Ford Escape

The “king” is being replaced by a better-looking, better-handling and more powerful and versatile king, and regardless of what extenuating circumstances combined to make the Ford Escape the top-selling king of the SUV industry for 2011, Ford’s timing couldn’t be better for replacing it with an entirely new Escape for 2013.




Technology and a tough economy are dominating the industry, and the Escape was positioned perfectly to capitalize on the rush toward smaller utility vehicles coupled with demands for higher fuel economy with downsized but still feature-packed compact utility vehicles. The 2012 Escape is the last of the original boxy design, and Ford did its best to fill it with its latest gadgetry during the new model’s incubation. The reward was that 2011 “was our best sales year ever, with 254,000 sold,” said Frank Davis, Ford’s executive director of engineering, and strong sales continue in 2012, especially with model-end bargains sure to come.




Fuel economy is another pivotal feature, and while the CR-V shows 22 miles per gallon city and 30 mpg highway (31 mpg for 2-wheel drive), the Escape models attain better EPA estimates, with the 2.5 showing 22 city/31 highway, and the 1.6 EcoBoost at 23 city/33 highway. The powerful 2.0 EcoBoost matches the CR-V’s estimates with 22 city/30 highway. The 2.0 EcoBoost, which replaces the previous 3.0 V6 without any sacrifice in power but with the promise of improved fuel economy, asks for premium fuel, while the other two will run just fine on 87-octane regular.
Ford’s commitment to its new EcoBoost turbocharging stresses that it allows smaller displacement, for built-in mileage improvements, with the internal components built stronger so that the force-fed turbo power increases make up the disparity with larger engines, but without the gas-mileage penalty. By 2013, Ford claims that 90 percent of all its engines will feature the EcoBoost technology.




The base model is the S, starting at $22,795, with the 2.5 engine. The SE starts at $25,395, adding to S equipment with the availability of the 1.6 EcoBoost and various other upgrades, such as SYNC, MyFord with a 4-inch touch screen, and foglights. The SEL adds larger optional 18-inch wheels, and availability of dual climate control, a 9-speaker audio upgrade, perimeter alarm, 10-way power seats, heated seats and exterior mirrors, leather seat trim, and perimeter alarm, for a base price of $28,195. Top of the line is the Titanium, at a base of $30,695, with all of the standard equipment of the other models, plus the high-powered 2.0 EcoBoost, push-button start with remote feature, 19-inch wheels, and options such as the titanium package with power liftgate with the hands-free function, active park assist, rear-view camera, rain-sensing wipers, and rear-view camera.