Considering an Escape

[2TimingTom]

What's up Escape forum!

Sometime this year, the plan is get my wife out of her 2004 Saturn VUE and into some kind of newer, small SUV, automatic transmission, heated seats, "all-wheel-drive" would be OK. I've always liked Escapes, but I honestly don't know much about them.

I was thinking about a 2010 model year. I think the heated seat requirement drives me to the Limited trim.

Engines: I'm leaning toward the 4 cylinder for economy reasons. Does it really deliver on the 20/26 as advertised? Does the 4 cylinder have a timing belt or timing chain? Any known issues with the 4 cylinder? Any votes for the V6? The Escape will be primarily used in town with little highway. I have my Explorer for towing so I don't need the Escape to have any towing capabilities.

AWD: any issues with this? My dad had a 2005ish V6 AWD Tribute and never had any issues. He sold it recently with about 150,000 miles on it. The AWD Saturn VUEs can have issues with the rear drive shaft carrier bearing and the rear diff. Any issues with the Escape's AWD system? Does it engage the rears well and keep you from getting stuck where the FWD lets you down?

Any other general issues? Or quirks?

Thanks!
--Tom

 

[Joe Dirt]

Tom- we have a 4 cylinder 4WD that we just bought. We drove a V6 4wd, and there is a very noticeable difference in power. But, we bought it for mileage, and it does deliver. We're getting a solid 27-29hwy at 68-70mph, and 22 in the city if we drive it somewhat conservatively without laboring the 4 cylinder... It is a system akin to the ControlTrac "auto" function, it is always active, but only powers the other 2 wheels if needed. It is amazing in the snow, I think.

The V6 I had overnight was pulling slightly better mileage than my Explorer, if I was getting one for mileage, I'd get a 4cy again- I like it for what it is- dimensionally it's very similar feeling to the 2nd gen, minus the length.

I know the first Escapes had belts, but I think Ford is now using chains, at least a 2010 I looked at had a chain...


We have this:

When the Ex goes, I'll probably be replacing it with another Escape down the road. <gasp!>

 

[Bruces expo]

Me and My fiance had a 2001 Tribute was the small v6 and fwd until you used 4wd , i thought it was okay for what it was , but at 105k miles it started to drink fuel worse than my first gen 4.0 , thats when we decided to get rid of it , It was a good suv , but at that mileage and it started to consume fuel like a v8 , i knew something was not right , I Know nothing about the new one's but i have heard ok things about them and understand they have changed alot since when i had the Tribute , Good Luck on The Decision !

 

[vroomzoomboom]

When the Ex goes......

 

[mattadams]

I have the 2010 escape with the 4-cylinder, I actually sought it out for mileage purposes but honestly it delivers plenty of power... unless you are planning on drag racing, etc. I would say it outperforms many previous vehicles I've had with 6-cylinders and 8-cylinders, especially when accelerating up an incline (going up to the mountains) etc. and I typically see around 24-28 mpg, depending on the time of year and the types of trips I take.
Mine is just the XLT, but there wasn't much the limited offered I was dying to have (though the USB input and sync system would've been nice, but not worth the extra dough when I could buy an aftermarket head unit that does much of the same stuff if not more, like navigation, backup camera, etc. but looks better at a fraction of the cost).
Mine drives great in the snow, though I haven't really had it "off road" (that's not it's intention in life, after all... but maybe someday...)

 

[mattadams]

P.S. one thing you will quickly find if you are used to customizing your vehicle with aftermarket accessories is that aside from some of the basic stuff, there is very little aftermarket support for the escapes... probably because of demand... but thats ok as well... all I've added to mine are HID headlights (DDM Tuning) and Weathertech floor mats, which I love by the way.

 

[2TimingTom]

Thanks Matt. Is yours FWD or AWD?

The vehicle will remain pretty stock. Floor mats and window tint are the types of "mods" I'd be doing to it.

I posted over on Escape City. That forum looks like it has a ton more traffic than this sub-forum.

 

[mattadams]

Mine is AWD. And yes this subforum is pretty new but a lot of times for specific questions, best to go to a source designed for that specific source. We have a jeep forum here too, but if I really wanted a jeep question answered, I'd probably go to a jeep forum .

 

[2TimingTom]

Well, we bought a 2012 V6 Limited 4x4. It's got a lot of cool "bells and whistles"- back up camera, heated seats, ambient lighting, leather, heated outside mirrors, roof rack, moonroof.......

I don't have any pics yet. I'll get on that...... when it stops raining.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Nicely done... We completely love our Escape...

We just returned from a week up in Traverse City, and from leaving our doorstep to returning to our doorstep I pulled 29.9 mpg- even with a fair about of hills in Northern Michigan! I love it!

 

[2TimingTom]

So far we like it- we've only had it since Wednesday.

I actually wanted a I-4 Limited (4 cylinders in general are hard to come by out here). My dealership located one in Provo, UT but when I looked at the other dealer's website and saw that they had it listed for less than what my dealer was offering, I called them. I basically screwed myself- I expressed interest to that dealer and then when my dealer called about a dealer transfer, they said they had someone interested and didn't want to trade.

But it in the end it worked out. I was about to buy a $140 plane ticket and pick it up and drive it back. But then my dealer here offered me a V6 out of their stock for $20 more than the I-4 price. So I think I got a pretty decent deal out of it all. I'm happy with the price I paid.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Good deal. It took us to find a I4 4WD Limited... Got one though, but that was back in February. I'm sure they're picked through by now. It's no racer, but I like the gas savings. The v6 screams though- that's a nice strong feeling little rig...

 

[2TimingTom]

Suppose I should post up pics......

So far no issues at all with it. Since it's not "mine" the SYNC system hasn't been fully utilized but my wife is enjoying the bluetooth hands-free calling, the satellite radio and the backup camera.

Its first road trip will be around July 4th this summer. We are driving from CO to WI for a week and a half or so. Couple stops along the way but nothing too exciting. It's going to get loaded up with a Thule cargo box on the roof and a 2" receiver for a bike rack. We've made roughly this same trip in my '97 Explorer last summer and eeked out a one tank best of 18 mpg (loaded the same)- I'm hoping the Escape will do better and have an icier A/C.

So.... here it is. The kids have named it "Grey Beauty"- we had a rental Durango in FL that was black that they called "Black Beauty". Escapes are everywhere in the Denver metro area so this thing is certainly not unique in the least. But I think it's going to be a great vehicle in the years to come.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Nice!

 

[mattadams]

Love the grey.
I'm with you on the escape tending to blend in a bit... but I had my years of vehicles that were over the top unique, and I'm happy to have something that is reliable, decent power, decent mileage, and that I still fit in.

 

[Joe Dirt]

They do seem common, since there are a LOT of Escapes out there. But, other than the Pilot and maybe the XL7, everything in this class looks like the new 2013 Escape- the boxy look is not so common anymore, and the new CSUV's look the same to me. I like the boxy look of our Escape.

 

[2TimingTom]

I gotta admit, if the timing was different on our purchase, I would have seriously considered a 2013 Escape. I know they look like a lot of the others out there, but I really like the new Escape.

Not saying that I don't like my 2012 though.