2017 Ford Escape Visibility & Wipers Problems

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced paint chipping on the roof of the vehicle near the front windshield causing a visibility and safety concern for the driver. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 67,000.

I was driving to work at 7am on Saturday, August 26, 2023- and it was a mild morning... maybe 50 degrees. As I was driving I heard what sounded like a gunshot- and once I was able to gather myself, I realized that my panoramic sunroof had exploded. Outward. Nothing hit the glass- it merely exploded. There is no point of impact from an outside object. I was driving past a cattle ranch- no trees hanging over the road and there were no other vehicles in sight. I was only 2 miles from home and was able to close the sunroof cover and slowly drive home to park in garage. It is available- at our home, currently, if inspection is needed. Glass did fall on me, the driver. Luckily I did not have any passengers with me at the time. And my nerves were shot from the loud sound. We have tried, unsuccessfully, to have our calls returned by Ford. And we are hesitant to reach out to our insurance as we truly feel the manufacturer is at fault here. After doing some research, this seems to be a common problem with many Ford models with panoramic sunroofs. We appreciate you recording this incident- and if you have any advice on how to proceed, that would also be appreciated.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving at an unknown speed with her grandson seated in the rear passenger’s side of the vehicle, the rear passenger’s side window independently started going up and down and her grandson’s arm got closed in the window, causing a minor injury but had not sought medical attention. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the window was fixed; however, several days later while driving with her puppy inside the vehicle, the window independently rolled down almost causing the puppy to jump out the window. The window failed to roll back up as needed. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and the contact notified the dealer of a failure with the button for the window on the driver’s side. The window switch was replaced; however, the failure recurred. The contact stated that after arriving at the residence the window rolled up independently. The contact inquired about NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V617000 (Visibility, Electrical System) however, the VIN was not included. The contact paid out of pocket for the switch replacement. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was advised to file a complaint with the NHSTA Hotline. The failure mileage was 57,187.

DURING FIRST WEEK IN MARCH 2020, LOW WINDSHIELD FLUID LIGHT CAME ON, TRIED TO REFILL BUT WILL NOT HOLD FLUID LEAKS ON GROUND. CAR ONLY HAS 56000 MILES, WITHOUT THIS IT MAKES MORE DIFFICULTE TO SEE OUT. THIS UNIT TAKES UP TO 3.5 HOURS TO REPLACE. IT MAY NOT BE VERY CRITICAL TO SAFETY BUT I DON'T EXPECT MANY TO BE REPLACED AT THIS PRICE.

THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY EARLY FEB. 2019 THE WIPERS WOULD "HIT" EACH OTHER AND GET STUCK ON THE WINDSHIELD UNTIL THEY WOULD FINALLY RETRACT DOWN TO THE OFF POSITION. DEALER REPLACED THE WIPER MOTORS. AFTER ABOUT 1 - 1 1/2 WEEKS LATER THE SAME THING HAPPENED. TOOK VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE THEY ADJUSTED THE ALIGNMENT OF THE WIPERS AND TIGHTENING A NUT IN THE INTERMITTENT WIPER SWITCH. ON 3/23/19 THE WIPERS AGAIN GOT "STUCK" IN AN UPRIGHT POSITION ON THE WINDSHIELD AND "STUTTERED" VERY SLOWLY ON THE WINDSHIELD UNTIL THEY FINALLY RETRACTED DOWN INTO THE OFF POSITION. THE FIRST INCIDENT THE VEHICLE WAS IN A STATIONARY POSITION WARMING UP IN THE DRIVEWAY. THE SECOND INCIDENT HAPPENED WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS MOVING IN A HEAVY RAIN ON A CITY STREET. THE 3RD INCIDENT HAPPENED AGAIN WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY.

WIPERS INTERMITTENTLY INTERFERE WITH EACH OTHER 1-10 TIMES IN A ROW THEN WORK FINE. SOMETIMES WIPER WILL EXTEND OFF THE WINDSHIELD ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE (L) TO THE POINT THE WIPER BLADE CAN BE SEEN FROM THE DRIVER'S SIDE WINDOW. DEALER NOT ABLE TO FIND FAULT. FILED COMPLAINT WITH FORD. CLOSED CASE WITHOUT RESOLUTION. DEALER NOW INVOLVED BUT NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. FORD NOT WILLING TO RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. THIS IS A DRIVING VISIBILITY SAFETY CONCERN.

WIPER ARMS STRIKE BODY ON EITHER SIDE ON RANDOM CYCLE TIMES. DEALER STATES VEHICLE NEEDS WIPER ARMS TIMING ADJUSTED TO PREVENT STRIKING OF THE BODY. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD AS THE REPEATED STRIKING OF THE VEHICLE BODY CAN CAUSE THE WIPER BLADE TO FAIL OVER TIME, RESULTING IN DECREASED OR LOST VISIBILITY, POSSIBLY LEADING TO A VEHICLE CRASH. THE ISSUE ALSO CAUSES COSMETIC DAMAGE NOT RELEVANT TO SAFETY PERFORMANCE. VEHICLE IS SCHEDULED FOR REPAIRS ON APRIL 3, 2017.

WHILE DRIVING ON I-81 NORTH IN PA, THE INSIDE LAYER OF THE WINDSHIELD DEVELOPED A SMALL CRACK AT THE BOTTOM OF THE GLASS. NOTHING HIT THE GLASS. THERE ARE NO CHIPS OR OTHER MARKS. ON MONDAY 2/20/17 I STOPPED AT THE FORD DEALERSHIP AND SPOKE WITH THE MANAGER. BECAUSE THE CRACK WAS INSIDE THE VEHICLE, AND THE OUTSIDE LAYER WAS NOT CRACKED, THE MANAGER BELIEVED IT WOULD BE COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THE DEALER TOOK SEVERAL PICTURES, AND CALLED ME WHILE I WAS DRIVING HOME TO ASK ME TO COME BACK SO THAT THEY COULD TAKE MORE PICTURES BECAUSE FORD WAS NOT SATISFIED WITH WHAT THE TOOK. A DAY LATER THEY ASKED ME TO COME TO THE DEALERSHIP AGAIN BECAUSE FORD WANTED EVEN MORE PICTURES. ON 2/24/17 FORD AGREED TO COVER THE REPLACEMENT UNDER WARRANTY. EACH DAY THE CRACK HAS INCREASED IN LENGTH. THE CRACK APPEARS TO HAVE STARTED NEAR THE "NEW FOR 2017" WIPER DE-ICER ELEMENT. A CRACKING WINDOW IS NOT STRUCTURALLY SOUND AND CAN MOST DEFINITELY PUT THE DRIVER AND PASSENGERS AT RISK OF INJURY.