The 2012 Ford Escape has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 329,265 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 792 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the fuel/propulsion system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2010-2012 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured February 26, 2009, to April 29, 2012, and 2010-2011 Mercury Mariner vehicles manufactured February 25, 2009, to December 12, 2010. On vehicles with a 3.0L engine, the Fuel Delivery Module (FDM) may crack, causing a…
Consequence
A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source increases the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the FDM flange with one that has a redesigned fuel supply port, free of charge. Remedy parts are currently unavailable. Interim notices were mailed to owners on December 13, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may…
Complaints by component
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
137
2crashes1fires1injuries
STEERING
136
3crashes2injuries
ENGINE
72
3crashes
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
69
7crashes3injuries
POWER TRAIN
63
3crashes2injuries
STRUCTURE:BODY
55
5crashes1fires1injuries
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
44
1crashes
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
39
1crashes1fires
AIR BAGS
24
19crashes1fires17injuries
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
22
Total complaints792
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“No power steering hard to turn left and right”
“Vehicle: 2012 ford escape issue: loss of steering assist while driving while operating my vehicle, the power steering assist suddenly fails, making the steering wheel extremely difficult to turn. This creates a dangerous driving condition and significantly increases the risk of an accident. This…”
“Vehicle: 2012 ford escape issue: loss of steering assist while driving while operating my vehicle, the power steering assist suddenly fails, making the steering wheel extremely difficult to turn. This creates a dangerous driving condition and significantly increases the risk of an accident. This…”
“The contact owns a 2012 ford escape. The contact stated that after refueling the vehicle, there was a strong fuel-like odor entering the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of…”
“The contact owns a 2012 ford escape. The contact stated that while driving at 30 mph, the steering wheel locked. The contact used force to turn the steering wheel while driving to the residence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who inspected the…”
“Took my mothers car to the ford dealership for inspection. Upon inspection the mechanic told us that the subframe is rotted out and that it is not safe to drive which is why there was issues with steering and tire leaning due to control arm coming off subframe. This vehicle has been taken care of…”
“I was driving approximately 35mph and the steering got extremely difficult. I had to use all my strength to try to turn the wheel. I pulled into a gas station parking lot, turned the car off, restarted the car and steering was back to normal. Has happened 2 times since. I had a mechanic friend…”
“In other year models the power steering sensor has been under recall. I have a 2012 ford escape. That randomly the power steering does out this part has been replaced twice with no ultimately fixing the issue. It’s so dangerous when your driving 75 on the highway and the power steering goes out…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationDP12006 Opened 2012-10-02 · closed 2013-02-21
Electronic Throttle Body Malfunction
In a letter dated August 30, 2012, The North Carolina Consumers Council (NCCC) petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to initiate a defect investigation of alleged electronic throttle body failures resulting in engine stall or surge while driving in model year (MY) 2005 through 2012…
InvestigationPE13003 Opened 2013-02-21 · closed 2014-02-28
Electronic Throttle Body Malfunction
On February 21, 2013, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE13-003 to investigate allegations of electronic throttle body (ETB) failures resulting in sudden reduction of engine power in model year (MY) 2009-2013 Ford Escape, Fusion, Mariner and Milan vehicles. During this…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2012 Ford Escape as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.