The 2020 Ford Escape is a massively important vehicle for Ford. Next to the Ford F-Series pickup truck, the Ford Escape is one of their best selling vehicles. Since 2000, Ford has sold over 4-million units and they are the top-5 list for best selling crossover in its class (under Toyota, Honda and Nissan).
What’s new? Pretty much everything.
New engines/powertrain:
- The new 250 horsepower, four-cylinder 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine makes 275 lbs-feet of torque (using 93 octane). It’s available on the top-of-the-line Titanium trim.
- The new, three-cylinder 1.5-liter EcoBoost, which is standard on S, SE and SEL, is expected to make 180 horsepower and 177 lb-ft of torque (using 93 octane). It also has cylinder deactivation, which will shut down one cylinder when not needed for better fuel consumption.
- Gas models and the standard hybrid are available with an all-wheel drive (AWD) option. The plug-in hybrid is front-drive only.
- The hybrid and plug-in hybrid come with a new electronic continuously variable transmission (CVT).
- EcoBoost-equipped models get a new 8-speed automatic transmission.
New platform:
- According to Ford, all of the 2020 Ford Escapes get an all-new suspension and improved ride isolation with a new isolated rear subframe.
- Wheelbase 106.7-inches
- Length 180.5-inches
- Width, excluding mirrors 74.1-inches
- Vehicle height (w/o roof rack) 66.1-inches
New Interior:
- Seating capacity 5
- First-row headroom 40″
- First-row legroom (maximum) 42.4″
- First-row shoulder room 57.6″
- First-row hip room 55.2″
- Second-row headroom 39.3″
- Second-row legroom (maximum) 40.7″ gas or 38.9″ hybrid
- Second-row legroom 38.8″ gas or 37.1″ hybrid
- Second-row shoulder room 56″
- Second-row hip room 53.3″
Weights and Capacities:
- Total passenger volume 104 ft³
- Cargo vol. behind first row 65.4 ft³ gas and 60.8 ft³ hybrid
- Cargo vol. behind second row (maximum) 33.5 ft³ gas and 30.7 ft³ hybrid
- Cargo vol. behind second row (optimized) 37.5 ft³ gas and 34.4 ft³ hybrid
Curb Weight:
- 1.5-liter (FWD/AWD) 3,299/3,464 – lbs
- 2.0-liter (FWD/AWD) 3,399/3,551 – lbs
- Hybrid (FWD/AWD) 3,554/3,706 – lbs
- Plug-in hybrid 3,884 – lbs
- The 2-liter will be able to two up to 3,500 lbs
- The 1.5-liter can tow a maximum of 2,000 lbs
- The hybrids will be able to tow up to 1,500 lbs
New attitude:
Ford is putting a serious emphasis on electrification, performance and comfort. While we have yet to drive one, we can attest that the effort put forward looks promising. Ford looks like they are not content with mediocrity.
On the other hand, the fact that all of their performance numbers were achieved using 93 octane fuel may be an indication of where the prices may head to. The original Ford Escape was for the budget minded, but this one may not be.
Photo: TFLcar
New off-road variant?
As you’ll see in the video, the Ford representative we interviewed indicated (what we already knew) that the 2020 Ford Escape is not an off-roader. It’s platform; however, is another issue. They will be basing the new off-road-biased crossover (some are calling the “Baby Bronco”) on the same platform the 2020 Ford Escape is based on.
As such, the need for a Ford Escape that can go toe-to-toe with the Jeep Cherokee and Toyota RAV4 Adventure is unnecessary. The upcoming off-road crossover looks like it will rival those crossovers, which is what we’re truly looking forward to.
Photo: Autoweek
The bottom line is, given the variety of powertrains and utilitarian design, the 2020 Ford Escape is looking to disrupt the apple cart. It’s going to force competitors to up their game. That’s a good thing for consumers; that’s a good thing for us.
Pricing, mpg and driving impressions will be available closer to the vehicle’s launch in August 2019.
Check out our video of the 2020 Ford Escape press preview!
