Anyone have a Ford Escape?

[OxmanWI]

So I've been on the hunt for a baby mobile and of course I'm looking at anything in the blue oval family. For the past couple weeks the wife and I have been test driving Escapes, Mariners and one Tribute as this is the small SUV that we want to get. Right now we have a 24 hour test drive with a 2010 Escape XLT, 4WD, V6 with 47K on the clock.


Anyone own a Escape as a daily driver? Any advice or comments to share about it?


Thanks,

Josh

 

[Orange 94]

my mom has a 2008 v6. It was our first new vehicle. Warranty just ran out, its been absolutely amazing. We bought ours after the lease since we liked it so much a few years ago.

No problems other than a few right off the lot. The first one had a rattle in the back window or something? The dealership ended up just letting us trade for another one.
The car has pretty low km/miles on it, so i can't tell you about problems down the road.

My mom claims it is the best thing for winter. Stops very easily and never gets stuck. Good fuel economy.

Super easy to park and drive, I used it for drivers tests and what not.

The only thing is the chrome rims. They corroded really easily. Partial my moms fault for not washing enough. So i'd recommend the black rims or I think the newer ones have silver painted ones.

 

[MustangChris]

my aunt has one. i love the thing. my only complaint is the headrest is too big -- makes backing up more challenging (i'm the "turn around and look" guy, not the "trust your mirrors, it'll be fine" guy.)

other than that the only problems shes had with it were directly caused by the accidents shes been in with it.


and the steeringwheel rubs on the steering column cover, so it makes a squeeky sound. lol.

 

[Mr.Eman]

I have an 01' Escape XLT V6 AWD that I use for a winter/grocery getter. With a 9 year difference it's probably not a fair comparison but I'll give my .02.

The good:
Reasonably good gas mileage around 20 mpg avg
Great in the winter. Absolutely no issues with New England snow, slush, and ice.
Easy to park.
Handles like a car.

The Bad (again a lot of this was common in early Escapes and may not be an issue with a 10'):
Weak door lock actuators. They work great at 50 degrees or lower. I should stop doing stuff on the Stang and fix them.
No key lock for the back hatch (see above). Not a huge issue but I can't always open the back hatch.
ABS tone rings are notorious for failing causing the ABS to go on everytime you brake.
Alternator is located on the bottom of the engine. With a deep enough puddle you could take out your alternator and be stranded.

Good luck.

 

[Darhawk]

I've had a New 2005 V6 Escape ( Metallic Red ) and a 2009 Escape Hybird (Green)! The Hybird was fun and could plow through the Denver snow like it was nothing, I could pass and wasn't scared. I even took it off-road a few times while storm chasing and never stalled due to large puddles. Mechanically it, never failed me once in the 3 years time, in which I had I owned both. Plus the Sync system is far superior to the system I have now in my Highlander (I have to use an adapter cord to hear music from my IPhone). Bluetooth is amazing and no use of any cables on the Ess-ska-pay'. I love the way it handled like a car and was easy to maneuver, fun to drive. My mechanic did say that if the transmission went out though, the whole system would have to be replaced as it is an enclosed unit. I don't know if that is a problem or not, as mine never had an issue. I will say the Hybird one has a loud interior noise, and seems to sound like it is working really hard at this altitude.

Get the leather seats! because the cloth is somewhat uncomfortable on longer drives. My 05 made my back hurt after 30mins. that was the only drawback from me, those seat were horrid. I think they redesigned the seat in 09 and with leather, they are much better. Plus the cloth stain really easy. So scotch guard often.

Would I buy another! Yes if 7 passenger seating was available!


Good luck on the purchase!

 

[DropTopPony]

We have an 09 xlt fwd. It was great when we bought it because we had no small kids. Now I have a 3yr old and a 1 yr old and the escape is too small for everyday use with the 2 kids and all their shit. I wound up buying a '12 sienna to haul the family. The escape is just too small for kids and all the crap the have. Runs awesome and is extremely reliable just not a family cruiser. I can't put the seat back with a kid behind me in the the car seat. This is often overlooked when car shopping.

 

[LI98GT]

I had an 2010 Ford Escape XLT FWD with the 2.5L 4cyl as a company car and generally liked for what I used it for work and weekend lacrosse tournaments etc... I DID have transmission failure with low miles ~15k that was fixed under warranty, so would recommend extended warranty if you're getting one from a dealership. I posted the link to this site below in another used car thread, but if you look up the Escape model and the graph of the year your interested in, it captures the issues you should look out for. Also agree about not getting the cloth. My seats were also hard due to them being being made from recycled products and stained from someone spilling beer onto the seat. Never came out. Good luck in your search.

http://www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Escape/

 

[Goldmember]

All I can contribute is from riding in my cousin-in-law's '05 XLT. Didn't find it comfortable, pretty intimate inside.

 

[whiplash473]

My aunt has a fully loaded 2011 AWD (or 2010, I don't remember) that she loves. Haven't heard her say a bad thing about it yet.

 

[SMOKEDYA]

We test drove 3 different ones ranging from 07-11 and all of them rode like they had steel tires instead of rubber tires. I think we are going for the edge instead.....

 

[krazyrabbit]

I had a 2004 and my currently daily driver is a 2007 xlt V6. Love it - decent gas mileage, zippy take off, the right height for easy in & out access, room for lugging around kids, and can fit a Mustang front bumper or hood in the back.

My only complaint - the seat bottoms in the front are uncomfortable on long trips. I put a flat pillow down.

 

[OxmanWI]

Sorry to start a thread and not check in. The wife and I are not going with an Escape anymore. The Escape we had for 24 hours turned out to be a bust. I took it home only to find out it had a bad oil leak from the oil pan or timing cover. The salesman was dishonest with SWAPPING the carfax from another 2010 same color and drivetrain with a rear and side impact accident. I've been talking with guys in my fire house that I'll need a bigger SUV if I plan on having a couple kids. Right now we are looking at the Taurus X, Edge and Explorer. Thanks for the advice and tips, hope this thread helps anyone looking at the Escape.

 

[LI98GT]

Of those, I would go for the Edge from friends that currently own later models of them. Tons of room in front, rear and cargo and it's based upon a Mazda platform, so there's some zoom zoom built-in. Give 'em all a drive and a good going over to find out which one best fits your needs. My sister owns a CX-9, 2010 year that she loves and no issues to date.

 

[Win]

Had a 13 2.0 echo boost.... Damn thing would move but there sooooooo damn pricey...great cars but the money was too much for them ..

 

[SMOKEDYA]

So I ment the flex not the edge

 

[Corndiddly]

Girlfriend has a 2002, 160k miles on the clock, Runs shitty when cold (might be why it gets horrible fuel mileage), burns oil, interior in falling apart, tranny shifts like shit, rusty.

 

[Nightmare]

Oxy, once again, send me a message or give me a call. Should of been your first stop lol.

 

[OxmanWI]

Sorry I don't check in offten. We've been test driving ford Edges last week and yesterday we founf a 07 low mileage limited that we are trying to get.

 

[Rice_slayer]

I work for Ford and have a 2005 Escape V6 AWD has a winter beater. I get crappy mileage with mine lol. They are decent little suvs, like mine alot, drives really nice, AWESOME in the winter, and comfortable. Here are the issues with newer and older ones (before they turned into a fat Focus, the 2013+ is NOT an Escape to me).

4 speed tranny is horrible (2001-2008) most have the tranny blow up, mine blew up before I owned it under warranty (55000kms according to Ford History) have 110k on it now and still fine.
Brake lines crack (2001-2007 models) I replaced mine, but have seen many blow apart
Stab links wear fast on all models, replaced mine already, cheap and easy fix.
PTU seal leaks, more common on 09+ models and is something to look at before buying, very costly and time consuming repair, mine is sweating, I keep a close eye on it though
Left front axle seal leaks from 6 speed tranny (09+ models) there is a TSB out on this, it involves replacing the inner CV axle and seal of course
rear axle seal leaks on 2001-2007 escapes, expensive job, but can be done easily if you know how to manuever the rear diffy.
Front crank seals on all the 3.0L V6s tend to leak on them, replaced mine already, easy fix, took like 30-40 mins including jacking vehicle up.

Edges are nice vehicles too, suffer from the same PTU issues though. I was going to upgrade to an Edge in like 5 years but I need something that can tow more and the edge and escape are rated for the same capacity :/

 

[OxmanWI]

The wife and I have been SUV shopping for the past few weeks. At first we were looking at the Escape, but knew we needed more room so landed on this very clean and nicely optioned Edge for a great price. It was owned by a older couple that never drove it in the winter with only 30K miles. Found a nice SUV for our little pumpkin (wife is prego).