Exterior

The hot red paint color, Torch Red, on the Escape I tested was so much fun I felt like I was driving a little fire engine. And the color drew looks when Escapes of other colors wouldn’t. Along with the new styling comes a chrome grille that adds some more flash and spices up the formerly mild exterior.

Do you want to know the funny thing, though? I kept calling the Escape a Jeep. I know I should definitely know better. But the Escape’s newer, boxier styling just kept reminding me of that other four-letter word.

I liked driving the Escape. There was some perkiness to it, and it was easy to park and maneuver. In the suburbs where I live, it’s the Land Of Ginormous SUVs. I liked that the Escape is a smaller package, but it wasn’t completely dwarfed when I parked between two gigantic SUVs. I still had some height and visibility.

It was easy for my kids to get into and out of the Escape. This might not be the case if yours are young or still a bit petite. Anyway, the doors weren’t too heavy, and they weren’t tinny or cheap-feeling. The tailgate was easy to open and close. Overall, the Escape was easy to manage, much like that quick three-day weekend getaway.

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