Ford Escort Electrical Problems

Electrical complaints by model year

Which parts fail

• Wiring
  46
• Horn
  39
• Ignition
  35
• Ignition › Switch
  21
• Wiring › Interior/under dash
  18
• Wiring › Front underhood
  17
• Wiring › Fuses and circuit breakers
  10
• Alternator/generator/regulator
  9

Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  48%
• 25k–50k
  36%
• 50k–75k
  1735%
• 75k–100k
  1633%
• 100k–150k
  816%
• 150k+
  12%

What owners report

I currently own 2 (two) 2001 Ford Escort se. Both have the same electrical fire hazard and I have had to replace the blower motor resistor connector, blower motor resistor as well as the wiring harnesses and connector, the connectors melted and wiring burnt up.

I was at the store with my son (12 years old) and my grandson (3 years old), when we went to leave the key would not turn and the steering wheel was locked up. It was very cold outside, after about an hour I got ahold of someone to come pick us up. When I got home I did some internet research and found out this is a common issue and no recall? No car, can't pick my daughter up at her friend's house (she is stranded), can't take my grandson home and have to figure out a way to work tomorrow. This is a major safety issue leaving people stranded without warning. Especially if there are health issues or children involved. My dad is 73 and loves Ford, he was surprised and disappointed about this also. What is Ford thinking?.. Greed and money.

On numerous ocassions from August, 2002 through the present (February 7, 2004), we have had the fuses labelled "stop" and "hazard" have blown while driving. This results in the following failures: (1) when the "stop" fuse blows, the stop lights do not function (which is unknown to the driver and May result in a crash if the person following does not realize when the car has its brakes applied); (2) the "stop" fuse blowing also causes the shift lock to not function, rendering the car undrivable unless the override is applied; (3) when the "hazard" fuse blows, this results in an immediate stalling of the car, which is extremely dangerous if it occurs in traffic and could cause a fatality; (4) the "hazard" fuse blowing also results in the turn signals and the hazard lights failing to function, so other drivers do not even know there is a problem. …

Car starts driving rough and shaking. First time at 350 miles and they replaced fuel pump and something else to do with gas. Second time at 1215 they replaced the spark plugs. Third time at 1600 miles they couldn't determine what was happening or causing but quessed something to do with 3rd cyclinder. They drove it till it happened again around 1900 with a black box and it showed everything it was doing. They have decided to replace the whole motor. We want a different car but they so far won't do that. This started at 350 miles and seems to happen about everytime we refuel and drive a far distance. During the week it only goes short trips in town. How lemony does it have to be???

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Ford Escort. The contact stated that the rear heater blower failed and sparks were shooting from the wiring harness. The contact was able to disconnect the harness before a fire ignited. The contact located a manufacturers recall for defective wiring of the defroster system, in which he believed to be the cause of the failure, but did not confirm if there were any recalls on his particular vehicle. The vehicle was neither inspected nor repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileage was 105,000.

On 06/30/99 at 02:10 hours the crystal fire department responded to a vehicle fire in the back lot of elk county Ford. The department found a new, 1999 Ford Escort se (VIN #[redacted]) burning in the area of the left front tire and wheel well area. The cause of the fire was determined to be a short in the wiring in the vicinity of a "block" of relays and fuses in the left side of the engine compartment. This caused the wiring to burn and ignited nearby plastic items and the left front tire. The vehicle was just manufactured (June 1999) and had only been sitting on the lot for about 5 days. The vehicle had not been operated recently (2:00 am in a small community car dealership). Although the vehicle did not belong to any consumer, this report is being filed in order to document a potential problem. [redacted] , fire chief, crystal fire department.

My daughter was on her way to work , when she called me & said "dad my car has loss power & is running very rough". I told her to pull over & I would be there shortly, since she was only about 8 miles down the road. As I was prepairing to leave, my daughter called me back & said there was a fire under the hood. I told her to call 911 and get away from the car. It took me less than 10 minutes to get there & by that time the firemen had put the fire out. The car was totaled. The car had been running great, with no problems at all.

My son was involved in an accident in which another vehicle hit his vehicle on the passenger side while he was making a left turn. My son's car spun 90 degrees and landed on the side of an embankment. The car did not flip and landed right side up. Both airbags deployed. My son noticed smoke coming from the right side of the vehicle. Luckily, he was not knocked unconsious and was able to get out of the car quickly. Within less than 5 minutes, he noticed flames coming from the floorboard on the passenger side. The car was totally engulfed in flames within 10-15 minutes. If this accident had happened on a remote road and my son would of been injured more seriously, and not been able to get out of his car, and would have burned to death. I don't know what caused the car to start on fire. Even the insurance adjuster said the car shouldn't have started on fire.