2016 Ford Escape Steering Problems
Owners have filed 73 complaints with NHTSA about steering problems on the 2016 Ford Escape, 6% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 41,900 miles. The words owners use most often: “steering assist” (37% of reports).
- 73steering complaints
- 41,900median miles at failure
- 4mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- 32%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Steering assist: mentioned in 27 of 73 complaints (37%)
- Fault service: mentioned in 5 of 73 complaints (7%)
- Wheel locked: mentioned in 5 of 73 complaints (7%)
At what mileage do steering problems happen?
Based on 47 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 73 complaints, 4 mention a crash.
Ford Escape steering complaints by model year
| Model year | Steering complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Escape | 2 | 8% | — |
| 2022 Escape | 6 | 3% | — |
| 2021 Escape | 4 | 1% | 14,000 |
| 2020 Escape | 18 | 1% | 12,450 |
| 2019 Escape | 16 | 3% | 35,600 |
| 2018 Escape | 32 | 2% | 28,000 |
| 2017 Escape | 49 | 2% | 45,500 |
| 2016 Escape | 73 | 6% | 41,900 |
| 2015 Escape | 81 | 7% | 46,149 |
| 2014 Escape | 151 | 7% | 63,370 |
| 2013 Escape | 302 | 11% | 81,280 |
| 2012 Escape | 139 | 23% | 100,000 |
| 2011 Escape | 410 | 31% | 110,000 |
| 2010 Escape | 423 | 20% | 114,000 |
| 2009 Escape | 828 | 49% | 121,000 |
| 2008 Escape | 1,127 | 57% | 116,000 |
| 2007 Escape | 15 | 6% | 45,500 |
| 2006 Escape | 20 | 4% | 78,816 |
| 2005 Escape | 49 | 4% | 114,500 |
| 2004 Escape | 26 | 5% | 101,000 |
| 2003 Escape | 44 | 8% | 103,204 |
| 2002 Escape | 70 | 7% | 87,986 |
| 2001 Escape | 58 | 6% | 77,700 |
| 2000 Escape | 1 | 20% | 123,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists steering for the 2016 Ford Escape. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the message "Power Steering Assist" was displayed. The vehicle was restarted, and the message was no longer displayed, and the vehicle operated normally. Later, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power…
While driving the car, the electronic power assist steering stopped working, making it extremely difficult to steer and drove straight into a curb. Was able to slowly back the car up then very carefully drove to the local shop. Thankfully, no pedestrians were walking on the sidewalk. Power assist…
Car started with loss of steering fault, then power steering completely failed and car was not driveable.
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2016 Ford Escapes have steering problems?
No. NHTSA has 73 owner complaints about steering for the 2016 Ford Escape (6% of the 1,154 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2016 Ford Escape steering?
No recall currently lists steering for this vehicle.
At what mileage do steering problems start?
The median reported mileage is 41,900 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about steering problems on the 2016 Ford Escape?
The most frequent phrase is “steering assist”, in 27 of 73 complaints, followed by “fault service” (5).
Other 2016 Ford Escape problems
See all 2016 Ford Escape problems or steering problems across all Escape years.