2020 FORD ESCAPE — Complaint #2173665
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about ELECTRICAL SYSTEM filed February 5, 2026
NHTSA complaint #2173665 (ODI reference 11715848) concerns a 2020 FORD ESCAPE and was filed on February 5, 2026. The owner reports the failure occurred on November 13, 2025. The report was geocoded to New York based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as electrical system, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: no, fire: no, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. No crash, fire, or fatality was associated with this report, which places it in the early-warning stream rather than the priority-review stream. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same FORD ESCAPE cohort independently describe similar electrical system failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2020 FORD ESCAPE shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
Summary of Problem: Following the mandatory software update for NHTSA Recall 22V859 (Ford 22S73) on my 2020 Ford Escape 1.5L, the vehicle experienced a catastrophic electrical failure. The vehicle is now subject to the expanded NHTSA Recall 25V467 (Ford 25S76) with a status of 'Remedy Not Available'. Safety Failures: Continuous Overcharging: A multimeter test confirms the alternator is overcharging at 15.5V or higher, posing a severe risk of battery explosion or vehicle fire. Safety System Collapse: The overvoltage has forced multiple safety modules into 'fail-safe' mode, disabling the Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Traction Control, and AWD Powertrain. Network Communication Failure: Diagnostic reports confirm a U3000 critical control module fault and 'Lost Communication' with the Battery Energy Control Module, indicating a software-induced network collapse. Undriveable Status: The vehicle has been unusable for over 30 days and cannot pass NY State Inspection due to persistent EVAP an
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 2173665 |
| ODI Number | 11715848 |
| Date Filed | February 5, 2026 |
| Failure Date | November 13, 2025 |
| VIN | 1FMCU9G61LU |
Similar ELECTRICAL SYSTEM Complaints for 2020 FORD ESCAPE
For months, I have had restraints indicator lamp warning, specifically for the driver seatbelt buckle sensor circuit, as well as one notification for a fault with the occupant classification system wh
The transmission shifting got increasingly rough over time, and then suddenly refused to shift into gear/reverse. The Ford shop told us it was the reverse solenoid, but it ended up requiring a full t
The vehicle is subject to an open federal safety recall involving a fuel injector that may crack and leak fuel onto the top of the engine. According to NHTSA, liquid fuel or fuel vapor may accumulate
The AWD module failed with less than 60,000 miles on the vehicle. I live in the Northeast and we get some brutal weather, especially snowstorms. I believe this part should be under a broader recall
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact stated that the infotainment system screen had turned off while driving, requiring the contact to pull over to the side of the road. The contact stated
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.