2008 Ford Escape Hybrid - $5,300 to repair brakes

johnch
Thu, 15 Oct 2015 05:38:00 +0000
Maintenance/Repairs

Hello!

I purchased a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid which now has 109K miles on it. It’s been a great vehicle all around. Two recent incidents where the yellow ABS and red brake lights came on, with messages of Check Brake System and Regen Brakes Disabled. I was able to let the vehicle sit and retry and the lights didn’t come on. Brought in for service at dealership and they found codes C1478 and C1480. They’re quoting me $5,300 to replace the Hydraulic Control Unit. Also, when picking it up, now the Check Brake System light is on all the time and the vehicle basically has no brakes. I’ve left it at the dealership because it isn’t safe to drive.

Dealership is offering to take 10% off the service. Ford (corporate) customer service says there’s no program for my vehicle and no recall, so there’s nothing they can do.

Looking online, there are others that have experienced this problem:

http://www.greenhybrid.com/forums/f26/brakes-broke-bank-24731/

Car Forums at Edmunds.com

Ford Escape Hybrid Brake Problems

Discuss your braking issues here

blog.yagelski.com

Ford Escape Hybrid - Brake Master Cylinder / HCU Failure and the National...

In previous blog posts ( Here and Here ), we discussed the brake failure experience with our 2005 Ford Escape Hybrid ("FEH"). In our ea...

There are 23 (now 24) identical complaints THIS YEAR ALONE at NHTSA’s ODI webpage (safercar.gov)

I asked about bleeding the brakes (“wouldn’t help, the HCU has failed”) or getting a used HCU (“can’t, programmed with the VIN, reprogramming doesn’t work”). With the vehicle’s KBB trade-in value is $5,500, it’s hard for me to figure out what to do next. Ford and the dealer are unable to help and I have a great car that has been rendered inoperable / worthless by a single part.

Suggestions or ideas?

Thanks.

203 posts - 46 participants