Test drive: 2013 Ford Escape is all-new, with sleek looks

— -- Ford Motor remade its Escape compact SUV so thoroughly that only the name and one engine carry over into the 2013.

The 2013 even is made at a different factory, now in Louisville, instead of near Kansas City, Mo.

The boxy old Escape was a big seller for Ford, so starting over was a risk. The new version hit showrooms in June and sales that month jumped 28% from a year ago, according to Autodata. But sales tumbled nearly 12% in July.

The July slip was at least partly because of recalls. One recall is because the carpet might interfere with the brake pedal. The other one is for potential fire risk in models with the 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine, the one that most people are expected to choose.

Ford banned dealers from selling those models until they were fixed.

Ford is telling owners not to drive them and is having dealers pick up the vehicles to fix them.

The new styling is arresting, and upper-level models have premium interiors and a list of features befitting luxury models.

The base model with the engine from last year's Escape is intended mainly for commercial and fleet buyers and finished last among six competitors in the Cars.com/USA TODAY/Motor Week $25,000 Compact SUV Shootout published July 23.

The 1.6- and 2-liter engines are what Ford calls "EcoBoost" — Ford's heavily marketed brand name for engines that use a combination of turbocharging and direct injection, the newest type of fuel injection that can boost both power and fuel economy.

On the plus side:

•Comfortable seats. The padding appears thin, but could be an illusion. No distress on long road trips. The back has adult leg and toe space, and the rear seat back reclines.

•Tech gadgets. One optional system warns of cross traffic when you back up and tells if the traffic's coming from the right or left. Not unique, but still uncommon, especially in smaller vehicles.

Another lets you open the tailgate with a kicking gesture under the rear bumper, nice when your hands are full. It only works if the key's nearby, so your pets dashing under the car won't trigger the gate (unless your dog swallowed your key fob).

•Sleek looks. The previous Escape was boxy. The new one's not. Its roofline is about 4.5 inches lower, and ground clearance drops half an inch.

The streamlining makes the 2013 look smaller, but it's not. The 2013 has a slightly longer, wider body than the previous model. It rides on a longer wheelbase and a wider track, so looks and feels more stable.

But despite the stretched wrapper, the 2013 Escape isn't uniformly bigger inside. It has less shoulder room, but more hip room. Less headroom, more legroom. Slightly less passenger space overall, slightly more cargo space.

Besides the curious lack of a bigger interior, other factors dampen enthusiasm for the Escape.

Impressions are from a couple of days in a mid-level, front-drive model (about $29,000), and a week that included a 1,300-mile road trip in a Titanium all-wheel drive (about $35,000, and that's without leather upholstery or a sunroof).

Issues:

•Drivetrain performance. The FWD model had the 1.6-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder that's surprisingly quick and would be a good choice for many buyers. But its six-speed automatic engaged harshly when being shifted from reverse into drive twice. Worked fine otherwise.

The 2-liter turbo in the Titanium AWD has 240 horsepower, plenty for a vehicle this size. But the automatic acted as if were a less-powerful engine that needed help from frequent downshifts. Even a light push on the gas pedal, or a slight uphill grade, causes the gearbox to interrupt the smooth flow of power with a pause, then a downshift.

Too, the gearbox paused disturbingly before it executed the downshifts.

Using the "sport" mode minimizes the annoyances, but doesn't eliminate them. And it keeps the engine revved faster longer, so uses more fuel.

Ford says it wanted easily triggered downshifts to give the vehicle a peppy feel. And the automaker says Escape shifts in about 0.9 of a second, quicker than the 1.2 seconds Ford considers good.

•Engine shimmies. Fixed, Ford says. Engine mounts on some early production vehicles could stiffen and transmit too much vibration to the passenger compartment. Installation tweaks at the factory resolved the issue, the automaker says.

•Small fuel tank. Not tiny, but a marginal 15.1 gallons, down from 17.5 gallons in the previous Escape, and less than the competition. Ford says the higher mpg ratings of the new Escape — typically 25 mpg in combined city/highway driving — should make the smaller, lighter tank sufficient.

But the Titanium AWD test vehicle registered lower mileage, about 19 mpg in the suburbs, 24 mpg in hilly highway driving, so it seemed as if we were stopping for gas a lot.

The Escape should be a very appealing package: Sexy shape, advanced EcoBoost engine technology, the comfy interior with classy, near-luxury trim on most models — yum.

But the gripes prevent a hearty thumbs-up.

•What? Radical remake of five-passenger, front- or all-wheel-drive (FWD or AWD) crossover SUV. Based on modified Focus sedan chassis.

•When? On sale since June.

•Where? Made at Louisville, Ky.

•How much? $23,245 with shipping for base FWD model to nearly $38,000 for loaded, AWD Titanium trim. Test vehicles were a midlevel SEL with FWD, about $29,000, and high-end Titanium AWD, about $35,000.

•What makes it go? Engine on base model is 2.5-liter four-cylinder rated 168 horsepower at 6,000 rpm, 170 pounds-feet of torque at 4,500.

Standard on SE and SEL trims: 1.6-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder rated 178 hp at 5,700 rpm, 184 lbs.-ft. at 2,500. Models with that engine were recalled in July because of possible fuel leaks and fires due to improperly installed fuel lines.

Optional (standard on Titanium): 2-liter EcoBoost four rated 240 hp at 5,500, 270 lbs.-ft. at 3,000.

1.6- and 2-liter engines rated using premium; expect about 5-hp loss if you use regular fuel, Ford says.

All engines use six-speed automatic transmission.

AWD system anticipates need to send power to rear wheels instead of waiting for front-wheel spin; can send up to 100% of power to front or rear wheels.

•How big? A few inches longer, slightly wider, roughly 200 lbs. heavier than either the old Escape or the new Honda CR-V. New Escape is 178.1 inches long, 72.4 in. wide, 66.3 in. tall on a 105.9-in. wheelbase. Weighs 3,515 to 3,732 lbs.

Passenger space, 98.1 cubic feet. Cargo, 34.2 cu. ft. behind rear seat, 68.1 cu. ft. when rear's folded. Tows 1,500 to 3,500 lbs.

Turning circle, 38.7 ft.

•Hows thirsty? Rated 21 to 23 mpg in the city, 28 to 33 highway, 24 to 27 in city/highway mix.

Titanium AWD test vehicle with 2-liter turbo registered 18.5 mpg (5.41 gallons per 100 miles) in suburban driving, 24.3 mpg (4.12 gal./100 mi.) in hilly highway driving.

Regular-grade fuel is recommended for all engines, but power ratings of two turbo engines were achieved on premium, Ford says.

•Overall: Sexy-looking, comfy package that could use a little more drivetrain refinement.