1996 Ford Escort problems
Owners have filed 257 complaints about the 1996 Ford Escort with NHTSA. Seat belts account for 31.1% of them — the clear leader, ahead of engine and engine cooling at 14%.
Complaints257
Crashes30
Fires11
Injuries33
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Seat belts 31.1% · 80
Engine and engine cooling 14.0% · 36
Air bags 8.2% · 21
Power train 7.8% · 20
Electrical system 7.4% · 19
Suspension 5.1% · 13
Service brakes, hydraulic 4.7% · 12
Steering 3.9% · 10
Severity
Of those complaints, 30 describe a crash, 11 describe a fire and 33 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 11 model years of the Ford Escort in this data, 1996 sits 8th by complaint volume. 1997 draws the most.
Filing volume has held steady, 3 in the last three years against 3 in the three before.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 87,767 miles.
In owners' own words
I started up the vehicle and the retractable seat belt stopped half-way through its normal track. The motor is audible, however, the belt continues to stay stationary half-way through its track. The motor is constantly "making an attempt" to move the seat belt through the rest of its track, but to no avail. The seat belt light is on also. Seat belts
Consumer states then when drvr's door is shut the automatic driver's side shoulder belt does not fully release or secure occupant. The belt will only move to the halfway point on the track. Consumer states that while driving the belt will continously click as if trying to move but consumer is unable to adjust manually. Nlm Seat belts
Driver side and passenger side automatic shoulder safety belts will only go half way up the door, then they appear to be stuck. The passenger side shoulder belt cable is out side of the track and appears to be frayed. Neither should belt works properly and would not restain driver or passenger if a crash should occur. Seat belts
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…