Was wondering what some of you knowlegable people think about the 2010 ford escape, would it have the reliability of a Honda CRV,Toyota Rav 4 or Hiundi tuscon.I know here in Canada they are selling for a lot less than the others. I will watch for your comments. Signed Condos
The Escape is built on a ten year old Mazda platform. I’d get the Rav4 of the choices you mention, the CRV after that. Ford and Hyundai still haven’t caught up to Toyota and Honda despite strides in the right direction. The most important factor in determining reliability is how well an owner maintains a vehicle. Any vehicle can be extremely reliable, and any vehicle can be neglected to the point of unreliability. It is my opinion though, that Honda and Toyota still beat Ford in terms of quality engineering and fit and finish, especially over the long term.
Check Consumer Reports Magazine’s annual Auto Issue for lots of information about vehicle reliability. There are also lists of Most Reliable and Least Reliable vehicles. Good stuff for a vehicle shopper.
We have several of them in our fleet at my office. I’m underimpressed. They’re only 4 months old and they’ve already lost some interior trim, and the suspension on two of them creaks like crazy. And the transmission on one is already slipping. I also don’t like the way TCS works on these cars. It’s overly sensitive, and overreacts. I’ve actually had it slam on the brakes as I corner before (and no, I’m not cornering fast).
They’re better than the ones from 4 years ago, but only in the trim - the addition of volume controls on the steering wheel and Sirius built in. Underneath, they’re still dated and, frankly, rickety.
Were I picking between the cars on your list, I’d go with the CRV. We also have a few Rav4’s at work, and while they’re very good cars, the interior is clunky, uninspired, and strange. Even the seat adjustment is odd. The CRV is more refined and comfortable.
I’m also unimpressed and will have to echo what shadowfax wrote. My town bought a few 2007 model Escapes for the police and fire department use. In less than a year the newer vehicles got shuffled down to the lower ranking members of the police and fire department. The ranking officers went back to their 2004 Impalas and continue to use them daily. The driveability is bad, the engines run like they are 15 years old and puffs of smoke can occasionally be seen. The Escape is not one of Fords better efforts. The Toyota or Honda would be the better choice in this case.
I know a few people at work who own them and are happy with them.
An Escape was on my list of vehicles to choose from, as was the Rav4, but Mazda’s CX-7 won out of them all.
Depending on how much cheaper it is compared to the Honda/Toyota brands, it might be worth the “gamble” to buy one. Take a test drive and see if you like it, worst that can happen is you hate it(after you bought it, but that’s a different story)