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'20 Escape First Drive Review


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On 9/17/2019 at 4:54 PM, mpcmotorsports said:

I spoke to our Ford rep last winter about the Escape. I asked him if there was any chance that we could see an Escape ST in the US market with the demise of the Fiesta and Focus ST. Not a chance since women are the target demographic for the Escape.

 

Yet my wife's car...

 

 

20190810_083738.jpg

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Read a few reviews of the hybrid this morning. Apparently the hybrid loses 2” in rear legroom. This seems like a big mistake, especially if you were wanting sedan buyers to transition to the escape. Does taking two inches off make it as cramped as the current escape? It also loses 2 seconds in 0-60 (8.7 sec) compared to the 2.0L escape. Reviews seem mostly positive except when they compare it to the RAV4 which has more space and better performance. Wonder why they haven’t released the MPG for this thing? Seems like if it got good mpg, you’d want that to be the headline for these reviews.

 

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/09/19/2020-ford-escape-hybrid-first-drive/

 

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/ford/escape/2020/2020-ford-escape-hybrid-review/

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1 hour ago, akirby said:

I have a hard time believing that the Escape interior is any more cheap feeling than a RAV4 or CRV.  Would be nice to get a head to head non journalist opinion.

 

I'll wait to see one in person, but I'll be honest, it (Escape) does look cheap in many areas in pictures, IMO.

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3 hours ago, T-dubz said:

Read a few reviews of the hybrid this morning. Apparently the hybrid loses 2” in rear legroom. This seems like a big mistake, especially if you were wanting sedan buyers to transition to the escape.......

 

Henry Payne, auto writer for the Detroit News, is 6'5" tall.  His comments:

 

"I can’t tell you how many women have approached me over the years asking for compact utes that fit four golf bags. Behold, the new Escape (Ford expects a 60%-plus female buyer mix) which will stack four easily and still provide the best rear legroom in class. I’m not making this up.  Thanks to rail-mounted rear seats that slide backward like the fronts, my 6-foot-5 frame could easily sit behind myself. Ford even scallops out the front seatbacks for more knee room."

 

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/columnists/henry-payne/2019/09/19/review-new-2020-ford-escape-hybrid-test/2335907001/

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44 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

 

I'll wait to see one in person, but I'll be honest, it (Escape) does look cheap in many areas in pictures, IMO.

 

But that wasn't the question.  The question was whether the materials are noticeably cheaper than the competition.   Of course it's not going to be as nice as a $60K Explorer or $80K Expedition.

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Just now, akirby said:

 

But that wasn't the question.  The question was whether the materials are noticeably cheaper than the competition.   Of course it's not going to be as nice as a $60K Explorer or $80K Expedition.

 

Because I guarantee they don't say that about RAV4 or CRV even if they feel exactly the same.

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7 minutes ago, akirby said:

 

Because I guarantee they don't say that about RAV4 or CRV even if they feel exactly the same.

 

your answering yourself now? :)

 

Regarding cheap trim or plastic-in the grand scheme of things it really doesn't matter unless its REALLY Bad-I think the worse plastic I've seen seen in a car was a Dodge Caliber-it had the same texture as an igloo cooler! A BMW i3 uses some funky interior materials that I wouldn't expect to see in a 'luxury" car-they are kinda ugly looking due to the "texture" in them, but they don't look "cheap"

 

Not to mention some cheap looking plastics look great once you put some interior dressing on them. 

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Yeah, out of the videos I've watched, the only one that made a comment I think was back on the TFL video.  They noticed the door panels up front had soft touch features.  The portion with the reverse diamond plate.  But in the rear seats, those pieces are hard plastic.

 

I think it's just Motor Trend needing to come up with something bad to say.  Otherwise it's a boring report.  Negatard news.

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50 minutes ago, mackinaw said:

 

Henry Payne, auto writer for the Detroit News, is 6'5" tall.  His comments:

 

"I can’t tell you how many women have approached me over the years asking for compact utes that fit four golf bags. Behold, the new Escape (Ford expects a 60%-plus female buyer mix) which will stack four easily and still provide the best rear legroom in class. I’m not making this up.  Thanks to rail-mounted rear seats that slide backward like the fronts, my 6-foot-5 frame could easily sit behind myself. Ford even scallops out the front seatbacks for more knee room."

 

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/columnists/henry-payne/2019/09/19/review-new-2020-ford-escape-hybrid-test/2335907001/

 

2017 escape

rear leg room - 37.3 inches

 

2020 escape non hybrid

max rear leg room - 40.7 inches

effective leg room - 38.8 inches

 

2020 escape hybrid

max rear leg room - 38.9 inches

effective rear leg room - 37.1 inches

 

i have no idea what effective legroom is, but going off max legroom it looks like the hybrid still has 1.6 inches more than the current model.

 

 

https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North America/US/product/2020/escape/2020-Ford-Escape-Tech-Specs.pdf

 

https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North America/US/Events/17-LAAS/2017-ford-escape-tech-specs.pdf

 

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23 hours ago, pictor said:

Just saw that CRV just released their hybrid in the US, timing is fishy

 

2020 CR-V mid cycle refresh was shown yesterday. Honda waited for that refresh to offer the hybrid version in the U.S. market. Hence the timing. 

 

CR-V hybrid has been sold in China since 2017, Japan since 2018, and EU since early 2019.

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On 9/17/2019 at 9:41 AM, T-dubz said:

 

This is the problem. In the comment section of every article about the escape you see this thought quite often. There’s no one really raving about the escape and there’s a few that really dislike it, but it seems most are like “eh, I’m not gonna buy it but I’m sure someone else will like it.” 

 

On the various car forums I frequent-most state that there isn't nothing compelling about the Escape for the market segment. That's the issue. Based on looks alone-IMHO I don't see a run-away best seller. SORRY....

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20 minutes ago, CKNSLS said:

 

On the various car forums I frequent-most state that there isn't nothing compelling about the Escape for the market segment. That's the issue. Based on looks alone-IMHO I don't see a run-away best seller. SORRY....

 

What do they say about CRV or RAV4?  I can’t imagine it’s much different.

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50 minutes ago, akirby said:

 

What do they say about CRV or RAV4?  I can’t imagine it’s much different.

 

The difference is that those are bought because of brand reputation and reliability.-even though design may be controversial.  I mean doesn't it (Escape) still sell in less numbers than Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Nissan Rogue and Chevrolet Equinox?  

 

Or-am I wrong here?

 

 

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12 minutes ago, CKNSLS said:

 

The difference is that those are bought because of brand reputation and reliability.-even though design may be controversial.  I mean doesn't it (Escape) still sell in less numbers than Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Nissan Rogue and Chevrolet Equinox?  

 

Or-am I wrong here?

 

 

 

Rav4, rogue and CR-V are all around 400 k and escape and equinox are around 300k.  But that has nothing to do with the point which is that journalists criticize Ford products for the same thing that they ignore in other brands,  it’s ok to say the interior is cheap as long as they say it about the others too (if true).   I’ve heard the Mazda may be an exception.

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9 minutes ago, akirby said:

 

Rav4, rogue and CR-V are all around 400 k and escape and equinox are around 300k.  But that has nothing to do with the point which is that journalists criticize Ford products for the same thing that they ignore in other brands,  it’s ok to say the interior is cheap as long as they say it about the others too (if true).   I’ve heard the Mazda may be an exception.

 

I would agree with you on some of your points. However-IMHO Ford didn't swing for the fences for the new model of the Escape.  Maybe 6-12 months or so down the road you can come back and the sales numbers will prove me wrong.

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