For the past couple of days my 2006 escape hybrid is hesitating when I step on the gas at low speeds and only goes very slow in reverse. Bye am petrified that it's the transmission because I was told that that would totaled the car. Has anyone else experienced hesitation at low speeds?

 

I occasionally get a quick stutter (as I would call it) when pulling out, generally first thing in the morning. Hasn't seemed to have any big effect. But not consistently.

 

I have heard of and seen various weird things cleared up by disconnecting the under the hood 12 volt battery for an hour or so. That forces the computer to 're-boot' itself. They say the only thing you should or need to do afterwards is slowly depress the brake pedal all the way first thing after re-connecting the battery. Give it a try, it doesn't cost anything.

 

If by hesitating you mean the rpms aren't increasing, and are possibly decreasing as the gas pedal is pressed, I would check the usual suspects like spark plugs, plug boots, oil, fuel filter, etc. 140k is pretty high mileage so make sure the usual maintenance items are completed before worrying about larger, and less likely, issues like transmissions.

 

FEH
same thing here 2008 with 133k don't now if it had the same symptoms with less mileage. Just bought this one 2 weeks ago ..did a transmission fluid change( the old fluid, was dark brown in very bad shape, no bad smell-burn-)
did chang oil and air filter serpentine belt and the tensioner's pully. changed the batteries' air filter in the back trunk...(it looked, it was never changed before).

easy to do with simple tools all of this.....and I tested the AC 1R134a refrigerant pressures and it took a while to adjust to the right capacity...and it may not bee perfect yet, but the temperatures here are very high now.
it has 2 coil and the pressure changes when it turns on/off the cabin coil, and it seems to perform better when the batteries coil is working alone. Cabin coil alone not too good.

some squeaking noises from the back brakes but nothing bad it is just the pads rubbing the rotors when going over bumps and they are hot..just drove a bit with the handbrake on and it went away.


trim seals scratch windows if not clean debris/sand will get in there and it scratches the windows when you open or closes them.

 

It's a discharged high voltage battery. It can happen from leaving it parked a long time, leak to ground or it could be wore out in order of likely hood from left to right.

 

If certain things are at fault, this will tend to happen more on hot days than cooler days. And after you've been driving for a while instead of right away.

Next time it happens, put your hand on the top of the metal battery case in the cargo area. If it is hot, its cooling system is not working. If so, does your cabin a/c work?

If the interior a/c doesn't work and the battery is hot, the problem has something to do with the shared parts of the a/c system: lost refrigerant, condenser, compressor, damaged a/c lines.

If the interior a/c works and the battery is hot, the problem may be: rear a/c unit, vent door motor, battery cooling fans, malfunctioning valve between the two portions, clogged rear hvac air filter.

 

My '06 had that hesitation just before the throttle body took a dump. Inspect yours and clean if indicated. There are special cleaners that are safe for the coating.