I had an opportunity to drive a 2020 Escape SE today for 68 mi/110 km as I was having my 2018 SEL in for some TLC and an FSA (Field Service Action): 19B37- Powertrain Control Module Reprogramming. Check your FordPass App to see if this pertains to your car. This is not a recall.
Anyway, I asked for a Ranger loaner, but they had retired the lone 2019 they had in service and hadn’t put a ’20 in the pool yet. So, I was lent a 2020 Escape SE AWD (If they would add “Electronically Enacted” they could put all the alfa-babble together to make SEAWEED). I didn’t pay much attention to what all was on the car for options, but the SE’s standard-and-only package 200A is pretty well loaded. It did not have Co-pilot 360 (nav & adaptive cruise) but it did have old-school cruise.. The only engine available in an SE is the 3cyl. 1.5L EcoBoost Dragon, mated with the new 8-speed auto. Some minor differences in the 4G; the infotainment volume is now grouped in the left steering wheel pod so no longer dualled with the phone buttons. The controls have been changed from abbreviations to symbols. The 8” Sync3 screen now is a standard stand-alone device rather than integrated into the dashboard, and it is fixed, does not retract, although it looks like it could have been made that way. The wipers now operate in parallel rather than opposition. My preference is for opposing swipes, as “parallellers” leave a large swath of unswept windshield in the upper right corner. The heater controls are now much larger and easy to operate with gloved hands. Overall, an attractive update and some stuff moved around but nothing that I couldn’t get used to. Rear seat head and legroom appears larger the the 3G.
What I could not get used to was the Dragon engine. Man, this car is geared tall: ~1500 rpm @60 mph/100 kmh. At a steady speed there is a constant, intrusive booming drone, like a subwoofer in the car next to you at the light. At speeds between 50 and 75 mph in top gear it is very much present. If I was considering a 2020 Escape, It would be an SEL with the available 2.0L/AWD or the Sport Hybrid with AWD, provided they had acceptable NVH (Noise, Vibration, Harmonics) The car had only 121mi/194km on it when I drove it, so maybe it will get better with time. It shifted smoothly during acceleration and during hard acceleration, it got down 2-3 gears with minimal hesitation, much better than the 3G’s IMHO. Sounds kinda like a GEO Metro with Stage Three tuning, and feels like about the same power as the 1.5s and 1.6s in the third generation FE's. The SE's 8 speed is controlled with a knob on the center console, and it’s lit! But there is no manual shift mode, (only Low and Drive) as there still is on the 2.0L AWD, and it’s called AWD now, not 4WD. Rounding out the center console, Traction Control, Electric Parking Brake (I’m an every-timer), Start/Stop-OFF, and another switch with a symbol showing a brake drum with a palm-up hand in the center; “Stop Applause?” Auto collision braking on/off, I’m guessing. The two-bin storage is now one, still has the USB port inside, and at the bottom of the center stack is a 12v port and a smaller one, which is not USB; Lightning charger I suspect, though I didn’t try it. Overall, It seems like a nice car, but not in my garage with the 3cyl.
Anyway, I asked for a Ranger loaner, but they had retired the lone 2019 they had in service and hadn’t put a ’20 in the pool yet. So, I was lent a 2020 Escape SE AWD (If they would add “Electronically Enacted” they could put all the alfa-babble together to make SEAWEED). I didn’t pay much attention to what all was on the car for options, but the SE’s standard-and-only package 200A is pretty well loaded. It did not have Co-pilot 360 (nav & adaptive cruise) but it did have old-school cruise.. The only engine available in an SE is the 3cyl. 1.5L EcoBoost Dragon, mated with the new 8-speed auto. Some minor differences in the 4G; the infotainment volume is now grouped in the left steering wheel pod so no longer dualled with the phone buttons. The controls have been changed from abbreviations to symbols. The 8” Sync3 screen now is a standard stand-alone device rather than integrated into the dashboard, and it is fixed, does not retract, although it looks like it could have been made that way. The wipers now operate in parallel rather than opposition. My preference is for opposing swipes, as “parallellers” leave a large swath of unswept windshield in the upper right corner. The heater controls are now much larger and easy to operate with gloved hands. Overall, an attractive update and some stuff moved around but nothing that I couldn’t get used to. Rear seat head and legroom appears larger the the 3G.
What I could not get used to was the Dragon engine. Man, this car is geared tall: ~1500 rpm @60 mph/100 kmh. At a steady speed there is a constant, intrusive booming drone, like a subwoofer in the car next to you at the light. At speeds between 50 and 75 mph in top gear it is very much present. If I was considering a 2020 Escape, It would be an SEL with the available 2.0L/AWD or the Sport Hybrid with AWD, provided they had acceptable NVH (Noise, Vibration, Harmonics) The car had only 121mi/194km on it when I drove it, so maybe it will get better with time. It shifted smoothly during acceleration and during hard acceleration, it got down 2-3 gears with minimal hesitation, much better than the 3G’s IMHO. Sounds kinda like a GEO Metro with Stage Three tuning, and feels like about the same power as the 1.5s and 1.6s in the third generation FE's. The SE's 8 speed is controlled with a knob on the center console, and it’s lit! But there is no manual shift mode, (only Low and Drive) as there still is on the 2.0L AWD, and it’s called AWD now, not 4WD. Rounding out the center console, Traction Control, Electric Parking Brake (I’m an every-timer), Start/Stop-OFF, and another switch with a symbol showing a brake drum with a palm-up hand in the center; “Stop Applause?” Auto collision braking on/off, I’m guessing. The two-bin storage is now one, still has the USB port inside, and at the bottom of the center stack is a 12v port and a smaller one, which is not USB; Lightning charger I suspect, though I didn’t try it. Overall, It seems like a nice car, but not in my garage with the 3cyl.
