Overall, I really enjoy this vehicle
I have only had the car for a month.
Handles the snow very well.
Drives smoothly.
Small fuel tank - cheap to fill, but needs filling more often.
Lots of room for groceries & 2 kids.
Would have liked to see the cruise control buttons light up for night driving.
Steering wheel doesn't adjust high enough for my liking.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 23rd December, 2004
Poor Quality
Major electrical problems. truck has been in the shop two times already and they cannot find the issue - This time it has been there for 6 days and still counting.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 16th September, 2004
The Escape is nothing like a Contour, the engines are different, and the chassis is not a Contour base.
I totally agree with the Lemon Law. If my dealer had my machine for 6 days and couldn't find the problem, I would want a new one.
The Escape is actually built on a Mazda 626 platform, with a tweaked Taurus 3.0L Duratec engine for the 6 cyl. The 2.0L 4 cyl is from the Focus, and the 2.3 from a Mazda 3. I know this because I work at Ford H/O. There is nothing related to a Contour in this vehicle... Maybe it shares a spark plug or gas octane rating LOL.
To the last poster:
So how come the Ford Contour Dimensions power train, interior, exterior and everything else in between is similar, if not identical, to the Mazda 626, with the only exception being the name plate?
Aren't they the same?
Just because vehicles are similar in size, does NOT mean that they share the same chassis/platform.
The only Ford that the 626 has ever shared a platform with is the Ford Probe. In the mid-1990's. DIFFERENT vehicles.
A very high performance with a smaller V6
There has been nothing wrong with this car. I just did my first oil change. I use 87 octane gas and it seems to be just fine.
The redesigned front end of the car is awesome.
The Interior has a new sleek design with the shifter on the floor.
The redesigned dashboard is awesome.
The rims are a nice touch on the Escape and look similar to the ones on its big brother the Explorer.
This car looks very expensive and I feel like a million dollars when I drive it.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 30th July, 2004
The 2005 Escape does not have a low range for its 4WD which is a problem for us in winter conditions going down our long, steep driveway which has an "S" turn. The vehicle gains speed going down whereas with a 2002 Escape, a Ranger, and an Expedition we would start at the top in low range, and low gear, and the vehicles would descend slowly. On our mountain driveway this lack of low range could be dangerous and so we have to garage the '05 when snow is on the ground. We were unaware the vehicle lacked this feature when we bought in July. Nor did we even think about it then. It was a 4WD! Otherwise, there are no complaints with the 2005. It is peppy, handles well, and is a great second car.
16th Sep 2004, 19:50
Remember, the Escape is just a Ford Contour with 4 wheel drive, nearly all the mechanicals are the same. Yep, the same crappy parts as a Contour.