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‘20 Escape Impressions


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On 12/12/2019 at 6:05 PM, HotRunrGuy said:

Well, I've got a 2020 in the garage. The dealer that is putting the new engine in my '18 asked me to bring the Fusion back, and swap it for this.  So, I'll have a week or so test drive that I wasn't expecting.

 

HRG

2020 Escape loaner.jpg

 

Well, after a 3-week test drive, waiting on my 18's 1.5EB to be replaced, both my wife and daughter have said our '18 drives much better, and is a lot less noisy. Neither of them has any interest in a '20 as a future replacement. Maybe in a couple of years, they'll improve the NVH, and we can consider it.

 

HRG

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5 minutes ago, HotRunrGuy said:

 

Well, after a 3-week test drive, waiting on my 18's 1.5EB to be replaced, both my wife and daughter have said our '18 drives much better, and is a lot less noisy. Neither of them has any interest in a '20 as a future replacement. Maybe in a couple of years, they'll improve the NVH, and we can consider it.

 

HRG

 

Wow, that's disappointing.  Maybe I missed it, but what trim level is the '18 you are comparing it to?  My MIL's '19 is pretty quiet.  My wife's '14 is pretty quiet with the except of some strange wind noise in the middle of the windshield. They are both titaniums.

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3 hours ago, HotRunrGuy said:

 

Well, after a 3-week test drive, waiting on my 18's 1.5EB to be replaced, both my wife and daughter have said our '18 drives much better, and is a lot less noisy. Neither of them has any interest in a '20 as a future replacement. Maybe in a couple of years, they'll improve the NVH, and we can consider it.

 

HRG

 

Thank you HotRunrGuy for sharing your and your family members' impressions of 2020 Escape. It definitely seems like the 1.5L 3-cylinder engine has design flaws that cause it to run unusually rough and noisy. Consumer Reports also experienced poor NVH control in the 2020 Escape SE 1.5L they road tested recently.

 

Quote

"Engine vibration is the most objectionable characteristic. We would avoid the standard 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder engine just because of its bothersome pressure boom and vibration"

Edited by rperez817
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3 hours ago, fordmantpw said:

 

Wow, that's disappointing.  Maybe I missed it, but what trim level is the '18 you are comparing it to?  My MIL's '19 is pretty quiet.  My wife's '14 is pretty quiet with the except of some strange wind noise in the middle of the windshield. They are both titaniums.

 

Our '18 is an SEL with the 4cyl 1.5EB, the '20 loaner we had was a SE with the 3cyl 1.5EB.  Admittedly, not exactly applies to apples, but not a Titanium to base comparison either.

 

HRG

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On 12/13/2019 at 7:15 AM, HotRunrGuy said:

 

It's a 200A SE.  I'm as curious about the 3-cyl as you are,,,

 

HRG

Loaner 2020 Escape.JPG

This has RIDICULOUSLY more standard equipment than my 2008 XLT had. I THINK the MSRP is lower too?  Ugly car but the value compared to 2008 ain't bad. 

Upon further reflection, mine was 4cyl with AWD, and I had the running boards, a roof rack, and the wet storage trunk. Also a CD player. So When you add those up you probably get to a similar price, but with a ton more standard equipment. Which is still good, just not great.

Edited by probowler
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8 hours ago, probowler said:

This has RIDICULOUSLY more standard equipment than my 2008 XLT had. I THINK the MSRP is lower too?  Ugly car but the value compared to 2008 ain't bad. 

Upon further reflection, mine was 4cyl with AWD, and I had the running boards, a roof rack, and the wet storage trunk. Also a CD player. So When you add those up you probably get to a similar price, but with a ton more standard equipment. Which is still good, just not great.

 

Keep in mind that 2008 was 12 years ago!  Inflation, tighter emissions, increased fuel economy, more safety equipment (cameras and air bags ain't cheap) make a huge difference.  Overall, the cost is likely lower today based on inflation and equipment.

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  • 3 weeks later...

18258763_IMG_20200117_NewandOld.thumb.jpg.1eaee69ddcf3500753c7b675d29b036b.jpg

I've driven a 2013 C-Max since it's introduction, and would have bought the last of the 2018's if I'd found the one I wanted. 18 months later, Ford's again making non-sedan hybrids, and this one's mine. I'm over 100 miles now, and I've done nothing to the car. Tire pressures (max 41 psi BTW) are at 33 psi. Fuel is whatever the dealer put in, 87E10 I suspect. 

 

It's a very nice car. Ride is quiet and smoother than the C-Max at 50 psi on the tires. No idea if it's as nimble; too much snow. Ride height doesn't seem much higher until you realize you can see over the C-Max next to you. The car is 4.5"  taller and you sit higher in it so it feels like twice that. The sloping hood gives the same kind of forward view, so it's really not noticeable at the wheel. I like the inside rearview mirror better (darker) and don't miss the wide-angle mirrors on the wings as much as expected. BLISS isn't intrusive, although I do get an odd steering feel sometimes, I really miss the road feedback of a direct steering linkage, but the computer can't save the unskilled driver without being in control. I'm waiting for Big Brother to take over, like the C-Max did when it had a faulty RSC module.  

 

I believe all hybrids get the fancy display, speed to the left, power to the right with a user-selectable screen in between. The power screen shows ICE and EV kW being provided, based on throttle position, switching to a single regen power display on braking. There's also a perimeter display around the numbers, 0-180 kW of power, with regen displayed as negative values. There is no "My View" option. 

 

The center screen shows the kind of data C-Max shows in the left display, like trip odos, along with an EV Coach that's similar to the C-Max Empower screen power display. A single horizontal bar shows Regen power to the left and ICE power, EV power, and EV Available to the right. Yes, the blue outline showing EV Available in the Empower screen has been retained, and it behaves similarly. I can EV up to a maximum of 19 kW at speed before the ICE kicks in. The only sign of HVB charge status is a shrinking blue outline in EV. When the ICE runs, EV Available shrinks to sort of say "I'm here" without saying how much is there. I'm learning to use the throttle to switch to EV, but it's not as easy as the C-Max. At the same time, "chasing blue" from a stop works much better; I'm routinely getting to 20 MPH before ICE kicks in. 

 

That said, the first time I went out to see what I had, I hit 50.4 MPG in 32F weather over snow-covered roads. Auspicious, but I drove slow and had a tail wind. This was my old work commute, albeit at 3:00 AM Sunday morning, so I also took a return trip that was faster, and into the wind. I had no traffic and a very well known route where ICE burn points and durations were well defined over many years. Average trip time was 35 minutes for 15.3 miles, same as C-Max, at 48.4 MPG for the round trip. Average in the C-Max at 32F was 45.4 MPG, but those were 100% cold starts, which this was not. Still, auspicious at least. 

 

The one big dissatisfier is the block heater... Ford didn't route the cable, just left it behind the engine. Dealer set it up under the hood and using about half the clamps, clips and tie-downs placed along the harness, and a ton of slack. I doubt Ford issued a generic power cord. If anyone has access to the Ford routing documentation, I'd be very grateful. It's length easily reaches the lowest grill opening where there's lots of space and easy access. Under the hood is a non-starter. 

 

Any questions?

Frank

 

PS This was originally posted on the C-Max forum, where the questions so far all revolve around the size of the spare tire well. The C-Max had no spare. 

Edited by fbov
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7 hours ago, fbov said:

18258763_IMG_20200117_NewandOld.thumb.jpg.1eaee69ddcf3500753c7b675d29b036b.jpg

I've driven a 2013 C-Max since it's introduction, and would have bought the last of the 2018's if I'd found the one I wanted. 18 months later, Ford's again making non-sedan hybrids, and this one's mine. I'm over 100 miles now, and I've done nothing to the car. Tire pressures (max 41 psi BTW) are at 33 psi. Fuel is whatever the dealer put in, 87E10 I suspect. 

 

Any questions?

Frank

 

How does the cargo space compare to the C-Max? Is there a significant advantage/disadvantage in height/width/length with seats up or down?

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3 hours ago, Trailhiker said:

Is there a significant advantage/disadvantage in height/width/length

Yes, yes, and I think so.

 

The load floor is deeper and wider, and the tailgate opening height is similar, but internal height might not be. The rear seats don't fold flat, and few cars can match the C-Max for headroom. The C-Max fit a drop-leaf table standing up behind the front seat backs. The Escape won't. But it seems like there's a lot more than 40% greater volume because it's a lot deeper, especially if you slide the seats forward. Groceries fit tight in the C-Max; they wander in the Escape - I need a divider. I haven't shopped for accessories yet. 

 

HAve fun,

Frank

 

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  • 5 months later...
On 1/4/2020 at 9:33 AM, HotRunrGuy said:

 

Well, after a 3-week test drive, waiting on my 18's 1.5EB to be replaced, both my wife and daughter have said our '18 drives much better, and is a lot less noisy. Neither of them has any interest in a '20 as a future replacement. Maybe in a couple of years, they'll improve the NVH, and we can consider it.

 

HRG

May I ask why your 2018 1.5L has to be replaced?  I have the same year and engine with 25k.  Just wondering if I should be looking out for aything in particular.

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