Owner-reported complaints naming the transmission system, filed with NHTSA
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Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 1997 Ford Escort submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 22 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
MY MOM BOUGHT THE CAR, CERTIFIED USED, WITH ONLY 16,000 MILES ON IT. AS IT NEARED 37,000 MILES IT NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION. I HAD TO PAY FOR IT. AFTER THAT THE TRANSMISSION HAD TO BE REPLACED 2 MORE TIMES BEFORE IT REACHED 70,000 MILES.
CONSUMER STATED VEHICLE WILL NOT SHIFT GEARS PROPERLY. DEALER INDICATED TRANSMISSION MALFUNCTIONED. *AK
CONSUMER COMPLAINED ABOUT TRANSMISSION AXLE SLIPPAGE AND DEFECTIVE BRAKE PROBLEMS. VEHICLE VIBRATED WHEN ACCELERATING. CONSUMER HAD THE VEHICLE INSPECTED BY A PRIVATE MECHANIC. *AK
I WAS DRIVING MY 1997 FORD ESCORT AT 70MPH DOWN INTERSTATE 75 WHEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE WHEELS LOCKED UP. HERE TO FIND OUT THE TRANSMISSION WAS WHAT LOCKED UP THE GEARS JUST LOCKED UP TIGHT CAUSING THE WHEELS TO LOCK. I AM 48 YEARS OLD AND HAVE A CDL DRIVERS LICENSE. I DRIVE A 40FT. BOOKMOBILE EVERYDAY FOR A LIVING. MY COMPLAINT IS FORD NEEDS TO LOOK INTO THIS BECAUSE A LESS EXPERIANCED DRIVER WOULD HAVE ROLLED THE CAR OR BEEN RUN OVER BY OTHER TRAFFIC. I HAD THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED WITH A USED ONE AT A COST OF 887.24. I CONTACTED FORD 2 TIMES AND THEY DO NOT CARE. JUST TOLD ME THERE WAS NO RECALL SO THE PROBLEM WAS ALL MINE.*AK
I HAVE A 1997 FORD ESCORT. AT APPROXIMATELY. 37,000 MILES THE TRANSMISSION REQUIRED SERVICE. TOOK CAR TO BOARD FORD IN WHITTIER, CA. TWO DAYS AFTER SERVICE THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. BOARD FORD ALLOWED AN ESP FOR POWER TRAIN AND REPLACED TRANSMISSION. AT TIME OF REPLACEMENT, BOARD FORD INDICATED THE NEW POWER TRAIN WAS WARRANTED FOR 75,000 MILES. AT APPROXIMATELY 45,000 MILES ON THE NEW POWER TRAIN, IT LITERALLY EXPLODED FROM THE INSIDE OUT (COMPLETELY CRACKED THE CORE). CALLED BOARD FORD AND FORD MOTOR AND WAS TOLD THAT BECAUSE THE CAR HAS 80,000 MILES ON IT, THE POWER TRAIN WASN'T WARRANTED EVEN THOUGH THE POWER TRAIN ONLY HAS 45,000.00 MILES ON IT.*JB
CONSUMER PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. WITHIN THE SAME WEEK THE VEHICLE DEMONSTRATED PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSMISSION, CONSUMER STATES THE VEHICLE IS OF NO SERVICE TO HER. *JG
I DO NOT DRIVE MY ESCORT "WILD" I TRY TO TAKE CARE OF MY CAR. I HAVE CONTACTED THE COMPANY TO GET IT REPAIRED; THEY ONLY COVER PART'S. I AM FIGHTING THE WARRANTY COMPANY THAT CANCELLED ME; THAT PAID FOR THIS AT THE TIME.NO SAFETY DEFECT LISTED. *AK
VEHICLE CAN BE PUT INTO GEARS WITHOUT APPLYING BRAKES, ALSO, AT TIMES GEARS WILL NOT RELEASE FROM PARK POSITION, CAUSE UNKNOWN. DEALER CANNOT IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
HOW CAN A DEALERSHIP NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THE MOTOR/TRANSMISSION ARE BOTH FOREIGN ITEMS. IF I WANTED TO PURCHASE A FOREIGN CAR I WOULD HAVE. AND FOR BOTH MOTOR REPLACEMENT COST $2600 AND TRANSMISSION $2800 TO GO OUT THE SAME TIME. ISN'T THERE SOME LAW THAT STATES A DEALERSHIP/MFG MUST ACKNOWLEDGE THE TYPE OF EQUIPMENT (PARTS) BEING USED IN A AUTOMOBILE??
WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY WITHOUT WARNING VEHICLE WILL COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN, CAUSE UNKNOWN. *AK THE DEALER HAD REPLACED THE TRANSMISSION TWICE. *YH
ENGINE CHECK LIGHT WILL COME ON WHEN OPERATING VEHICLE FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME OR CLIMBING A HILL. *AK THE TRANSMISSION FAILED TWICE AND WAS REPLACED BY THE DEALER. BUT THE TRANSMISSION'S ERRATIC SHIFT UPHILL AND CHECK THE ENGINE SOON LIGHT CONTINUED. *YH
EVERYTIME WHEN IN PARK CONSUMER IS NOT ABLE TO DISENGAGE THE SHIFT LEVER GEAR. IN THE OWNER'S MANUAL IT TELLS CONSUMER WHICH SCREWDRIVER TO USE IN ORDER TO RELEASE OVERDRIVE. *AK
CONSUMER WAS GETTING READY TO MAKE A LEFT HAND TURN AND PARTS OF THE TRANSMISSION STARTED TO FALL OFF. CONSUMER COULD HEAR THE PARTS FALLING OFF, AND CAR STOPPED. VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED . MECHANIC TOLD CONSUMER THAT IT WAS PARTS OF THE TRANSMISSION THAT FELL OFF. *AK
CAR WAS TOWED TO LOCAL STATION AS DEALER COULD NOT FIND THE PROBLEM. WE UNDERSTAND THAT WE PURCHASE ONE OF THE LAST SELECTOR SHAFT ASSEMBLY SHIFTERS AVAILABLE. TOTAL COST: $349.00.
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE VIBRATES AND JERKS AND HESITATES WHEN SHIFTING GEARS. DEALER CANNOT IDENTIFY THE CAUSE. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE JERKS OR VIBRATES AND HESITATES WHEN SHIFTING GEARS. DEALER CANNOT IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
TRANSMISSION HAS PREMATURELY MALFUNCTIONED AND BURNED OUT, HAS BEEN REPLACED FOUR TIMES. *AK
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE DIED AND HAD A FIRE IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE. ANOTHER TIMES, THE TRANSMISSION FELL OUT WITHOUT WARNING. AFTER REPAIRS, THE VEHICLE STARTED MAKING NOISES AND WAS SLOW TO TAKE OFF. VEHICLE WAS TRADED IN. *AK.ET.
MANUAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE.
TEN TRANSMISSION FAILURES. QCAW
THE GEAR SHIFT HANDLE SAFETY LOCK DOES NOT PERFORM ITS FUNCTION. BY INADVERTENTLY TOUCHING THE HANDLE, THE GEAR CHANGED WITHOUT PRESSING THE SAFETY LOCK ON THE HANDLE.
THE GEAR SHIFT HANDLE SAFETY LOCK FAILED.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .