The Ford Kuga, the Escape’s twin, is recalled in Europe for battery fires.
20,500 Kuga units were recalled.
Production of the Escape PHEV delayed until 2021.
For some southern markets, the new Ford Escape plug-in hybrid will be a very interesting and frugal compact SUV option. As a FWD-only vehicle, the Escape PHEV can deliver up to 30 miles of pure electric mobility but battery issues in Europe will delay deliveries of the vehicle.
The Ford Kuga, the Ford Escape’s twin, is already on sale with plug-in technology in Europe however a recall was issued for the SUV. According to cnn.com, several units of the Kuga PHEV experienced fires prompting the recall. It has also prompted Ford to pause production of the Escape equivalent.
2020 Ford Escape PHEV | Photo: Olivier Delorme
The issue stems from a fault that could cause the battery packs to vent hot gas. The result is an increased risk of fire due to overheating. So far, there have been seven reported fires without injuries or deaths. The affected were assembled between July of 2019 and 2020.
For the moment, Ford says that the production of the Escape PHEV will be pushed back to 2021 without specifying a timeline. Dan Barbossa, a Ford spokesperson, said: “We are moving production to next year while we work with the suppliers to resolve the issue,”
