Overall rating (best variant)
Safety ratings
2026 FORD ESCAPE GAS SUV N/A AWD
- Lane departure warningNo
- Forward collision warningNo
- Electronic stability controlStandard
2026 FORD ESCAPE GAS SUV N/A FWD
- Lane departure warningNo
- Forward collision warningNo
- Electronic stability controlStandard
Crash test videos & photos
No public crash-test footage is available for this vehicle.
Recalls (2)
- SEAT BELTS:REAR/OTHER:RETRACTORCampaign 25V862000 · 12/12/2025
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Corsair and Escape vehicles. The seat belt retractors for the left and right rear passenger seats may not be securely fastened.
Risk: An improperly secured seat belt retractor may not restrain an occupant as intended, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and secure, or replace the seat belt retractor bolts, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 26, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25C68. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on December 15, 2025.
- POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:INTERNAL:PARK PAWLCampaign 26V301000 · 12/05/2026
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2026 Escape and Lincoln Corsair vehicles. The integrated park module may fail to lock into the park position when the driver shifts into park. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Risk: A loss of park function can allow the vehicle to rollaway, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: The Secondary On Board Diagnostic Module C (SOBDMC) software will be updated over-the-air (OTA) or by a dealer, free of charge. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed June 5, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available, anticipated in August 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25C69. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 15, 2026. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 25V863.
Owner complaints
Most-reported areas
- ELECTRICAL SYSTEM2
- ENGINE2
- SERVICE BRAKES1
- FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM1
- VISIBILITY/WIPER1
Read individual complaints (3 most recent)
These are unverified consumer reports filed with NHTSA, shown as submitted.
- 06/14/2026· ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE
Description On your vehicle, the integrated park module ipm may not properly engage the park pawl, preventing the vehicle from locking into park when park p is selected. If this condition occurs, a wrench light and shift system fault message will be displayed in the instrument panel cluster. Additionally, the vehicles electronic parking brake epb will automatically apply. Safety Risk If the park pawl is not properly engaged and the electronic parking brake - epb - is not applied, your vehicle may experience a roll-in-park, increasing the risk of a crash. Remedy A remedy is not yet available. Ford Motor Company is working to provide software for this repair. When the remedy becomes available, Ford Motor Company will notify you via mail to schedule a service appointment with your dealer for repairs to be completed free of charge. The remedy is anticipated to be available July 10, 2026. Next Steps Contact your dealer for more information to schedule the free service.
- 02/25/2026· ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
PHEV sometimes fails to "start". That is, vehicle will not enter "Ready" mode when brake is depressed and Start button is pressed. Instead, 'Refuel Error', 'Stop Safely Now', 'Service AdvancTrac', 'PreCollision Assist Not Available', and several other warnings appear. This only occurs on the first 'start' of the day, when the EV battery has been recharged overnight, indoors. Outdoor use/charging does not have this effect. Concerned that something is overheating during indoor charging. Dealer has not been able to fix.
- 02/24/2026· VISIBILITY/WIPER
My 2026MY Ford Escape is having intermittent rear view camera issues. On two separate occasions in the last week, when I put the vehicle into reverse, there is no image displayed on the center stack screen. The screen was completely blank and did not show what is behind my vehicle. I tried putting the vehicle back into park and then back into reverse and it still did not work. Yesterday, I took the vehicle to my local Ford dealership and was told that there is no recall for this. I worked at Ford for 32 years and I am familiar with the laws governing safety features on passenger vehicles. I am concerned that this is similar issue that was announced recently by Ford on the Bronco Sport. The technician at the Ford dealership said for me to keep driving it until Ford becomes aware of the issue specific to other 2026MY Escapes and then issues a recall and a potential fix. Based on my experience working for the company, this may take several months. I am concerned that this will lead to accidents that could endanger kids, pets, or personal property. Please compel the company to address this quickly. Thanks.