Ford escape

[adsm08]

the OP should go test driving, lol

Agreed.

Our Escape has seats that are middle of the line. Its more comfortable than the S-10, but less than the Explorer seats I have in my truck. Some of them are just down right uncomfortable. I don't like the seats in my mom's Mariner.

 

[cody93]

my moms got an 05 with the 3.0, its rarely maintained, yet still has no problems, i keep tellin here its time for a tuneup :\ biggest complaint from me is that the interior feels cheap and the seats are not very comfortable. other than that, it makes a nice lil grocery getter.

 

[JimJa1943]

I bought one of the very first Escapes when they came out in 2001. V6, 4x4, loaded, except for the step rails. Had few initial problems fixed under warranty then nothing. We moved away from the cold and snow and I sold it to a very good friend.

He now has 120,000 on it and has never done a thing to it. Nothing. He loves it and I wish I had it back.

I'm 6'2" and there is more room in the cabin than in either my '92 or '00 Explorers. It was easy to park and nimble too. Easy to drive. Ford did something clever with the fold down rear seats too. They gave the rear seat pax more room than other vehicles in it's class (Honda/Toyota) at the expense of less cargo when those back seat is up. When you need the cargo space and the seats are folded down, well, it doesn't make any difference where the rear seat is located.

...but the cabin is noisy (remember this is a low-end SUV). They could have done better there, and I don't like the way the auto transmission shifted down at the slightest grade. Once the RPM is up however, it goes pretty good. Impressive. Keeping the speed down to a reasonable 70, my wife would get (and I checked because I didn't believe her) 29.5 MPG. The new owner also says he gets about the same. Speed up to 75 plus and it dropped to 25-26. No abnormal tire wear as other have reported. OEM tires lasted about 40K and second set lasted 70K

 

[chazzone]

The wife has a 2002 w/ over 100k miles.
We've had it for more than 50k miles.

I've done all the service on it, and it runs strong and is a great all around vehicle.

I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't get the V-6.
I wouldn't have anything else.

So it's not as easy to work on as some 60's car. It's not that hard, either.

-zz

 

[ZMan]

My mom bought a v6 with the awd new in 2002, other than a lower control arm and brakes, the thing has been very reliable, its got 113k on it now. I haven't had to get into the engine more than just changing oil so far.

 

[shane96ranger]

We have an 06 with 92000 miles. It's the 2.3 liter with the CD4E automatic (the 6 uses the CD4E also). Ours is only front wheel drive. It gets 26-29 miles a gallon on the freeway and roughly 20 around town. We've owned it for three years and really enjoy it. I replaced the brakes about a month ago and while I was in there I noticed the drivers side CV axle had a crack in the boot, so I replaced that while I was in there. I also replaced the rotors because the dipshit at CarQuest said my rotors were too thin to be resurfaced. He told me they had to be at least 26mm and mine calipered at 24.5mm. Well, after I already had one side installed I noticed on the 2nd rotor that it read "min thickness 22mm". So that was 80 bucks I didn't NEED to put into it, but oh well.

Don't let the 4 cylinder scare you away, it has decent power (it will take my Ranger in a race). It has a timing CHAIN, not belt. The parts are decent priced for it too. It is the same 2.3 that Mazda uses.

My brother has a 2005 Limited with a V6 that's been a good vehicle for him also.

I would definitely buy another one.


One more thing I like to note.......when I change the oil every 3-4,000 miles - I can still see through the oil.

 

[straycat]

My wife and I went new car shopping again this week and we drove the 2010 4 cy and V6 Escape. They were both a pos!!! I left very pissed and I will never buy another new Ford. We drove the Edge and Flex and they are crap as well and very ugly. I can't stand this square look that Ford have other dealers are going with. It just looks like pure shit!!! I think the early Escape models were so nice looking...but not this new body style!!!!!

 

[adsm08]

I also replaced the rotors because the dipshit at CarQuest said my rotors were too thin to be resurfaced. He told me they had to be at least 26mm and mine calipered at 24.5mm. Well, after I already had one side installed I noticed on the 2nd rotor that it read "min thickness 22mm". So that was 80 bucks I didn't NEED to put into it, but oh well.

I would like to point out two things in the CarQuest guy's defense.

1) The minimum (or discard) thickness that is cast into the rotor is frequently lower than the Do Not Machine thickness. Ford doesn't specify a DNM for those rotors though.

and

2) 24mm is the appropriate discard for the 4W disc brake Escapes. He may not have known that you have rear drums or his system/book may not have noted the difference.

I probably wouldn't have tried to cut them only 2 mm over the discard either. I usually take off anywhere from 1.5 to 3mm depending on the condition of the rotor.

 

[shane96ranger]

I would like to point out two things in the CarQuest guy's defense.

1) The minimum (or discard) thickness that is cast into the rotor is frequently lower than the Do Not Machine thickness. Ford doesn't specify a DNM for those rotors though.

and

2) 24mm is the appropriate discard for the 4W disc brake Escapes. He may not have known that you have rear drums or his system/book may not have noted the difference.

I probably wouldn't have tried to cut them only 2 mm over the discard either. I usually take off anywhere from 1.5 to 3mm depending on the condition of the rotor.

He knew what they were for. We went over it several times. I feel there's no way they needed 2mm taken off, they aren't that bad. Obviously I'm not a tech though, but he told me he would go to minimum thickness and that's all. I wasn't asking him to go past that, he just said that in the course of the conversation.

He told me he couldn't find a listing for the min thickness in his book or computer. Ford put the numbers on the back of the rotor and they have a ton of rust on them so it was not legible. But I feel if you are in the business of turning rotors, you should have that information at your disposal.