2023 Ford Escape Is Competent And Capable But Lacks Attitude

Colorado’s automotive population is heavily comprised of Subarus and Toyota 4Runners and Tacomas while Detroit’s Big Three crossover and truck offerings are less common. Rivians are in abundance – especially in Boulder and Rocky Mountain ski resort parking lots. Crosstreks will one day outnumber humans out here at current growth rates. I was excited to be seen in something different, when a Cinnabar Red Metallic 2023 Ford Escape ST-Line Elite with full-time all-wheel drive, the Premium Technology Package, and 260 horsepower was delivered to my house for a week. I had some plans for this fully loaded compact family crossover.

Those of us who hail from Colorado seriously love skiing and snowboarding in winter, yours truly especially. So I drove out to Keystone and Arapahoe Basin for two days of snowboarding, which meant dealing with some gnarly highway conditions and one particularly terrible driver on the way – the perfect opportunity to see whether the Escape provides a fun and thrilling drive to escape the city.

Style: Thank Goodness For The Refresh

The current, fourth-generation Escape was launched for the 2019 model year to much applause but little excitement. Its first-gen boxy styling has now been assumed by the Bronco Sport, which also rides on the Blue Oval’s C2 platform. The Escape, in contrast, acquired a raised station wagon appearance. It looked nice but didn’t stand out in this highly competitive segment. Ford took note.

The 2023 refresh brought sharper, sportier exterior styling that looks solid on the ST-Line. The mid-range trim adds a black mesh grille, black roof rails and crossbars, larger rear spoiler and skid plates, and the necessary ‘ST-Line’ badging to the aesthetics. Combined with the Cinnabar Red Metallic paint (an added cost option), the Escape is more handsome than the previous year, but still not stylish in our opinion. The Mazda CX-50 is stylish and definitely steals attention when parked side-by-side.

There are six trims on offer with the ST-Line starting near the middle. There’s also a PHEV version and a hybrid option. Our tester came with 19-inch machine-face Ebony-painted aluminum wheels, all-season rubber and a panoramic roof. It helps make it look good, but its nowhere near attention-grabbing.

Interior Comfort

Step inside, and you’re treated to a cabin that does its job, but not much more. Our tester was equipped with the 13.2-inch LCD display that’s standard on the ST-Line Elite (an eight-inch screen does duty lower down in the trim ladder) imbued with Ford’s easy-to-use Sync4 infotainment system with voice recognition. A retractable head-up display, a wireless charging pad, and ambient lighting rounded things out. Despite the latter, I found it challenging to locate one of the two cupholders in the center console when it was dark outside. For a vehicle at this price point, it would’ve been nice for Ford to encircle those holders with additional lighting.

Ebony leather with red stitching adorns the seats (you’ll have to pay for this upgrade over the partial vinyl and cloth) and the 10-way power driver’s bucket seat is comfortable and easy to find the ideal seating position. A flat-bottom steering wheel, part of the ST-Line package, is cool to have but not a necessity in this car. I found the aluminum sport pedals could use some additional grip, however, something I immediately noticed with snow-soaked Vans.

Storage, Cargo, and Build Quality

With a total of 37.5 cu-ft. of space behind the rear seats, the Escape easily swallowed two snowboards and a large bag packed with gear. Thanks to the 60/40 split-folding rear seats, there was still enough space for two second-row passengers, although it’d probably be a tight squeeze. When the seats are completely flat, a total of 65.4 cu-ft awaits all of your stuff.

The Escape has six cupholders spread around the cabin, not including the aforementioned two in the center console. If there’s one general issue I have with the interior as a whole, it’s this: plastic quality. The glovebox lid, in particular, screams cheap with its hard plastic construction. For a vehicle costing what it does, Ford should have spent a few extra bucks per unit for improved materials. Overall, the fit and finish was good but not class-leading. Step inside the latest Toyota RAV4, for example, and you’ll notice a difference.

Powertrain: EcoBoost Has Some

Of the various powertrain options, the ST-Line Elite comes standard with a 2.0-liter turbocharged 2.0-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder producing a total of 250 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque, with power channeled to all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox. Acceleration is solid but not earth-shattering; it makes highway passing a breeze.

This is the same engine found in the Maverick pickup truck; I didn’t notice any dramatic differences between the heavier Escape and the Maverick in overall performance. Would more power be nice? Of course. But the Escape – no matter which trim – doesn’t need it considering its target audience is family oriented. Carrying people and their stuff is its specialty.

On the road and through traffic, the Escape remains the familiar, confident, crossover millions of owners appreciate. Despite its ST-Line moniker and a few exterior tweaks and that flat-bottom steering wheel, it’s not sporty. It’s also only slightly engaging to drive, and not memorable in many ways. And as for fuel economy, I averaged about 27 mpg combined, which is actually one mpg better than the EPA’s official figure.

Safety: Speaking From Experience

Regardless of trim, the Escape comes standard with seven airbags, ABS, stability control, a rearview camera, and the Co-Pilot360 safety suite featuring goodies like forward collision avoidance, lane-keep assist, lane departure warning, pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert. The Pre-Collision Assist system with automatic emergency braking prevented me from getting into a serious accident, so it’s worth elaborating:

A driver several vehicles ahead of me decided to cross through the solid line into the Express Lane where I was driving at around 70 mph, presumably due to heavy traffic in their lane. This illegal maneuver was made worse when that driver didn’t accelerate upon entering my lane, suddenly obstructing my path. The Escape’s safety system sensors rang “Red Alert” by catching this immediately, applying the Active Braking which, along with my own frantic brake slam, prevented what would have been a terrible collision.

Verdict and Conclusion

The 2023 Ford Escape remains a solid choice for the compact crossover shopper whose main focus is safe family transport – those wanting excitement should shop elsewhere. While not plain vanilla, even the ST-Line Elite package doesn’t give the Escape the upper hand against rivals. While the Escape does everything it’s supposed to, it’s not memorable. If that suits you, then you’ll be thrilled with what the Blue Oval has to offer. But there are more exciting segment choices, and Ford should be paying attention, in particular to the Mazda CX-50 and the Kia Sportage.

With a base price beginning at $28,000, the 2023 Escape isn’t unreasonably priced. Our ST-Line Elite sampler came to a grand total of $44,150, including the $1,495 destination fee. There was also a $500 discount for the EcoBoost engine. Read that again: $44k for a Ford Escape – that’s more than what you pay for a mid-range Lincoln Corsair, a car with much more premium aspirations.

Even though the Escape is not a thrilling car, it does get the job done and has won us over in terms of safety tech department and practicality. For my money, I’d stick with a lower, more reasonably priced trim; the 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine is preferable over the standard 1.5-liter three-cylinder, but it’s not available on all the cheaper trims, so you’ll have to make a sacrifice somewhere. The $33,450 ST-Line Select may make a good compromise, then, and I suspect a majority of buyers would agree.