2014 Mazda CX-5 vs 2013 Ford Escape

[Mithan]

Other than cost and gas mileage, why would you choose a CX-5 over the ford?

My bro is buying one of those this week!

(rolleyes)

Well IMO, the CX-5 blows the door off the Escape exterior "looks" wise. It also has better fuel mileage and less complexity, which I think many people will enjoy after 5 years of ownership.

On the flip side, the Escape just blows the CX-5 away when it comes to overall toys, plus the Escape integrates all controls into the car, which the CX-5 doesn't. I am specifically refering to MyFordTouch, which is probably the future of cars (for better or worse).

Of course, all of that costs more. A fully loaded Escape Titanium is about $10k more here than the GT.

My brother Test Drove the Escape SEL AWD and the Mazda CX-5 GT yesterday. He liked the Escape more, primarily due to all the awesome "toys" you get, which he really wants.

Myself, I would take the CX-5 any day of the week. If I didn't know a new car is a waste of money, I would buy one tomorrow. Instead, I am waiting for a used 2013 or 2014 to show up and let somebody else take that major depreciation hit on the first year, which in my neck of the woods is in the $10k region.

 

[babaoriley7]

We have both in our family. My wife's is a company car so cost was not a factor.

The rated MPG is not happening on the Ford. We average 22 with some longer drives mixed in. I've never gotten close to the 30 they rate for highway - I think I saw 26 when I reset it for a single long highway drive.

I like the steering wheel better on the ford, but that is about it for styling. I hate the engine on the ford, the shift points are out of wack for me, sometimes revving way up into the 5,000 rpms. The turbo is nice in theory, but I believe it contributes to worse than advertised MPG and odd transmission shift points, but that might just be something I need to get used to.

The voice commands are useless on the ford, but you probably expect that. Sounds like they are similarly bad on the Mazda (I have the MTX with the crappy radio).

All in all, there are some nice features on the Ford, but the big hits it takes in reliability, existing recalls, and general design (IMO) are not enough to take over what is lacking in the Mazda. My two cents.

 

[MikeM.]

All in all, there are some nice features on the Ford, but the big hits it takes in reliability, existing recalls, and general design (IMO) are not enough to take over what is lacking in the Mazda. My two cents.

Yes, I forgot about the reliability factor - The new Escape is looking dismal compared to the CX-5:

http://www.truedelta.com/Mazda-CX-5/reliability-1093/vs-Escape-82

 

[New CX-5]

I love "tech toys" more than anyone, I literally carry around 3 smartphones and I spend way to much on each of them (full price!) I have a retina macbook pro, all the newest stuff. My girlfriend hates it, and I am the first to admit I have a problem with it! With my crazyness in mind, I still wouldnt fall pray to the my ford touch. Nothing more annoying then car tech not working right. MFT may be the future, however the tech simply isnt there yet. Look at the apple approach, they usually arent first on an idea, but when they do implement it they have it pretty much nailed. Some examples, all the crappy windows smartphones and tablets, NFC on android, etc.

 

[JohnJr]

Yes, I forgot about the reliability factor - The new Escape is looking dismal compared to the CX-5:

http://www.truedelta.com/Mazda-CX-5/reliability-1093/vs-Escape-82

VIRUS ALERT ON THE LINK ABOVE

My Norton said something like cve2013 blah blah blah...be careful!!!!

 

[icarlos]

Crap!!! Glad I'm using a Mac!!!(smoke)

 

[ekcooper]

I liked the looks of the CX-5 better (inside and out). That "older" interior look to me looks simpler to me. The inside of the Escape seems a bit more confining. I honestly really liked the Rogue the best, but wanted the cargo space of the CX-5 (and the back seats lay almost flat).

 

[Seminole]

VIRUS ALERT ON THE LINK ABOVE

My Norton said something like cve2013 blah blah blah...be careful!!!!

That's odd, because True Delta is a reputable car website.

 

[MikeM.]

VIRUS ALERT ON THE LINK ABOVE

Wow! You might as well yell "FIRE" in a crowded theater. My virus software has no issues with the site and I have not experienced any questionable behavior either at the site or from having visited it.

But I fully admit that the results at that site do not paint the the 2013 Ford Escape in a favorable light when it comes to reliability/trips to the dealer.

 

[JohnJr]

Well I check it again and nothing came up. They may have removed it already. Being a computer manager for over 20 years I have pretty much seen it all...and most people are not like me who update their virus protection everytime before I log onto the internet.

 

[xtrailman]

After reading the last post I thought it would be ok to use the link.

Well it isn't I've be attacked by something nasty, not sure what, but something has screwed up some of my programs.
MSE DETECTED IT BUT FROZE UP.

Wow! You might as well yell "FIRE" in a crowded theater. My virus software has no issues with the site and I have not experienced any questionable behavior either at the site or from having visited it.

But I fully admit that the results at that site do not paint the the 2013 Ford Escape in a favorable light when it comes to reliability/trips to the dealer.

 

[MikeM.]

Your computer may have other unrelated issues. The site is well respected and appears benign to my two computers.

The site is sponsored by advertising and some Web Protection software might respond to that but it shouldn't do anything malicious.

 

[Gio26NJ]

Probably a javascript issue (unless xtrailman's post was a joke sort of got a funny tone to it), I recommend downloading this little addon called NoScript. Yeah, you need to add individual sites that you access to their whitelist by clicking their little logo and saying "add www.mazdas247.com". I feel it gives you more control over some nasty script related issues. AdBlock Plus is awesome also.

 

[xtrailman]

No joke.
I'm running a malicious software tool to remove it, hopefully.

 

[Okeano]

Ford is American, /thread. I will never own a US made car after watching my college roommate's 5 year old US car literally fall to pieces. Really smart to use cheap plastic to make door handle bars, because those aren't important or get used often. It's just the general attitude and reliability of the US auto industry.

Mazdas are classy, sporty, driver's cars. They're working hard to create driver friendly cars and are winning the hearts of people who actually love to drive, instead of seeing driving as a task. Mazda has the brain to NOT control every function of the car with one system, not to mention an unreliable one.

I love my CX-5 to death.

 

[CX-SV]

Not loving my CX-5 to death, but I do like it very much. I do find the CX-5 reliability to be excellent after 1 year/16K miles, and much better than my 2007 Ford.

 

[TreyP]

Coming into the CX-5 from a Tacoma, and from an Escape Hybrid before that, I can tell you the the CX-5 quality is sorely lacking in a lot of places. Just push on the plastic close to the shifter for one example, push up on the rear headliner for another. Really cheap construction in many areas. But, in other areas the CX-5 quality is excellent. My first test is always the 'door close test'. The CX-5 shuts with a nice solid thump, not a tinny clink like the Forester for example, the soft material used on the dash is another example of good quality in the Mazda.

Overall, the good quality points outweigh the bad ones, but I think Mazda has a way to go to catch up with Toyota and Ford. Like it or not, those are consistently rated the top 2 for quality amongst all auto makers.

With all that said, I absolutely love my CX-5 and wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

[CX-SV]

Coming into the CX-5 from a Tacoma, and from an Escape Hybrid before that, I can tell you the the CX-5 quality is sorely lacking in a lot of places. Just push on the plastic close to the shifter for one example, push up on the rear headliner for another. Really cheap construction in many areas.

.

IMHO, I don't consider the give around shifter or rear headliner give as examples of poor quality. These 2 areas are not normal touch areas and are not worth adding additional weight, bulk and expense.

They might be considered examples of lightweight/Skyactiv construction.

 

[Kayger12]

IMHO, I don't consider the give around shifter or rear headliner give as examples of poor quality. These 2 areas are not normal touch areas and are not worth adding additional weight, bulk and expense.

They might be considered examples of lightweight/Skyactiv construction.

This.

I also am having trouble seeing how Ford can be considered consistently in the top two in quality. JD Power rates them good in a few segments, but certainly no more than many others.

 

[Okeano]

Coming into the CX-5 from a Tacoma, and from an Escape Hybrid before that, I can tell you the the CX-5 quality is sorely lacking in a lot of places. Just push on the plastic close to the shifter for one example, push up on the rear headliner for another. Really cheap construction in many areas. But, in other areas the CX-5 quality is excellent. My first test is always the 'door close test'. The CX-5 shuts with a nice solid thump, not a tinny clink like the Forester for example, the soft material used on the dash is another example of good quality in the Mazda.

Overall, the good quality points outweigh the bad ones, but I think Mazda has a way to go to catch up with Toyota and Ford. Like it or not, those are consistently rated the top 2 for quality amongst all auto makers.

With all that said, I absolutely love my CX-5 and wouldn't trade it for anything.

Speaking as an engineer tho, the top plate of the shifter casing should see zero stress under normal operation, so there's not really a point to make it out of let's say 1/4" thick plastic all around. It's firm where it needs to be (door handles, overhead grips), and saves weight on where it can. CX-5 aimed to reduce as much weight as possible w/o compromising structural integrity.

As for the headliner, I noticed it was sort of hollow and not directly attached to the roof, so it's really easy to be pushed up. Not sure what the reason for that is. Maybe it's for better insulation, sort of like double layered glass window.