The manual lists specs for torque while turning but not while not turning. It does say that if you show that at least 20% while turning sharply at no more than 5MPH, the system is working correctly.

I can't say for sure but have read some PR stuff from JTEKT stating that their 4WD units are used in Ford Escapes and other manufactures too. This page: http://www.jtekt.co.jp/e/products/drive02.html shows the unit(s) and at the bottom, the control box. It does look like the 4WD module that's in my console. The manual says that it requires no programming when replaced but who knows how how the whole system works. The PCM, ABS and 4WD module all converse over the CAN buss.

I can see having rear wheel torque in slippery driving conditions but not on dry pavement driving easily. I've pulled the fuse on the 4WD drive module for a few days and can feel better throttle response. On the downside, this lights the dash "wrench" icon but that goes off when the fuse is replaced.

It does leave a DTC stuck in memory that can't be cleared/read with a consumer grade scanner! It "may" have cleared itself after a drive cycle but I was told how to clear it using a ScanGuage-II by the guy who is responsible for all the Ford SG-II coding that's out there.

If I would have know how this 4WD system "really" works, I might have been driving another Ford Ranger instead!

 

Your right! I forgot the WOT provisions linked to the slippage. My bad! LOL!

 

No, 100% linked to WOT only.

 

Why, out of curiosity, would this bother you? The Escape is a "soft roader" that is designed to be fine in all weather conditions, dirt roads, etc. It is not and never will be a rock crawler. Have you ever gotten stuck because of the 4WD not working as you would like it to?

Not sure if the Ranger uses an old manual transfer case, but vehicles like the Jeep Liberty do. Most Liberties are driven in the city, and spend their life in 2WD unless the road is slippery enough to lock the transfer case. Frankly, I think this setup is stupid for the high school girls and other women driving Liberties on the road.

Seems to me the Escape's system is about as good as it gets for a roadgoing AWD vehicle--and similar to Subaru, Honda CR-V/Element, RAV4, etc. although there may be slight diffs in the exact specs of these other vehicles.

George

 

No I've never been stuck with it but it's never been in a bad situation yet! The Ranger has a transfer case, so your in 2WD till you hit the 4WD high/low button. The Jeep Liberty has three different options, my brother-in-law just told me what they were but not remembering exactly what he said, I won't try to quote him. I remember full time and locked positions.

The reason that it annoys me is that the pre-sales info leads one to believe that your in 2WD till conditions warrant 4WD which isn't the case at all. I'll bet that a majority of 4WD Escape owners don't "really" how the system works.

It doesn't bother me that it's automatic or no user input needed but it's called a Intelligent 4WD System. I don't see the intelligent part because it decides to engage under perfectly dry high traction driving conditions.

 

"I don't see the intelligent part because it decides to engage under perfectly dry high traction driving conditions. "

If it didn't engage under dry conditions, the V6 version would simply smoke the front tires at WOT. Particularly when on an incline.

 

The basic Liberty has 2WD, 4WD locked high, and 4WD locked low. The version with the full time AWD is an option and nobody orders this option (you see it more commonly on Grand Cherokees--I've shopped Jeeps). Pretty useless for Michigan winters, really. And extremely unintelligent

For the real world of mostly on-road driving, systems like the Escape's beat the heck out of the Liberty and probably the Ranger as well. If you really drive off road a lot, I agree that the Escape is not optimum. But the Jeep weighs about 600 lbs more as I recall.

Having a bit of torque going to the rear wheels at all time makes sense to me. The car will carve around corners better, and imagine being on a dirt road--turning the rear wheel drive on full starting from zero is more likely to put you out of shape than increasing the rear wheel torque from say, 20% to 50%. Along with traction and stability control, the system is way more intelligent than a manual transfer case like in the Jeep.

George

 

I'm not refering to WOT! I'm talking about accelerating as slow as one can possibily do! You get rear wheel torque no matter what.

Anybody out there ever smoke the tires on a V6? Lot of weight in the front end.

The 4WD engages at times and under driving conditions that I wouldn't normally engage 4WD if I had the option to do so.

I have a switch for traction control. I'd love one for 4WD!

 

I think you need to think more in terms road performance driving here. Most basic Subarus have a 90/10 front/rear torque bias, with the electronics giving you 50/50 if they sense a wheel slipping. The performance turbocharged Subarus run a standard torque split of 45/55 front/rear. In cornering, the front wheels are way overloaded in a pure front wheel drive vehicle...the 45/55 is a good balance because it lowers the work that the front tires have to do.

You are thinking of this like traditional 4WD trucks, not like AWD performance cars. Audis, BMW's etc, with 4WD always run torque through all 4 wheels. It works better for the road....and that includes dirt roads and rallying applications.

George

 

Don't talk about driving off-road in the dirt. What's the intelligent theory of this system on dry pavement leaving s stop sign in a school zone with a cop sitting there??

This system is much closer to "full time 4WD" than its so called "on demand 4WD" Where's the "demand" on dry pavement?

 

I don't think I ever said a dirt road=off road, but that's the toughest driving situation most folks encounter.

If you're more comfortable thinking of it as full time AWD, then think of it that way. I think we have established that the rear wheels will get varying amounts of power, was it 10 or 20% up to 50%? Audis and other AWD performance cars also send all power, in some percentage, to all four wheels. It provides greater handling potential on all pavement, wet or dry.

It seems as though you're mostly concerned with how the Escape differs from how you originally understood it to be (based on marketing-speak) as opposed to how it works for you. The Escape was designed to be as it is on purpose and I believe Ford gave it a great deal of thought. I hardly ever see complaints at all about the Escape's AWD system. Works great for on-road, soft-road, and bad weather. Need more traction? Get gnarlier tires, or winter tires if you're driving in snow and ice.

Not much more I can say here, and good luck with your Escape,
George

 

My 02 V6 FWD Tribute easily smokes the front tires, particularly when on an incline that tends to shift weight off the front wheels. When pulling my boat up a ramp I have to put the shifter in "2". My 09 4WD Escape has 40 more hp and more aggressive gearing so I think it would easily spin the front tires were it not for some torque always going to the rear tires. The 09 pulls that boat up a ramp with no drama. As far as I am concerned it has AWD and not 4WD.

 

Let's not compare to how other manufactures systems work. Maybe their pre-sales info is better than Ford's? Yes, the marketing, sales brochures, PR releases and so-called engineer interviews which are incorrect is what bothers me.

The description of operation of the Edge AWD, Fusion AWD and Escape 4WD appears to be all the same. I've looked at a Edge AWD and it has the same rearend as the Escape. On a Fusion AWD, it too hard to get a good look but it "appears" to be just a smaller version.

I tried to post a link to a moving graphic on the Fusion AWD but it didn't work for some reason. It shows AWD under different driving conditions. One shows rear wheel torque on a tight curve. I tried that situation but got no torque. Looking for a friendly Fusion AWD owner so I can plug in my ScanGuage-II in and check it out.

 

Can you smoke'em on level pavement?

Yes, I've heard about boat ramp problems with FWD.

The Escape 4WD or AWD is one of Ford's marketing ploys. Exact same system on a Ford Edge is tagged as AWD.

 

My wife's old '98 Sable with a Duratec and the same weight as an Escape could always smoke the front tires, on dry pavement, on a level road. On wet pavement like in the rain it was silly in terms of how little traction it had. And when pushed hard into a curve with some throttle, it would overload the front tires tremendously, wet or dry.

I don't think 99.9% of buyers know or care about what Ford calls the system so long as it works for their purposes, and that it does. "Marketing ploy" is a bit of a strong term, implying dishonesty, and I think the sales of the Escape and its success in the real world show that it is not a poorly performing product. Look at sales of the Explorer, which has "real" 4WD by your definition, I think. If you want to go rock crawling, buy a Jeep Liberty or something like that. If you want 4-season traction on the road, the Escape would be my choice.

Take care,
George