The Ford Escape entered its third generation with the launch of a new model in April 2019, sales of which then started later the in the year. An important car for Ford, as it completes in the mid-size SUV segment of the market against big-sellers such as the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V, and at least a dozen other alternatives, it is also offered to Europeans bearing the name Kuga, where to all intents and purposes it is the same car, even down to the engine options on offer. With the end of US sales of all the non-SUV cars – Fiesta, Focus, Fusion and Taurus – this Ford simply has to succeed in the market if Ford, once such a dominant market force, is to retain any significant presence in the passenger car market beyond the iconic Mustang. Sales of the previous Escape had risen steadily during the 2010s, exceeding 300,000 units a year in the US form 2014 until 2017, but have since fallen sharply. The new car aimed to reverse that trend, without deviating far from the formula that allowed the car to be sold around the world either as an Escape or a Kuga. Although still obviously an SUV, the latest Escape has slightly more car-like and less boxy styling than its predecessor. Although larger than it is predecessor, thanks to both a longer wheelbase and wider track, the Escape is lighter than its predecessor. It was launched with the latest technology with 1.5 or 2.0 litre Ecoboost three or four cylinder engines and the choice of a regular hybrid or a PHEV version for those who wanted greater efficiency. It has taken a while for these cars to reach the rental fleets, as the previous generation cars – perfectly worthy machines even if they were never quite class champions – lived on well past the Covid recovery period, but they are now here, and so when I spotted one painted in a rather attractive bright blue that Ford call Atlas Blue Metallic, I decided to take it for the day to see what I thought of it.

I had high expectations that the Escape would prove to be good to drive, as Ford usually excel in this respect, only to trip up on some of the more qualitative aspects. Sadly, the Escape, at least in this guise proved not to be much fun at all. My car featured the three cylinder 1.5 litre Ecoboost engine, generating a class competitive 181 bhp and 199 lb/ft of torque, coupled to an eight speed automatic gearbox. Although this engine scores quite highly in other installations, such as the Fiesta ST, here it proved characterless. The car was pretty gutless at low revs, though it did wake up if pushed harder. Ford use the now fashionable cylindrical gearlever. The transmission itself was certainly smooth, but had clearly been configured to optimise economy rather than helping to deliver any form of sparkling performance. The engine is quite refined and generally noise levels were low. There was a bit of wind noise around the driver’s door but otherwise any other sources were well suppressed. There is an acoustic windscreen which undoubtedly helps. I covered a total of 181 miles in my day of testing. The trip computer said 31.1 mpg. I put in 6.1 gallons to fill it, which works out at 29.67 mpg US, or 35.45 mpg Imperial, suggesting I perhaps returned the car rather more full than it had been on collection.

It was not just the engine which let the side down from a driving pleasure point of view. The steering was surprisingly un-Ford like, lacking much in the way of feel and seeming rather lifeless. Putting it into Sport mode did help a bit. The handling is good, though, with plenty of grip and not that much in the way of body roll. The Escape, sitting on 225/65 R17 wheels, rides quite nicely, too. The brake pedal proved to be very mushy. Visibility is about as good as you get these days, and the Blind Spot Warning system certainly helped whilst out and about.

Ford have been trying harder to improve the perceived quality of their interiors in recent years, and whilst things are definitely better, they are still far from class-leading in this respect. The fit and finish is good, but the choice of materials is generally what lets the proverbial side down and there are still plenty of hard plastics used. This car has some rather odd scored fake wood trim and silver inlays. There is a plastic moulded wheel which feels a bit cheap on a car of this class. The dashboard is well laid out and easy to use. The instrument cluster contains a couple of large dials for speedometer and rev counter with two smaller ones for fuel level and water temperature between them, as is a trip computer display area, the menus for which you can cycle through using a button the right hand steering wheel spoke. Also there are audio repeater and cruise control buttons. There are a pair of column stalks, with lights operating from a rotary dial on the dash to the left of the wheel. The 8” infotainment screen stands proud of the top of the dash. Mostly driven by the touch interface, there are still some retained buttons for audio functions. The unit did offer up XM Satellite radio but not navigation. This SYNC3 system also includes Apple Car Play and Android Auto. Sound quality from the six speakers is respectable. Beneath this are a series of buttons for the air conditioning.

Ford use a rather odd ridged quilt effect cloth seat covering, presumably as they were hoping to provide a bit of visual stimulation to the cabin. The front seats are manually adjustable. The passenger has to do without height adjustment. There is a lot of headroom, which does give a feeling of space. Sadly, though, you may not be that comfortable, as I found there is a hard ridge at the base of the seat cushion. There are height adjustable seat belts.

There is plenty of space in the rear of the Escape. There is not much in the way of a central tunnel which means that even a middle seat occupant should not feel cramped. You can vary the angle of the backrest and the seats slide fore and aft which is relatively unusual in cars of this class. There’s not much provision for odds and ends, with just a single seat-back map pocket and the door bins are really not much use.

The boot is a good size, and there is more space under the floor. The rear seats are asymmetrically split and the backrests simply drop down, but when they do so, the resulting load bay is not flat, with a notable step up. Inside the cabin there are stowage areas in all the usual places, but most of them are less useful than you might expect. The glovebox is not very big, and whilst the door pockets look roomy, they prove not to be. There is also a cubby under the central armrest and a recess in front of the gearlever.

The 2022 Ford Escape is available in four trims: S, SE, SEL and Titanium. An eight-speed automatic transmission comes standard. All-wheel drive is available in the bottom three and standard in the top. The Escape S gets the turbocharged three-cylinder engine, plus cloth upholstery, a 4.2-inch digital gauge cluster, a 4.2-inch infotainment display, a six-speaker audio system, a USB port and a Wi-Fi hot spot. It also comes with a rearview camera, forward collision warning, pedestrian detection, forward automatic emergency braking, lane-keep assist, lane-departure warning, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and driver-attention monitoring. Some of these features are part of Ford’s Co-Pilot360 suite of driver-assistance tech. The SE builds on the base trim’s features with push-button start, an 8-inch touch screen, satellite radio, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. A few packages were available for the Escape when the car was new. The Ford Co-Pilot360 Assist+ package includes navigation, adaptive cruise control, lane-centring assist and traffic-sign recognition. The Cold Weather package includes automatic climate control, remote start, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. The Convenience package adds a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, dual-zone automatic climate control and a power liftgate. A panoramic sunroof is available, as well. The SEL comes with synthetic leather upholstery, a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, dual-zone automatic climate control, a power liftgate, remote start and rear parking sensors. This trim is available with the turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which pairs exclusively with all-wheel drive (that drivetrain is also available with this trim’s standard three-cylinder). A Technology package adds a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster, a hands-free power liftgate, a 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo and wireless device charging. A panoramic sunroof is available here too. Every Titanium model gets the four-cylinder engine and all-wheel drive. Also standard are genuine leather upholstery, a power-adjustable front passenger seat, adaptive cruise control, lane-centring assist, traffic-sign recognition, a hands-free power liftgate and navigation. A Titanium Elite package provides a head-up display, park assist, a 10-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo, HD Radio and wireless device charging. A panoramic sunroof is also available.

Sadly, I have to conclude that this generation of Escape is also not the class champion. It’s far from a bad car, but there are alternatives which are just that bit better. What surprised me was that the things Ford usually get right – driving dynamics – were the weakest feature, with the tepid performance and feeless steering providing disappointing. If you want the best driver’s car in the class, a Mazda CX-5 will have far more appeal. The Escape is roomy – though a Honda CR-V has more space in it – and it proved comfortable. Equipment levels are good, and the Escape was generally quite well finished. I don’t think you’d be unhappy with an Escape, but I do think you could be happier still with one of the alternatives.