors, blown transmission at low miles; it all points to somebody who doesn't know how to treat a car.

Also, if this were a new car, it would have at least had a 3 year/36,000 mile warranty, but he talks about the warranty going out sometime after 20,000 kilometers, which is way short of 36,000 miles. Maybe he bought it from a used car dealer, in which case he was ripped off and bought some wreck that had probably been cobbled together.

29th Apr 2008, 23:18

Warped rotors? Warped rotors are a sign of the DRIVER, not the car! It sounds like someone is very hard on a car and that ANY car would have problems.

1st Sep 2009, 20:47

I used to work in the auto industry and can vouch that these Escapes have awful brakes. To the comments above, you honestly think rotors wearing out before pads are the drivers fault?

16th Feb 2011, 15:32

Rotors wearing before pads shows that someone either specified or fitted pads too hard for the rotors. Or the batch of steel used for the rotors was not up to spec.

Or were they aftermarket pads, not the correct spec for the car?

21st May 2011, 10:54

I also own a 2002 Escape, which now has 145,000 miles on it. Has been a tremendously reliable vehicle. In fact I was so impressed with it that I bought a 05 Escape (135K) for one of my kids, and am in the process of probably purchasing another one too.

The best, most reliable vehicles I have ever owned personally.