Ford Recalls 345K Escapes, Bronco Sports for Oil Leaks That Can Start a Fire
Affected owners will be notified around mid-April.
Ford has recalled 345,451 vehicles equipped with its 1.5-liter EcoBoost engine due to a potential fire risk. These cars, consisting of the Escape and Bronco Sport crossovers, could have a problem with their oil separator housings that causes oil leaks. In turn, the leak could run onto hot engine components and lead to a fire.
In documents submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there have been 15 reported oil leaks and/or fires. Fortunately, no injuries or fatalities have resulted from those. Ford notes that drivers may smell oil while driving or see smoke coming from under the hood; if that's the case, it's best to park the car.
The potential problem affects 2020-2022 Ford Escapes built between Nov. 19, 2018, and March 1, 2022. It looks like all 2021-2022 Bronco Sports manufactured with the 1.5-liter engine until recently are involved, as the dates run from Feb. 5, 2020, to March 4, 2022.
The fix will be free to owners, and the cars will need to be taken into a dealership. If the oil separator housings are found to be damaged or malfunctioning, they'll be replaced. Owners should receive notice of the recall via mail around April 18.
Ford issued a separate recall for 391,836 of its pickups—including the F-150, Super Duty, and Maverick—as well as its Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs. There are software issues that can cause problems with trailer braking on some of these vehicles, and it can allegedly result in the car not signaling the trailer brakes to take action/ These issues, likewise, have caused no injuries, fatalities, or accidents in the 67 reports of improper function.
Just the same, affected owners will need to take their trucks to the dealer for the fix. This only requires a simple flash for the integrated trailer brake control module, so no hardware needs to be replaced. Affected owners will also be notified via mail around April 18.
Got a tip or question for the author? You can reach them here: peter@thedrive.com
