as a household that replaced an '08 escape with a 2023 bronco sport, the baby bronco is far more like the older escape.

I actually quite like the 2nd Gen Escapes. Always thought they look like a mini Explorer.

My parents have a 2010 Mercury Mariner, (basically a Ford Escape). It is a 4 cylinder and it has been extremely reliable. We bought it in 2014, it had 90k miles then and now it has over 230k miles. It has had zero transmission and engine issues and it is fairly fuel efficient. Also a few things that I love, even tho it's 2010 it has Bluetooth audio and I love Ford's keypad, we aleays lock the keys in the car.

The second generation Ford Escape is the best looking Escape i think, because they have similar styling to the Explorer and Expedition from that era which I like.

The 3.0 V6 Duratec was the best motor that I have ever owned. Three cars with that motor (Taurus x2, Fusion), with the Fusion going to 350,000 miles and still running strong when we traded it in.

I bought a 2010 Escape V6 fwd about 6 yrs ago for my daughter. She still has it and has around 170,000 miles on it. It's been a pretty good vehicle for her.

Those old escape were actually pretty capable offroad, but yes they do have horrendous road noise

I am so glad someone is doing a video on my older car! I also have a 2011 Escape. It is my spare car (2023 F-150 is my main daily driver). I will never get rid of my old Escape, I love it it has been the BEST car! I have the 2.5 4cyl man she is slow but its been the best reliability wise!

The old escape can be equipped to tow 3500 with the v6. The 4cyl was 1500lbs max.

The NYPD used them as patrol vehicles for a short time when they were trying to go green with hybrids. We put 161k patrol supervisor miles on it before if was condemned for repair costs. It was actually pretty good… considering it wasn’t built for police use. We had our seats re-padded twice during its service.

That older escape is the obvious inspiration to the Bronco Sport. My wife bought a Bronco Sport badlands and she loves it. She said it reminds her of the older escape that she really liked. She test drove the new escape along with the badlands bronco sport the same day. And drove home with the bronco sport.

I had an 08 Escape as my first car. It was the 2.3 i4, fwd. It was a great vehicle, didn't have too many problems, and I could get up to 32 mpg highway if I was driving efficiently. It also towed very well for what it was

Never thought I'd see ZZ Top reviewing a Ford Escape. What a time to be alive

$43k for a Ford Escape is a steep price to pay.

Great video. Love the 3 liter V6 in my 2010 Fusion. Good power, reliability, and MPGs. Glad to see TFL becoming more diverse by adding a red beard. :) Would have been great for Nathan's daughter to join the video to express her likes and dislikes and her disappointment in not getting a Mini Cooper SE.

@TFLnow: That 2011 Escape V6 is exactly what I am looking for to get my son. I had a Fusion with this engine, it ran great. I hope your daughter will get many happy miles Nathan!

I bought a new 2005 escape 4cyl, AWD, always ran full snow ❄️ tires, in 8 years my only repair was a abs sensor 217$, used Mobil 1 at 20,000 mile oil changes, 21 mpg, my nephew still has it with 240,000 miles.

We owned a 2007 1st gen Escape. Put about 85,000 miles on it and they traded it in on a 2014, and then a 2017. The 1st gen was the best and more SUV like. The new Bronco Sport reminds me of those 1st and 2nd Gen models before they "sissified" them. I worked at a Ford dealer at the time and got really good deals so I bought the newer models for my wife. They depreciate like a rock, though. Don't forget the Mazda Tribute which was a rebadged Escape.

I convinced my sister to buy this very model and it was an amazingly reliable, comfortable and roomy little SUV. We did a trip to Florida and would fold the 60 side of the rear seat to make a bed and it worked perfectly!

My sister-in-law had a Gen 2 Escape that had nothing but problems. Had a Gen1 Hybrid at work that was pretty good, except you had to back up in E-mode which wasn't good around construction sites. My wife had a Gen 3 and we loved it!

I loved that rear window on my 2010. Didn't love much else about it, it was a fine transportation appliance but that's all you got out of it. A to B. And I agree with Nathan on the seats.

I had a 2nd gen Escape & I loved that car. Other than having to change the battery I had zero issues with the car. I loved the boxy look and the way it drove. Ford screwed the pooch when they decided to basically make it the US version of the Kuga which is why they likely have the Bronco Sport. My only wish for the Bronco Sport is that they extend the length to make it the size of the old Escape & introduce a PHEV option.

I had a 2009 Escape. Being a first year with the 6speed trans and other teething issues it is still one of my favorite cars. Unfortunately, I took it deer hunting and it was only good for one deer. RIP Escape.

The 3.0 DOHC engines were very reliable. My family and I had two Taurus/Sables with these engines. Both went way over 200k with no issues whatsoever. Definitely not the power and efficiency of my current Honda Accord J35 engine, but the Ford engine was atleast trouble free like the Honda has been.

...Drove a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid AWD as my work truck throughout the mountains of the Pacific NW for several years. Even though it didn't have traction-adjusting bells and whistles like today's SUV, it was a remarkably capable little vehicles and I loved it. I used to say that the only thing that kept it from being the perfect vehicle for crawling up and down all those narrow rough mountain roads was the lack of a four-wheel-drive low range crawling speed...

I love mine, I was bartering and received it by trade. liked it so much I've kept it for 3 years. Never left me stranded, and even being 6'1 I can sleep diagonally in the back and it actually has flat loading floors. Everything's pretty simple easy to work on (roomy)

Those second generation Escapes always looked pretty good. Family had one for a while and had about 180k miles of good service from it. Good value vehicle. Also the V6 was rated to tow 3500lbs

I can tell Nathan’s daughter must be practical and organized. I noticed the blankets and sweater in the back to be prepared in case of a snowstorm lol. Nice comparison video 👍

I've had two 3.0L Escapes (2008 and 2011, both front wheel drive). Those Duratec engines are solid, but they love to leak oil out of the front cover. Other than that, they are pretty bulletproof - no water pump issues, no cam phaser or timing chain issues, none of that stuff that plagued the subsequent 3.5L/3.7L engines. As mentioned, not that great on gas, not the quietest, but I'll take those downsides for good reliability. Parts are readily available, repairs are easy and they are cheap to keep running. They are a good value.

I love watching these videos with Nathan. He’s honest and has great insight into the ownership experience. His used car review and comparison feedback is the best on TFL. He made a great point in prior videos about user interface of touch screens and glossy trim. It was one of many factors in my own decision to buy a Ford Maverick recently. I wonder how many miles his Santa cruise has now and what he would suggest to change for that vehicle’s mid-cycle refresh in a few years.

the 1st gens can last forever. we have a 2005 ford escape bought brand new and we still have it to this day, the only things we have changed are the tyres and brake pads. we will never sell it because it has many memories plus its reliable. it never had any issue for 18 years straight

I have a 2017 Escape SE. I love it. ❤️

Yay! I guessed right! Mine is a 2012 XLT V6 AWD (tow pkg., sunroof, roof racks) I bought three years ago for $9,500 with 53K miles on it - I just turned over 94,000 miles. I once got 28.2 miles to the gallon, but that was likely due to a slight tailwind - average on most highway trips is always 25 MPG or higher. Not bad for a boxy AWD with a V6. My issues include having to replace the throttle body once and the exhaust resonator upstream of the muffler split, so I had a muffler shop just weld in a length of pipe . . . that's it. I believe in regular and correct maintenance - made easier by the ubiquitous (and affordable) nature of after market replacement parts. It's retro enough for my tastes (read KNOBS and DIALS), but yet still has Bluetooth capability, hands free calling, even satellite radio (if I hit the lottery)! One tip I would offer is to install a small (4" X 6") rectangle of stainless steel screen mesh right where the air intake port is and fold it back so it covers the intake; way, way less debris and huge bugs sucked into my air filter canister as a result. I just secured that piece re-using the little plastic lock pegs that were already there. I am seeing some surface rust underneath the car, but it is otherwise still structurally sound at this time. Fingers crossed!

The two things I like about our 2020 escape se ecoboost. The seats are crazy comfortable and it handles so well on road trips through the mountains.

I like both Escapes. The old one is reliable, but the new one is modern. Excellent review.

Post-COVID car prices (as with most other things) are crazy. I got a fairly maxed out 2019 XC40 R-Design for 39k and it's in another class altogether. These days a similarly equipped XC40 would prolly be over 50k now. I get inflation, but that much in 3-4 years is insane.

I had a 2010 Escape with a v6 2wd. I loved it and i would have kept it but the transmission gave me so much trouble. It kept slipping despite numerous trips to the dealership. So i traded it in... for a 2007. I kept that one for even longer and much lower payments but it was poorly taken cared for so i did keep paying a lot of problems but that one was 4wd. I do miss my 2010. It was GREAT on the highway and roadtrips

I had a 2013 Ford CMax Hybrid which shared a lot of components with the Escape. In fact, the interior is almost identical looking. It should have been named as Escape Hybrid. The CMax is wonderful and glides down the road and highway quietly when the engine is not under heavy load. Sound insulation and handling were great for what it was

The Bronco Sport is obviously the successor to the earlier Escape.

I just picked up The 2010 Escape with the V6 - 116K miles for $4700 But has a new sub frame in front and I threw another 1K to have everything fixed an brought it to excellent running condition and good solid body, TY for catching me up to speed with the new and the old. Well done video guys. TY for sharing

I love new tech and how well the new one drives however (it’s not a ford only thing) not offering a small NA V6 in these smaller suvs is a shame. People would buy them even if they got worse MPG. I think I would just buy the old one and replace the factory radio etc to get Apple car play.

As a diy, I serviced 2 Escapes for friends. A 2011 and a 2012. Both were easy, fun, and simple to work on. I did suspension, valve covers, electrical, regular oil changes, transmission service and so on. Neither fought me like a GM and as simple as a Toyota. I can find the 2012 on FB market for around $4500-$6000 with reasonable miles.

I have already 107K mileage on my 2009 Escape Hybrid Ltd. I purchased it back in 2016 from single owner woman due to the Ford record reliability with this hybrid classic exterior SUV. It was discontinued after 2012 model year. It reaches 300,000 mileage on regular basis to this day going as 24/7 driven heavy as NYPD and city taxi innNY and San Francisco.

thank you for taking me down memory lane I didn’t have a older escape, but I had a mariner, & I have a hybrid awd escape 2020.

The Ford Bronco Sport seems like it be a better side by side test for old VS new

Got a 2020 hybrid, and honestly, it's great for everything I need. Especially nice rear seat leg room w/ the sliding seats & cargo room for trips to hardware/grocery/etc store! We get 40mpg with the mechanical AWD & although we wouldn't kid ourselves about 'really off-roading' it handles snow, steep/wet yards & light dirt trails near our camp in the Allegheny National Forest. Came with adaptive cruise, lane centering, auto beams, heated leather seats (fake, but nice) & panoramic sunroof. At 32K and 0%, it's probably the best way to get it unless you're actually going to tow more than a tiny trailer.

My 2011 escape saved my life. The 5 star crash rating it had is well deserved and I voucher for it. After beating rear ended in the rain, flip over and walk crash I didn't even have a scratch. Not even sore the next few days. Car was totaled and I would get another one in a heartbeat. Never had an issue. Changed oils myself. Engine every 5k. Transmission oil every 20k. Miss old faithful.

I have a 2002 Escape 4WD V6. It is a good car if you give it good maintenance. The prior owner had no idea about how to treat a car. I had to replace the tires, suspension, breaks, radiator, water pump, gas line, gas pump, battery, alternator, a few other small things, and add coolant for the AC. After that, it has been great for the last 30,000 miles. It currently has 180,000 miles and runs like new. I also added top LED lights, front and back, a double din stereo, rear and front cameras, as well as a front bumper camera that lets me see the ground when off roading.

I currently own a 2010 with that v6 but front drive only. 190+k presently on the clock and from I had it I haven't had no issues with it. This little suv is a baby beast. When I get on it off the line it smoke the tires and also spin them when shift to second. I will say that it is one of the best vehicles Ford has made. It is just a solid strong little trouble free vehicle. Since I had it I change the altonator once and change the oil n filter when it calls for changing plus the wear and tear components (brakes, tires, wipers). It's due for a little TLC right now "body wise" and I will be getting to that!... next "spring project."

I own a 2012 Escape it’s my wife’s car and we love it. It has the 2.5 liter engine and has performed extremely well. We have about 175,000 miles on it. The only problem is the A/C that’s it and that’s only been recently.

We have an 08 escape with 2.3L. We have owned since 2012. So far it’s been a great reliable car. It currently has over 298k. So far no major repairs. (Knock on wood) We bought it for about 8k and its paid it self a few times over. Im hoping to make it to 400k miles without major repairs. Wish me luck. Lol. We liked the bronco sport but for almost $40k. Just seems crazy expensive. And they are yet to be tested for longevity and reliability. With everything going to small turbocharged engines just seem way more complex and likely less reliable long term. But I could wrong. Any how great video guys.

Parents had an 02 AWD V6 with the Midnight package. It was great with little problems, but was retired because of a rusted out front subframe, but the rest of the car was mint. The V6 had plenty of power for towing and handled its *3500lb* towing capacity without effort. It had a switch to manually engage "4x4" and it worked well. The Escape hybrid was replaced with the C-Max. I've been saying it since it came out, the Bronco Sport is the proper successor to the Escape.

More Nathan is needed 👍

Dude. You guys are awesome. Thinking about buying a second generation Escape. Appreciate your video so much. Entertaining and informative.

Bought, and fixed 2012 for my mom with all wheekbdrive , V6. We love it. Going to get new one for company vehicle so I look forward to it.

Had an 08, loved the looks and it was super reliable, but man was it slow. Bought a 2013 with the Ecoboost. Still good and reliable with good power, the wife traded it at 100K with 0 issues and got a Camry. Shes been driving it about 200 miles a day for work. Its great on the MPGs but we sure miss the ecoboost power.

In 2003 I bought a brand new 2003 Escape XLT with the V-6 Duratec engine and four wheel drive. It currently has 156,000 miles and is still going strong. I have no doubt that it'll pass the 200K mark. The car has had very few repairs outside of regular maintenance. I've only had to replace the water pump, fuel pump, alternator and brake hoses. I think the only time the check engine light came on is when the alternator went out. The whole electrical system went wonky on me. My Escape runs as smooth as can be and drives straight down the road. I also get about 24 miles to the gallon on the open road. When I first bought it it had a lot of tire noise. That was quickly cleared up when I got rid of the factory Continental tires and switched over to Uniroyal Cross Country tires. I was so pleased with those tires I'm on my third set. I honestly wish I could buy a brand new first or second generation Escape. No way on God's green earth would I pay forty-some grand for a 2023 model!

my dad's first gen is still trucking along..diggin that Franken Fink shirt..

Thanks, very informative.

I have one from my mom. I didn’t dig it at first, but I’ve kicked out the back seat and leveled it, and it’s grown on me. It’s quick, and the engine sounds nice to me imo. Capable.

OMG BEEN LOOKING FOR THIS CONTENT ALL OVER KZfaq 😭

I bought a new 1997 Toyota RAV4 in Honolulu, HI.... one of the hardest trials you can do is go up the Like-Like highway or Pali highway. When the Escape came out, it had HUGE horsepower compared to the RAV4.

I have a 2017 Escape with the 2L turbo. It's been a great car with no issues so far. The gas mileage holds up good around 28 mpg and I love the power in it.

Just hit 250k on my 2011 2.5l escape and it has given literally zero problems in the 8 years I've owned it.

I’ve got a 2012 AWD Escape with the V6 and 185K. Bought it in ‘18 with 80K on it. Only major components I had to replace were the AC system, this model year was known for those problems. I’ve never had any major engine problems, just a few gaskets over the years. I live in the mountains and this thing is great in the snow. I average 22 MPG in mixed driving. I plan to drive the wheels off of it.

I like it because Dexter used to set up his kills while trolling around in the Escape

I loved our 2012 ford escape limited 3.0 v6 awd. It was pretty quick and reliable when we had it. Until 2 deer jumped out and totaled it.

I actually preferred the old Escape. I got a 2023 Escape, but it’s been in the garage for 3 weeks now. Only got 2,044 miles and bought it at the end of August. They have to replace the cylinder head due to it overheating. The water temp is not what is overheating, it’s the cylinder head. I’m hearing online there may be a design flaw with the 2023 version of the 1.5L 3 cylinder because they did a slight redesign for the EGR. I am hearing that Ford hasn’t done a complete fix for it, so I am going to get the same cylinder head as what is on it now. I should have kept my 2018 Escape with the 1.5L 4 cylinder. It was rock solid.

My first car was an 07 Mercury Mariner Premier, the mid grade luxury version of this, had leather seats, heater mirrors, power moonroof, it was awesome, I still have it, but recently bought a 2016 Mustang as my daily.

Can you do a breakdown on the new Lincoln Corsair AWD plug in hybrid please.

I have an 02 escape. The 3.0 with all wheel drive. I kinda want to see a comparison of the 2nd gen escape compared to the 1st gen. I like the looks of the 1st gen better. I also like the column shifters on the pre-facelift. I think a comparison would be a good thing since both of them were recieved well and both sold in high numbers. Gen 1 vs gen 2

Literally just got almost the same 2011 Ford escape for my first car same color too I'm so thrilled 💯

We had an 05 Mariner with the V6, it was a great car. And that thing got around really well in the winter too. If it werent for needing room for 3 car seats, we would have kept it.

Cool comparison guys!

We’ve had 2. A 2003 Mazda Tribute over 200k miles and still going (under water during Hurricane Sandy @ 125k miles) and a ’06 Ford Escape Hybrid that we added 100k after we bought it. It rusted out before the mechanicals died.

My work uses the third gen escape as an employee transportation car and I’m super impressed with them. They’re legitimately fun to drive and I would even describe them as tossable. In fact I was actually considering one but went with a Mazda instead just for the higher quality interior and Japanese build

Another option to consider versus the Escape: We very recently purchased a 2011 Subaru Outback 3.6R Limited for the same purpose - car for daughter to drive while going to college in a very cold weather climate. The six cylinder Outback’s still had a traditional automatic instead of a CVT back then. Compared to the Escape, it is just a little better in most categories: horsepower, fuel economy, ground clearance, interior volume, cargo capacity (seat up and down), etc. My daughter, and I just drove it from the East Coast to Idaho last week, and I was very impressed with it. Seems like it will be a good car for her. My wife is paranoid about her getting stranded in the snow, so I’ve loaded up the area under the cargo floor with every possible cold climate emergency gear I can think of: traction mats, tow ropes and recovery straps, battery, jump starter, emergency roadside flashers, food if she were to get stranded, 12v electric blanket, collapsible shovel, etc.

Great Nate we had a 2009 XLT fully loaded V6 towing package sunroof roof rack premium wheels four-wheel-drive live in Louisiana our son still has it with 125 on it took it to Colorado we’re great there the only other issue you gotta watch out that came up throttle body sensor and camshaft sensor but other than that the vehicle were great towed 4000 pounds that was from the Ford dealership to make it tow with a breaker controller without the break controller 3500 pounds. That’s what Ford dealership set up on a towing capacity. But we just tow about 3000 pounds my boat and my 5x8 box trail never maxed it out MPG averaging 28 miles per gallon on the highway and 25 in the city for V6.

As someone who grew up in Asia, New Ford Escape sort of remind me what ford was like in 1970s. My mom had a Ford Escort, and my dad had a Cortina first, then upgraded to a Granada with 2.8L V6. That was a pretty gutsy engine at the time. It was not much slower than a BMW then. In fact Ford Granada was highly regarded as a luxury car. Maybe not quite like a BMW or Mercedes, but it was on par of like a Peugeot or Volvo maybe. I drove an Escape the steering wheel feeling and the elegant simple dash, sort of taken me back to my moms escort. Ford always have a special place in my heart as I grew up with them in Taiwan.

A couple things may have crippled the new escape you reviewed. Is it fueled with premium unleaded? Did you have it in sport mode when you did the rolling start? Also when comparing the new escape to the other suvs in its segment, no other suv offers 250 hp, awd and the base price point the escape offers. If you add all of the tech and leather upgrades that’s why it goes to 43k. Now the next closest suv that offers that much HP and awd with all of the tech upgrades and leather is a Lexus that’s priced around 54k. So in my opinion this is the best bang (4 banger lol) for the buck you can get.

I have a 2005 first gen with the 2.3 i4 front wheel drive. It has 220k on it still going strong but its slow af

ST-Line is an incredibly common trim level in Europe on fords and has been for a while. You can get an ST-Line trim for every model, basically giving the cars a more sporty look

First car my brother and I shared was identical to that old Escape. When I got my first pickup, he beat that thing to hell, didn’t take care of it, but it just kept going. Good car.

We bought a used 2012 all wheel drive Escape with 120k miles - we love it!

I absolutely love the original ford escape, and what's nice is that the bronco sport is just a modern version of it.

Ex girlfriend had a second gen Escape in high school. One day on the way home from school in heavy snow she slid into a deep ditch. I got there and drove it through a cornfield and straight up the ditch back onto the road. That things AWD system worked great.

My wife and I have a 2010 Escape awd with the 4cyl. We've seen as much as over 27mpg on the highway, which is pretty impressive considering how boxy of a vehicle it is. It's not a powerhouse, of course, but it doesn't feel inadequate either. We bought it 5 years ago with only 24,000 miles on it - now we're at 83,000 with no signs of it wearing out anytime soon. I 100% agree about the Bronco Sport having more in common with the old Escape than the new Escape does - I can't even think of the new Escape as an SUV, just as a bloated sedan honestly.

I like the Gen 2 Escape the best having driven both the Gen2 and Ecoboost. Love the boxy truck look and the ground clearance. Think if it as the Bronco Sport before the Bronco Sport!

My wife had a 2014 Escape with the 2L Ecoboost engine and it was a very reliable vehicle. No issues at all! So I would get the next gen up with the 2L Ecoboost. More comfort, safety and better mpg. Check out my review.

my brother inlaw baought me a 2012 escape limited awd personal work vehicle last year. it only had 43000 miles on it and was a one owner. a little old lady owned it. we let one of our employees use it for a while now its at 70,000 miles and needed $4000 in repairs. i begged them to get it back to me and now its not going anywhere i love that thing. and don't want to see it get driven into the ground.

Ya'll are missing out. We have a 2001 Escape with the V6 and actual 4-wheel drive, not AWD. Over 200k mile and runs like a top. Little beast in the snow.

I still got my 2008 hybrid escape that i bought in 2011 my senior year, its got over 250k miles and still running strong, only major problem it had was to replace the thermostat

I like the old one. Use to have a old one that was orange(burnt copper, or something like). Was a 4 banger. That vehicle to this day is the best run around town car I have owned. Lots of space to put things and used very little gas.

I love my 2011 Escape. Other than general upkeep, it's been solid. I'm in the process of rebuilding and upgrading. I plan to keep it for many more years. I love the body type, I don't like the new body shapes and the smaller hatch areas in newer vehicles.

The 3.0 L Duratec had a major problem of breaking cam shaft bearing cap bolts. It cost me $1500 CAD in parts to repair. It carries a full yard of top soil with no issue. Mine is rated for 3500 lb trailer.

My family has 4 Ford Escapes: A 1st Gen, 2 3rd Gens, and now we recently picked up a Blue Gen 2 identical to the one in this video except ours is front drive only, and I gotta say the blue one’s the best one we got now, as it only has 80,000 miles (It had 70,000 when bought) I love that it handles like a truck, not like a blown up Focus like the new ones!

I just bought a 08 escape for about 6.5k and I prefer that gen to the current for sure in styling. Mine has the last of the 2.3 4cyl and 4spd with fwd since awd not necessary where I live. And it is indeed got a lot of road noise and is not a terribly peppy car. but cheap to repair and dead reliable.

My 2011 3.0 fwd model is at 300k kilometres and still going strong. Love this car

Had a 2008 Escape Hybrid. Boxy, but good. Tons of room. Phenomenal mileage. Still see my old car because it was bought by someone who lives close to me. Moved to a Chevrolet Volt which was even more wonderful apart from being much smaller inside (but still a hatchback). Just took delivery of a Maverick hybrid and ordered a second one.

Mine 2011 same drive train. Limited Edition I have fallen in love with this thing. Just rolled over 222,000.