Topic: First Drive: 2013 Ford Escape

[Autos_Editor]

The Ford Escape offers features and performance that match up with anything in the segment, says Jonathan Yarkony.

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[Jaeger]

I saw one on the road yesterday and thought it looked really sharp.  Ford seems to be taking a page from BMW's book in presenting an attractive package with an enticing entry price.... that quickly gets frightening as desireable options are added.   The price tag of anything with "Titanium" on the trunk generally sends my eyebrows in a northward direction.

[5 Wheel Drive]

I'm starting to see quite a few of these on the road around Ottawa.  Very nice.  I don't remember what trim I sat in at the Toronto Auto show but I do remember being very impressed with the fit & finish and the materials on the inside.  I was blown away.

My Dad is finally starting to consider replacing his my2000 Pathfinder.  This is one of the vehicles I'm telling him go and seriously look at, as well as the CRV and CX5.  Maybe I'll get to do a bit of shopping with his money....   

[Solstice2006]

I know this Escape is a large improvement over the old one.  But I find with all these redesigns, they are looking too similar. You take the badges of, and you can hardly tell the differance.  I am not saying the old Escape should have stayed as boxy, but this is very different. Not a fan of the dash,  little too swoopy and flashy, I prefer a simple look.  Also, with no Buyers guide yet to compare the features, this seems to be a lot more expensive than the old Escape, even before incentives.  A 2012 Edge SE, is only $1000 more than the 2013 Escape SE.

[Danno001]

I'm starting to see quite a few of these on the road around Ottawa.  Very nice.  I don't remember what trim I sat in at the Toronto Auto show but I do remember being very impressed with the fit & finish and the materials on the inside.  I was blown away.

My Dad is finally starting to consider replacing his my2000 Pathfinder.  This is one of the vehicles I'm telling him go and seriously look at, as well as the CRV and CX5.  Maybe I'll get to do a bit of shopping with his money....   

Looks like your dad keeps his vehicles for quite a long time. I might caution buying turbo vehicles in that case. The repair costs years 6- 7 onward might be expensive. Call it first hand experience with Ford turbo trucks (many trucks). Depending on his urgency, Toyota has a revised RAV4 coming this fall as does Hyundai with the Santa Fe (which looks strong IMO).

[garytam]

 "but available lower in the power band at 5,700 rpm to the CR-V’s 7,000 rpm—7,000 rpm is something you don’t want to hear in the CR-V"

This is only true with automatic ..... if Honda puts their wonderful 6 speed manual on their CR-V, I will buy one and REV it up to the 7000 rpm every day, at least once per day 

I don't know how much longer I can hang on to my 2002 CR-V 5 speed manual .... when I rev it up to 6000 rpm and listen to the deep engine and the K and N filter sound, its sooooo..... satisfied 

Please don't tell me you can always but the SH-AWD TL manual, as I need a 5 door wagon. Is very sad that Honda makes wonderful 4 Cylinder engine and 6 speed manual but they don't put them in good use. Having an automatic CRV with 7000 Rpm peak power is a JOKE   

[SaskSpecV]

The price tag of anything with "Titanium" on the trunk generally sends my eyebrows in a northward direction.

Just wait about a year.  If the Focus pricing is any indication, the incentives will be quickly following.  Last time I checked there was $3500 on the hood of a Focus Titanium, I imagine the Escape will follow in due course.

I'm sure the Escape is a really nice vehicle, and it will sell well, but I'm not convinced it will sell as well as the old Escape - pricing is just too important in the Canadian marketplace, and the last Escape was rock-bottom priced and sold like hotcakes (even long after it's "best-before" date).  But Ford will probably make more money off each new Escape sale, so I'm sure they're not worried. 

Like the compact car segment, great competition now in the compact CUV segment.

[Fobroader]

I'm starting to see quite a few of these on the road around Ottawa.  Very nice.  I don't remember what trim I sat in at the Toronto Auto show but I do remember being very impressed with the fit & finish and the materials on the inside.  I was blown away.

My Dad is finally starting to consider replacing his my2000 Pathfinder.  This is one of the vehicles I'm telling him go and seriously look at, as well as the CRV and CX5.  Maybe I'll get to do a bit of shopping with his money....   

Looks like your dad keeps his vehicles for quite a long time. I might caution buying turbo vehicles in that case. The repair costs years 6- 7 onward might be expensive. Call it first hand experience with Ford turbo trucks (many trucks). Depending on his urgency, Toyota has a revised RAV4 coming this fall as does Hyundai with the Santa Fe (which looks strong IMO).

Ford traditionally does really well with turboes over in Europe. Here they have never really sold that many turbo cars(turbo T-bird, SVO stang, Merkur XR4ti......I cant think of anymore) and yes, none of those were really what youd call models of reliability. The turbo diesel trucks after the old Powerstroke IHI diesel were disastrous, 6 and the 6.4L. I think id roll the dice on the new eco-boosts, worst case, sell it right before warranty ends if its a nightmare or get an extended warranty.

[Danno001]

I'm starting to see quite a few of these on the road around Ottawa.  Very nice.  I don't remember what trim I sat in at the Toronto Auto show but I do remember being very impressed with the fit & finish and the materials on the inside.  I was blown away.

My Dad is finally starting to consider replacing his my2000 Pathfinder.  This is one of the vehicles I'm telling him go and seriously look at, as well as the CRV and CX5.  Maybe I'll get to do a bit of shopping with his money....   

Looks like your dad keeps his vehicles for quite a long time. I might caution buying turbo vehicles in that case. The repair costs years 6- 7 onward might be expensive. Call it first hand experience with Ford turbo trucks (many trucks). Depending on his urgency, Toyota has a revised RAV4 coming this fall as does Hyundai with the Santa Fe (which looks strong IMO).

Ford traditionally does really well with turboes over in Europe. Here they have never really sold that many turbo cars(turbo T-bird, SVO stang, Merkur XR4ti......I cant think of anymore) and yes, none of those were really what youd call models of reliability. The turbo diesel trucks after the old Powerstroke IHI diesel were disastrous, 6 and the 6.4L. I think id roll the dice on the new eco-boosts, worst case, sell it right before warranty ends if its a nightmare or get an extended warranty.

The smart money might just sit on the sidelines for now on this new technology.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/05/ask-an-engineer-gdi-problems-in-a-nutshell/

[Fobroader]

One of the main reasons Im keeping the F150 ecoboost on a watch list for a few years before I pull the trigger on it.

[nsmyhte]

I know this Escape is a large improvement over the old one.  But I find with all these redesigns, they are looking too similar. You take the badges of, and you can hardly tell the differance.  I am not saying the old Escape should have stayed as boxy, but this is very different. Not a fan of the dash,  little too swoopy and flashy, I prefer a simple look.  Also, with no Buyers guide yet to compare the features, this seems to be a lot more expensive than the old Escape, even before incentives.  A 2012 Edge SE, is only $1000 more than the 2013 Escape SE.

Agreed, the new profile is pure RAV4.

[jamesautos]

Off topic

with many ford product with auto parallel park and blind spot camera....can it be used to pass the driver license exam for parallel park and not doing shoulder checks???

[seale]

 Here's my problem. A recent Motor Trend tested both the 1.6 and 2L engines. The Ford Focus was also tested. The Focus tested at 8.1sec to 60mph while the Escape 1.6 was 8.9 .  The 2 L was 6.8 - a little rocket.

 Unless you drive with 1 or 2 passengers and very little or no load and on basically flat roads , I just don't see the 1.6 being anything
but rather slow. So, to me, one engine is too weak and the other borderline too strong for the type of vehicle.

 I also find the new stying rather whimpy-- and my wife agrees. The new Santa Fe ( at least in pictures ) looks better to me and has a better choice of engines. As an Escape owner I really wanted to like the new version . Too bad.
 
 
 

[jyarkony]

 Here's my problem. A recent Motor Trend tested both the 1.6 and 2L engines. The Ford Focus was also tested. The Focus tested at 8.1sec to 60mph while the Escape 1.6 was 8.9 .  The 2 L was 6.8 - a little rocket.

 Unless you drive with 1 or 2 passengers and very little or no load and on basically flat roads , I just don't see the 1.6 being anything
but rather slow. So, to me, one engine is too weak and the other borderline too strong for the type of vehicle.

 I also find the new stying rather whimpy-- and my wife agrees. The new Santa Fe ( at least in pictures ) looks better to me and has a better choice of engines. As an Escape owner I really wanted to like the new version . Too bad.

Hey Seale, welcome to the Autos.ca forum. I wouldn't dispute that this new Escape looks quite a bit more feminine than the boxy first gen, but i like it. Personally, if they had kept that boxy profile while getting more modern with the details, it would have been even better—as Hyundai managed to pull off with the new Santa Fe.

Hyundai really nailed a good design on the Santa Fe, but I'll wait until I've driven the Santa Fe until I weigh in on whether their engines are better than the Escape's, although these two are in different segments, so not exactly apples to apples...

And I vaguely recall Motor Trend's Escape review—I could have sworn they also concluded that the 1.6 Ecoboost was just fine, with which I agree, but I am generally content with lower powered engines unless they really struggle (CX-5, Impreza) or sound awful (CR-V, Impreza)...

[Ice]

I think 8.9s in 0-100 is still faster than the CR-V and RAV4 right? The CX-5 is mid 9s if I remember right. There is quite a difference between the two... I'd probably want the 2.0L. That 0-100 sounds great!

[seale]

 Thanks for the welcome. Moter Trend did indicate that they thought the 1.6 L  was *sufficient* .  But if you are never going to load it up or just use it as a commuter, then why would't you buy a Focus that is noticably quicker.

 I've driven a new Focus- nice and sprightly off the line but after that there isn't much left . I just think that the Escape needs to be held to a higher standard because of the kind of vehicle  it is.

   

[mixmanmash]

GDI does have its disadvantages.  Which is why I like what Toyota does in their applications of it.  They still use port injection in addition to wash off the intake valves every so often.

Turbochargers are fairly reliable if maintained properly.  Use a good synthetic oil, follow the oil service schedule, allow the turbo 30 secs to cool down if driven hard before shutting off the engine.  Don't be boosting until oil reaches operating temperature.  I've seen people do 400,000 miles (yes, miles) on factory stock turbos from the 90s by just following these tips.

[sacrat]

GDI does have its disadvantages.  Which is why I like what Toyota does in their applications of it.  They still use port injection in addition to wash off the intake valves every so often.

Turbochargers are fairly reliable if maintained properly.  Use a good synthetic oil, follow the oil service schedule, allow the turbo 30 secs to cool down if driven hard before shutting off the engine.  Don't be boosting until oil reaches operating temperature.  I've seen people do 400,000 miles (yes, miles) on factory stock turbos from the 90s by just following these tips.

I thought the 30 second shutdown regimen was to prevent "coking" on oil cooled bearings in the turbo. Aren't they all water cooled these days for just that reason ?

[sacrat]

The smart money might just sit on the sidelines for now on this new technology.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/05/ask-an-engineer-gdi-problems-in-a-nutshell/

Interesting (and a bit disturbing) link. I hope my wife's Accent GDI holds up. She generally sticks to one brand of gas, and I'll suggest she keep doing that...

[Sir Osis of Liver]

I wouldn't worry about it. These systems have been around since 1996, just not in NA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasoline_direct_injection#Later_systems