2003 Ford Escape Seat belts Problems
- Complaints
- 4about this part
- Share
- 1%of 558 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 85,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the seat belts of the 2003 Ford Escape, 1% of the 558 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 85,000 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“We have a 2003 Ford Escape the airbag light has came on and went off sporadically in the past 3 years but went out. This time it has stayed on so we took it to the Ford dealer and they said the seat belt wiring harness on both the front seats was bad and if there was an accident the air bag might not deploy the vehicle has never been in water so there is no reason for the wires to be bad other then they where inadequate to begin with. They said to fix it they would have to take out the seats pull the carpet back and replace the harnesses.”
NHTSA complaint #10383364, filed 2011-02, 136,000 miles“My airbag light stay on, had Ford dealer check out the problem, inform of the defect with the seat belts harness is not working up to stander. If I got into a crash, the seat belts would not hold me back.”
NHTSA complaint #10595739, filed 2014-06“The contact stated while driving 35 MPH on normal road conditions, the vehicle had a collision with another vehicle. The airbags did not deploy. The seat belts were worn however the contact was injured with a sternum fracture. A police report was filed at the scene of the accident. The fire department evacuated the driver to the nearest hospital. The vehicle was taken to a body shop but they were not able to determine why the airbags and seat belts failure occurred.”
NHTSA complaint #10160036, filed 2006-06, 34,000 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10014138Jun 7, 2005Safety belt retraction speed.
- 10012954Feb 21, 2005Safety belt web stop button service.
- 10014052Dec 13, 2004Safety belt buckle and pretensioner diagnostic trouble code (dtc) b1877, b1881, b1885 or b1886.
Seat belts: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2 | 3% |
| 2023 | 1 | 1% |
| 2022 | 5 | 2% |
| 2021 | 8 | 2% |
| 2020 | 13 | 1% |
| 2019 | 6 | 1% |
| 2018 | 9 | 0% |
| 2017 | 14 | 1% |
| 2016 | 5 | 0% |
| 2015 | 14 | 1% |
| 2014 | 26 | 1% |
| 2013 | 43 | 2% |
| 2012 | 19 | 3% |
| 2011 | 6 | 0% |
| 2010 | 5 | 0% |
| 2009 | 7 | 0% |
| 2008 | 5 | 0% |
| 2007 | 7 | 3% |
| 2006 | 4 | 1% |
| 2005 | 8 | 1% |
| 2004 | 10 | 2% |
| 2003 | 4 | 1% |
| 2002 | 14 | 1% |
| 2001 | 29 | 3% |
Other parts of the 2003 Ford Escape
121 complaintsSuspension
90 complaintsVehicle speed control
90 complaintsAir bags
60 complaintsBrakes
57 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
55 complaintsEngine cooling
47 complaintsSteering
44 complaintsElectrical system
39 complaintsEngine
24 complaintsOther or unknown
24 complaintsTires
17 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2003 Ford Escape
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology