0 useful votes
Review Ford Escape Automatic 2008
Submitted by daughter1
Key strengths: Comfortable ride with a touch of toughness. Good offroad for its size.
Areas for improvement: Fewer goodies for more dollars than competition. lousy mileage.
I drove a Hertz fleet 2008 Ford Escape XLT 4 by 4 with a three-liter engine and four-speed automatic transmission. Pay attention to the size of the engine – bigger is better. The 3.0L 24 valve Duratec V6 makes for a adequate ride, serving up 200 horses and 193 pound-feet of torque. This engine, now underpowered in horses and technology compared to the competition, racks up a mediocre 9.6 seconds for 0-60mph. Pull away from lights is more than respectable and I had no problems merging onto high-speed interstates or overtaking slower-moving cars when needed. The engine, which previously used to get a bit noisy at around 80mph, has apparently been recalibrated, and seems to be quieter and more refined. The constant road noise that used to plague the early Escapes has definitely been diminished (score #1 for the Ford engineers). The absence of the roar initially made me think they’d compromised on power, but that doesn’t appear to be the case – although I kept feeling this 2008 model was slower than any other Escape I had driven back to 2001.
The Escape can tow up to 3500 pounds, although I have no direct experience of towing anything with either my own 2001 model or this 2008.
In previous years Ford offered the option for the lower-price models of getting a 2.0L manual engine. This magnificent animal used to offer 127 horsepower and was woefully underpowered for the vehicle. Can you say ‘acceleration of a dead sheep”? New for 2005 was the upgrade of the 2L to a 2.3L, 153 horsepower four cylinder that makes it marginally more competitive with vehicles such as the Toyota RAV4. Although I have no personal experience with the 2.3L model (which is available in manual or automatic) it was such a major improvement over the 2L model which was so truly awful that my local Ford dealers hardly ever stocked them.
Fuel economy is average at best. I experienced 16.3mpg and about 20mpg on the motorway. Which brings me to one of the largest drawbacks of the Ford Escape - THE
The running costs for Ford Escape Automatic are normal
Areas for improvement: Fewer goodies for more dollars than competition. lousy mileage.
I drove a Hertz fleet 2008 Ford Escape XLT 4 by 4 with a three-liter engine and four-speed automatic transmission. Pay attention to the size of the engine – bigger is better. The 3.0L 24 valve Duratec V6 makes for a adequate ride, serving up 200 horses and 193 pound-feet of torque. This engine, now underpowered in horses and technology compared to the competition, racks up a mediocre 9.6 seconds for 0-60mph. Pull away from lights is more than respectable and I had no problems merging onto high-speed interstates or overtaking slower-moving cars when needed. The engine, which previously used to get a bit noisy at around 80mph, has apparently been recalibrated, and seems to be quieter and more refined. The constant road noise that used to plague the early Escapes has definitely been diminished (score #1 for the Ford engineers). The absence of the roar initially made me think they’d compromised on power, but that doesn’t appear to be the case – although I kept feeling this 2008 model was slower than any other Escape I had driven back to 2001.
The Escape can tow up to 3500 pounds, although I have no direct experience of towing anything with either my own 2001 model or this 2008.
In previous years Ford offered the option for the lower-price models of getting a 2.0L manual engine. This magnificent animal used to offer 127 horsepower and was woefully underpowered for the vehicle. Can you say ‘acceleration of a dead sheep”? New for 2005 was the upgrade of the 2L to a 2.3L, 153 horsepower four cylinder that makes it marginally more competitive with vehicles such as the Toyota RAV4. Although I have no personal experience with the 2.3L model (which is available in manual or automatic) it was such a major improvement over the 2L model which was so truly awful that my local Ford dealers hardly ever stocked them.
Fuel economy is average at best. I experienced 16.3mpg and about 20mpg on the motorway. Which brings me to one of the largest drawbacks of the Ford Escape - THE
The running costs for Ford Escape Automatic are normal
Safety: 78
Reliability: 84
Equipment: 78
Comfort: 80
Design: 79
Driving: 77
0 useful votes
Review Ford Escape Automatic 2008
Submitted by chelseaboy
Key strengths: Great fuel economy User friendly controls Roomy Price Easy to park
Areas for improvement: Brakes
My husband and I purchased ours last year and June and we have been extremely pleased with our Escape. We chose the 4 cylinder XLT model. It gets great gas mileage-about 24 to 27 on the open highway and about 19 to 23 in city traffic driving.
The interior is a nice and classier upgrade from the previous year models. Ours came with a sunroof which gives it a sporty touch. Plenty of leg room in driver and passenger sides. The radio panel is very easy to use and all of the controls are arranged in a user friendly manner. The back seats collapse to fit larger cargo if needed. We have found it takes about 3 minutes with two people to fold the seats down and about 5 minutes by yourself.
The rear brakes really should be disc brakes instead of drum brakes..
Overall if you are looking for good gas mileage in an SUV then do consider this car in your shopping. I have seen an large increase of them on the roads last year since their introduction.
The running costs for Ford Escape Automatic are normal
Areas for improvement: Brakes
My husband and I purchased ours last year and June and we have been extremely pleased with our Escape. We chose the 4 cylinder XLT model. It gets great gas mileage-about 24 to 27 on the open highway and about 19 to 23 in city traffic driving.
The interior is a nice and classier upgrade from the previous year models. Ours came with a sunroof which gives it a sporty touch. Plenty of leg room in driver and passenger sides. The radio panel is very easy to use and all of the controls are arranged in a user friendly manner. The back seats collapse to fit larger cargo if needed. We have found it takes about 3 minutes with two people to fold the seats down and about 5 minutes by yourself.
The rear brakes really should be disc brakes instead of drum brakes..
Overall if you are looking for good gas mileage in an SUV then do consider this car in your shopping. I have seen an large increase of them on the roads last year since their introduction.
The running costs for Ford Escape Automatic are normal
Safety: 78
Reliability: 79
Equipment: 75
Comfort: 78
Design: 76
Driving: 76
0 useful votes
Review Ford Escape 3.0 Automatic 2007
Submitted by Christopher181
Key strengths: Very comfortable
Areas for improvement: Nothing major (air pressure alarm)
Very comfortable. Noticeably larger than previous year (friend has a 2006, now wants 2008 like ours). Took it on a trip to the Grand Canyon the day after we bought it, flawless performance. Great on hills, average 26 mpg highway only driving. I suggest the V6, you still get great mileage and power you will enjoy on hilly roads.
My wife is extremely small. We have a hard time finding something she can reach the pedals in, and see over the dash/hood. This is an easy reach for her.
After driving for 10 miles, sensor that says a tyre has low air pressure went off, wouldn't reset. Took it to the dealer, they reflashed the program and haven't had a problem since.
The running costs for Ford Escape 3.0 Automatic are normal
Areas for improvement: Nothing major (air pressure alarm)
Very comfortable. Noticeably larger than previous year (friend has a 2006, now wants 2008 like ours). Took it on a trip to the Grand Canyon the day after we bought it, flawless performance. Great on hills, average 26 mpg highway only driving. I suggest the V6, you still get great mileage and power you will enjoy on hilly roads.
My wife is extremely small. We have a hard time finding something she can reach the pedals in, and see over the dash/hood. This is an easy reach for her.
After driving for 10 miles, sensor that says a tyre has low air pressure went off, wouldn't reset. Took it to the dealer, they reflashed the program and haven't had a problem since.
The running costs for Ford Escape 3.0 Automatic are normal
Safety: 73
Reliability: 73
Equipment: 77
Comfort: 77
Design: 73
Driving: 70
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