2020 Ford Escape

The Escape comes in five different trim levels. The S starts with 17-inch steel wheels, while the SE adds alloy wheels and heated side door mirrors. Check out the SE Sport Hybrid for 19-inch alloy wheels with ebony-painted pockets, body-color door handles, LED lighting, and the option for black roof rails. A step up to the SEL gets you fog lights, a hands-free liftgate, and dual exhaust. The top-level Titanium has 19-inch alloy wheels, LED fog lights, and acoustic glass for the front windshield.

The Escape will offer four different powertrains. The base is a 1.5-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost turbo gas engine with 180 horsepower. This is the standard engine for the S, SE, and SEL. A 2.0-liter four-cylinder EcoBoost with 250 horsepower is an available option for the SEL and the Titanium, and the SE Sport Hybrid and the Titanium both come standard with a 2.5-liter four-cylinder and hybrid electric powertrain that generates 198 horsepower. A plug-in version of the hybrid model will become available later in the model year.

Both of the gas engines have plenty of power for daily driving and will accelerate quickly from a stop, but the turbo four-cylinder feels more powerful than the base engine. The base three-cylinder is more fuel-efficient than most other SUVs in this class, and no matter what engine you choose, the Escape a fun SUV to drive.

The Escape has room for five people with comfortable seats in both rows. For a small crossover, the Escape has a surprising amount of interior space with plenty of headroom even for taller rear-seat passengers. The base model has cloth-trimmed seats and a split-folding second-row seat. The SE adds heated front seats, the SEL has simulated leather upholstery, and the Titanium adds leather trim. The technology features start with a 4.3-inch touch screen, the SYNC infotainment system, voice recognition, 4G LTE Wi-Fi, and two smart charging USB ports. SYNC3 with Apple CarPlay, Amazon Alexa, WAZE, and Android Auto comes in the SE and above.

All the 2020 Escape models have Fords Co-Pilot360 suite, which includes forward-collision warning, lane-keeping assist, automatic emergency braking, a rearview camera, and pedestrian detection. It also comes with post-collision braking, automatic high-beam headlights, and blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-path monitoring. The Titanium models have Ford CoPilot360 Assist, which adds extra safety features such as a lane-centering for the adaptive cruise control, and it comes with front and rear parking sensors with audible indicators. The Titanium also has Active Park Assist 2.0. This system will automatically park the Escape without help from the driver.