Ford Escape Seats

sameoldsam

This information has been helpful... Is there a website to get other TSB information.
I have checked Ford Recall and can't find anything.
Our new 2009 has a front end rattle...

davicho

There is no website to my knowledge of where you can find this TSB, and since it is not a "safety" issue it will not be mentioned under recalls. I know of this TSB because I work for a Ford dealer and I can access OASIS (Ford's Service Mainframe). Sorry!

However, my post is a copy and pasted duplicate of the actual TSB.

stever

The Edmunds Maintenance Guide has summary info. Sometimes we miss some - you can crosscheck over at the NHTSA. Getting the full text is a bit harder; sometimes the service writer will make you a copy.

love2run

What are the seat covers made of? Do you have yours installed now and is the problem eliminated? And when you say seat covers, I think of a sofa slip cover. Hopefully, that is not what they are but actual reupholstering of the seats. Am I correct in that assumption?
My 08 Escape is going to the dealership this week - I'm really tired of the awful stained fabric seats - and we don't allow kids, pets or food in the vehicle.

mariposa7684

yes, i mean the actual upholstery. they are made some recycled material. nice concept, but not when it comes to actual use. they will reupholster your seats *if* the staining meets the criterion. at least, that's what my dealership insisted on. the stains had to have a white ring around them. mine did, so they replaced the upholstery on both my front seats. the other stains, just as unsightly, didn't. so i have clean front seats (and easy to clean if they get dirty) and lousy looking back ones (where the kids sit). let me know how you fare w/yr dealership.

tdemkows

thank god I'm not the only one dealing with these nasty seats on my 2008 ford escape. I've been trying to clean them since I got the car and they just keep looking worse. I even ask a ford technician when I went to get my oil changed and he said to use purple power cleaner and dilute it with water it will clean anything. Well guess what when it dried it looked worse. I hate having ugly seats, I always clean my car and am embarrassed to have anyone ride in my car. I am going to check into getting new seats at my dealership but I'm sure they will give me a hard time, since I have 65,000 miles on my car already I bought it in 2007. Next time I'll buy leather for sure. My husband retired from Ford so he has some connections, I will let you know what we find out.

mariposa7684

definitely check to see if your car was included in the seat replacement bulletin (it wasn't exactly a recall). yr dealership should've checked for you. i don't think it matters if your warranty is expired. i'm going to tackle the back seats after the winter since i know one of the steps to getting them clean includes considerable air drying time. good luck!

phoneixphyre

I have these nasty looking stains too and my wife makes me shampoo the car every month or so. Does this TSB cover 2008 escapes that are out of warranty?

mariposa7684

don't know if the tsb covers out of warranty. i think it may. check w/yr dealership. tsb only covers stains that have a white ring. let me know what you find out.

slm1026

Dealer refused to replace seats covers. My question is if I clean them good with sprayaway glass cleaner and wait for them to dry and scotch guard them will that stop the water stains?

mariposa7684

i'm guessing that yr stains weren't the white ring type. altho, if i'm wrong, you should press the issue w/the dealer. as far as cleaning other stains, check the thread here for tips. so far, i haven't tried cleaning anything. some of the posters here have tried different methods w/some success.

cegl08

Ford WILL NOT replace seats out of warranty. When I first complained during 1st year, called dealership and ask how to clean - they didn't say anything about defected seats. I asked if OK to take to carwash and get seats clean and they said OK. Obviously, did'nt come clean and was worse. Didn't find out about a TSB until I checked this forum this summer. Now I'm past warranty. When I complained they said I should have brought the car in instead of calling. If they didn't say anything when I called what would make me think it would different if I drove it there. Dealership said they would work with us and replace seats for $900. No thank you. Have been loyal 6-car Ford purchaser up til now. Will NEVER purchase a Ford again. They sold inferior seats at time of purchase and should replace no matter if past warranty or not. Good luck to others. If anyone knows a magic trick to clean/make stains better - please forward.

keytexas

I agree with mariposa7648. Ford has been completely irresponsible in their refusal to address the horrible fabric seat issue in the 2008 Escape. I will not buy another Ford either and have already convinced others not to eithet.

mariposa7684

i had the front seats recovered when the car was still under warranty. i don't know what gave me the impression that, if the stains were white ringed, they'd replace the covers at any time. warranty or not, they wouldn't replace the back seat which was stained, but not with the "right" kind. even tho i think that ford was so off the mark w/these recycled material seats (did they not test them??), the replacement upholstery is fine. overall, i'm pretty happy w/my Escape. i've been taken care of by my dealership, too. when i go in for minor stuff, they either don't charge me or make a deal. despite their being slightly more expensive that an independent repair shop, i'll go to them for everything. i learned my lesson when i had to get major repairs on my previous car, an '03 Mini. the Mini dealership treated me like crap b/c i wasn't a "loyal" customer (meaning i wouldn't drive the 100 mi round trip for them to do routine maintenance after the warranty expired).

halubdesign

What about your back seat? They wouldn't replace your back seat covers? I just bought a 2011 Ford Escape. I've had it for two days and there is already a stain (out of nowhere) that I can't get off my front seat.

halubdesign

I would appreciate anyone's advice! I have had my 2011 Ford Escape for two days and the driver seat has a stain that I can't get out. The only liquid I have had in the vehicle was a bottle of water.

mariposa7684

nope, no replacement of back seat cover. the service guy showed me the notice ford sent out--it pointed out the stains that were covered (the white ringed ones). i was glad that, at least, i got the front seat upholstery replaced. the new upholstery doesn't stain like the old one. to read that the 2011s have the same staining problem=?? i don't get it. i thought they stopped using that awful upholstery. :confuse:

mariposa7684

i can't believe they're still using that same awful covering in the 2011s. as i posted above, my front seats were recovered w/upholstery that doesn't stain like the old stuff. it's gotten wet, i've spilled coffee, etc. and, when cleaned or the dried, there's nothing left behind. the back seats have a constellation of dark spots from whatever's been dropped on them.

halubdesign

I am going to make a number of calls to Ford after reading this forum. I have left the stain for the dealership to see. I will let you know what happens at the dealership. It's terrible that they wouldn't upholster your back seats also. What was the reasoning behind that?

mariposa7684

definitely push the issue w/your dealership. i'd really like to know how it is they are still putting that awful upholstery on the latest models when they know how bad the stuff is. despite the fact i had already established w/my dealership that i was going to be a faithful customer, they wouldn't go so far as to recover the back seat for me. the reasoning must've been that they weren't going to eat the cost. i didn't push the issue as they have been excellent re replacing other more worrisome problems with my "08 Escape (a defect in the trans causing fluid to leak; a faulty water pump; non-working CD player). they also don't charge me for small stuff and/or give me a discount. yes, pls let me know what the outcome is!

keytexas

When I first realized that none of the local Ford dealerships would replace the upholstry, ridding of the nasty grossness my seats are, I went to the forums (and there are others besides this one) and copied 21 pages of posts about the seats. I also called Fords corporate office. They told me that hadn't haf any other calls about the 2008 Escape seat issue. That can't be true. To give them the benefit of the doubt I mailed a stack of complaints from forums to not only Fords VP of customer service but also to the service managers of each local dealership. I never received a rsponse or phone call from anyone. Just shameful.
So good luck to any of you with the same problem.

dwoodberry

It's 2011 and still Ford refuse to do anything. I just want to cry everytime I get in my car. I'm don't like to give people riding cause the seat are a mess. I can clean and have them clean and they still look a mess. I wish I knew then what I know now!!

halubdesign

Thanks for your feedback everyone. In addition to the stain on the drivers seat, there is also a stain on the back of the drivers seat. I will let you know what transpires at the dealership. Here is a nice website I found that lists known problems with Ford models and model years. www.fordproblems.com

mariposa7684

wow--to send all that info to Ford and the area dealerships and not have anyone do anything--that's just awful. maybe Ford feels cocky b/c their sales were up this year. when i first decided to do something about my stained seats, calling Ford directly also didn't yield any results. and that was almost 3 yrs ago when the industry was reeling. it took me several tries w/my dealership to get them to act on this, btw. i also brought in printouts re the problem. it wasn't until the service manager finally found the service bulletin re the seats that something was done. initially, he only recommended cleaning them, something i knew wouldn't work. next time i'm in there, i'm going to see what they say about this continuing problem. they were very upfront about the tranny leakage--they actually admitted it was a defect (something no other dealership ever would own up to w/my other cars). i can live w/the stains on the back seat. the usual passengers back there are kids. i will,however, try to clean them up come warmer weather.

halubdesign

The Ford dealership is replacing the stained seat. They would like to try that solution. They admitted that they could not guarantee that we do not have the defective 2009 fabric in the car. What kind of fabric did they reupholster your car with? It must have been the exact same fabric to match your back seat. And if so, it is surprising that the new reupholstered fabric did not also stain.

tlrogers1

You sound just like ME!! I am exactly the same way, I am EMBARRASSED to have anyone ride in the car with me because the way my seats look!! Ford cleaned them for awhile. I called Ford AGAIN after Christmas and talked to a new person and he informed me that since I had had them 'scotch guarded' (there's another term they use, but that's what they did) that the company that did the scotch guarding was responsible! I filed a claim with them, and today they sent a guy out and he CLEANED the seats!!! I was SO MAD! I said, these seats have ALREADY been cleaned several times! He advised that he could do better than the dealership.
Well guess what?? He's gone, the seats are dry and the STAINS ARE STILL THERE!!!!!
I swear I am going to drive my car through the showroom window if something isn't resolved!!!!! :mad:

halubdesign

The dealer advised me to scotch guard the seats today, and I advised no way because I shouldn't have to do that in the first place. What year is your vehicle??

mariposa7684

great! the new fabric should be fine (i don't know what it's made of--it definitely matches the back, but it doesn't stain like the old fabric). i can't believe after all the replacements and complaints that they still were using that terrible recycled material stuff in post 2008 models.

mariposa7684

based on what people have said about trying to get stains out, i don't hold out much hope that anything will work on the back seat of my '08. i am still amazed that Ford is using that defective fabric on any model past '08. i also don't know why dealerships aren't replacing the upholstery if your car is under warranty. :confuse:

fender112

I purchased a slightly used 2008 Ford Escape. The seats looked great when I bought it and some water got on the front seat. It left a huge stain. The car now looks like we are complete slobs and it is all from water. I am so disappointed in the seat fabric.

Is Ford going to do anything to correct this problem? I don't want to have to invest in good seat covers.

tlrogers1

No, Ford is NOT going to do anything! Since I purchased the protective sealer for the seats (can't remember what's its called, but it's like scotch guard) Ford will not stand behind it. So, the company that did the sealer has come out once to clean the seats. They are coming BACK out to do it again since the stains are STILL there! I know it's like beating a dead horse because the bottom line is, Ford doesn't care. The person who cleaned the seats said that even after he cleans the seat, that even if water gets on those seats, I will have stains!! I'm SO upset and disappointed! I will NEVER be able to get rid of this car because of the way the seats look!

mariposa7684

my dealership replaced my stained front seats a couple yrs ago after i bought a slightly used Escape. i haven't had any problems w/stains (something i've discussed on the boards) until this week. i'm looking at the passenger side seat and i see one of those dreaded white ringed stains. could be a salt stain from all the snow we've been having. i haven't tried to get it out. i want to show it to the dealership when i'm in again for service. and i've been telling people on this board that once the seats are reupholstered, no more stains. hahaha. evidently not. :mad:

halubdesign

That's awful that your stains are coming back now. The dealership replaced the fabric on the front seat of our "new" 2011 Escape. No problems yet, however we have to take it back in to be detailed because the headrest has a slight stain on it. I did a water test on the passenger and back seats, and there were no water stains. Hopefully they fixed the problem. Being in the furniture business, I know that they could still be using the 2008-9 fabric. I love the new Escape, but not the idea of using recycled material in the seats. Recycled products should not be used everywhere!!

mariposa7684

so...ford replaces the seats w/the same defective material? guess that's how they were able to turn a tremendous profit last yr. it's obviously not costing them enough to stop using that fabric. re the new stain: it's weird how it just turned up even tho i've gotten snow on the seat many times this winter. maybe this was the first time it was salty snow (altho i doubt it). i'm not terribly upset about any stains (not that i won't talk to the dealership about this new one) as, by the time i trade in this car, i don't think it'll make much of a difference. i bought it used, a yr old, w/fairly crappy looking carpet. since you're in the furniture business, what do you now about this particular fabric? and, more importantly, is there a way to clean it?

hotz78

Ok folks here it is. As many of you I had the dreaded seat stains due to water on my 2008 Ford Escape Recycled Material Seats. Seats looked brand new when I bought it. I looked long and hard for a solution. Washing, steaming, cleaning and nothing would get rid of the stains. I thought they were there for good. Then I discovered a solution. What I have used is baby oil gel. I found the dye used in the seats is a oil based dye. Obviously oil and water don't mix so you get water stains. I took a small brush and squirted the baby oil gel on it and worked it into the seats. This did take some time. Then I wiped any exess off with a towel. It has now been 3 weeks and my seats still appear brand new. Hope this helps any one out there that has had this dreaded issue of the water stains on recycled material seats.

mariposa7684

thx for the tip! how did you find out about the oil based dye? during this winter, my reupholstered front seat got one of this white ringed stains. i thought, great, so much for getting the seats recovered. for the heck of it, one day when i was cleaning off the car from the latest storm, i rubbed some snow into the stain. when the snow dried, the stain was gone. evidently, the new upholstery is made w/something other than that oil based dye. i'm going to try getting the stains out of the back seat w/the baby oil gel (the back seats weren't replaced as the stains on them didn't "qualify".

escapeartist2

Did you mean baby oil gel or baby oil gel wash? Baby oil gel is a moisturizer. I tried it and it left a big dark stain on the seat. Please tell us exactly what you used, the brand and everything. Just when I thought the seats couldn't get worse......

vincenc08

I have 08 Hybrid with same problem....I did not receive any notification from Ford about recall or TSB...checking my dealer now ...let you know how it turns out.

escapeartist2

Terrible advice. Left a larger, more permanent stain. My seats are beige - or are supposed to be. Every time I brought this issue up with my dealer they blew me off with statements like, "our guy can get them clean, no problem" or "I'll ask and get back to you" and I never heard. Now my warranty is up and I never dreamed it was this serious and unsolvable. Someone please post a REAL solution! Thanks,

escapeartist2

What color are your seats and exactly what product did you use? I tried baby oil gel and it left a deep dark stain. Looks worse than before. I've asked this question twice now. Don't post bad info.

keytexas

Agreed... Ford does not care. I tried to reach by phone and by writing letters anyone who might step up and try to offer some level of customer service. I even wrote the VP of Customer Satisfaction of Ford in Detroit, including with my letter printed copies from this forum. Not only did they not doing anything, they didn't even respond.
Will NEVER buy another Ford and have already convinced many not to do ever again either.

joe19403

I called ford and emails, no replies. Then I went to the dealer and they replaced the covers, plus they gave me a loaner car.

hotz78

I am sorry...just found these emails in my junk box. My seats on our Escape were Black with Maroon in the center (the part you sit on). What I used was called a baby oil gel equate brand. It did change the color of my seats just a tad but I ended up doing the hole entire portion that was stained and it was unnoticible at all. My stains were on the seat bottom on both front seats and the back rest on the back seat. Like I said I did the entire portion of each part that had the stains and they looked brand new when we traded it in. No evidance what so ever. Not sure how it will turn out on your color but good luck.

love2run

What were the replacement covers made of and what dealer in Texas helped you?

Ford has done nothing for me on this problem, too. I'm at a standstill.

mariposa7684

there's not a person on this board who got any answer from ford. now that they're cleaning up, they're too arrogant to answer? disgusting. and if your dealership isn't helpful, you're really stuck. inasmuch as i am unhappy with the seat covers (even the new ones--i can see faint traces of white ringed stains), i would still consider a ford for my next car. that's based on the overall performance. which, knock wood, @40k is excellent. good dealership in my area, too.

halubdesign

We had a seat replaced (with the same recycled fabric) only because the car purchase was "a couple days old". That's pretty sad! I would not buy another Ford with the recycled fabric seats. I have always owned Toyotas and Ford is not as customer oriented as Toyota.

snj2000

Mine is a 2009. I posted before that it was stained and they said it was the wrong kind of stain. As time went on, the seats got wet for one reason or another and the white rings appeard. Last time I took it in for service, I mentioned it again, they took pictures and Ford approved the front seats. While waiting for them to come in, the backs got wet....wonder how that happened? Took it in for the front seats, they noticed the white rings on the back seats and got them approved too. All seat covers have been replaced! Now the question is....will the replacments hold up better than the originals? :confuse:

mariposa7684

i wonder when ford will stop using this material to cover seats?!? i thought it stopped w/my model (2008). evidently not. yr replacement covers will hold up slightly better. after not seeing any problems w/mine initially, this winter i noticed several white ringed spots. so, yes, they probably will have the same problem. next time i'm @the dealership, i'll show them the new stains. i don't know if i can get yet another re-covering as my warranty is up. very glad that yr dealership did the right thing by you. complaining directly to ford doesn't produce any results. it seems that it's really down to the dealership.

halubdesign

The dealership told us a remnant of the 2008 fabric could have been used in our 2011 Escape. So far the front seat replacement fabric is holding up with no stains, but we are so scared of any of the seats staining that we have been extra careful. It shouldn't be that way, but until Ford stops using the recycled fabric the problem will never be solved. I would never buy another Ford vehicle that has the recycled fabric seating in it!! Whoever thought you would have to research a vehicles seat fabric!!!

kmg1959

My 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid seats (recycled material) had so many stains, I was embarrassed to have anyone in the car and ready to buy new seats! I had tried cleaning them with upholstery cleaner at different times and it just made more spots and those lovely white rings. I decided to try the stuff I clean pet stains out of the carpet with and was much more successful. I used Woolite "Pet Oxygen" cleaner in a spray bottle. I sprayed it on the individual stains and rubbed lightly with a soft cloth and let it dry. It would remove the stain but there was a ring around the area. After cleaning all the stains individually, I then sprayed the whole seat liberally with the cleaner and rubbed it lightly with a terry cloth kitchen towel. When it all dried the seats were very much improved and smelled good too. It took a few repeats of the whole seat spraying and wiping, but they now look nearly new again and have a nice fresh scent.