so after the F150 I was considering, I started getting cold feet and felt that it was a bad trade on my end. but that still didnt resolve the issue that Im simply not comfortable driving with my son in my ranger. so I did some more looking and have found someone who has a 2002 Ford Escape he is looking to trade for a truck for work. Ive contacted him and he likes my truck and wants to go to the next step.
the escape has 128k has just had a major tuneup done, but does have a couple of minor problems such as needing new ball joints or connecting rods (not sure which yet) new tires, and one of the window regulators disintegrated and the window is "clamped" in the up position, also has a small dent in one of the front fender panels. I forgot to ask about the AC (a must in FL for the summer) but Im guessing it must be in working order since he drives the escape 100 miles to and from work every day.
he sent me pics immediately, even before he saw the pics of my truck, so he doesnt actually act like he is hiding anything.

now, my question for everyone is this:
what are the known problems I might be facing with the escape. I know it has the same engine as my ranger (3.0l Vulcan) which Im happy with as I feel like I can truly rely on my ranger. but what about drivetrain issues, or trans issue, or anything else I need to know about before I go the next step ?

 

Well, i don't know very much about Escapes. . . . . but the Escape that you are describing doesn't sound like it would be a good trade. Too many miles first of all, plus the things that need to be fixed on it. How many miles is on your Ranger? What year is your Ranger?

 

sorry, I always forget that part lol
my ranger is a 99 XLT supercab with 166k 3.0l engine, 2wd
everything works except the interior lights (disconnected because of the "door ajar" issue)
and the wipers are glitchy (only works in high, occasionally on low but intermediate doesnt work and they stop moving wherever they are when you turn them off) which is just the switch on the column.
they are not an issues for me so I never bothered to fix them.

I think its a fairly even trade, my truck is older with higher miles, but is well taken care of. his might be taken care of and the problems are just common issues with the escape, or he might not have taken care of it I might be looking at fixing his mess. Im simply not sure.
I havent been able to find a whole lot of info online, which I take as a good thing

 

i say hold off and wait for something with less miles and fewer issues to come around

 

got pics of the escape

at this time, Im leaning towards it, the few things Ive been able to find online have pointed to it being a pretty good vehicle. the few things Ive found problematic have occured @ the pre-70k mark.
anyways, setting up to meet with him either tomorrow or Sat to go over each others vehicles so I guess I will know better then on its condition.
also found out the escape has leather int

 

I had a 2009 escape for a company car .It is a car ,not built on a truck platform.
The engine is transverse mounted and very cramped.Difficult to get to anything to work on.
The under carridge and suspension is weak .don't plan on putting anything heavy in it.
A friend had a 2002 on a lift and was amazed at the rusted out components at 100k miles.All the steering gear was shot already.
Walk away from it.

 

Do you happen to know if the guy took good care of it? If he recently did a major tune up, maybe he did as a selling bonus, and to cover up the fact that he didn't really took good care of it until he wanted to sell/trade it. Guess you'll find out that once you go and see it in person. An uncle had a 02 like and it had problems shifting reverse.

 

yes, actually he did just have a tune up done, new coils, new plugs/wires and a new alt, which apparently, as OTRtech mentioned, is a PITA to do avg cost being $500.0 in a shop.

things that I have found so far are trans going out on some under the 70k mark, AC failures, again in the very low mileage range and the mentioned pita of replacing alt's.
since this escape has 128k, and both the trans still being fine and the AC working great (according to him) Im not overly concerned with those issues.
the only thing that does have me concerned is the ball joints needing replaced and he said the EGR is throwing codes at random times.
he seems to be fairly honest as he isnt hiding anything that I can tell, but which I'll hopefully find when I see it in person.

if it wasnt for my son, I wouldnt even consider it, but I really do need a more family friendly vehicle that I can also do some towing with.

 

I actually considered getting a Escape, since there were no available crewcab Rangers around at the time I had no car/truck. I got to ride one with leather interior. It was nice to drive (imo). Too bad i had no money then. Not because one person had an issue with a car/truck, it means you'll have the same issue. I knew my uncle had that issue with the trans and I still went and look at them. If I recall correctly, it was the same color as the one you posted.

 

my best friends wife has one, ive drivin it a few times and i dont like them, its like driving a lifted car feeling. i found it to be uncomfortable and cramped and rather chinsey on the interior...and thats compared to an xlt ranger ::/

all and all i would say it depends on you and your needs and if you think the owner is legit when they tell you all these good things... and have to consider why THEY would want to trade down to an older 2wd ranger with less miles.

another thing you need to consider(cant belive im actually saying this) is the economy. right now dealers will pay good money for small pick ups that get decent milage. there are tons of people downsizing becasue of fuel costs and high car payments. with that dealers will want your car, its an easy turn around for them. they will try and rape you, but thats what they do...you can hold out for a good deal or price and they will most likly take it or work with you.

in short i would go shopping.

 

yea, Ive also considered those options, but I was told by one dealer they would give me at most 2700 for my truck, of which my reply wasnt something I should post on here
and he was an acquaintance of mine.
anyways, I also have been offered several times between 4200 and 4500 from various people, which I guess I should have taken, but I wasnt looking to sell at the time.

Im not committed to the trade, but I am going to look at his vehicle. the one thing I didnt realize until last night while doing some research, is the escape is FWD, I thought it was RWD
how does that affect towing ?

the reason he is looking for a truck is for work purposes, his job requires him to have to carry some tools and tow a decent sized trailer on occasion, which he has been using the escape for these things. so Im ready for some interior issues, but cosmetics I can accept and deal with, its not like my truck is bump and scratch free. Im sure the reason he is interested in my ranger is because its just plain damn secsi

 

Is the guy willing to trade the escape without asking some money for it? You mentioned he needs a truck for work, so he might be in a hurry. but the Escape is worth more than a Ranger, ain't it?

 

this would be a straight up trade, no money involved.
his asking price was $4,000.0 (which is on the low end of KBB) or trade for a truck
pricing on KBB, NADA and edmunds were from 3600.0 to 7000.0 depending on condition. Id put his (if everything he said is true) above the 4k mark, and then there was the other guy who was asking 4500.0 or trade for a ranger/s-10 for his 01 escape with no AC and needing a few other things as well.

the guy with the 02 that Im more interested in did say today that he is going to look into replacing 2 tires since 2 are in really bad shape, and seeing as we live a good 3 hrs apart, one of us is going to have to drive it at least 1.5 hrs, which he said he wouldnt trust 1 of the tires to last that long, and the other tire in poor shape has a nail in it.

all in all, I honestly wouldnt even consider this trade if it wasnt for my son, I have to keep him as paramount in any decision, if I feel the escape isnt as safe, or is going to fall apart on me in a months time, then I wont go through with it.

 

I cant do it
I was going through my truck tonight, getting it ready for him to look at, and it just hit me, I simply cannot do it.

 

Good choice.

 

yea, I think so too.

<- me loves me truck