NHTSA Complaint #11433353 — 2018 FORD ESCAPE

Approximately one week ago, our car began running rough and the check engine light came on. We took it to one independent service center who ran a diagnostic check that showed a cylinder 4 misfire. We took it to a separate ISC who performed a more robust diagnostic per the Ford outlined TSB 19-2346 and found coolant in cylinder 4 as well as loss of pressure in cooling system. Mileage of the vehicle is 25,398 miles and the vehicle is covered under Ford powertrain warranty; however, Ford customer service refused to support the diagnosis of the two separate ISCs. They informed us that they would only accept a diagnosis from a Ford dealership, but no appointments with dealerships were available in the near future. Upon further investigation, we discovered that this is a common and known issue for at least 5 separate models of Ford vehicles since 2015 and requires an entire replacement of the long block engine assembly. Despite that, Ford advised us they would be unable to help us without a dealer diagnostic whenever that became available. So while waiting for this supposed service to determine an already known issue in a month, my family must risk their lives with an engine that has coolant leaking into it if we want to be able to function outside of our home. Ford Motor Company is risking the lives of thousands with these engines, but since there is no recall we are left with no support.The ISCs and our other warranty companies cannot help due to the existing Ford powertrain warranty, but Ford refuses to acknowledge the issue.