NHTSA Complaint #11403687 — 2017 FORD ESCAPE

VEHICLE STARTED TO DEVELOP LONGER CRANKING TO START, COLD AND WARM...BATTERY WAS WEAK, SO I REPLACED IT.. SAME SYMPTOMS, BUT DEVELOPED RELAY CHATTERING UNDER HOOD IN FUSE/RELAY BOX WHEN JUST OPENING EITHER FRONT DOOR OR INSERTING KEY...SOMETIMES WOULD START BUT THEN JUST DIE.. LUCKY CAR WAS IN GARAGE, SO I WOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE IT IF IT CONTINUED TO RUN.. THE ONLY WAY TO STOP RELAY CHATTER WAS TO REMOVE PCM FUSE OR RELAY...CALLED FORD ,AGREED TO TOW TO MY DEALER.. VEHICLE WAS 3 YRS AND 5 MONTHS , BUT UNDER 11K MILES.. TOOK 3 DAYS TO FIND CAUSE,,. ,THE WIRE HARNESS/FUSE/RELAY BOX HAD SHORT OR BREAK. .THEY DISCOVERED IT BY WIGGLING THE WIRE HARNESS THAT CONNECTS TO THE FUSE/RELAY BOX...I WENT TO SEE IT AND AFTER STARTING, HE WOULD WIGGLE THE WIRE HARNESS AND VEHICLE WOULD DIE, ,DID IT SEVERAL TIMES TO SHOW ME. .I SAID ITS A FACTORY DEFECT SINCE THE CAR WAS NEVER IN AN ACCIDENT , FLOOD OR FIRE. FORD AGREED TO PAY HALF THE COST OF PARTS AND LABOR SINCE THIS ISN'T COVER BEYOND 3YRS..TO ME THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD, IF I HAD BEEN DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND IT COULD HAVE JUST DIED ANYTIME , ANYWHERE.. AFTER REPAIRED, I FOUND FORD IN FEB, 16, 2018 PUT OUT A TSB # SSM 47086, THAT DESCRIBES MY PROBLEM AND DEFECTIVE PART.. SO FORD NEW ABOUT THIS ON SOME 2017-18 FORD ESCAPES 3YRS AGO...