The 1984 Ford Escort has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 1,026,047 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 27 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
EXTERNAL CRACKS ABOVE THE NUMBER 3 CYLINDER (1984 MODELS) OR ROCKER ARM COVER GASKETS SPLITTING (1985 MODELS) COULD ALLOW OIL TO LEAK ONTO THE EXHAUST MANIFOLD.
ENGINE OIL LEAKING ONTO A HOT EXHAUST MANIFOLD COULDRESULT IN AN ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE.
REPLACE CRACKED CYLINDER HEADS (1984 MODELS); REPLACE ROCKER ARM COVER GASKETS (1985 MODELS).
THE BRAKE LINE MAY BE POSITIONED TOO CLOSE TO AN ENGINE BRACKET. NORMAL ENGINE MOVEMENTS MAY CAUSE THE BRACKET TO RUB AGAINST THE BRAKE LINE.
THE BRAKE LINE WILL BE INSPECTED AND REROUTED IF NECESSARY.
THE BOLTS THAT ATTACH THE D-SHAPED RING FOR THE SHOULDER BELT ARE INADEQUATELY SUPPORTED BY THE MATERIAL IN WHICH THEY ARE MOUNTED. THE ATTACHMENT DOES NOT COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 210, "SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY ANCHORAGES".
DEALERS WILL INSTALL NEW ATTACHING HARDWARE TO IMPROVE THE STRENGTH OF THE MOUNTING.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Vacuum pump (brakes) housing is broken and pump does not work. Contacted ford in sept 2001 but have had no success in them helping to locate this part. No salvage yard or auto parts store has it. Car is in very good condition but it would be very dangerous to drive with brakes in this condition.”
“Nhtsa recall# 09v095000/ manufacturer's recall 89s66. Consumer got a recall notice on vehicle, and dealer didn't have parts. Also, dealer will put another engine in consumer's vehicle, but consumer had to pay 1300.00 out of pocket for exhaust that goes with engine.*ak”
“Rear seat belt retractor mechanism has failed, difficult to latch seat belts. *ak”
“Rear seat belt retractor mechanism has failed, difficult to latch seat belts. *ak”
“Vehicle fire around the steering wheel. *ak”
“Vehicle fire around the steering wheel. *ak”
“Vehicle stalled on the highway, driver shifted to neutral, tried to restart and vehicle caught on fire. *ak”
“While driving vehicle it just stopped running withoutwarning. Consumer took vehicle to dealer, and they stated it was the ignition. When the tfi overheated it caused the vehicle to stop running. Also, driver's side seatbelt will not connect. Passenger's side seatback broke and will not go up.…”
STALLING
REAR SEAT BELT COMPLIANCE
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:FORD BELIEVES THAT THE AL-LEGED DEFECT ONLY OCCURS IN A SMALL NUMBER OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ANDRECALLED ABOUT 195,732 1984 TEMPO/TOPAZ VEHICLES IN JUNE 1986.ANALYSIS: VEHICLES POTENTIALLY INVOLVED INCLUDE TEMPO/TOPAZ, ESCORT/LYNX/EXP, MUSTANG/CAPRI, LTD/MARQUIS, AND…
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:THE ALLEGED FIRES RESULT FROMA VARIETY OF CAUSES.FIRE RATE REMAINS ABOUT THE SAME DESPITE MAJORCHANGES WITH 85-1/2 MODELS.IT BELIEVES THAT THE FIRE RATE IS LESS THANINDUSTRY AVERAGE.MFGR REQUEST COPIES OF SPECIFIC FIRE REPORTS FOR TRENDANALYSIS.ANALYSIS:SEVERAL AREAS OF FIRE…
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NO SAFETY DEFECT TREND HAS BEEN DETECTED.===
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1984 Ford Escort as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.