2016 Ford Escape · symptom sheet
Infotainment, screen or backup camera fails
- 267owner reports
- 85,000median miles
- $750median quote
- 6involved a crash
Newest report Sep 28, 2026 · checked Oct 2, 2026
436 of the 1,127 complaints on this car are about the backup camera. 267 of those describe infotainment, which makes it the most reported problem on the 2016 Escape.
Narrower sheets: Backup camera goes black or freezes (144 reports) · Infotainment screen freezes or goes black (47 reports)
Tick what matches of 267 reports
Infotainment on other Escape years
Report counts are for each model year on its own, so a newer car has had less time to collect them. Model years with too few reports of it for a sheet: 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024.
What this problem usually is
Screen complaints read like a list of small betrayals. The display goes black or freezes, the backup camera shows nothing when you shift into reverse, CarPlay or Android Auto keeps dropping, or the radio changes volume on its own. Many owners had a software update that didn't fix it. A narrower sheet covers backup camera failures on their own, and another covers screens that freeze.
What got replaced
Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the camera (244 reports), the head unit or screen (94 reports), the software (10 reports) and the module (6 reports).
Recalls and investigations
2 recalls on the backup camera cover the 2016 model year. A recall on the same system isn't always the same failure, so read the defect text.
The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.
The rearview camera may display a distorted, intermittent, or blank image when the vehicle is in reverse.
All 4 recalls on the 2016 Ford Escape, with the owner complaints on each recalled system
NHTSA investigations into the backup camera on the Escape
Rearview camera fmvss 111 noncompliance. Open.
Fleet vehicle recall completion audit. Closed dec 28, 2015.
None of these investigations covers the 2016 model year.
What owners paid
9 of the 267 reports quote a price. Each dot is one quote. The middle half runs $299 to $966.
When it happens
The middle half of failures fell between 60,000 and 118,000 miles, from the 140 reports that gave a mileage.
Is this a known problem?
The manufacturer has sent NHTSA 35 service bulletins or notices for the 2016 Ford Escape that deal with this problem. Newest first.
Federal rules make a manufacturer send NHTSA a copy of any notice about a defect that goes to more than one dealer or owner. Most of these are service bulletins, the repair instructions manufacturers send to dealers. NHTSA generally leaves safety recall bulletins out of this file, and recalls are listed separately.
Some vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit various SYNC performance related concerns including but not limited to: Display operation concerns Navigation inoperative Voice recognition concerns Phone connection issues Dropped phone ...
Some 2016-2021 Ford and Lincoln vehicles equipped with SYNC 3 may exhibit a condition where the navigation voice prompts are inoperative after a SYNC map update. This may be due to an incomplete installation of the SYNC map software.
Some 2016-2021 Ford or Lincoln vehicles equipped with SYNC 3 or SYNC 4 may exhibit a blank screen or other various SYNC symptoms only when the vehicle is in transport mode.
Some 2016-2020 Ford and Lincoln vehicles equipped with a SYNC 3 Touchscreen may experience the volume control unresponsive from the Front Control Interface Module (FCIM) and steering volume controls when using Apple Car Play.
31 more on the 2016 Ford Escape page.
What owners wrote
“Back up camera does not work. Screen either goes black or multitude of colors. Sometimes it flips to just see ground.”
Filed Aug 10, 2023
“Backup camera glitches and goes to the radio screen mid-reverse. Iâve nearly hit a tree. This has begun happening frequently. Sometimes the camera wonât even turn on.”
Filed Aug 4, 2023
“Engine control computer malfunction is causing the engine, SYNC, bluetooth, brake lights, and rearview camera to malfunction.”
Filed May 25, 2023
“Rear view camera stopped working almost a year ago, and out of no where the transmission stopped working. I recently just got an oil change and asked for the works to get my whole car checked out and that report as all the reports before it came back with no issues. So found it surprising that this happened.”
Filed May 23, 2023
Should you keep driving it?
This page can't tell you that. 6 of 267 reports involved a crash. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.
File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation. How reports land on this sheet.
Guide Paid for this repair before a recall covered it? How recall reimbursement works
Other problems on this car
- Engine overheats or leaks coolant 127 reports
- Check engine light or misfire 125 reports
- Engine stalls or loses power while driving 118 reports
- Transmission fails or needs replacement 94 reports
- Transmission shudders, slips or shifts hard 87 reports
- "Service Transmission" message or wrench light comes on 65 reports
- Engine failure, knocking or rod bearing 58 reports
- Power steering cuts out or goes heavy 49 reports
- Wheel bearing, tires or wheels 34 reports