Ford introduces plug-in Escape, drops price of electrified vans

Wednesday, 14 July 2021

Ford has showed off the first examples of the Puma and Escape SUVs, as well as the plug-in hybrid Transit Custom van.

Ford is working hard to realign its fleet to take advantage of the Clean Car Discount. The fees kick in next year for the more polluting vehicles and Ford knows a few of its current vehicles will be hurt. So, as part of its bid to reduce its overall emissions and offer more options that qualify for the rebate part of the Discount, it is bringing in more plug-in and fully electric models.

The first new model is the plug-in hybrid Escape SUV, while the already on-sale Transit Custom PHEV will get a price drop to bring it under the $80,000 mark. Ford wants 40 per cent of its fleet to be electrified by 2030.

Ford hasn’t said exactly how far below that point the plug-in Transit will fall but remember the rebate only applies to vehicles that ask less than $80 including on-road costs and GST, which Ford wants the Transit to get.

The plug-in hybrid Escape is here, as Ford aims to introduce more electrified models.

Around Q2 next year we will see the all-electric Transit arrive in New Zealand, which will sit in the ‘zero band’. That means that it won’t qualify for a rebate as it weighs more than 3.5 tonnes, regardless of being electric, even if Ford can get its final price below the $80k mark.

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Slightly embarrassing signage aside, you wouldn’t easily be able to tell the plug-in from the normal Escape.

* Full steam ahead for ute sales

* Ford prepares for incoming plug-ins

A fully digital dash comes with the high-spec ST-Line X model.

* Ford shows off new SUV and electrified additions

The plug-in Escape could be the best city car Ford currently offers.

Ford NZ boss, Simon Rutherford, said there’s a chance those regulations will be changed before the e-Transit lands here to qualify it for a rebate but couldn’t say for certain.

But, in the meantime, Ford's plug-in range has been expanded by one with the new Escape PHEV.

The plug-in SUV will come in two flavours, the standard version and the ST-Line X, which cost $60,990 and $66,990 respectively. Both qualify for the $5750 Government rebate.

Specification levels are impressive, with things like wireless charging, FordPass remote vehicle start/vehicle location, an 8.0-inch infotainment screen, and a full driver assistance suite all standard. ST-Line X models get an additional 12-inch digital driver display, a head-up display, hands-free boot operation, ten-speaker Bang and Olufsen speaker system and a 180-degree reversing camera.

As for performance and technical stuff, Ford says the Escape PHEV will run up to 59km on electric power alone thanks to a 14.4kWh battery, emit 33g/km of CO2 and consume 1.5L/100km of fuel on average.

The powertrain comprises a 2.5-litre petrol engine and a single electric motor, making a combined 167kW of power. Ford doesn’t quote torque figures in this case.

Drivers can also recharge the battery with the engine if they need to, or let the system figure out when to let the engine chime in. You can also simply plug the car into a wall outlet at home as well, like any other plug-in vehicle, where it will take six hours to fully charge.

We got a small opportunity to drive the PHEV, which proved that this is simply an Escape with a greener powertrain.

That’s a good thing, because the Escape is a very good thing. We didn’t get the chance to test the dynamics much, but the ride in urban areas is great and the quiet, smooth running of the electric motor is very welcome.

When it fires up, the 2.5-litre engine has an interesting, gruff tone to it, but it’s noticeably less pleasant to cruise with. It’s paired with a CVT transmission, which does sap some fun.Considering the Escape uses the same C2 platform as the Focus, we would expect Ford’s claim that this is the best handling Escape yet holds up. Testing that will have to wait for a longer session.