The 2017 Ford Escape, which makes its debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show, gets a significant infusion of style, features and powertrain options to keep it fresh in the landscape of new crossover competitors.
While it’s not entirely redesigned, the 2017 Ford Escape gets a new face which sports a more toned down appeal. There’s a new grille, headlamps, and lower fascia which is clearly a family member to the new Ford Edge.
At the rear, new tail lights, rear deck panel, and lower fascia also mimic the more trapezoidal designs found up front. Six new wheel designs across the lineup help round out the changes including the 19-inch sport wheels shown here.
From the side view, the silhouette remains the same as before. And like the current model, the 2017 Ford Escape will come in trim levels S, SE and Titanium, but a new Sport Appearance Package will be available for SE and Titanium levels.
Powering the new Escape will be three engines. Standard on the Escape S is the 2.5 liter four-cylinder which carries over from the current model. The big news is the two new EcoBoost engines which come with upper level trims.
These start with the new 1.5-liter EcoBoost four which is standard on SE and Titanium. This new engine has an expected 180 horsepower and 185 lb.-ft. of torque and comes standard with an auto-start-stop system.
Optional on the SE and Titanium is the larger and more powerful twin-scroll turbocharged 2.0-liter EcoBoost. The second generation of this engine now has 245 horsepower and 275 pound-feet of torque. It also gets the auto-start-stop system.
The engine is expected to be more efficient yet more refined than the outgoing 2.0-liter EcoBoost, Ford says with a 4-6% increase in mpg. Both engines come standard with a six-speed automatic transmission, available with paddle shifters on Escape SE and Titanium.
So we have power, now Ford wants to empower its drivers with even more technology than ever before. That’s the big news here as the 2017 Ford Escape will offer several new techno-features from connectivity to driver-assistance.
It will be the first Ford to be available with SYNC Connect, which allows you to unlock doors, check fuel level and even locate where you parked it with an app on your smart phone. You can remote start on the fly or even schedule a start up.
New available driver-assists include adaptive cruise control and forward collision warning with brake support. There’s also a lane-keeping system with steering nudge and the latest and enhanced version of active park assist. All so you don’t have to work so hard at actually driving.
The cabin also gets a few mild updates including revised storage areas and an increased amount of USB ports for both charging and connectivity. After all, everybody wants some. Design wise, things are otherwise the same here, save for some new colors and patterns.
The 2017 Ford Escape will arrive in dealerships later in calendar year 2016 with official fuel-economy and specifications to be announced closer to that time.
