FORD MAKES A BETTER ESCAPE
Enhancements aim to keep the best-selling SUV on top of its game, writes Dale Johnson
Ford has made some improvements to its top-selling sport utility vehicle, the Escape.
The 2017 version has new styling, new technology and new performance.
With this being the top seller in a competitive field, Ford wasn’t interested in major changes, but rather wanted to enhance a few things so the Escape stays on top of its game.
It can be quite a balancing act to move a product ahead without getting rid of what makes it so successful.
The Escape is the second-best selling product that carries the blue oval Ford logo, behind only the F-150 pickup truck.
Last year, Ford sold 47,726 Escapes in Canada, compared to 118,837 F-150s.
Although the automaker doesn’t release specific provincial numbers, it says Saskatchewan has the highest market share of Ford products of any province in Canada. And in Saskatchewan, 85 per cent of Ford products are pickup trucks and SUVs. So there’s a lot riding on the success of the updated Escape.
I recently test drove a media fleet 2017 Ford Escape, a top-end 4-wheel-drive Titanium edition. It had just 2,300 kilometres on it when I was handed the keys.
As I approached the Escape, I noticed the new front-end styling: a larger grill with two horizontal chrome bars, similar to the Edge; a new bumper; and new headlights.
The rear end has also been restyled, with less chrome trim and squarer lights.
Stepping inside the redesigned interior, it struck me as less cluttered and a notch up on the luxury scale, with such goodies as leather-trimmed, 10-way power seats up front, for example.
There’s also new technology on the new Escape, including SYNC 3, Ford’s infotainment system software.
This tester also had the optional collision warning with brake support.
Here’s how it works: Sensors in the front of the Escape detect how far ahead the vehicle is in front of you — and then determine if you’re going faster than that vehicle. If this happens, a row of red lights flashes on the windshield and an alarm goes off.
That happened to me on the highway. The flashing red lights and the alarm certainly caught my attention; I hit the brakes right away.
The Auto Start-Stop Technology — which is standard on the two EcoBoost engines offered on the Escape — cuts fuel consumption by an estimated five per cent, and also reduces emissions. When the vehicle is stopped, at a red traffic light for example, the engine shuts off when your foot is on the brake pedal for a few seconds. When you take your foot off the brake, the engine immediately starts up.
There are two new engines for the Escape: an EcoBoost 1.5-litre four cylinder engine and a 2.0-litre EcoBoost. Continued is the 2.5-litre four cylinder engine. My tester had the 2.0L EcoBoost.
The base Escape has a suggested list price of just over $25,000. The top-end Titanium starts at just under $34,000 — and the version I tested had plenty of options and came in at over $40,000.
The driver position, visibility and handling are all very good. The ride comfort and luxury touches are much improved over earlier editions of the Escape.
For many people — like the 47,726 buyers of Escapes in Canada last year — the Escape’s compact size is ideal.
It’s easy to handle in the city, rides well on the highway, and can haul more than a sedan.
But depending on how much you want to haul — or if you want to carry more than five people — the Escape might be too small. The trade-off with having a less roomy vehicle like the Escape — compared with its larger corporate cousins, such as the Edge, Flex, Explorer and Expedition — is that it’s easier to handle and park.
The Escape has obviously proven its popularity in the marketplace over the years, and these latest improvements — in styling, technology and performance — demonstrate that Ford wants the Escape to stay on top in the compact SUV segment.
On the highway, the flashing red lights and the alarm certainly caught my attention; I hit the brakes right away.