Posts Tagged ‘Ford Escape’
Test designed to replicate real-world crashes.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on May.16, 2013
The Subaru Forester was specifically designed to meet the new small overlap crash test.
Five popular small crossover-utility vehicles failed the new overlap crash test designed to simulate an impact with a pole or other narrow object — one of the more common sources of highway fatalities.
Only the 2014 Subaru Forester passed the test, earning a “good” rating from the trade group the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport landed an “acceptable” rating.
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Among the vehicles to fail the test, earning a “poor rating,” were the recently updated Ford Escape, the Jeep Patriot, the Buick Encore, the Kia Sportage and the Hyundai Tucson. The Jeep Wrangler, Nissan Rogue, Mazda CX-5, Volkswagen Tiguan and Honda CR-V were among those compact crossovers to earn a “marginal” rating.
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Tags: 2014 subaru forester, Ford Escape, Jeep Patriot, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, crossover crash tests, forester crash test, iihs crash test, mitsubishi outlander, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, small crossovers, small cuv, small overlap crash test, thedetroitbureau
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Sleek new cute ute is a major departure from the old box.
by Bryan Laviolette on Dec.26, 2012
Ford says the 2013 Ford Escape is as useful as the original, but now in a sleek and stylish package.
For me, a new Ford Escape is personal. Our 2002 model was simply the best car we’ve ever owned.
With its optional V-6, it was powerful, it was as maneuverable as a go-kart and it had an interior that simply could not possibly have fit inside what looked like a smallish sport utility on the outside. Tough grey plastic cladding on the bottom gave that original Escape a rough and read, youthful look and it brushed off road debris without trouble.
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There’s a good reason buyers have made it the best-selling small SUV on the market. It may have been a box, but it just worked.
But now Ford has built a new Escape, with swoopier styling, new powertrain options and a modern interior. The question is whether this new Escape can live up to or improve on one of the most useful vehicles of its size ever made.
Let’s take a look.
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Tags: 13 Escape, 13 Ford Escape, 2013 Escape, 2013 escape review, 2013 ford escape, 2013 ford escape review, Escape review, Ford Escape, Hyundai Tucson, MyFordTouch, TheDetroitBureau.com., auto news, auto review, bryan laviolette, car news, car review, hands-free liftgate, wave foot under bumper
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Maker remains committed to MyFordTouch despite problems.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Dec.19, 2012
Ford Chief Operating Officer Mark Fields insists recent quality problems are "isolated incidents."
Ford has long claimed that “Quality is Job 1,” though it has taken a drubbing in recent months for some nagging problems that have seen it tumble on quality and reliability surveys.
The maker intends to aggressively address such “isolated incidents,” Ford’s new Chief Operating Officer Mark Fields insists. That notably includes the maker’s Sync and MyFordTouch infotainment technologies which have come in for some of the sharpest criticism. But Ford will also have to deal with a variety of other problems that have seen some of its newest models repeatedly recalled in recent months, including a variety of recalls.
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“We’ve had a few issues,” acknowledges Fields, who until a few weeks ago served as Ford’s President of the Americas. “When we see a problem we go at it proactively to address the issue as quickly as possible.”
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Tags: Ford, Ford Escape, Mark Fields, MyFordTouch, auto news, car news, ford escape recall, ford fusion recall, ford news, ford quality, ford recalls, ford sync, infotainment, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau
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New models face risk of engine fire.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Dec.03, 2012
The new 2013 Ford Escape faces yet another recall.
Ford Motor Co.’s new Escape crossover has been the subject of a series of recalls since its mid-year debut – and now faces another as the automaker warns versions of the popular CUV equipped with a 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine could overheat and catch fire.
The problem also impacts the 2013 Ford Fusion. In all, about 89,000 of the two models – among Ford’s best-selling nameplates – are affected.
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The latest recall could prove a setback not just for the 2013 Fusion and Escape models but for Ford itself. The maker has been hammered in recent months in a series of customer satisfaction, quality and reliability surveys.
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Tags: 2013 ford escape, 2013 ford fusion, Ford Escape, Ford recall, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, ford ecoboost fire, ford ecoboost recall, ford engine fire, ford escape fire, ford escape recall, ford fusion, ford fusion fire, ford fusion recall, ford news, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau
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Escape with a luxury touch?
by Jim Dunne on Nov.01, 2012
Lincoln's new compact CUV ventures out with relatively little camouflage. Photo credit: Jim Dunne CAR SPY
Once one of the dominant luxury brands, Lincoln has slipped into near obscurity, in recent years, as it’s been passed by BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Lexus as well as cross-town rival Cadillac.
Part of the problem has been a lack of a competitive product portfolio. But now, Ford Motor Co. seems intent on giving Lincoln what it needs with an assortment of offerings that will cover a lot more white space over the next few years.
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The turnaround effort gets seriously underway in 2013 with the launch of an all-new Lincoln MKZ and is followed by, among other critical additions, an all-new sport-utility vehicle — shown here.
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Tags: Ford Escape, Jim Farley, Lincoln crossover, auto spies, car spies, car spy, compact lincoln crossover, ford news, jim dunne, lincoln cuv, lincoln escape, lincoln news, spy shots, thedetroitbureau
Posted in Automobiles | 13 Comments »
Strategy is to hit volume segments “quickly.”
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Aug.15, 2012
Could Lincoln find a way to turn the mainstream Focus into a new compact luxury sedan?
Expect to see Lincoln continue to downsize even as it expands, several company sources suggest. That’s not some Zen mantra but an increasing interest in smaller models that can flesh out the brand’s currently modest line-up.
Among the offerings likely to reach market over the next few years, the most certain is a compact crossover that will be based on the all-new Ford Escape platform and which may be sold as the MKC.
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“That’s where the real growth in the luxury market is coming from,” said a senior source with Ford Motor Co.’s luxury brand.
But, he quickly added, “We’re looking at our options in the compact sedan segment, as well,” which the source stressed is likely to be another high-growth segment in the coming years.
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Tags: Ford Escape, Lincoln MKZ, Mark Fields, auto news, car news, cj odonnell, ford news, lincoln compact crossover, lincoln compact cuv, lincoln compact sedan, lincoln ford escape, lincoln navigator, lincoln news, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, small luxury cars, thedetroitbureau
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New problem created by old fix.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jul.27, 2012
Ford has decided not to wait for the results of a NHTSA investigation into the 2001-2004 Escape.
Facing an investigation by NHTSA into work done under a previous callback Ford Motor Co. is now recalling nearly 500,000 of its older Escape SUVs because of a problem that could cause cruise-control cables to snag and lead the vehicle to begin racing out of control.
The recall applies only to V-6-powered versions of the popular Ford compact sport-utility vehicles built between the 2001 and 2004 model-years. But it could add to the embarrassment for the maker which already has had to issue a pair of recalls for the brand new version of the Escape.
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The recall of the older models of the SUV follows word that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would begin an investigation covering both the Escape and the virtually identical Mazda Tribute. In all, the probe targets 730,000 of the vehicles. It appears that not all the Escape models included in the NHTSA action are being recalled, however. The latest recall covers just 485,000 of the Ford utes.
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Tags: 2001-2004 ford escape recall, 2013 ford escape, 2013 ford escape recall, Ford Escape, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, clarence ditlow, escape cruise control, escape recall, ford escape recall, ford safety, nhtsa ford, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau
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Earlier recall may have created new problem.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jul.18, 2012
Federal regulators have targeted older Ford Escape models -. such as this 2001 -- and the Mazda Tribute in a new safety investigation.
Just days after the all-new 2013 Ford Escape became the target of a recall federal safety regulators revealed they have begun an investigation into older versions of the compact sport-utility vehicle – as well as the similar Mazda Tribute – due to a potential problem with sticky accelerators.
In all, 730,000 of the two vehicles – produced during the 2001 through 2004 model-years – are targeted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration probe. Only models using V-6 engines are covered.
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Ironically, the problem may have been caused by repairs made during an earlier recall due to an accelerator cable defect. More than 80% of the vehicles covered by the new investigation, about 590,000 in all, had been involved in that earlier safety-related action.
According to the safety agency, it has so far received 99 complaints – 68 of them involving the Ford Escape – and NHTSA says that it so far knows of 13 crashes, nine injuries and one death related to the problem.
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Tags: Ford Escape, Mazda Tribute, NHTSA, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, escape recall, escape safety, ford escape investigation, ford escape probe, mazda tribute probe, mazda tribute recall, nhtsa ford, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau, toyota recalls, toyota safety
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“Carpet entrapment,” transmission problems spur action.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jul.16, 2012
The first 10,000 of the new 2013 Ford Escape crossovers will be recalled.
Are automakers ordering more recalls this year? While it will likely be the end of 2012 before that question can be answered it certainly seems like more than a few days don’t go by without another headline about some safety problem or another leading to a new callback – or two, as is the case today.
The latest recalls come from Ford Motor Co., which is pulling the carpet out from underneath its new Escape crossover, so to speak, and from Volvo, whose S80 sedan appears to be slipping gears.
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The Ford recall is likely to make the most headlines as it impacts the all-new 2013 Escape, a hot-selling version of the makers long-running ute that this year migrated from a classic truck-like frame platform to an all-new, car-based crossover design.
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Tags: 2013 ford escape, Auto recalls, Ford Escape, Ford recall, auto news, auto safety, car news, car safety, ford escape recall, ford news, nhtsa recalls, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau, volvo news, volvo recall, volvo s80 recall
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Maker losing sales, share, officials warn.
by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jun.14, 2012
A worker installs a front end module on a new Ford Escape at the Louisville Assembly Plant.
With the formal production launch of its new Escape crossover-utility vehicle, Ford Motor Co. caps off a $600 million investment in its Louisville assembly plant, converting a traditional truck facility with limited flexibility to one that can handle six different car-based models simultaneously.
The project was meant to address several problems facing the automaker. Among other things, the massive factory will now be able to more rapidly adapt to shifts in market demand. But equally important, it is part of a broader effort by Ford to catch up to the surging U.S. market. Company officials have been warning that Ford is likely to lose sales and market share this year because it is running short of capacity after years of factory cutbacks.
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“Louisville Assembly Plant’s reinvention illustrates how Ford is going further, continuing to invest in American manufacturing and new jobs,” proclaimed Ford President of the Americas Mark Fields, “while delivering even more of the fuel-efficient vehicles that give customers true power of choice.”
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Tags: Alan Mulally, Ford Escape, Ford Sales, Louisville Assembly Plant, Mark Fields, auto jobs, auto news, auto sales, car news, car sales, ford capacity, ford louisville, ford market share, ford news, paul a. eisenstein, paul eisenstein, thedetroitbureau
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