Extremely quite and smooth, the 1.5 accelerates to freeway speeds with acceptable gusto, even with three adults aboard - Car and Driver
2017 Ford Escape Engine and Transmission-
The 2017 Ford Escape comes with over three engine configurations, the most offered by any compact SUV in this class. The first and most basic is the standard 2.5L NA Inline-4 engine offered with only the base S trim. This puts out a reasonable 168 hp and 70 lb-ft of torque. The rest of the trim lineup is offered with a new turbocharged 1.5L EcoBoost 4-cylinder engine enough to put up 179 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque.
In addition to the two engines mentioned above, the 2017 Escape also has a 2.0L turbocharged EcoBoost engine on standby, which is privy to only the top-most two trims. This when equipped in the Escape belts out a great 245 hp and 275 lb-ft of torque. All of the mentioned engines are coupled with a rather impressive 6-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.
Models
|
2017 Ford Escape
|
2017 Toyota RAV4
|
2017 Honda CR-V
|
2017 Mazda CX-5
|
MSRP
|
$23,750
|
$24,410
|
$24,045
|
$24,350
|
Engine
|
2.5L NA I4
|
2.5L NA I4
|
2.4L NA I4
|
2.5L NA I4
|
Transmission
|
6-speed automatic
|
6-speed automatic
|
CVT automatic
|
6-speed automatic
|
Horsepower
|
168 hp @ 6000 RPM
|
176 hp @ 6,000 RPM
|
184 hp @ 6400 RPM
|
187 hp @ 6000 RPM
|
Torque
|
170 lb-ft @ 4500 RPM
|
172 lbs.-ft. @ 4,100 RPM
|
180 lb-ft @ 3900 RPM
|
185 lb-ft @ 3250 RPM
|
Towing Capacity (lbs.)
|
1500
|
1500
|
1500
|
2000
|
Coupling the two, the whole lot of the power is either sent to the front or all the wheels in the SE and Titanium trims, although the base S trim is available only in the FWD setup. Coming to the competition at hand, Mazda CX-5 turns out to be the top performer in this compact SUV class in terms of outright power figures, although for a whole $600 more than the Escape.
2017 Ford Escape 0-60 MPH and Acceleration
The 2017 Ford Escape manages to sprint from 0-60 MPH in just 9.1 seconds. Now as it is evident from the table above, the power figures put up by the 2017 Escape are the lowest compared to the rest of the segment, which explains the lower acceleration figures. Taking on freeway overtaking, might prove out to be a cumbersome job for the base 2017 Escape, as it's not adequately apt for that sort of thing.
Models
|
2017 Ford Escape
|
2017 Toyota RAV4
|
2017 Honda CR-V
|
2017 Mazda CX-5
|
0-60 MPH
|
9.1 sec
|
8.3 sec
|
8.6 sec
|
8.7 sec
|
Quarter mile
|
16.8 sec
|
16.7 sec
|
16.7 sec
|
16.7 sec
|
Although fret not, as the turbocharged engines in the lineup offer you with the outright power desired to take on such overtaking maneuvers. Especially, with the 2.0L turbocharged unit on point, the 2017 Escape is good enough to do an under 7-second time from 0-60 MPH.
2017 Ford Escape Handling and Braking
The turbocharged engines on offer make the 2017 Escape one of the go-to choices in this compact SUV segment for an inspired ride and handling dynamics. Taking on corners in this SUV is a bit challenging, with adequate body-roll courtesy of its heft. Nevertheless, with electronic torque vectoring in play, cornering with the heft seems to be engaging as well. The steering input is sharp while taking on major bumps is adequately smooth as well with the help of a well-tuned suspension.
Model
|
2017 Ford Escape
|
2017 Toyota RAV4
|
2017 Honda CR-V
|
2017 Mazda CX-5
|
Brake Front (in.)
|
12.8
|
11.5 |
11.1
|
11.77
|
Brake Rear (in.)
|
12.0
|
10.8
|
10.2
|
11.9
|
Curb Weight (lbs.)
|
3526
|
3455
|
3358
|
3527
|
60-0 MPH (ft.)
|
112
|
125
|
117
|
126
|
Coming to the braking figures at hand, with 12.8-inch front rotor discs and 12.0-inch rear ones, the 2017 Ford Escape takes the least distance to come to a stop, i.e 112 ft. It renders it to be the best in the segment.