NHTSA Complaint #762244 — 2002 FORD ESCAPE

ON TWO OCCASIONS, WHILE COASTING DOWN A HILL NEAR MY HOME, THE ENGINE OF MY 2002 FORD ESCAPE XLT HAS QUIT. I DISCOVERED THIS WHEN I TRIED TO ACCELERATE AT THE BOTTOM ON THE HILL, ONLY TO FIND THAT THE GAS PEDAL DIDNT RESPOND. ON THE FIRST OCCASION, I PULLED OVER AND STOPPED, PUT THE CAR IN PARK, AND RESTARTED IT WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. ON THE SECOND OCCASION, I PUT THE GEAR SELECTOR INTO NEUTRAL AND QUICKLY RESTARTED WHILE COASTING ALONG. ON BOTH OCCASIONS, CARS IN BACK OF ME HAD TO BRAKE SHARPLY TO AVOID COLLISION. BOTH INSTANCES WERE IN APRIL 2002, ABOUT THREE WEEKS APART. AT THE TIME, THE CAR WAS ABOUT 5 MONTHS OLD AND HAD BEEN DRIVEN ABOUT 5500 MILES. I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER ON 5/23/02. THE INVOICE SAYS THAT THEY PERFORMED A WDS TEST, REBURNED AND UPDATED THE PROCESSOR. THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT NEW PARTS WERE USED. HANDWRITTEN NOTES ON THE PAPERWORK INDICATE A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN WAS USED TO GUIDE THE REPAIR, BUT THE NUMBER WASNT GIVEN. *AK