It’s Ford time

Email to a friend Printer friendly Font: * * * * Despite the load, plus the extra mass (about 130 kilograms), the hybrid’s battery, electric motor and related items add to the Escape’s overall weight, the vehicle performed with sufficient vigour, accelerating briskly and cruising the highways with ease. The Escape Hybrid is the only 2008 Ford product using a CVT (continuously variable transmission).

The technology has been abandoned in favour of a new six-speed automatic in other models that previously offered a CVT, such as the 2007 Five Hundred and Taurus. This transmission continuously varies the engine speed and gearing to meet power demands rather than dropping down a gear or two. As a result, it was a bit of an adjustment to hear the engine spooling up considerably as we approached grades, even though the throttle position remained constant.

As the trip wore on, however, this became less noticeable. Our route took us north to Tobermory, then a two-hour voyage aboard the MS Chi-Cheemaun to Manitoulin, disembarking at South Baymouth for a one-hour jaunt to Mike’s Park Resort, a campground near Kagawong. The unspoiled beauty of the area defies description, with crystal clear lakes, rocky terrain and a variety of vegetation. As first-time visitors, a spectacular vista seemed to spread out ahead of us around every curve.

Dealing with the winding roads was never an issue for the Escape. It had minimal body roll, despite the load it was carrying, and the ride was quite comfortable. The electric power steering didn’t exhibit the numbness often associated with such systems, providing decent feel as our tester wound its way through the region.