Ford Escape SE (2013)

Pros
Attractive, modern looking design.
The Escape is built on the excellent Ford Focus platform, which helps explain why it’s almost fun to drive.
It’s a nice sized vehicle. Not huge. Yet there’s enough room in the back seat to carry passengers, and enough room in the cargo compartment for a reasonable amount of stuff.
Better visibility than the other crossover SUVs, including the Mazda CX-5 we drove just prior to the Escape.
Decent MPG -- especially on the highway. We got high 20’s on the highway, low 20’s around town, about 25 overall, with more highway than city.
State-of-the-art, 1.6 liter, GDI (Gas Direct Injection) turbo-charged engine has more than enough power despite its small size. You know what else has a 1.6 liter engine? The Mini. So it’s impressive to power a 3,502-pound car so comfortably with an engine that small. Welcome to the future.
Considering the engine’s size, it’s nice and quiet, too, except under hard acceleration. (And an engine is supposed to make noise then!)
High-quality feel, compared to the older Ford Escape -- the items you touch every day, like directional controls and the steering wheel, have a sense of solidity and quality about them.

Cons
Could use a backup camera.
The ride was firm, and to some, a bit harsh on some roads.
Both the Honda CR-V and the Mazda CX-5 offer a softer, more comfortable ride, in exchange for some handling prowess. But both have a better reliability records. (Recent J.D. Powers reports about Ford’s lackluster quality ratings are a source of concern.)
SYNC (voice-controlled) audio, telephone and climate-control system is still buggy and hard to get used to. We spent a lot of time with our eyes off the road trying to handle basic chores.
With a starting list price of $22,470 for the base, two-wheel-drive, S model, Ford is positioning the Escape as a premium offering in its class. It starts $1,500 higher than the Mazda CX 5, and is only a few hundred dollars cheaper than the equivalent Honda CR-V, which has a time-tested record of reliability.