Need help making Ford Escape Decisions!
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New User
Joined: Dec 2012
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Need help making Ford Escape Decisions!
I am currently looking into getting a new, used car. I have a 30 year old mercedes 240d right now and am looking to make the BIG jump to a compact SUV. I really dislike the look of the RAV-4 and the CRV, they look like toys and thus I keep coming back to a Ford. I love the Escape but can't decide which year I would want to look into.
My main hold up is that I am afraid of the transmission issues that people keep bringing up. I don't need anything fancy with automatic parking or a DVD player. I do a considerable amount of commuting - mostly on the highway but also in the city. I would like good gas mileage and a nice ride. I live on the side of a mountain and need something that can really move up a steep incline - my current ride does not handle that so well. I also do a good amount of driving over mountain passes for my job.
Can anyone out there help me make up my mind? Thank you!
My main hold up is that I am afraid of the transmission issues that people keep bringing up. I don't need anything fancy with automatic parking or a DVD player. I do a considerable amount of commuting - mostly on the highway but also in the city. I would like good gas mileage and a nice ride. I live on the side of a mountain and need something that can really move up a steep incline - my current ride does not handle that so well. I also do a good amount of driving over mountain passes for my job.
Can anyone out there help me make up my mind? Thank you!
Mountain Pass
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 230
Likes: 11
We have a 2010 Escape with a V6 and about 40K on it. Have not had any trouble except a dead battery. We do not live in a mountainous area but on flat land it gets 25-26 mpg highway and has plenty of acceleration power. You may want to hear about the 4WD version for you situation.
Tuned
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 474
Likes: 3
Get a 13 escape. The 1.6 Ecoboost will out perform any of the old V6 escapes hands down. And the full time four wheel drive is the best I have ever used in a ford. We have one now and I am going to order another. May get the 2.0 in the next one, but this 1.6 is a torque monster and runs like a scared rabbit. We had a 11 explorer, but traded it for a 12 expedition. We like the new escape a lot better then the new explorer. The 11 plus explorers are a POS in my mind!
Cargo Master
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 2,511
Likes: 8
From: hinckley ohio
I would stay away from the early model year 05 because there seemed like there was issues with pcm that would go out and plug the catalitic converters.Other then that Ford started the 6 speed trans in 09 and there was some isssues till they got the bugs worked out.I have an 01 4x4 with 190,000 miles it does great in the winter but I only get 20 mpg.My brother has a 2010 4x4 with a 4 cyl. he gets 25-26 mpg mostly freeway driving.
Laughing Gas
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 939
Likes: 1
From: Central Kansas
This statement would rule out a '13 in my mind b/c they look pretty much the same to me.
Personally I like my 2009 a lot. Has 35,000 miles and no problems whatsoever. Mine has the 4cyl and 5 speed manual so it can get very good fuel milage if I would drive it better, but it's too much fun and I sometimes tend to do jack rabbit starts. Even w/ that I get 25mpg w/ about 75% highway/25% town. Not sure I would suggest the manual tranny on slick mountains though - that's the one place I mark it down is slick takeoffs, bad enough on the flat, have to take off in 2nd to have any chance. Any slope just compounds the problem. I'd certainly look at a 4x4 automatic. My mom bought a 2011 4cyl auto and it's very zippy w/ no tranny problems. It's only a 2wd through. Can't say if it would be that zippy w/ a 4x4. She already has 30,000 on hers w/ no problems either.
Personally I like my 2009 a lot. Has 35,000 miles and no problems whatsoever. Mine has the 4cyl and 5 speed manual so it can get very good fuel milage if I would drive it better, but it's too much fun and I sometimes tend to do jack rabbit starts. Even w/ that I get 25mpg w/ about 75% highway/25% town. Not sure I would suggest the manual tranny on slick mountains though - that's the one place I mark it down is slick takeoffs, bad enough on the flat, have to take off in 2nd to have any chance. Any slope just compounds the problem. I'd certainly look at a 4x4 automatic. My mom bought a 2011 4cyl auto and it's very zippy w/ no tranny problems. It's only a 2wd through. Can't say if it would be that zippy w/ a 4x4. She already has 30,000 on hers w/ no problems either.
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These are all great suggestions. I might skip the 2013, they have changed the appearance a lot and it now looks like the CRV and Rav-4. I should have also mentioned I am looking for a used car. On that note, can someone give me a suggestion for how many miles might be too many when buying my car used? I think I am starting to lean towards the 2007. The 2008 seems to have a lot of complaints and 2009+ might be too new for my price range.
Elder User
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 595
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From: Chico, CA
We love our 2010 Escape with the V6 and 4wd (we bought new in July 2010). Tons of power in the mountains and great in the snow (we lived in western Montana before relocating here). We've had zero problems whatsoever.
However, fuel mileage is not spectacular with the V6 and 4wd. I've tracked every single fill up since day one and we've averaged 19.203 mpg through the first 33,000 miles. Typically 23-25 mpg highway and 16-18 city.
I think you'd want a '10, '11 or '12 model year. The best body style came in '08. The new transmission came out in '09 and had a few issues that year. The body style changed to the "Ford Focus on steroids" in 2013.
However, fuel mileage is not spectacular with the V6 and 4wd. I've tracked every single fill up since day one and we've averaged 19.203 mpg through the first 33,000 miles. Typically 23-25 mpg highway and 16-18 city.
I think you'd want a '10, '11 or '12 model year. The best body style came in '08. The new transmission came out in '09 and had a few issues that year. The body style changed to the "Ford Focus on steroids" in 2013.
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Logistics Pro
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 3,827
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From: Martinsburg, WV
We have a '12 4cyl AWD A/T, already have 57k on it. No major issues. We put 1k a week on it. We do 90% highway, average around 26mpg.
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